Though computers eliminate the hassle of paperwork and can store vast quantities of information on its hard drive, your data is not necessarily 100% secure. Your data can be erased, destroyed or can even fall into the wrong hands as a result of system crashes, power cuts, virus attacks, natural disasters or hacking.

Losing this precious information can badly hurt your career and personal life, but you need not suffer data loss. You can learn how to protect our data from loss with some very simple steps.

Data protection steps

Keep backups

One of the best ways to protect your data is to keep backups. You can keep all your critical information or data on a CD or DVD. Also, there are some online companies who offer a backup service to store your data in a safe location with maximum security (Norton 360 offers this).  

Keeping a backup of your data ensures that even if something goes wrong with your system and you lose your files then you can still get them from the backup.

Protect against power failure

Power failure is a common reason for data loss. It usually happens when we keep working on our computer but forget to regularly save data to the hard drive. Get into the habit of regularly saving your work (or use the autosave feature in many programs) so that even if your computer gets shut down unexpectedly then you won’t lose what you have been doing.

Another way to avoid data loss due to power failure is to use a backup power system. A UPS will give you enough time to save your data and then shut your system safely during a power cut.

Avoid viruses

Viruses are one of the biggest threats to your data. Some viruses will simply erase the data from your hard drive causing you a permanent data loss. Malicious programs like spyware or malware does a different kind of thing. This software works as data miners in your PC and send private information like credit card number, bank account number and passwords to hackers who uses them to steal your money and identity.

The best way to protect your data from such incidents is using an effective anti virus program. It will help you to detect virus threats before they cause you any trouble. Make sure that you are using an updated version of a reputed anti virus program like Norton, Kaspersky or McAfee.

Surf safely

You need to be extremely careful when surfing the internet. Your data can get in the wrong hands if you are not careful. Many websites asks for your personal information like credit card numbers or passwords for different purposes. Before providing them with this vital information, check the authenticity of the web site.  Never follow a link from an email (supposedly from your bank) to a logon screen.  Always type in the address yourself.

Keep an eye on diagnostics

Diagnostic software checks whether your system is tuned up. But sometimes diagnostic software can cause problems when if it attempts to repair data files. Often you may find it hard to recover some data from your computer after it goes through a system checkup.

So you need to have a close look at the activities of these programs. Make sure that you are not allowing them to repair vital data files. 

Keep your personal data private

A common way your personal data can get exposed to others is when someone else is using your computer. If you have some vital information stored in your system that others should not have access to then there are multiple ways you can protect these data.

You can always put a password on your PC to ensure that no one else is using it without you being notified. You can also use password restricted folders to keep the important data at a safer location so that even if someone uses your PC, then he or she won’t be able to have access to them. There is some very simple and effective free software that you can download which provides folder lock or vault functions.

Conclusion

Always remember, protecting your data is almost like protecting yourself. A small mistake can make you pay badly. When there are basic options that can ensure the security for your personal information, there is no reason you should suffer the pain of data loss or misuse.

Overview

Norton Ghost 14.0 protects PCs, including all applications, settings, folders and files with advanced backup and recovery. It allows users to protect their documents, financial records, preentations, photos, music, videos or any other data on the computer.

Users can choose to back up selected files or folders or the entire hard disk. New features of this version include offsite backups and Symentec ThreatCon integrations, as well as enhanced performance, remote management, LightsOut Restore capability, and more.

Features

• Offers full system backup (disk image); everything on a hard drive or a partition can be backed up
• Ability to backup specific files and folders instead of the entire drive
• Provides for a FTP backup through a FTP site, in which all the files are copied into, for easier back up
• Offsite backup allows the backup of your files to NAS (Network-Attached Storage) devices
• Symantec ThreatCon integration triggers incremental backups whenever ThreatCon reaches a specified threat level. Handy for computers without virus protection
• Ability to back up only those files which have changed
• Searchable backup indexes using Google Desktop™ integration makes data recovery even faster.
• LightsOut Restore option restores the system with an on-disk software recovery environment for which there is no bootable CD required.
• Remote management controls other Norton Ghost installations (12.0 or higher) on your local area network.
• Minimizes storage space and helps keep sensitive documents safe through the advanced compression and encryption feature

System Requirements

Windows Vista® Home Basic/Home Premium/Business/Ultimate
- Must meet minimum Windows Vista operating system requirements
- Eligible for a free Windows Vista® Service Pack 1 compatibility update†

Windows® XP Home/Professional

• 300 MHz or faster processor
• 256 MB (512 MB recommended) of RAM
• 400 MB of available hard disk space
• Microsoft® Internet Explorer 6.0
• CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive for software distribution on media
• Super VGA (800×600) or higher–resolution video adapter and monitor

Supported File Systems and Devices

• FAT16, FAT16X, FAT32, FAT32X
• NTFS
• Dynamic Disks
• Linux® EXT2/3 and Linux Swap Partitions

Supported Hard Drives and Removable Media

• CDR/RW and DVD+-R/RW drives
• USB and FireWire® (IEEE 1394) devices
• Iomega® Zip® and Jaz® drives

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