One Step Ahead: Almanac Security Tips - 2013

Table of Contents (view all)

Spring Cleaning Your Office? Know What to Do with E-Waste
Keep Your Identity Safe When Filing Taxes This Year
Why use Penn+Box when Storing Data in the Cloud
Mobile Device Security - 3 Recommendations for Cloud Users (Hint: That's You!)
Be Aware of QR Code Risks
It’s Data Privacy Month: Update Your Facebook Privacy Settings and More
How Are You Celebrating Data Privacy Month?
Stay Secure while Working on Public Wi-Fi Networks
Protecting Your Finances During This Year's Holiday Shopping Season
Cloud and You
Security and Privacy Online Training & Tools
October: Free Secure Disposal of Paper and Electronics at Employee Resource Fair; NCSAM
Student Privacy - What Do I Need To Know? A FERPA Reminder
Top 10 Tips for Securing Your Smartphone or Tablet
Working Off Campus? Some Tips to Consider

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Tuesday, February 27, 2007 - Almanac Vol. 53, No. 24

Securing data on your handheld computer

Handheld computers comprise a broad class of devices including BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, and Palm Smartphone, as well as traditional PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants). As these devices can contain lots of personally sensitive information, it is a good idea to make sure that they are protected from prying eyes as much as possible. In the event one of these devices is lost or stolen, the following short list of recommendations will help ensure that your data is protected, and is accessible by you:

• If your device has a power-on password feature, you should use it. This basic security is more intrusive on some devices than others. Our recommendation is to try the built-in password screen on your device and see if it is usable for your specific needs.  Make sure that you use a strong password that is hard to guess.  For password creation tips, please see: www.upenn.edu/computing/security/footprints/index.html#strongpswd.
• PDAs are particularly vulnerable to damage or loss and should be backed up regularly. The definition of an appropriate backup depends heavily on the workflow of the user; there is no global recommendation to be made here. For some users the vendor-supplied desktop sync package will be sufficient. Other users may require whole-device backup packages such as SPBBackup or BackupBuddy.
• When performing backups to a flash memory card in your device, remember that these backups only protect you against damage to the device; if the device is lost or stolen, the memory card, along with the backups, goes with it.

For additional information on handheld computers in general, please visit www.upenn.edu/computing/provider/pda.