It's happened to all of us: You are working on an important document or paper, and your computer crashes! That sinking feeling in your gut that tells you you've lost everything. Yeah, it's the worst feeling in the world, and you tell yourself, "If only I had backed this up!".
Week 4 of Cybersecurity Awareness month highlights for McGillians some effective ways of staying in cyber shape and keeping on top of strong security habits.
Most of us store photos, songs, assignments and other essential documents on our computers and phones. Everything is safe until our device meets an untimely virus or disastrous meltdown.
Back-ups ensure your effort doesn't go down the drain, so you can keep your workflow or academic groove going.
The great thing is, you don't need a Ph.D. in tech to back-up your files. Below are some simple yet effective ways to keep your files safe and tucked away:
- External Hard Drives: Simple, plug and play.
- Cloud Services: Think Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive. They've got your back.
- Backup Software: Install it, set it up, and let it do the magic for you.
Protecting your back-ups:
Protecting your back-ups is also highly recommended, and there are several different options for doing this.
- Pro tip: Always make sure to secure your back-ups with a strong, unique password or passphrase, and use encryption if available.
- A convenient way is to store your back-up on the cloud, however, always be sure to have a good understanding of the privacy policies and various security features that your cloud provider offers.
- Suppose you are using a physical back-up like an external hard drive. In that case, keeping it separate from your computer, or even away from home, is recommended to minimize the chances of both being stolen or destroyed.
For McGill staff, we invite you to please check out these helpful knowledge base articles below that will give you more details about backing up files while at the office.
For McGill students, we recommend reading this informative article from Canada's Get Cyber Safe website about storage and backup.
Backing up your files is a simple yet vital step to safeguard your digital life at McGill and your personal life at home. So, do yourself a favour – start backing up your files and thank yourself later—no more nightmares of lost assignments or research, just sweet, sweet peace of mind.
