FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Tech

You Should Take Five Minutes to Update Your OS and Apps

For day one of our digital security tuneup, take a minute to update all your operating systems.
Image: Jacqueline Lin/Motherboard

This post is part of a weeklong series to help our readers improve their digital security. Follow along here.

  • First, check to see that the operating system on your computer is the most recent version. If not, update it (or ask your IT team to, if it’s a work computer and you need permission).
  • Do the same on your phone. Check if it’s running the latest version of Android or iOS, and, if not, update it.
  • Next, go to your app store on your phone and click on updates. Update all your apps to the latest version.

Why should I do this?
As our Guide To Not Getting Hacked says: “By keeping everything up to date, you have a way lower chance of becoming a victim of malware, because responsible manufacturers and software developers quickly patch their products after new hacks are seen in the wild.”