4 Ways OEMs Are Helping Consumers Tackle Cybersecurity Problems

Hackers have been running haywire for a while now, and it seems OEMs have started getting tired of them. For a group of people who collectively stole an amazing $19.4 billion from US consumers in 2017 alone, they do deserve any and all poor stares that they get from manufacturers.

Besides poor stares, these manufacturers have also come up with their own ways of helping the average consumer stay safe against cyber-attacks. Below are some of the ones we love the most

1 Antivirus Software

Hackers have almost perfected the art of installing malware on target devices to do their bidding. Depending on the kind of malware in question, the hacker could achieve a series of things. Some of such are:

• Destroying all/ some of the files on a user’s computer (virus)
• Silently recording all keystrokes a user makes, sending this data back to a remote server. Analysis of the data can be used to determine account password and login info (keylogger)
• Holding the user’s files to ransom, only releasing/ promising to release these files after payment is made (ransomware), and much more.

Almost all computer manufacturers now equip their units with a third-party antivirus to help them combat these issues. Microsoft is even known for its Windows Defender program which comes with the Windows 8 software and later.

2 Webcam Protection

If you have ever heard that webcams – or just about any other cameras on any internet-enabled device for that matter – can be hacked to spy on you, you should believe it.

Internet users have reported finding their images on the web even though they didn’t take such intimate photos. Videos have surfaced too, and that can be disturbing. All these cannot be boiled down to conspiracy theories either – seeing as Edward Snowden himself confirmed that these cameras can be hacked by even the government.

The truth is that switching off the webcam app does not put you out of harm’s way. Thus, OEMs came up with the novel idea of a webcam kill switch.

Popular on HP’s laptops currently, these kill switches electrically disconnect the webcam from the motherboard. By so doing, they become impossible to access on-site or remotely. That effectively nips the voyeur issue in the bud.

3 Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)

The turn of this decade has exposed many to the benefits of VPNs. They used to be seen as just pieces of software that allowed users to change their locations to anyone so desired, but they have now been recognized for more than that.

So much is this recognition that leading brands like HP have brought ExpressVPN’s Windows app onto some of its units. That said, what makes them so important?

The first point of call is in how VPNs helps protect users from the dangers of unencrypted networks – as is mostly the case with public/free Wi-Fi networks. At the same time, their level of encryption (an FBI-grade, 256-bit protocol for the top VPN companies) makes it impossible for users to fall victim to internet traffic sniffing, data snooping and such related attacks.

4 Password Management

Perhaps the leading cause of data breaches is the kind of poor password habits users have these days.

From using the same password for multiple accounts to not even caring to set strong passwords to start with, the list is uninspiring enough. Left alone, it does not seem like users will get out of this habit on their own, so their OEMs are stepping in to help.

Integrating password management software like LastPass means users can now use multiple passwords for different accounts without having to worry about forgetting any. Likewise, these password management programs come with password generating features, allowing users to create highly secure and extremely complex passwords at a click.

And oh, they don’t even have to remember it since they have the same app to do so for them.

Final Words

As OEMs are doing their part, the user is also a major stakeholder in the race towards data privacy and security. Thus, the consumers should be prepared to embrace and appreciate these additions too.

That way, the excesses of hackers can be curbed.