Backing up. It's the single most important thing you can do to protect your digital assets. Yep, it's even more important than good password hygiene (though that's incredibly important as well). And yet....

Why don't people do it? I have some theories.

Regardless, though ... just do it.

Also this week:

"Meh, this account doesn't matter. It doesn't need great security. I have no money for hackers to steal anyway!" -- Rich or poor, please trust me when I say that account matters more than you think.

It surprises me how often the topic of anonymity comes up. Not privacy, but proactively wanting to completely hide ones online activity, for reasons I can only speculate on. Depending on who you're hiding from it can be really hard, and easy to get wrong.

I even did this this week: swapping out a hard drive. It went swimmingly. It's not really that difficult, just a little time consuming.

Have a great week!

Featured

Why Don't People Back Up?

I recently posted a recommendation for a specific backup program, but it got me to thinking about backing up in general.

It's a common topic here on Ask Leo! for a good reason. Not a day goes by that I don't see somebody suffering for lack of a backup. Not a day goes by that I don't see somebody who could have avoided a serious problem simply by having taken a backup.

So why don't more people back up?

Continue Reading: Why Don't People Back Up?
https://askleo.com/3388

This Week's Articles

Why that "Unimportant" Account Matters

One of the pushbacks I get when I reiterate the importance of securing your online accounts relates to accounts people consider “unimportant”. When dealing with such an account, many feel that extra security measures are more hassle than they're worth. As a result, they often use poor passwords, re-use passwords, fail to set up recovery mechanisms, and more.

My concern is twofold: accounts often become more important over time, and a breach of even a so-called “unimportant” account can still cause headaches in the future.

Then, of course, there are those who feel all their accounts are unimportant.

Continue Reading: Why that "Unimportant" Account Matters
https://askleo.com/95510

•

If I Do These Things, Will I Be Anonymous?

I do not understand how if you take the following steps that you can be found out:

You take your personal laptop out of town with you, completely different state.
You connect to a free open wifi from another location where you can't be filmed/on camera.
You use a new burner email account with all fake information.
You send the anonymous email.

Please tell me how anyone could trace that back to one's true identity.

The desire for anonymity is strong for many reasons; some legitimate, others less so. I want to use this as an example to show just how difficult it is these days to stay absolutely anonymous, particularly when it comes to email.

For example there's at least one glaring problem with the setup you describe.

Continue Reading: If I Do These Things, Will I Be Anonymous?
https://askleo.com/95524

•

How Do I Transfer My System to a Replacement Drive?

My hard drive states that failure is imminent and I should replace it immediately. My questions are as follows: when I replace my hard drive, will I need to install a new operating system? Is there a way to clone my current hard drive completely, including my operating system? If I am able to clone my entire hard drive, will I need hardware or some device between the old hard drive and the new while I do the transfer? What is the best way to save my existing files if I can't salvage my entire hard drive? Are there software programs that can help me do this?

There are indeed programs that can help — they're called backup programs.

While there are many, many ways to do what you want to do, I'm going to review what I think is the most resilient and appropriate way.

It's how I do exactly the same thing.

Continue Reading: How Do I Transfer My System to a Replacement Drive?
https://askleo.com/4261

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