Protect Your Online Privacy during this Holiday Season
The rise of cybercriminal activity has increased year after year. With the increase in online shopping and the holiday season here, it's important to make sure that you're taking the right precautions to ensure that you're not susceptible to vulnerabilities while online shopping. Speak Toomey is here to give you some easy DIY tips to help keep your information protected.
Password Managers
A password manager is an online service that stores your passwords as well as other important information like banking info, credit card numbers, and personal information in a secure, encrypted way. It can be difficult to create and remember unique passwords for each and every website you visit, this is where a password manager comes in handy.
With a password manager, you only need to remember one master password and the password manager will automatically enter in a strong unique password for each website you visit.
Use a VPN on Public Wi-Fi
Public Wi-Fi is a convenient way for us to connect to the internet while we're on the go. We use the internet while we're away from home, to get work done, browse the internet, and listen to our favorite music.
The problem with public Wi-Fi is that this type of open connection usually doesn't require a password and is often unsecured and unencrypted, leaving you susceptible to an online attack from a hacker. The most common attack is the Man-In-the-Middle Attack.
This is when the hacker gets between you and the Wi-Fi, where they can gather any login credentials or other person information you are entering on your laptop or phone. Not only is the Wi-Fi public, but your data is too.
Make Sure You're Clicking on Secure Websites Only
You always want to make sure the site you're browsing is secure. For starters, never click on a link from a text message. Clicking could expose you to scams, download malware, or get your phone number added to lists that are then sold to data brokerage firms. Delete those text messages as soon as you see them.
Another thing to remember is to always look for the lock symbol near the URL or website name after it is entered. This ensures that the website server is encrypted, meaning the information entered is on a safe connection. The padlock symbol only means your connection is safe. It doesn't necessarily mean the data entered cannot be used in malicious ways by the party on the receiving end. That’s why it’s always important to have additional security measures in place.
Cyber Security
Adding Cyber Security to your network is the best way to keep all devices that connect to your home internet, safe from external threats. This includes computers, smartphones, tablets, security cameras, smart door locks, and TVs.
Speak Toomey offers an enterprise-level Cyber Security package that won’t allow you to reach a malicious website unless it has been verified that it is safe. The package comes with a variety of additional features to protect you and your family such as blocking malware, detecting phishing attempts, providing faster internet speeds, managing software updates, and parental controls.
Keep Device Software Updated
As mentioned, managed software updates are included in Speak Toomey's Cyber Security package.
The reason managed software updates are so important is that sometimes the newest patch has security flaws that aren't detected until the update is released. This can give cybercriminals the opportunity to plant malware on your devices.
There are many other benefits to managed updates, which include new features, improved performance, and making sure that the newest update is compatible with your device.
Online Personal Data Removal
What do you do if your information is already out there on the internet? Nowadays it isn't difficult to find someone’s name, address, phone number, or email. You've probably have seen targeted ads online that show an ad for an item you were just recently searching or talking about. Or you may have received a spam phone call from an unknown number about your car’s extended warranty Companies and data brokers sell our information every day for profit. The worst thing that could happen is that our personal information falls into the wrong hands.
That's why we created our Online Data Removal Service called HidEnemy. We have our team go through data brokerage sites and search engines to request to have your information removed. Once removed, that information can't be accessed or sold online anymore. We constantly monitor the internet and brokerage sites to make sure no new personal information is scraped from the internet.