It's never been easier to share music, pictures, and news with each other. Thanks to new Internet technologies, email, and file-sharing programs, we can download and exchange audio, video, and digital image files whenever we want, from any location.

But along with convenience comes risk. For example, file-sharing programs can facilitate the illegal exchange of copyrighted materials. And whether you download music or podcasts from a Web site, upload pictures to an online storage site, or get the latest headlines and podcasts via RSS feeds, you leave your computer wide open. Your personal information, music, and photos are vulnerable to destructive viruses and hackers.

With vigilance and the right tools, you can protect your files and your computer. Follow these steps to help you to share files freely and safely.

Observe Copyright Laws

A growing number of online music and movie services make it easy to stream, download, or purchase digital files with the copyright owners' permission. By visiting reputable sites and sharing judiciously, you can download and share music legally and safely. To help you share wisely, here are a few examples of what not to do:

Don't email copies to your friends of a copyrighted song someone mails to you.
Don't put any songs you copy from a copyrighted CD on a file-sharing network so millions can download it.
Don't download unauthorized copies of copyrighted music from a file-sharing network.
Don't share copyrighted music using an instant messaging service.
Don't distribute CDs to your friends of copyrighted music you've downloaded.

Protect your stuff

Our music, photos, and audio and video files are constantly vulnerable to loss, and because some of these files are personal, our privacy is at risk, too. Still, there's a lot you can do to protect yourself.

Maintain the quality of your pictures. Decide how you want to store and share your pictures, and then select the best file format. A picture saved in GIF format looks great on screen but not in print. TIFF files print beautifully, but they're large. A picture saved in JPEG format will degrade every time you save it, so when you save a JPEG image to a CD or other archive medium, save it in TIFF format.
If you store pictures online, read the privacy agreement to see what kind of information the site shares, and how they protect your private information.
If you store pictures on your hard drive, consider putting them behind a partition to help protect your files if your operating system crashes.
Back up important files on an external storage device or a CD-R disc before sharing or downloading files.

Share Only What You Want to Share

Just as you shouldn't open email attachments from people you don't trust, you should be wary about downloading files from them as well. You never know what you or your kids may find on the hard drives of random strangers on the Internet. The best tip for file-sharing is to stop and think before downloading files through these networks. Here are more tips for safe and secure file-sharing.

If you use a file-sharing program, be sure to turn it on only to update files. File-sharing clients are designed to be left running, and continually broadcast your online presence. That makes your computer along with any vulnerabilities easy for a hacker or worm to find.
Use a personal firewall, antivirus software, and an anti-spyware tool to protect your computer from hackers.
Set passwords for read and write access to your shared folders to protect yourself from other computer users who might find an unprotected folder to be a convenient dumping ground for their files.
Avoid storing copies of copyrighted files that you have legally purchased, such as songs from a CD or a licensed retail music site, in your person-to-person file-sharing folder.

Although it has never been easier to share what you enjoy with others, it has also never been riskier. However, with the right tools, and vigilance, you can you can protect your personal information and share it with others.