Below you will find some recommendations and tips to protect yourself and your information from online theft and attacks, but before we start with the recommendations, read some statistics about “hacking” that occur today:
- An online “stealing” attempt occurs every 39 seconds in the world.
- Online attacks or even thefts occur in 43% of small and medium-sized businesses.
- Businesses, individuals, or various activities that have a website have suffered at least one online attack, and 64% of them have had their information stolen.
- The estimated damage from online attacks or thefts for 2019 reaches $2 trillion.
- In 2018 alone, hackers in the dark world of cyberspace made more than half a billion dollars from selling stolen information.
- One of the online attack techniques is DDoS, which is always being perfected and has experienced a 500% increase from year to year.
- 95% of successful online attacks or thefts have occurred as a result of human error. In other words, it is us ourselves or the personnel of a company who are responsible for always following the instructions of the IT department or taking the following steps to protect ourselves from the dark cyber world.
- 60% of companies or individuals who have fallen prey to online theft took more than 6 months to realize it and realize that their information was already in the wrong hands.
Advice and recommendations from Albascan’s specialized staff:
- Try to always keep your operating system or other software you use on your computer updated.
- Never use the same password on multiple sites or online services, and don’t reuse it when you change it.
- Do not download software, music, movies, or any other type of document from unofficial or unsecure sources. Not only do you risk violating copyrights, you also risk your own cybersecurity.
- Close any software or always log out of your online accounts after you are finished working there.
- In the case of highly sensitive information or information classified as confidential, encryption is recommended, as this way, even in the event of theft, the information remains secure and cannot be read/accessed outside your infrastructure or computer.
- Always install protective software such as anti-virus or anti-spyware which help you identify and prevent various viruses on online sites or even on USB sticks/external HDDs.
- Some attacks are designed not only to steal your information, but also to destroy it. Therefore, it is recommended that you also perform backups to external storage from time to time.
- Never share your personal information, even if it seems harmless or non-confidential. Some examples are name, address, current location, work location, phone number, etc.
- When browsing various websites or online shopping sites, always make sure that the website address is in the security protocol format “https” and not “http”. Also, make sure that you are only buying online on reputable and secure platforms such as ebay, Amazon, aliexpress, etc.
- When creating a secure password, it is recommended to use long phrases or even special characters and replace some letters with numbers (E with 3, O with 0, I with 1. An example of such a password is: “luftam3v1ru$1nc0v!d19d0t3f1t0h3tnganj3r3z1m1” which translates to: “the fight against the covid19 virus will be won by humanity”
- When creating passwords, it is recommended to use phrases as long as possible with numbers and special characters, as well as replacing some letters such as “E” with “3” and “O” with “0”, an example could be “luftam3v1ru$1nc0v!d19d0t3f1t0h3tnganj3r3z1m1” in translation.
- Change your password at least once a month by replacing it with a phrase or sentence that is easy to remember and has meaning to you.
- Always use two-step verification to log into your online account.
- Use the notification method for each login to your account (login alerts) and frequently check the LOG files of your computer or accounts to see any activity that has been performed.
- Always secure your computer, phone, tablet, or laptop with multiple access methods such as complex passwords, fingerprints, or facial recognition.
- For your laptop, mobile phone or tablet, it is recommended to have activated real-time location or remote deletion of information on your devices (remote location and device wiping). This way, in case of loss of the device, you can find it through location but also completely delete the information located there remotely.
- Be aware of what sites you are visiting, what information you are sharing, what options you have to stop sending or even completely delete this information already uploaded by you. Find out about your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and the security they use, as well as the contact points or numbers of local authorities responsible for cybercrime.
- If you want to keep information private, then never upload it to the internet, as absolute security on the web does not exist!
If you need more information or are a company, corporation, or institution that wants to secure your electronic information, then Albascan with its specialized products and staff is here for you!
