At Glovory, we see security as one of our expertise. We help businesses and brands across the world maintain their security requirements and implement a vast number of special safeguards across all our clients’ websites. But down at the individual level, people still need to take simple steps to stay safe online, so we’ve put together a few handy tips to get you started.
1. Tighten up your primary email security
Be careful with your primary email account, because it is like your master key. If you lose it, and an attacker can access pretty much every online account you have, so it’s a good idea to make it a priority and keep it locked down.
A great way to secure an email account is to enable two-step authentication. If you’re like most people, you probably carry your smartphone around wherever you go––it means you can quickly get a two-step authentication setup. Whether it be a text, or an app-generated code, the extra layer of security is a must.
2. Use encryption
Most modern web browsers do a pretty good job telling you if the webpage you’re on is secure. It should go without saying — never type sensitive data into a site that doesn’t use encryption.
The same goes for messaging services. Apps like Facebook Messenger offer an opt-in encrypted service. Still, they spend nearly all of their messages unencrypted and store them indefinitely, ready to be dug up at any time. This means any passwords or sensitive data you send are just waiting to be stolen. So make sure you send sensitive data via services you know to be totally secure.
3. Watch out for phishing emails
Phishing has been around for decades, yet these kinds of email scams still manage to access countless accounts each year successfully. Even if you think you’re too tech-savvy to be tricked, the shock of finding a seemingly legitimate email in your inbox informing you hundreds of pounds have been charged to your bank account can be enough to send you into a panic and catch you out.
A general rule of thumb that’s good to follow is always to type out thesite’s address you’re getting the email from by hand, rather than clicking the (potentially dangerous) links. You may have checked the email and it could seem fair, but taking that extra precautionary step ensures more excellent safety. There are loads of detailed guides online for spotting a phishing email.
4. Be smart. Be vigilant. Be secure.
Keep the basics covered. For example, remember to clear any form data you’ve inputted during browsing. Always sign out of services you use on a public computer. Even storing passwords in your browser is dangerous — you’d be surprised at how easy it is to retrieve stored passwords.
Recently, another popular tactic for stealing data makes use of social engineering. Proven to be one of the most sucessful forms of hacking, they call up your mobile phone provider, pretend to be you, and ask for help. It can be a relatively easy way of gaining access to sensitive information. So you can never be 100% secure — none can. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take all the available steps to make it as difficult as possible for would-be hackers and potential data thieves.
Contributor: Deta Ayudhia S
