Helpful Tips to Back Up Your Most Valuable Files and How You Can Protect Them.
One thing that everyone should do to ensure their files are safe is to create a backup system. This way, if something happens to your computer or if you accidentally delete something, you have a copy of your files stored elsewhere.
In this blog post, we will discuss some helpful tips on how to back up your most valuable files and how you can protect them.
We will also provide information on some of the best backup software programs out there. So, whether you are a business owner or just someone who wants to make sure their files are safe, read on for some useful information!
Sync Your Files.
One of the easiest ways to back up your files is to sync them with an online storage service. There are plenty of services to choose from, including:
Google Drive comes free with a Google account (15GB of storage) and offers 100GB of storage for $1.99 per month or 1TB for $9.99.
Dropbox Basic includes 2GB of free, but it is upgradeable storage by referring to others and performing tasks. Dropbox Plus (1TB) costs $8.25 per month, while Dropbox Professional (2TB) costs $16.58 per month.
Apple iCloud Drive, which comes free with a device running iOS 8 or later but requires a paid subscription ($0.99/month for 50GB; $2.99/month for 200GB; $9.99/month for 2TB) to access more than 5GB of space on a Mac or PC.
And when choosing a cloud service, make sure you select one that offers automatic backups so that you can set it and forget it. Some services will automatically sync your photos online when you take them on your phone or camera.
Double Up Your Backups.
You can also sync your files with an external hard drive if you have an online backup. It will give you the best of both worlds: the safety of a backup stored in the cloud and the physical possibility to access your data anytime, wherever you are.
There is no such thing as too many backups for critical files. If you can afford it, the third line of defense also won't hurt — maybe even a fourth.
When choosing a service provider for your primary backup, make sure they offer a backup version (a feature that allows you to restore older versions of your files). Also, look for one that has file-syncing capabilities so that you can share your documents with others.
If these features aren't available, you should probably consider changing providers.
Stay Safe: Scan for Viruses.
You want to keep your computer in peak condition, which means you also need to protect it from viruses. If you're not already running virus-protection software, you should be. Most programs scan for viruses daily and update their databases automatically. Keep your virus-protection program running in the background regularly so that it can catch threats before they cause any harm.
In addition, you also want to ensure that any files you download (especially executable files) are virus-free before running them. While some programs automatically scan downloads for viruses, you can also use an online service such as VirusTotal to upload files and check them against more than 40 different antivirus tools.
You can also use a program like Windows Defender or XProtect for Mac to scan your files and remove viruses on your PC.
These programs are good at detecting and removing viruses and malware, but they don't always catch everything. If you notice any suspicious behavior on your computer while browsing the internet — such as pop-up ads or slowdowns — consider installing a secondary anti-malware program like Malwarebytes for Windows or Mac (both are free). After installing the program, run a full scan of your system to help remove any harmful files from your computer.
If you keep sensitive information like credit card numbers on your computer, consider using a VPN (a virtual private network) to encrypt all information coming in and out of your web browser and device. A VPN is also helpful if you do a lot of online banking or shopping from public Wi-Fi networks since those networks often aren't encrypted. And lastly, make sure to regularly update the software on your computer to help reduce the chances of getting infected with malware or spyware.
Clean out your Documents Folder.
The documents folder is the folder where most people store their important files. And over time, it can become cluttered with unused files. If this happens, it will be more difficult to find your important files when you need them. This can also lead to problems with sluggish performance and crashes.
So, to clean out your Documents folder, go through each file and decide if you still need it or not. If not, delete it right away.
If you are still unsure whether you need a file or not, you can rename it and add the date in front of the file name. That way, you will know when you last worked on that file, and then you can decide if you want to keep or get rid of it later on.
Another option is to move the file from your Documents folder into the appropriate subfolder in your Documents folder. For example, if it's a picture taken with your digital camera, move it into a Digital Pictures subfolder instead of leaving it in the root of the Documents folder.
Encrypt your files.
Another way to protect your files is to encrypt them with a password. This makes it impossible for anyone but you to read them.
Encrypting your files is also a good idea if you're storing them in the cloud because even though cloud providers have security measures to protect your data from hackers, there's always the chance something could go wrong.
Software like AxCrypt, VeraCrypt, and 7-Zip is free and an easy way to do this. But even if you don't use any extra software, your operating system probably has the ability to password-protect files built into it.
In Windows 10, for example, you can right-click on a file and select "Turn on BitLocker."
Use strong passwords!
Using strong passwords may seem like an obvious solution, but it's often overlooked. Strong passwords are essential for keeping your accounts and personal information safe from hackers. But they can also help improve your computer's performance. That's because many computers are configured to save passwords in plain text files.
These files can be easily accessed by anyone with access to your computer, meaning anyone using the same network as you. Many of these users won't take the time to look through your files; however, they may access them accidentally while searching for something else. If any of these other users on the network has a virus or malware, it could potentially collect all the saved passwords on that machine or spread to other computers' networks.
To prevent this problem, you should use strong passwords that are difficult to guess and aren't based on a common word or phrase. A good password will consist of at least eight characters and should include a mix of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters (e.g., !@).
If you're using the same password for all of your accounts, then if someone figures out one of your passwords, they'll have access to them. This is why it's so important to use different passwords for each account.
A great way to manage all of these different passwords is through a program such as 1Password or LastPass, which are explicitly designed to help store passwords securely on the Internet. These programs will generate secure passwords for you and store them in their database, so you don't have to remember them yourself. They also sync across multiple devices, so if you use a desktop at work, a laptop at home, and a phone when you're out, they can keep track of all of your passwords in one place.
The bottom line – how to backup files and protect them
While the measures we've outlined will protect your files to some extent, it's always important to remember that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for online security. However, if you follow these tips and are vigilant about keeping your computer safe, you can rest assured that your most valuable data is backed up and secure. Have you tried any of these methods to back up your files? Let us know in the comments!
