Update Your Systems to Improve Security and Functionality

19 May Update Your Systems to Improve Security and Functionality

We’re hearing from a lot of clients who are running into problems because they are working on systems from home that haven’t been updated in a while.

Prompts to update your operating systems and applications might be annoying, but it’s crucial that you don’t ignore them. At best, ignoring a reminder to update might mean you can’t take advantage of improved functionality; at worst, you could be leaving yourself open to a security breach that could put your data and that of your customers at risk.

Many people are working from home right now, and some are using personal PCs rather than machines provided by their company. This often means they are not protected as well as they would be if they were directly connected to business systems.

If this sounds familiar, read on to find out how to protect your systems and make sure they are running as efficiently as possible.

Update to Improve Security

The most important reason to update your systems is to take advantage of bug fixes and security upgrades that come with new updates. Your systems are much more vulnerable to hacking and viruses if they aren’t updated. This could have very serious consequences such as transferring your contacts to a remote server or wiping documents. Keeping your systems updated doesn’t only protect you but also your contacts as you could prevent malware being spread to them.

The best way to protect yourself against cybercrime is to make sure your anti-virus software is up to date. Even if it’s set to update automatically, get into a routine of checking it regularly as automatic updates can be switched off remotely by hackers. If you don’t have anti-virus software, you can buy and install it quickly and easily. Even free anti-virus protection, although not recommended, is better than nothing.

See Related: How To Protect Your Business Against Cyber Attack

Update to Improve Functionality

Working from home often means you are working with Wi-Fi that isn’t as robust as you’re used to in the office and potentially on a PC that is slower too. By updating your applications such as MS Office and operating systems like Windows, you give yourself the best chance of working more efficiently.

Updates aim to provide a better experience for the end-user by improving features and adding new ones. You might find that the speed and stability of your PC improves with an update, and it could even prolong the life of your machine and the battery for mobile devices.

See Related: How To Work From Home Effectively

If you need help and advice about keeping your systems up to date, and how best to facilitate home working, get in touch. We’re here to help.