In this world of modern technology, we have our whole lives online, so it is normal to have worries about our personal information being stolen.
From social media platforms to banking apps to messaging services, everything requires your email and phone number in order to create an account, so it is hard to avoid having at least some personal information online. If you are worried about your personal details getting leaked online, then read below to see how you can safeguard your data in the cyber age.
This is something that everybody knows, but very few people actually choose to follow through with it. It is so much easier just to use variations of the same password over and over again, but that can become a problem if hackers get ahold of even one of those passwords. If they know that you use the name of your first pet or the year you were married as common passwords, for example, then they can probably deduce that you use certain variations of the same things in all of your passwords.
The key things to stop doing if you are a password repeater are using last names, using birthday years, and using pet names. These are the most common words for people to use and they can be easily found out. This is especially important if you have any of those words in your email as well. Never use the same words in both your email and password. That can lead to your accounts being an easy target.
One of the great things about the cyber age is that there are many people out there who are incredible at using computers and knowing exactly how they work. Because of this, many companies have developed different kinds of tests that they can run on your devices and accounts to see if they are vulnerable. If you are worried about a security breach, you can find penetration testing as a service online and a company can test the durability of your security. These kinds of tests are a great investment because they not only give you peace of mind but can also point out where you are lacking in security and how you can put up more digital defenses.
So tests are done by real people who are experts in digital security while other tests can be run continuously by certain computer programs. This gives a double line of defense and allows you to be notified of anything or anyone slips through the cracks.
The best thing you can do for your online accounts is to keep your eye out for anything suspicious and change passwords as soon as you notice unfamiliar activity. The more often you change your passwords, the better chance you have of not being hacked. It is also important to pay attention to messages from friends that seem suspicious or contain strange links. Never click on any link that you do not already know about.
Staying safe on the internet has never been more important. In order to safeguard all of your accounts, follow the tips above and never give your information away to anyone that you do not know.
