This blog post will show you how you can convert your work laptop to your personal laptop with no problems.
Many organizations are concerned about the risk of information security breaches and how those might impact their businesses. To minimize these risks, organizations are using various techniques to protect their confidential data on their employees’ laptops. Some of those include encryption, firewalls, and intrusion detection.
There is no need to maintain those strict security protocols when you quit your job and carry your work-related laptop.
The limitations of a corporate environment can restrict what you can do with your computer and what you can download and install.
Luckily, there are ways to customize your work laptop to fit your needs. This post will show you how to turn your laptop into a personal computer.
9 Easy Ways of How To Convert Your Work Laptop to Personal Laptop?
Reset Your Laptop To Factory Settings
If you have been using your laptop for a long time, you might want to reset it to factory settings. This is an easy way to turn your laptop into a new one without doing any extra work. This will delete all company-related applications so that you can have a spotless slate.
However, If you wish to save some apps or files on your laptop and use it with third-party software and flash drives, you can disable the security settings on your computer.
The other easy methods are given below
Enable Windows Defender
Importance of Antivirus Program When Working For Company
Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) is a free anti-virus software that can scan both local and remote drives and protect your files. However, it will not be enough to keep your personal information secure if you work at an organization that uses multiple anti-virus products.
Anti-virus (AV) programs protect your PC from harmful and malicious files like viruses and malware. However, your data security must be of utmost importance when working at the office. That’s why installing AV programs is recommended.
Disable Antivirus Softwares To Use Computer For Personal
However, you do not need these security features if you work for yourself after leaving the company. They slow down your computer by using up CPU and memory resources.
Best practice is to disable all other anti-virus programs and only use Windows Defender. The built-in Microsoft Windows Defender, a component of the Windows operating system, is the primary way Windows is protected from viruses and malware.
Enabling Windows Defender on your Windows-powered device ensures that you are safe and protected from potentially dangerous websites and applications. If any such infections do sneak in, Windows Defender will help you get rid of them.
You can access this security program by opening the start menu and typing “Windows Defender.
Encrypt Your Data By Using TrueCrypt Software
When you use your work computer for personal purposes, there’s still the chance that someone else will use it as well. This is especially true if your laptop contains sensitive information like corporate secrets or client data. Therefore, you must make sure your laptop is secure and kept protected from others.
To ensure the privacy and security of all your personal or private information as well as official data, encrypt your files and folders. Encrypting your data using TrueCrypt is a good solution for all your needs.
TrueCrypt provides robust encryption to protect sensitive files and folders on your computer. It works by encrypting files and folders, including entire hard disks. TrueCrypt is a free, accessible, and free download application.
You can safely store the private documents on a secure virtual disc created within a file. You can save the secret information on an USB device or email it to yourself for convenience.
Furthermore, TrueCrypt allows you to have a concealed, virtual operating system running on a physical computer. It is designed to enable you to set up a secret space that can only be accessed with your permission. You can do this to help keep your essential data secure from potential intruders.
Disable Windows Firewall
To safeguard company data, you may want to add various security features to your work laptop. The firewall is one of these because it blocks hackers from gaining access to your system.
Also, It is suggested that if you are using a public Wi-Fi connection, turn off the Windows Firewall to keep your system safe from hackers.
Disable Windows Update
Keeping your system running smoothly and up to date is critical, so you’ll have to constantly update your computer at work every day when new patches and security updates are released.
Implementing these windows updates after resigning is not as critical as you think, and it requires a lot of time. You can just deactivate Windows updates to prevent wasting your breath.
You can even turn it back on later if you’d rather.
Make Use of Portable Applications
If your laptop is unrestricted for business after deleting all those sophisticated anti-viruses, then there is no reason not to install the third-party apps. That is a big win for productivity, and you’ll save time if you do not have to install them later.
Portable applications are trendy among users who like to get their work done while moving.
Consider getting a portable copy of the software you use most often on a USB drive or network-attached storage to speed up your workflow. You may bring it around with you and use it whenever you need it.
Having all of your third-party apps in one place makes more sense than having them scattered across your system’s discs.
Make Use of Virtual Machines
Another way to ensure your data security is by installing a virtual machine when you leave the company or utilizing it for personal reasons. This means that you are running a separate operating system on your computer.
The benefit of using virtual machines is that they allow you to install various operating systems and software without affecting the primary operating system. You can even use them to run your work and personal applications.
VirtualBox is the best virtual machine software. It is free. You can download it. This free software lets you construct many different operating systems within your computer for personal use.
You can alternatively build a new working atmosphere within your current OS to get all of the necessary data.
Make Use of BitLocker For Data Security
Data encryption is a way of scrambling data on a hard drive so that only someone who has access to the key can retrieve it.
BitLocker is one of the best Windows security features to use to keep your data safe from hackers and cyber-attacks, just like TrueEncrypt. It encrypts an entire hard drive section at once, making it a bit more difficult for people to break into your information.
Right-click on the drive you wish to protect and choose Turn on BitLocker from the menu. The encrypted drive is protected by a password you choose, and you and your authorized users can access it.
BitLocker also has an option to back up the encryption key to an external USB drive, which means that you can recover your data even if your hard disc becomes infected or lost.
Using Your Browser Incognito Mode For Privacy
Surfing in incognito mode is another effective and easy way to use your work computer as a personal laptop. It is an anonymous browsing option that allows users to browse privately.
To use incognito mode in Chrome, look for incognito mode in the menu bar. Firefox users can find it in the menu options.
When you enter incognito mode, a new window will pop up, and your browser will switch to a private state where you can browse the web anonymously, read email messages, and play games.
While browsing in incognito mode, no one else using the same computer will be able to see your web searches.
Conclusion – How To Convert Your Work Laptop to Personal Laptop
The truth is that converting your work laptop to a personal laptop is not a big deal. It is neither a difficult nor a time-consuming procedure.
There are many ways you can convert your work laptop to a personal laptop, but using the tips in this article will help you protect your personal information. You can do it individually and in a short amount of time.
If you encounter any other technical problem with your laptop, we are here to help. Visit us at techguideco for quick solutions.