RESCUECOM CEO Advises How to be Safe Online

RESCUECOM Offers Expert's Guide to Keeping your Computer Running and Data Safe

SYRACUSE, N.Y., July 25, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- If you are reading this, there is a good chance that you have at least one if not two computers.

They provide tremendous tools to learn about the world outside, earn a living, getting a school degree and enjoying our free time. That is when they are working well. Unfortunately, computers can and do malfunction.

So how do you reduce that possibility and who do you go to for help?

The second part is easy. RESCUECOM has been helping computer owners for years salvaging hundreds of thousands of computers as their technicians diagnose problems and correct them. RESCUECOM CEO David Milman and his technicians offer the following recommendations.

First you need to have a good computer. RESCUECOM regularly releases its list of the top-selling computers and ranks them by their reliability based on the number of issues they encounter. Milman recommends these three laptop and desktop manufacturers that have consistently topped their lists:

Laptops: Apple, Samsung & Asus
Desktops: Apple, Asus & Lenovo

To keep computers running at their best, Milman says to keep them turned on all the time instead of shutting them down after each use. This practice of limiting startups will prolong the life of your hard drive which stores all your data. It also keeps the temperature of the computers even and allows your computer to automatically update its programs. To ensure that happens, turn on automatic updates. With a laptop, use the Hibernate program.

The next recommendation is that you should upgrade your computer to the latest operating system – but (and this is important) wait at least six months after their release to allow for the kinks to be ironed out. A perfect example is the Microsoft 10 upgrade that had tons of bugs when first released last year.

While there are tens of thousands of programs and apps available to you, only download the ones that you are actually going to use, as your device will get clogged up quickly and slow down. Most importantly, make sure they are from a trusted source.

You MUST have an antivirus program. RESCUECOM has its proprietary Internet Security Suite, or you can obtain another top brand. Using a free program may save money, but will buy you a lot of headaches!

Get yourself a battery backup in case you lose your electricity as well as a top-of-the line surge protector for all your electronic gear. RESCUECOM recommends and uses APC Battery Backup as the most reliable.

Backing up your data is critical. Have your own external backup drive and also upload your data to a reputable cloud storage service like Microsoft OneDrive or Google Drive.

Of course don't open emails from people you don't know. Even from people you know, look at the email closely to be sure it is similar to the ones you typically receive from this person. Keep in mind your friend's contact list might have been hacked and the email may include commands that could control your computer. That is how banks and government agencies get hacked.

You are better off using Internet Explorer or Edge on PCs and Safari on Macs. Don't use Firefox or Google Chrome, because third-party software is unneeded when you use the best components and keep the PC current.

Finally, having a low number of apps and programs that open during startup keeps your computer running faster.

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