Cybersecurity 101: Protecting Yourself & Your Accounts
The online world has brought conveniences we never imagined possible – and vulnerabilities as we engage more and more in our hyper-connected world. Cybercrime threatens more than big business and tech gurus; they also hack everyday people. Digital dangers are everywhere, so explore common threats and how to keep yourself and your accounts safe against scammers.
What Is Cybersecurity?
Cybersecurity is the practice of protecting networks, devices, and your data from fraudsters. With everything reliant on the internet, we must exercise extreme caution when interacting with links and submitting our confidential information online.
The smallest bit of information can leave you vulnerable. Clicking on the wrong link in your email or on your phone can expose your data to a scammer. Unsecured apps can expose sensitive information like debit or credit card information. Even talking to an AI tool can jeopardize confidential information that you provide.
Take a minute to review common cybersecurity threats and how much your day-to-day life relies on tech.
Common Cybersecurity Threats
Phishing & Social Engineering
The classic way to trick people into stealing their information is by gaining their trust. This can be done by sending you an email, text, or even a phone call. In these communication avenues, the scammer will pose as a person or business you trust and ask you to click on a link or provide a code. They will create a sense of urgency to urge people to complete their request.
Once someone clicks on the link, the scammer is able to steal credentials and access confidential information. Sometimes these attacks are broad, and sometimes they are detailed enough to target a single person.
Malware
From malicious software to ransomware, malware is a catchall term that harms computers and/or networks. Once the cyber attacker establishes a foothold in a network, they can delete or alter files, extract sensitive information (like passwords or account numbers), or send phishing emails out.
Malware usually shows up after clicking on a compromised link or downloading an infected attachment.
Compromised Business Email
Sometimes, a scammer compromises the email of a legitimate business and sends phishing emails within a company, impersonating as an executive at the company. Due to their “title”, they will try to trick employees into transferring money or sensitive information to them, verifying payroll information, or contact information. Sometimes this threat also comes as a personal text.
Best Practices
While scammers get craftier, you can exercise cybersecurity best practices and take precautions to secure your data and accounts.
- Create strong passwords. Passwords are the first line of defense for your accounts. The stronger the password, the stronger the defense. A secure password will be at least 12 characters and contain upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters.
- Keep software up to date. If there are known vulnerabilities in a version of software, scammers can take advantage and find loopholes to attack. Stay up to date on the latest software patches and shield your system against scammers.
- Practice caution with unexpected calls, texts, and emails. Phishing scams are done through our most common communication avenues. If you receive a call, text, or email you weren’t expecting, try to verify the message’s authenticity before clicking on any links.
- Implement multifactor authentication. If an attacker got through your password, they would be stopped at the second step: multifactor authentication. Multifactor authentication usually requires two ways to identify a user before allowing access to an account.
Poor cybersecurity practices can lead to your data and confidential account information being leaked to fraudsters. Stay in the know, and stay vigilant!