Practical Tips to Keep You Safe

We live in a digital world, so keeping your personal information secure and understanding the tools fraudsters use to commit crimes is critical.

As tempting as it is to jump in and “spill the tea” as the kids say or tell all on any social platform, it’s important to understand that bad actors are continuously scanning the social media sites for personal information so they can strike on cue. One of the biggest issues are the social media surveys and quizzes which pop-up. They give hackers excellent opportunities that can be used for future cyberattacks.

Here are some common tips for intuitive sharing:

• Think like a hacker! Before you post information, consider will someone be able to use this information against you?
• Make sure photos aren’t giving away key pieces of info. Does the information posted in a photo include an address location, license plate, debit or credit card, driver’s license, or other identifying personal information?
• Never share the answers to surveys and quizzes when asking for passwords or other personal information.
• Don’t follow email links, open attachments or respond to unknown senders. Remember hackers can steal email addresses from profiles or those you trust. Always verify with the sender before opening, responding or taking any action on them.
• Be cautious with coupon and promotional activity. Verify the official retailer is conducting it. Look for the blue check mark indicating the social platform has verified the account name against the user’s identity and is authentic.
• Use strong passwords that are lengthy and at least eight or more characters. Make it complex by mixing numbers with symbols, upper and lower case letters.

Bottom line, do a gut check on yourself before making the post or response. Ask yourself can this response be used against my profile or password information to access systems or digital logins? If so, think twice about hitting enter.