While there is no denying the fact that mutual respect and kindness make the world go round and is the reason the human race has survived for this long, there is also no denying the atrocities and malice that humans are capable of committing.
The next-gen cold wars are all about data and protecting yourself online is now just as important as securing your country’s borders or your house’s entrance points.
But digital protection is not a single-day ordeal. It is a continuous, dynamic process, much like everything else in the digital world.
Today we’ll be talking about small steps that you can take every day to protect your digital self, which is pretty much intertwined with your real self now whether you realize it or not.
We’re breaking things down for you so nothing feels overwhelming if you’re not from a tech background or are simply very busy.
- Take up Learning:
We all scroll our social media feed at least 10-15 mins a day, no matter how busy we are. Use the same 10-15 mins to take up learning about the latest trends in cybersecurity, such as Bluetooth vulnerability.
Don’t know what a VPN is? Which Encryption service to invest in? What firewall or antivirus to install? Not to worry! All these terms may seem intimidating at first, but you can learn them in no time. Just give 15-20 mins every day to one of these topics and you’ll be up to speed in a matter of weeks.
- Stop ignoring the updates:
We all know we tend to “schedule updates for later” every time the update prompt comes up. However, keeping your devices up-to-date is crucial for identity protection as almost every update has some new security features, tailored in response to the latest security threats. Trust us, You are risking exposure by even sending out a text message to someone on an outdated device. Such devices are also easier to hack, think of it this way, it’s like not repairing your house walls when they’re becoming less resistant to attacks. When companies send out updates, they also publish public documents that provide details on the bugs or security loopholes that the former versions had and what security patches these new versions provide. The loophole becomes a known vulnerability and hackers leverage ignorance towards updating to exploit the security gaps.
- Regularly run security checks:
Yes, it can be time-consuming. Yes, it can be frustrating at times, especially when it requires you to restart your system a couple of times. In an attempt to avoid this misery, most of the users either disable the firewall or keep delaying their full-system scan indefinitely. We urge you to never skip this step.
It is almost every day that we hear about new data leaks, identity thefts and other cyber scandals. You’d be surprised to know that a lot of them are carried out by sending in dangerous viruses and malware to the victim’s system. The Trojan Horse Viruses and Rat viruses, as an example, are popular dangerous viruses that are disguised as normal files and can only be picked up with advanced anti-virus systems. They infect the entire system and can collect your personal or sensitive data on behalf of people with less honorable intentions.
Thus, it is incredibly important that you run a system scan at least once per week to ensure your system is safe from such threats.
- Fully secure important accounts:
Do you have work/business accounts where you store all your important work? Are you a little famous on social media? Do you have some very personal pictures/videos uploaded on your cloud drive?
If you want your personal data to remain personal and you cannot risk a cyber attack, then make sure you take out some time to fully secure those accounts. There are a few ways to do it:
- Set up Multi-Factor Authentication. This is like your strongest first line of defense.
- Don’t reuse passwords! Invest in a password manager if you’re likely to forget your passwords. Because if hackers can figure out the password for one account, they will virtually have a free passage to everything else, too
- Be careful about who you give access to your account. If you’re a public figure and need a social media manager, be sure this someone isn’t lying to you about who they are. The easiest way to verify someone’s identity is through Nuwber as it will provide you with all publicly available information on the person.
- Pay attention to your smartphone safety features:
Imagine you dropped your smartphone somewhere. Your unprotected phone had private pictures with your friends, honeymoon memories and lots of work files.
Then, some random person easily unlocked your mobile and stole/got a look at all your personal data before he came back to return your phone. Be mindful that your phone’s data could include bank account numbers, bank account passwords, credit card details, social security numbers as they’re often saved in apps/ or browsers if not in your notes.
If you can’t begin to imagine what that would make you feel like, take steps to secure your smartphone today.
- Set up a pattern/number lock on your lock screen, so that any random person can’t access your phone.
- Set up face recognition, fingerprint locks and accidental touch protection (if your phone has these features).
- Store private photos/files in a hideable vault that isn’t visible on random scrolling through the phone.
But what if you took all those measures and still fell victim to a cyber attack? Unfortunately, most of us only secure our phones on the outside and not the inside. And by the inside, we mean the mobile software.
Avoid downloading any shady or suspicious applications, visiting non-trusted sites, clicking on unfamiliar ads etc. as they often infect your device with a virus, giving it unsolicited access to private information without you ever knowing.
And if your phone gets stolen? Well, there are also security measures aimed at deleting all your personal data from your phone in case it gets stolen or lost. You probably have it in-built in your phone. Just take out a few minutes from your day to activate it to avoid a more dire consequence.