Information Communication TechnologyGuide to Data Storage and Protection

Stonemasonry Department 2012

What is data?Data is a collection of unanalysed facts, number or statistics stored on your computing device. This data is organised by the processors

in your computing device to become information.

Data becomes information when it is organised into ways in which it can be used.

Processor

Data Information

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Do you input data?As a computer user you input information which the computer

processes and stores as data. Can you think of examples of information you may input?

PhotographsMusic

DocumentsPictures

Movies VideoTo keep things simple your computer stores all information in the same way; by breaking it down into small packages of data and storing it on the computers memory

How is Data Stored on a PC?

On a personal computer, data is stored by the computers memory. It is broken down into very small packages of data known as bytes. As bytes are so small we talk about 1000’s of bytes (kilobytes), millions

of bytes (megabytes) and even billions of bytes (gigabytes).

The table above shows the standard data measurement system used by most computer systems.*

Size of Memory Prefix Number of bytes

bit 8 bits = 1 byte

byte 1 byte

Kilobyte KB 1000 bytes

Megabyte MB 1 million bytes

Gigabyte GB 1 billion bytes

Terabyte TB 1 trillion bytes

*Based on standard SI decimal system – binary system operates on factors of 1024

Back-up Your DataWhen a computer is functioning properly your data is held safely on

the internal hard drive, packaged in small bytes and ready to be accessed. However there are a number of ways your data can become corrupted e.g virus, power surge, mechanical failure

accidental/malicious deletion.

It is considered best practice to back-up your data in at least two different physical locations. This means that you copy the data from your machine to removable storage device and store that device in a

different building/room than the original.

Data held on personal

computer in office

Backup data stored in central storage

location

Second backup data stored offsite in secure location

Forms of Physical StorageThere are three main forms of physical storage currently available to

consumers in the UK; magnetic, optical and solid state.

The table above shows examples of physical storage devices in common use.

Magnetic

Optical

Solid State

Images sourced from wikipedia and made available under cc license

Web Based File HostingIn addition to using physical storage devices it is possible to make use of web based file hosting services where an external company stores

your files on large remote servers. Most of these companies allow you to store a small amount of data for free and offer subscriptions

based on capacity usage.

The disadvantages of this method of data storage are that you need an active internet connection to upload and/or access your data and

you no longer have complete control of the security of your data.Images property of dropbox, google, microsoft and apple and used only for educational purposes

Protecting DataNow that your data is safely stored and backed-up you should look at

ways of protecting it. Data theft generates billions of pounds worldwide each year as computer hackers gain access to sensitive

information such as banking and credit card details, payroll information and internet passwords.

You should password protect any electronic data and keep physical storage devices in lockable storage at all times. Sensitive data may

also be encrypted.

Generating an Effective Password

Weak password

Good password

Strong password

There are a number of tips to generating an effective password:

Avoid using your name, date of birth or family members namesAvoid using the name of the sports club you supportUse a combination of lower case, upper case, numbers and symbolsNever under any circumstances share your password

Never write your password down where it can be seen or accessedAvoid entering your password on un-trusted machinesChange your password on a regular basis (every 30-90 days)Change your password immediately if you suspect it has been compromisedAvoid using the same password for a number of different applications

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Using Security SoftwareAnother vital aspect of keeping data secure is running security software on all computers you use to store or access data. This

software protects against malware such as viruses, trojans, general spyware and keylogger’s and ensures that your computer does not

become compromised.

You can download a number of free security software applications from the internet (make sure they are genuine) or pay for premium subscription based software. It is good practice to use this software

to regularly scan your machine for viruses.Images property of symatec, kaspersky and avg and are used only for educational purposes

References

The image on the title slide of this presentation was sourced from and remains the property of: http://paolatubaro.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/dataprocessing.jpg

The image on the title slide of this presentation was sourced from : http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3050/2919245129_276a62a19d.jpgAnd was made available under creative commons license

Developed by The Stonemasonry DepartmentCity of Glasgow College

2012