Online security and safety from a doctor's perspective

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From BMJ:

If you have a social network site profile, how accessible is that to the general internet community and how much personal information is on that, even to people that you give full permission to view? A simple Google search on your name or using something a little more specialised such as this can generate significant amounts of personal information and some of it you may not wish to broadcast. Or maybe you did not realise how easy it was to find this information on line. Dates of birth, mother’s maiden name and nicknames which could be passwords are relatively easy to glean without too much technical knowledge. Access to such information could unlock the key to your on line bank accounts for example.

How confident are you, that your online security is optimised? I am sure there is room for improvement for all of us. If you want some basic advice, this is a good place to start:

http://www.getsafeonline.org/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=1179

References:
Harry Brown: Online security and safety. BMJ Blogs.
Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

Free Sync Service by Microsoft (Windows Live Sync)

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From NYTimes:

Microsoft SkyDrive is a free, 25-gigabyte virtual hard drive on the Internet, accessible from any computer.

There is another equally spectacular feature: Windows Live Sync.

The problem: you have a work machine and a home machine. Or a desktop PC and a laptop that's frequently out of the house. Or a family. Or a small business.

In any case, you find yourself having to copy certain important files back and forth after each trip: when you return home with your laptop, when you get to the office after doing work at home over the weekend, and so on.

The solution: Windows Live Sync.

You designate one folder on Computer A, and another folder on Computer B. Then Sync keeps them synced with each other, magically, over the Internet, with no effort on your part.

References:
From the Desk of David Pogue - Microsoft’s Free Sync Service - NYTimes.
Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

Hard drive in the cloud: Use Google Docs to upload any file up to 250 MB

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From Google Docs Blog:

Google Docs we will be rolling out the ability to upload, store and organize any type of file in Google Docs. You'll be able to upload and access your files from any computer -- all you need is an Internet connection.

You can upload to Google Docs any file up to 250 MB. You'll have 1 GB of free storage for files you don't convert into one of the Google Docs formats (i.e. Google documents, spreadsheets, and presentations), and if you need more space, you can buy additional storage for $0.25 per GB per year.

Combined with shared folders, you can store, organize, and collaborate on files more easily using Google Docs.


Video: Google Docs in Plain English.

I frequently use Google Docs for a variety of projects. It has some limitations but overall is a very useful service. Recommended.

References:
Upload and store your files in the cloud with Google Docs