Many people wonder how can you have multiple Pinterest accounts to be able to upload all your favorite photos directly from them without having to go through the hassle of logging into iCloud or Google Drive or sticking your USB into the computer. Although this may sound really convenient, keeping all your personal photos on your PC carries security risks. Of course, any technology is not free from threats and it’s your duty to keep your favorite memories safe from the hands of hackers.
The only way to safeguard your laptop or computer from any security attack is to take proper measures. It’s also important to keep in mind that you won’t be able to take necessary action immediately in case of an unforeseen situation if you’re not prepared ahead of time. To prepare yourself for the worst, you must know the security threats your personal photos may be exposed to on your PC. In order to know, keep reading!
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Computer Viruses
Computer viruses are easy to enter into your PC if you have not downloaded antivirus software. Such viruses usually find their way through spam emails, clicking on ads, and streaming or downloading movies from unauthorized sites. It means if a virus gets into your system, your personal photos can also be stolen or may corrupt them completely, hence restricting your access to your photos ever again.
Spyware
Another security risk to keep all your photos on your PC is spyware. It automatically gets downloaded on a computer when someone uses pirated websites or downloads unwanted stuff. If you use someone else’s USB drive on your computer that contains a virus, you will be exposing your system to spyware.
This way your confidential data can be easily stolen from your computer and your photos may also be one of them.
Adware
This type of security risk monitors your surfing habits and bombards your monitor screen with advertisements and pop-ups. This is mainly caused by downloading suspicious apps or browsing extensions.
This, again, causes the virus to pick on your personal data including your pictures, and steal them. It means even your super personal pictures could be exposed to the world. In addition to that, your PC may face slow processing speed as well as a slow internet connection.
Trojan
A Trojan virus tricks you into thinking that you’re downloading a legitimate software or application while the virus hides behind it. These software or applications are usually accessible through spam emails on your computer or a false advertisement.
Trojan virus can easily capture your passwords as well as any sensitive data on your computer, including your pictures.
Ransomware
Ransomware is a kind of malware and it takes control of your computer data by encrypting it. In order for you to access your files or pictures, they will ask you to pay some “ransom” which is a considerably large amount of money in exchange for you to get your personal data back.
Most of the time, even if you’re able to pay the money, they still will dodge you and the chances become pretty low to get back your personal files.
Hacking Attempts
This kind of practice is quite common when people connect their laptops to public Wi-Fi networks of cafes, hospitals, or hotels. As soon as you connect to a public network, the hackers get access to all the data in your laptop including your pictures. They can copy them to their system and blackmail you until they get a large sum of money in return.
How To Keep Your Photos Protected?
Your photos may be extremely private to you, or they may contain innumerable memories, and you most certainly don’t want to fall prey to the above-mentioned security risks.
Therefore, it’s ideal to keep your photos safe using the old school method which is buying a USB. You can always keep your photos safe there, and protect them further by encrypting your USB.
Another way to keep your photos safe is to save them on Google Drive or iCloud, but you should set the password extremely difficult to guess so no one is able to get into it. Downloading antivirus software on your system will provide an additional shield to your pictures.
Read Also: 4 Tips on Creating a Digital Security Plan for Small Businesses