There are two type of backup systems that I’m going to cover here: local disk-based backup and online backup services. You really should have both in place to be sure you’re covered.

Local disk-based backup requires that you purchase an external USB hard drive and some backup software. The hard drive needs to be at least as large as the amount of data you plan to back up. I recommend getting one that exceeds the total capacity of the hard drive(s) in your computer. Doing so might allow enough storage space to save more than one version of the backup – in case you need to go back further than your last backup. This is by far the quickest and easiest way to get your files back. If your computer got stolen or damaged in a fire, then you’d be out of luck without a secondary offsite (or online) backup.

New online backup services are popping up all the time, but two of the more well-known ones are Mozy and Carbonite. With these services, you download a small program that runs in the background and automatically backs up your data to their secure servers on the Internet. One additional benefit to these services is that you can generally access your files from anywhere with an Internet connection. So if you were away from your computer you could still get a copy of an important document.

You can try to set all of this up on your own, but having somebody familiar with the technology is definitely recommended. It would do you no good to spend all that time and money just to discover it doesn’t work when you actually needed it. And you definitely don’t want to learn how much you needed a backup system after you lost everything, either – so get your data backed up today!

Why all the fuss? Well, for starters, you probably don’t want strangers going into your bank accounts, email, or personal computer. Imagine how much trouble you could get into at the office if somebody else used your account to look at sensitive data – or worse, delete it!

If you use the names of your pets or children, special dates, or words found in the dictionary as your password, you’re at risk. It isn’t very difficult, these days, to research into a person’s life and find much of this information. If you write down your passwords, keep them in a safe place – not stuck to your monitor or any other place near your computer.

A strong password is one that is at least 8 characters in length, has a mix of upper/lowercase letters, contains special characters, isn’t a single word found in the dictionary or the name of a person/pet, and isn’t tied to your personal information (anniversaries, birthdays, etc.). Additionally, the password should also be easy for you to type quickly – not so difficult to type that it slows you down enough that somebody could watch your fingers as you typed it.

Sounds complicated, right? Well it isn’t so bad if you really put a little thought into it. You could use a short phrase/sentence that makes sense to you:

i.liK3!Pie

Or something inspiring:

$bEg00d2peOple

Note that the ‘E’ was replaced with a ’3′ in the first password to make the word ‘like’. Two zeros were used in place of the letter ‘O’ to spell the word ‘good’ in the second one. Spaces were eliminated and/or replaced with non-letter characters. There is a mix of lower/uppercase letters – and not just at the start of a word.

There’s no way for somebody else to know the phrase you chose, or how you put it together, or how many special characters you used and where you placed them, unless you told them. This increases the strength of a password, yet doesn’t make it difficult to memorize or type.

I’ll write more about passwords and security in the future. Until then, consider changing the passwords you use to better protect yourself.

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