If you’re a gamer, you’ve probably got a pretty solid amount of money invested into your system. Whether you’re using consoles, mobile phones, laptops, or PCs, you want to do everything within your power to secure your system. Fortunately, there are a few easy ways that you can keep your gear safe.
Cases
If you own a phone, this is likely one of the first purchases you’ve made. Manufacturers are always trying to make our gadgets thinner, lighter, and more attractive. The only downside to this trend is they can be a little easier to damage. Your Nokia phone from the 90’s might have been able to withstand a nuclear blast, but today you’ve got to keep your gadgets protected. This doesn’t just apply to phones, either. A number of expensive gaming laptops also have recommended cases.
Surge Protectors
Our systems might be powerful, but they don’t actually use a lot of power. Modern electronics are very power efficient and loaded with delicate circuitry that needs to be protected. Surges occur when excess electricity is added to your household power supply. This can easily destroy your electronics. Make sure you have a surge protector installed.
The best surge protectors have features like over current protection, fault check, and can be reset after a surge. Simple models are one-time use only and do not offer as much protection. This small investment can save you from replacing your custom, water-cooled PC just because of a lightning strike.
Theft Deterrents
It is not just damage you need to protect your hardware from, but also theft. All electronics, especially your gaming systems, are desirable items and carry a high resale value. This makes them a hot target for thieves. For mobile devices, the best way to protect them is to lower their profile in public. Try not to flash them around too much, and keep them safe in a pocket when not in use.
The FCC has been handing out stickers to users to inform them of their registration program designed to track stolen phones, so many feel that these stickers are a popular deterrent. Larger electronics in the home can be affixed with a security lock, making them difficult to steal. Finally, you should make sure that all of your electronics require a code or password to access.
Encryption
It’s not always your hardware that needs to be protected, but what’s inside of it. We’re not just talking about your game saves, either. These days, we keep our whole lives on hand at all times. If somebody was to get their hands on this info, there could be serious financial consequences.
Encryption is the process of encoding this information so that it cannot be read without the proper authentication. It’s already used all over the internet and can be easy to apply to your locally stored data. Often, enabling encryption is as simple as opening the settings on your operating system of choice and enabling it. But if you aren’t sure where to begin, we recommend giving this tutorial a quick read through. It might sound complicated, but a few minutes here can keep your data protected for a long time.
The Value of Security
The unfortunate reality of our world is that there are many threats to our technology. Some of these threats are physical, whether it be from threats in your control such as theft and physical damage. Others are virtual, such as security problems. Fortunately, most of these issues are well known, and easy to prevent. By taking a few simple steps now, you can keep your gaming hardware safe and sound for years to come.
