Introduction to Mac Security Tips
Mac computers are unique in their design and architecture. They have a distinct operating system, and their usage includes several security features in their settings.
Although macOS offers unique features and sleek experiences, your privacy and security lie in your hands. The way you use your computer can compromise or build up your privacy.
Computer security becomes a serious responsibility when you use your Mac for various online transactions, including access to your corporate cloud space and banking services.
A slight compromise on your Mac and your data gets to the wrong hands, and people can compromise your information or hack your systems. In the worst-case scenarios, you could lose all your investments if you leave your privacy unattended.
This post addresses seven of the most important steps to take to make your privacy the best on your Mac. Through various settings and upgrades, you can ensure that your machine is safe enough to do all business transactions without the worry of getting your data leaked.
These are the seven essential steps to ensuring a safe working environment on your Mac.
1. Always Require a Password on Login
When you set up your Mac, your user account will be logging in automatically. While this makes it easier to log in and start your job, it is not efficient for everyday use unless you leave your computer home with you. When traveling or sharing your computer, you need safer methods to access your computer.
For instance, if left to automatic login, people can boot and access your files without your consent. You need to update the setting and let your Mac ask for a password every time you boot it up.
This setting is located on your Mac’s Users and Groups in system preferences. Under the Login Options setting, disable automatic login. No user should log in to your system without a password.
2. Create a Non-admin User
When you first set up your Mac, you create your first account with a username and password. This first account becomes the global system administrator.
With the account, you can do all the adjustments on your Mac without the need to re-enter your password or limitation. System admins can also install various apps on their Macs.
Non-admin users, on the other hand, have limitations to what they can do on the computer. For everyday use, you need a standard account to access your mail, browse the web, play music, games, and do various tasks.
You can use all the things you need on the Mac with a standard account, except for tasks that require admin rights. In this way, you can prevent involuntary changes to your system that could compromise your security.
3. Do Away with Adobe’s Standalone Flash Player
Flash player was a thing in the past when the internet was still developing. We required the flash player to play embedded videos on the internet and other multimedia files.
Currently, barely anyone requires a flash player on their systems. With HTML5, we can play videos on the browser or use an inbuilt flash player.
The standalone flash player is so outdated and vulnerable that hackers can use it to compromise your computer. Major browsers have already dropped their support for the plugin. If you still have the app installed on your Mac, you need to uninstall it immediately to safeguard your privacy.
4. Install an Antivirus
Most cybercrimes involving privacy infringement occur due to virus attacks. A virus can access and alter your computer settings and files.
Then it can send information to a hacker who can use the data to do more harm to your computer, online accounts, and even banks. All you need is a trusted antivirus from https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/forHome/products/antivirus-for-mac.html for your Mac to ensure that your system is clean all the time before you connect to the internet.
5. Have a Two-way Firewall
By default, a Macintosh computer comes with a firewall. However, the installed firewall protects your computer against inbound connections only.
When you have malware on your computer, it will connect to other computers on the internet and send your information to the hacker. This outbound connection is not monitored by the default firewall you have on your Mac.
A two-way firewall will protect your system from both inbound and outbound connections. The firewall allows you to connect to the internet using most apps and open ports for your daily tasks.
It will take care of the uncommon ports and protocols that a hacker can try to use and gain access to your computer or draw data using their malware.
6. Use a Privacy-focused Browser
Mac comes with an inbuilt browser – Safari. Like Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, Safari is among the least of browsers recommended for safety browsing when you go online.
To ensure that you are always safe when connecting to the internet, try as much as you can to get a secure browser for your Mac.
Google’s Chrome and Mozilla’s Firefox come first when talking about internet browsers. The reason is that they are common names in the industry. However, there are other options to consider for your Mac’s privacy, like Brave and Tor.
Further visit: 11 Ways to Increase the Performance of mac
7. Update Your System
Nothing can wreak havoc on security like outdated software. Whether it is your OS or the apps you are using on the computer, you need to install the latest updates.
macOS updates allow you to protect the system from security vulnerabilities and loopholes that hackers could use to access your data.
Updating your apps also ensures that you are on the top of your privacy and security when using your Mac. This is, especially, true when using apps that connect to the internet.
You should enable automatic updates on your Mac to reduce the worries of using an outdated piece of software. If data consumption is your worry (running on a prepaid subscription), then you can turn automatic updates off, but make arrangements to get adequate updates.
To Sum Up
Regardless of the use for which you buy a Mac, privacy and security concerns should be your priority. As a macOS user, you should take precautionary steps to prevent accidental data leak or access by others.
You also need to ensure that your Mac is set to use the strictest settings and configuration to prevent hackers and their malware when you use the internet.
