Use passwords

• Passwords help provide extra protection to important information stored on your computer. Avoid using obvious passwords, such as telephone numbers, birth dates or your mother's maiden name. Use passwords that will be hard to guess, such as a combination of letters, numbers and symbols.

Update your password

• Regularly change the password - remember to use a combination of numbers and letters. 
• You may consider using encryption software. 
• DO NOT use automatic log in features that save your user name / password - always remember to log off. 
• Avoid saving important personal data on your computer - save it on a storage device and keep it secure. 
• If your computer is stolen, taking these precautions will make it harder for the thief to access your information. 
• Consider buying a program that will ask you to change your password regularly and will shut down your computer after a set time.
• Consider buying an IronKey security USB which has 256-bit military encryption, password manager, password recovery, secure websurfing and more - this will enable you to set-up unique and complicated passwords for each of your online accounts that you do not have to remember.

Use the latest protection software

• Regularly update your protection software such as virus protection programs and encryption browser programs to protect your computer from viruses on disk or CD, sent to you via e-mail, or that you inadvertently download from the internet.

Use a personal firewall to secure your PC when online

• A firewall will stop unauthorised access to your computer. 
• Firewall programs are particularly important if you use a high-speed internet connection and leave your computer connected 24 hours a day.

Beware of unsolicited e-mails

• DO NOT open files or click on links sent to you from people you do not know. 
• These may contain viruses or other programs that can access information on your PC. 
• Unsolicited e-mails are also used to promote scams: do not follow the advice of e-mails from sources you do not know, especially ones that ask you to give out personal information or induce you to part with your hard-earned cash. 
• Criminals have been known to send messages in which they pretend to be representatives of legitimate organisations, such as banks or your ISP, in order to persuade people to disclose important personal information.

Do not follow up unsolicited e-mails

• If you receive unsolicited emails, DO NOT reply to them (i.e. requesting your name to be removed from the mailing list).  This often simply confirms that your address works and that you exist. 
• Simply delete the e-mail and remove it from your deleted file storage. 
• You should also delete any attachments from other folders in which they are stored (ask your computer shop how to do this if you don't know).

Only conduct transactions with secure websites

• If you do business with companies on-line, ensure each site contains a statement about the company's privacy policy with which you are comfortable. 
• The policy should include details on how the company will secure, handle and use your personal information. 
• It should also tell you how to contact the company and how to provide personal information without using the internet. 
• A good indication of a secure site is the presence of the small padlock symbol. Refer also to Transacting Online.
• If a company with whom you intend doing on-line business does not have such a policy, or you do not agree with their information handling practices, consider looking elsewhere.

Wipe your hard drive

• Before you dispose of, sell or trade in your old PC or laptop, be sure you have deleted all personal information properly. 
• Deleting files using the keyboard delete key or mouse may not be enough. 
• All files, including e-mails, may still be on your hard drive where they are easily retrieved. 
• Use a program that 'wipes' your entire hard drive and makes all files unrecoverable.
• Be wary of using public computers to access your private information.
• Be wary when accessing your private information, particularly financial records, on public computers at libraries or internet cafés. 
• Passwords, credit card and account numbers may be retrievable from the hard drive of the computer you have used and accessible to anyone with the 'know how'.

More information can be found at the Australian Government website - Stay Smart Online.