Mar 132012
 

Article by Giuseppe Sanna

One of the most important things for eveybody is undoubtedly the security ! Sure, the software can be reinstalled, the hardware can be bought back … But your information? Those can not be re-installed or repurchased. In the event of a crash … you could lost all forever!
For this reason, today we will see how to make your PC a real Fort Knox!

The first thing to do is to make backups of your files with a TAR archives. Even if this is an old method, I guarantee that it is one of the most secure to date!



So if /home/user is the directory where you have all your information, open a terminal and do a cd in a file system that can accommodate the backup of all the information and then give a

tar -zcvf mybackup.tgz /home/mioutente/

The resulting mybackup.tgz file must then be placed in a safe place, a few tips:

  • An extrenal USB hard disk
  • Burn it on a DVD
  • Save it on storage Cloud, such as Dropbox or Ubuntu one

The second thing to do is dedicated to the laptops. What if someone steal your beloved laptop? The first thing the thief will do is to turn it on and look into your data. And It is there that we’ll catch him! If you install a software such as Prey, you can seamlessly trace your PC, clean up the HardDisk and listen … listen … even make a nice picture of the thief via the WebCam.

And what do you think about syncing your laptop with your desktop PC? Install Unison and have fun in discovering its many features … In fact you can Synchronize all files and software you want without any problem!

Cosa ne dite invece di sincronizzare il vostro portatile con il vostro PC fisso? Installare Unison e divertitevi a scoprire le sue tantissime funzionalità… potete infatti sincornizzare tutti i file e software che volete senza alcun problema!

Many, however, instead of the usual synchronization, prefer to use Cloud services. I make use of this too. Sure, they are very comfortable. You will have your files available on any device. But what is the reverse of the coin? You’re simply entrusting sensitive files to people who have the opportunity to view them! In short, in my opinion you should not put private data there. Or just use the dear old storage with encryption.

This also happens with email. If in fact you have very confidential email into your “Inbox”, your provider has the ability to read all those emails and do whatever it want with these information ! How can we avoid this? You can simply download your emails locally. Any client, in fact, gives us the ability to leave the email on the server (so we can read from any device that can connect to the site) or save them locally removing them from the Server.


It’s a recommended procedure for those with sensitive files, but also important files. Many companies in fact, automatically delete all emails after a certain period of time. For this reason, it is a good idea to download all the important email such as those of Internet services such as Skype, Facebook or forums that send us an email with summary of our registration.

Are you using Linux right? Do you want to know another trick ? Try to don’t give the same password for the users and root ! This could result in damage not only for your operating system but also for all the files and Related Services. And what if you use Ubuntu that unifies access to root and user ? Nothing could be simpler … During installation you create one user and after the installation you add a second user without the possibility of become root with sudo and in the day by day you use this second account !

Why do we always think that something bad can happen ? Maybe sometimes we are the only ones guilty. What happens, in fact, if we forget the laptop at the bar while we have a breakfast ? The solution is very nice and cheap … You can find on various ecommerce sites like eBay some cute gadgets that will give a signal with an acoustic signal after a distance from your electronic devices is reached.

Many times when we speak of Linux this popular operating system is combined with an operating system without risks and viruses. This is almost true! But this does not mean that lack threats. There are still malware, viruses, or simply badly written code in Linux.

Everything seems very insecure, but do not worry … with these measures you will avoid some big problems! You just have to dedicate to your life partner, your PC is clear, an evening dedicated to his security.

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  One Response to “Security first! Here’s how to make your Linux impenetrable.”

  1. You lost me at the point you mention Prey, which is supposed to “seamlessly trace your PC, clean up the HardDisk and listen”… That only works with stupid people… if there is one who knows what to do, they’ll detach your hard drive first and hook it to another computer, to inspect it. Prey works only if connected to network/internet… Don’t blabbler about stuff you did not digest first…

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