We hear so much about data breaches and cyber attacks these days. Learning that hackers exposed millions of credit card numbers or other pieces of personal information seems to happen more and more. Even large companies with well-funded security — such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Equifax — suffer at the hands of malicious cyber attackers. Considering how these mega-companies make such high-value targets, you may wonder, “How does this affect me? Why do I need to care about cybersecurity? Why would an attacker want my computer? There is nothing of value on it, and I only use it for email, social media, and occasional online purchases.”

What many people forget is that hackers are not only dangerous because of what they can take from you but also because of what they can give you. While it may be true that your personal computer does not store millions of credit card numbers, your PC still has potentially tremendous value to an attacker. You need to care about cybersecurity.

So, what can an attacker do with your computer? Let’s look at some major reasons an attacker may want your computer.

If you have saved your email password to your computer, so you don’t have to type it every time you log in, attackers may be able to access your email account. They could read your emails. They could even send emails in your name to wreak havoc in your life or damage your reputation. They could obtain the contact information of your friends and family. With access to your email, it would also be possible to reset the passwords of any online accounts that you have set up with that email address using the “Forgot my Password” button on a website’s login page. Access to your email provides wildcard access to most of your online accounts. Consider what these other online accounts are. Someone with access to your Amazon account could probably make purchases using the credit cards you have saved in your account. Think of the damage an attacker could do to your personal and professional reputation with access to your Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts.

A hacked computer is also dangerous because it may allow attackers to access your computer’s webcam and microphone. Attackers could potentially take pictures of you without your knowledge. If the images captured were private, they could blackmail you. For this reason, keeping your webcam covered when not in use is always a good idea.

With access to your computer, attackers could also install malware (malicious software) capable of encrypting all your files and making them unusable until you pay a price to have the files decrypted. This is commonly called ransomware, as the attackers hold your computer for ransom. Even if you don’t have anything of value on your computer you are afraid of losing, there is still danger. Some malware can spread from one computer to another on a network. Other computers on the network may contain important files that must remain safe.

As if all of this were not enough, an attacker could use your computer to host a malicious website infecting the computers of all visitors with malware. Your computer could spread malware all over the world without your knowledge! An attacker could even place illegal content such as child pornography on this website, and you are legally responsible for your computer’s contents.

An attacker could also use your computer’s processing power to send spam emails worldwide. These emails may contain attached malware or links to malicious, malware-hosting websites. An attacker could also install malware that joins your computer to thousands or millions of other hacked computers worldwide to form a “botnet,” an army of compromised computers. This botnet could collectively overwhelm a target website (such as Amazon) and cause it to crash. This is known as a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.

An attacker could use your hacked computer to generate revenue through cryptocurrency mining. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are completely digitized forms of money. Sometimes, attackers will try to induce people to visit websites that host pirated movies. While the victim is spending time watching the pirated movie, the website “hijacks” the victim’s Internet browser and uses its processing power to mine cryptocurrency.

As you can see, a hacked computer is an asset to an attacker. Much more is at stake than your personal photos and text documents. Downloading and opening a malicious file or clicking a single link to a malicious website is enough to unleash the chaos described in the preceding paragraphs. There is, however, no reason to despair. You can take practical steps to protect yourself.

First, be careful what you click on. Don’t click on links or open attachments from emails you are not expecting. Verify the origin of the message. Hover your mouse over a link before clicking it to see where it will take you. If the site is unfamiliar or looks suspicious, do not click on the link.

Second, do not use passwords. Instead, use passphrases! The length of a passphrase is far more important than the complexity. Often, websites insist that you use a certain number of uppercase letters, numbers, and special characters. The length, however, is far more important. Use at least 12 characters. An example of a good passphrase is “DeskComputerPhoneBottle20!”

Third, apply updates when they become available and do not repeatedly postpone them. Software vendors often release updates to fix critical security vulnerabilities.

Fourth, use updated antivirus software.

Fifth, Take regular backups of your important files in case of a ransomware attack. If you are the victim of ransomware, do not pay the ransom, as this encourages the attackers. Reinstall everything on your computer and restore your important files from the backups.

Sixth, keep your webcam covered when you are not using it.

Seventh, monitor your financial accounts for suspicious activity. A good credit monitoring or credit freezing service can help with this.

Finally, do not enter sensitive information such as credit card numbers into a form on a website with HTTP in the address bar. Ensure the site uses HTTPS, which means your information will be encrypted when sent to the website.

Remember that even though you may not store millions of credit card numbers on your computer, you can still be a target. Recognizing every computer has potential value to an attacker and taking the steps listed above will help you stay safe in the dangerous cyber world.