Take Care of Your IT Environment
Just as you regularly service your car, it’s important to consistently review and update your IT environment to keep it secure.
What is Cyber Hygiene? Cyber hygiene involves maintaining your devices and information to ensure they are clean and safe. Just like washing your hands prevents germs, good cyber habits protect against digital threats like viruses and hackers.
Why is Cyber Hygiene Important? Online criminals are always developing new ways to steal your information or damage your devices. Practicing good cyber hygiene safeguards your privacy and ensures your devices function properly.
How Can You Improve Your Passwords?
Use Long and Complex Passphrases: Longer passwords are harder to guess. Try using a sentence like, “I love eating pizza every Friday!”
Mix it Up: Incorporate different characters, including numbers, symbols, and both uppercase and lowercase letters. For example, “I<3EatingPizza0nFridays!” is even more secure.
Don’t Reuse Passwords: Avoid using the same password for multiple accounts. Use a password manager to remember unique passwords, so if one is compromised, your other accounts remain safe.
Update Your Operating System and Software: Keeping your software updated is akin to getting a flu shot; it protects you from new threats.
Fix Security Holes: Updates often fix security vulnerabilities that could be exploited by cybercriminals.
Get New Features: Updates may also enhance your apps with new and improved features.
Update Your Devices: Regularly update hardware devices like routers, switches, and firewalls as well.
Set Automatic Updates: Enable automatic updates to ensure you never miss an important update.
Implement Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security, much like adding a second lock to your door.
What is 2FA?: 2FA requires two forms of identification, typically a password and a code from an authenticator app on your phone. SMS codes can also be used, but they are less secure.
Why Use 2FA?: Even if someone steals your password, they won’t be able to access your account without the second form of authentication.
Where to Use 2FA: Enable 2FA on all your online accounts, including email, banking, social media, shopping, work, and government accounts.
Avoid Using Public Wi-Fi: Public Wi-Fi is risky, as anyone can potentially eavesdrop on your activities. Instead, use your own 4G/5G modem or connect through your mobile phone.
If you must use public Wi-Fi, follow these tips to stay safe:
Use a VPN: A VPN encrypts your data, creating a secure tunnel to the internet. Avoid free VPN services.
Avoid Sensitive Tasks: Don’t perform banking or other sensitive tasks on public Wi-Fi. Wait until you’re on a secure network.
Turn Off Auto-Connect: Disable automatic connections to Wi-Fi networks to prevent your device from connecting to potentially malicious networks.
Identify Phishing Scams: Phishing scams attempt to trick you into revealing personal information. Here are some tips to avoid them:
Check the Sender: Verify the sender’s email address for any inconsistencies or errors. If in doubt, contact the sender directly.
Don’t Click Suspicious Links: Hover over links to see where they lead. If unsure, visit the website directly or call the sender for confirmation.
Be Wary of Urgent or Unexpected Messages: Scammers often create a sense of urgency to prompt quick action. If a message seems off, verify its legitimacy before acting.
Back Up Your Data: Backing up your data is essential to protect against data loss. Here’s why it’s important:
Recover from Accidents: Mistakenly deleted files can be recovered with backups.
Protect Against Ransomware: Backups allow you to restore your data without paying ransoms to cybercriminals.
Hardware Failures: Backup ensures you can quickly recover data if your hardware fails.
Use the 3-2-1 Rule: Keep 3 copies of your data, stored on 2 different types of media, with 1 copy off-site.
Review Your Privacy Settings: Your privacy settings control what others can see. Regularly review them to maintain your privacy:
Check All Your Accounts: Close and delete accounts you no longer use.
Limit What You Share: Share only necessary information to enhance your security.
Schedule Reviews: Regularly check your privacy settings and set reminders to do so.
Educate Your Staff About Cyber Safety: Cyber safety is a collective responsibility in any organization. Here’s how to spread the knowledge:
Cyber Security Awareness Training: Enroll your staff in comprehensive cyber security awareness training.
Make it Fun: Use games and stories to make learning about cyber safety engaging.
Lead by Example: Demonstrate good cyber habits for your staff to emulate.
Talk About Online Experiences: Encourage open discussions about online experiences to keep everyone informed and vigilant.
Level Up Your Cyber Hygiene: Enhance your cyber hygiene to protect against online threats. Use strong passwords, back up your data, avoid phishing scams, update your software, operating systems, and equipment, and avoid public Wi-Fi.