Does your computer have a Backup Towel?

Have you ever stepped out of the shower to find you didn’t have a towel handy! It can be a frightening experience to realize you are vulnerable, exposed and all wet.

This used to happen to me on occasion – particularly on wash day. Sure, we’d have clean towels, but they’d be somewhere else in the house waiting to be folded and neatly hung on the towel rod again.

I suppose that is why the movie Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy struck a chord with me when Ford exclaims: “If you want to survive out here, you've got to know where your towel is.”

A few years ago my creative wife solved the problem. We now have a set of “backup towels” near the shower. If we happened to be distracted while doing the wash, then find ourselves with a towel waiting to be folded, there’s no worries now about stepping out of the shower naked and unprepared! A simple, yet creative solution.

Do you have a backup towel?

Does your computer have a backup towel?

Okay, so your computer doesn’t need to bathe regularly, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t important to have a backup. Here are some quick-n-dirty ways of keeping your data safe:

• Working on an important document? Save versions of it regularly by simply adding 1, 2, 3, etc. to the filename.

• Email a document to yourself. Gmail is great for this – lots of free space and you’ll likely never fill it up!

• Use Windows’ (Linux, Mac O/S) free backup utility and backup to an External Hard Disk drive – less expensive than Tape and more reliable than CDs or DVDs.

• Use an online backup service. Personally I use CrashPlan and love it! Get a free Trial here: http://burgoynecomputers.com

• Copy your treasured files to a Flash Drive and drop it in a Fire Safe.

• Running a small business? Use that Fire Safe at home for off-site backup storage and media rotation plan.

And don’t forget your towel!

Rand Burgoyne

Phishing scams

Phishing scams are on the rise. I’ve received a record number via email and even text messages on my cell phone lately. Threat is growing, and being aware of the threats will help us all avoid identity theft.

 

Phishing is where scammers pretend to represent your financial institution in order to trick you into giving them personal information. They can be very convincing, and then use this information for various reasons; to make purchases, withdraw money from your account, or even create false IDs, Driver Licenses and Passports.

 

Simply don’t reply to these messages. Don’t click the web links or call the numbers in the message. If you are concerned, or think the information is valid, go to the financial institutions website and contact them from there, or call the customer service number on the back of your credit card, and they will quickly resolve it.  They want to stop the phishing as much as you do.

 

If someone calls you from your financial institution they will NOT ask for PINs, or SSNs. They may ask you to provide a “password” that you used to open the account. If YOU call them they will ask for Account Number and last four digits of the SSN, but NEVER the entire SSN or PIN. Also, simply ask them if they can verify that they REALLY represent your financial institution. If it is a valid call, they will be happy to comply. Otherwise, they will usually hang-up at that point. Otherwise, don’t succumb to badgering – just hang up.

 

As a best practice, don’t accept ANY phone solicitations. Super deals on mortgages, home warranties, car warranties, and even charitable organizations are simply a cover that scammers use to try to get your personal information. Simply say “No Thank you” and hang up. 

 

Rand Burgoyne