Encrypt your files

If you don’t want others to access your computer without permission, then you can add a strong login password over the operating system. This can stop the unauthorized access, but not enough. It’s better to encrypt your hard drive or files to add another strong layer protection for your computer data. As we’ve reported a few times in the past, there’re many free encryption options available. TureCrypt and AxCrypt are good examples.

Here I also want to remind you that please set a strong password while it is easier for you to remember. Otherwise, you might get into trouble if you forgot the password. As for a strong password, it must be 8 characters long and composed of letters, numbers and symbols. If you are a Windows 7/Vista/XP user, you can create a Windows password rest disk in advance to in case that you forget the Windows login password in future.

Backup your files

As we know, computers aren’t perfect. You files become lost resulting from various factors, like accidental deletions, virus attacks, system crash, etc. The best defense is data backup software. Backing up data is vital for businesses; lost information can cause a major crisis or worse, lead to business failure. Moreover, online storage is available now. It can keep your files away from local harm (such as theft, fire, virus or power surge) and you can access them from anywhere in the world.

Clean computer regularly

After you back-up your important files, it’s time to clean your computer to help it run faster with more stability. Delete the programs and tool bars that you no longer need. Don’t just delete the desktop icon, of course, but click Start, Control Panel and finally Uninstall a Program (or for older PCs, Add/Remove Programs). You should clear up a lot of hard drive space, and also clean up the icons on your desktop, so you can see your wallpaper again. Degfragging is another way. Click on the Start button and type “defrag” in the search box Run the program and while it might take a while, you should notice a marked performance improvement when it’s done.

Update your software

The last tip is to download the latest free software updates for your operating system as these updates plug security holes and add functionality. To do this, simply click Start > All Programs > Windows Update. Of course, you can choose to enable automatic updates. Besides, download all the updates to your favorite programs – such as a web browser or media player – as they usually fix issues or add new features. There are often new updates for hardware accessories, too, such as a printer, monitor and webcam.

Encryption software scrambles useful data into seemingly random bits to prevent eavesdropping. When used within a closed system, there need not be any identifying features of encrypted data to allow third parties to determine the type of encryption software used to scramble the data. There is lots of free and good encryption software on market. Here will introduce you 3.

1. TureCrypt

TureCrypt is the most popular encryption software on market. It can create a virtual encrypted disk within a file and mount it as a real disk in order to encrypt the contents of the file. By doing this, TrueCrypt is able to encrypt a file, directory, partition, or entire storage device. This open source disk encryption software supports various platforms like Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Mac, Linux, and Unix operating systems.

2. DiskCryptor

DiskCryptor is free whole disk encryption software. It can encrypt entire hard drive partitions, including the system partition as well as flash drives in real time without affecting performance. It can also create encrypted CDs/DVDs. It offers excellent performance for mounted encrypted volumes and a good range of features and options.

3. AxCrypt

AxCrypt is the leading open source file encryption software for Windows. It integrates seamlessly with Windows to compress, encrypt, decrypt, store, send and work with individual files. This free program that uses sophisticated algorithms (128-bit primitive keys) to make sure your files can’t be cracked. Once encrypted, your files can only be opened if the proper passphrase is provided.

4. MEO Free Data Encryption Software

MEO is free file encryption software. It enables you to encrypt or decrypt various files, including Microsoft Word, Excel and PDF documents. MEO allows you to protect your sensitive data against un-authorized viewers by utilizing the latest data encryption technologies. This free file encryption software supports both Mac and Windows.

If you want to protect your computer from this type of attack, you can password-protect your BIOS Boot Screen or encrypt your hard drive with encryption software. In this article, we’re going to show you how to create a BIOS password on computer.

What is a BIOS password?

The Basic Input Output system (BIOS) is a type of software that provides an interface between the hardware components of a computer and its operating system. It is usually stored in a Read Only Memory (ROM) chip. As it is stored in a ROM chip, its contents can never be erased and can be accessed by the computer at all times.

So a BIOS password refers to a password set on the BIOS or security chip.I t is the first password that comes up when a computer is turned on. A user can set a BIOS password in system set up. Once it’s set, it’s impossible to get to the operating system without entering the password.

How to set a BIOS password?

1. Start or restart you computer, and press the right key to access BIOS Utility while booting. “F2″ and “Delete” is the most commonly used keys to access BIOS.

2. Navigate through the menus until you can find anything to do with passwords or security and set the password.

3. Navigate to the menu that contains the boot order in it. Change your HDD to be first on the list, so if someone wanted to boot from a CD or USB etc, they would be hit with a password.

For Windows Users

Being a Windows 7/Vista/XP user, you are able to create a password reset disk for the admin account after adding a password to it. So when you forgot the admin password, you can change the lost computer password in seconds.

If you never create a password reset disk in advance, it doesn’t matter as long as you can log into your Windows through another user account with admin privileges. After logging to this user account, you can type “lusrmgr.msc” in the Start search box to bring up the Local Users and Groups window. Next expand the User folder and you’ll see the administrator account, right-click it and select Reset password to reset its password to a new one.

Never feel frustrated if the above information doesn’t do you a favor. Efficient Windows password reset applications are always out there to fix your problem. Take Rekeysoft Windows Password Recovery for example, it allows you to burn a bootable password reset USB or CD/DVD in any computer. To reset your forgotten computer administrator password, you just need to boot the target computer from the disk for password reset. It will cost you a few minutes. 100% secure is guaranteed. No data loss or damage.

For Mac users

If you are running a Mac, the Administrator account is enabled by default. This account is not required to be named “administrator”, but it does have administrative privileges that enable you to make any changes on the computer system. When you forgot the admin password, you can take advantage of the installation CD/DVD to remove it.

1. Insert the Mac OS X installation CD/DVD and restart your computer.
2. Hold in the “C” key immediately after the Mac startup sound comes on to boot from the disc.
4. Click the desired display language, and then click the “Next” button.
5. Click the “Utilities” menu.
6. Click “Reset password”.
7. Click the Apple computer’s internal hard drive.
8. Click the administrative account from which you want to remove the password.
9. Leave the password boxes clear and click the “Save” button to remove the password.
10. Click “OK” and restart the computer.

For Windows 7/Vista /XP PC users:

1. For Windows 7/Vista users, press Windows+R to bring up the Run box while Windows XP users only need to click Start and select Run box.

2. Type “control userpasswords2″ in the Run box and click OK. It will bring up the Advanced User Accounts window.
3. Uncheck the box next to “Users Advanced User Accounts window must enter a user name and password to use this computer”.

4. Hit Enter or click OK. It will bring up a new dialog box that prompts you to enter the username and password for the account to automatically log into every time you start Windows.

5. After typing the username and password, hit OK, and then OK again to complete the operation.

For Mac users:

1. Open System Preferences by clicking on the Dock icon.

2. Go to the “Accounts” control panel under the “System” heading.

3. Click on the “Login Options” button at the bottom of the window.

4. Select the account that you want to automatically log in with from the “Automatic login” drop-down menu. Password login has now been disabled.

Important: Before getting started, please make sure others can get physical access to your computer. Otherwise, it will put your computer data at risk. It’s never suggested to do this if there is important information stored on your computer.

How to change Windows admin password?

Regarding the procedures to change the admin password in Windows, it’s extremely easy. Go to Start button > Control Panel > Family Safety and User Accounts > User Accounts, then click “Change your password” link on the coming User Accounts window to do your job. Your current Windows password is required for this operation.

Another easier alternative is to bring up the Ctrl+Alt+Del screen by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del after logging into your Windows user account, then click Change a password, type your old password, type your new password, type your new password again to confirm it, and then press ENTER. The current password is also needed for the alternative.

If you forgot the password for the admin account but need to change its password, an effective method is to change it via another user account with admin privileges. Failed to do that, the left option for you is either using a password reset disk or resorting to Windows password recovery applications like Rekeysoft Windows Password Recovery.

How to change admin password on Mac?

Similar to Windows, there’s at least one user account labeled as an administrator in the Mac OS X operating system. The administrator has the highest access privileges possible and is the only user allowed to install or delete software. To protect your privacy, change your laptop password periodically.

Log in to your Mac computer with an account that currently has administrator privileges, click the “System Preferences” icon on your screen’s dock, and then choose the “Accounts” control panel under the “System” category. Next you can click on your account name in the list on the left side of the control panel window, and then choose the “Password” tab at the top of the window. Click the “Change Password” button next to your account icon.

Forgot Windows password
In reality, you are able to create a password reset disk in Windows 7/Vista/XP in advance to in case you forget the Windows login password. If you forget to do that job before the eventuality occurs, the following Windows password recovery software will be what you need.

1. Download and install Rekeysoft Windows Password Recovery from its official website.
Rekeysoft Windows Password Recovery can help you instantly reset a forgotten Windows password in a few minutes without any data loss or damage.

2. Launch this program and insert a CD or USB drive in computer.

3. Create a bootable password reset disk with the CD/USB

4. Insert the CD/USB to the computer you want to reset password of after creating the bootable disk.

5. Boot the computer from the CD/USB drive.

6. Reset forgotten Windows password to blank.

7. Log on to the computer without password.

Forgot Mac password
If you forgot your administrator password on Mac OS X, you can reset the administrator password using its Install disc.

1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc and restart the computer.

2. When you hear the startup tone, press and hold down the C key until you see the spinning gear.

3. When the Language Chooser appears, select your language and click Continue.

4. Choose Utilities > Reset Password.

5. Follow the onscreen instructions to change the password.

6. Quit the Installer and restart your computer while holding down the mouse button to eject the disc.

7. You can change your login keychain password in Keychain Access to match your new account password to unlock your keychain when you log in.

Password Protect a PC
Windows incorporates built-in features to let you create multiple Windows users and add passwords to these users to stop unauthorized access. It even allows you to create Windows password reset disk for the user accounts to in case that you forgot the password in future. Regarding how to password protect a PC, the following directions are what you need to learn.
1. Go to User Account window by clicking Start, Control Panel, Family Safety and User Accounts, User Account.

2. Click on “Create a password for your user account”.

3. Type a password for the user account, type again to confirm it, type a password hint and click “Create password” button.
Password Protect a Mac

When it comes to a Mac, the first thing you should do is disable your Mac’s auto-login. This will prevent your Mac from going straight to the Finder when you turn it on. You’ll be required to type a password to access anything.
1. Go to Apple menu >> System Preferences >> Security.

2. Check the Disable automatic login checkbox on the coming security window.

3. Return to the main System Preferences window by clicking the back button. Select Accounts.

4. Select Login Options. Make sure the Automatically log in as checkbox is unchecked. Under Display login window as, select either List of users or Name and password.

The List of users option will provide a list of users when you first start up your Mac. To log in, you click on your user name and type your password. Use the Name and password option for an added layer of security. This will require you to type in both your user name and password.