5 Simple Tips to be Cyber Secure at Work and at Home
Treat Information As Confidential
Business information typically includes a mix of personal and proprietary data. While you may think confidential business information are things like trade secrets and company finances, it also includes employee personally identifiable information (PII) that can include everything from birthdays to Social Security numbers. At home, you want to protect your and your family’s PII as well. Never share PII with unknown parties. When you do need to share confidential information with an authorized and verified recipient, don’t just email it, be sure to only use secured methods.
Use Strong and Unique Passwords
Passwords are the keys to digital privacy.
Always use a unique password for each login
Do not reuse passwords or similar passwords for your different accounts. If you reuse passwords, when one login is compromised, all of your logins are compromised.
Always use strong passwords
A strong password should be at least 10 characters or longer with a mix of shifted characters and should not string together common words, phrases, dates, or things associated with you. On the other hand, a long password of 20 letters or more of randomly chosen words is such as “magnicifentelephantsswimming” has a stronger security rating than a shorter password with varied characters.
A stronger password is long and is randomly generated: “k&cfHsf9epYxT$w88YsY”. These passwords are far more secure as they are not easily memorable. Using them definitely requires some sort of password management solution (see below).
Weak passwords are short, contain common words, phrases, dates and something associated with the user. They are easily memorable and can be guessed. Weak passwords should never be used.
These days we don’t even try to remember passwords. EVERY password is a long string of randomly generated characters. The exception is we have one strong but memorable password that we use for our Password Manager. We recommend that everyone use a password management solution both at home and at work like Keeper Password Manager, 1Password, LastPass, Apple Keychain Access, etc… These programs offer some excellent features that allow you to securely record, organize, and use all of your private credentials. They also offer great features for businesses that allow organizations to consolidate, inventory, share and secure confidential information.
And of course, NEVER share your passwords.
Keep Your Devices Up to Date
Keep your software updated to the latest version available. Maintain your security settings to keeping your information safe by turning on automatic updates so you don’t have to think about it and set your security software to run regular scans.
Don’t Overshare on Social Media
Social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn provide a wealth of information that cyber-criminals use to prey on their targets. Limit what information you post on social media—from personal addresses to where you like to grab coffee. What many people don’t realize is that these seemingly random details are all that criminals need to know to target you, your loved ones, and your physical belongings—online and in the real world. Keep Social Security numbers, account numbers, and passwords private, as well as specific information about yourself, such as your full name, address, birthday, and even vacation plans. Disable location services that allow anyone to see where you are—and where you aren’t—at any given time.
Don’t Let Your Guard Down
Most data breaches can be traced back to a single security vulnerability, phishing attempt, or instance of accidental exposure. Be wary of unusual sources, do not click on unknown links, scrutinize URLs and email addresses, delete suspicious messages immediately, and ALWAYS VERIFY requests for information or financial transactions in person or over the phone.