Treat your online privacy as you would treat your Money"

       

 "Treat your online privacy as you would treat your Money"

Data breaches are common occurrences these days, with personal information routinely stolen or misused from social media, banks, retail outlets and other online sites.

I shall give you a mantra!! Even if you are not an information security enthusiast.

    

                          "The Mantra is to treat our online privacy as we would treat our money"

By Sawan Bhan

As an InfoSec guy i would always recommend the highest level of security to ensure our information does not fall into the wrong hands.I am going to share some tips to strengthen the safety and security of our online accounts to avoid being the victim of a data breaches.

#NOTHING IS EVER TRULY DELETED#

Every time when we are online, we are leaving a trail of an activity. From websites to online shopping  to social media posts, our information is being stored. Even when we delete a social media post or photo, chances are that it's still living somewhere online. 

**Has happened to me**

You can call it "right hand pinky promise" rule that :

It’s better not to post anything that we are even remotely uncomfortable with and would not want our teachers,parents, spouse, children or boss to see.

#Understand What We Agree To

When we  interact with any Website, it is likely that we  agree to the site's Terms and Condition

and/or Privacy Policy .Nobody reads them!! I never do as well ;) !!But If we actually subscribe or join a Website or download an app, we almost certainly agree to accept the site's Terms and Conditions and/or Privacy Policy. 

Don't just click the "I Agree" box and hit "Submit." If we are concerned about sharing our personal information online, we need to be sure to read the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy carefully. 

Even consider contacting the website if we have additional questions about how our personal information is used and stored.

If the website is legit,they shall respond back with a way out for you ;).

#Are you smart enough to stay away from phishing Scams

Phishing scams are generally conducted through our email addresses. What may look like an official email from our bank, credit card provider or a Nigerian prince -- could actually be a scam to get us to share our personal information — including bank account numbers — with an unknown third-party. This third-party could then steal our information and use it for identify theft or to drain our bank account. 

Some links don't even ask us to submit any information, but they install malware on our computer which then can accesses our personal data. We should never open any email that looks suspicious, and should never provide our personal information if we are unsure what it will be used for.

#Opt Out of Purchase Tracking

Stop sharing locations with the web-apps or mobile apps that dont require them.

Eg. Why would an angry bird app require your GPS location?

#Be Cautious on Public Wi-Fi

We need to be very careful when checking our bank account or typing in a credit card number on our computer or mobile device when we are connected to public Wi-Fi. Since these connections are often unsecure, we are opening ourself up to hackers who can steal our information. If we have to perform a transaction when out in public, add VPN security software, which can protect our information with anonymous browsing.

"I use vpn master and proton vpn".

#Choose Passwords Wisely

I don;t need to write a paragraph under this heading.Just read the heading *5 times and you are good to go ;).

#Adjust Social Media Privacy Settings

We need to determine how to access our privacy settings on our various social media accounts and lock them up. We should never allow our profile to be public; this means literally anyone anywhere can see our posts, photos, and videos and can use them for their own purposes.

#Delete Personal Information Properly

Don't just format the data. You have got to format the metadata as well. ;)

#Have Multiple Email Addresses

Since most email addresses are free to use, we should designate a few of them for different activities. For ex:- Consider having one email address for online shopping, another for work, and another for personal use. This way, if one email is hacked or compromised, our other accounts will still be safe.

Final Advice

Your data is your wealth. Every time you try to be casual about your data, you are immersing your feet in mud.

Hence,

"Treat your online privacy as you would treat your Money"

By SAWAN BHAN