Nowadays, your personal information are stacked on your PC or smartphone in many applications or programs, as well as on many webpages. Using all of the above makes your life simpler and allows to get many things done faster, but at the same time – it makes you vulnerable to hackers attacks. Luckily, there are many things you can do to protect yourself!
Why are we so vulnerable to hacker attacks?
Changes in the everyday life, increased usage of smartphone applications as well as bank pages or online shops makes all of us more vulnerable to hacker attacks. Don’t lull your vigilance by telling yourself that you do not have much to lose, that there are larger companies or people with a higher account balance: we can all become a hacker’s target, especially if we don’t protect ourselves properly.Keep in mind, that hackers’ attacks are getting more advanced every year, and you can always become a target, also in a way you don’t expect. If an old friend contacted you to borrow some money, always call them and verify this over the phone or personally. Also, NEVER give your personal data over the phone to anyone! The hackers might give you the impression of a great haste to throw you off balance. If someone calls you and asks you – for example – for your bank account data stating, that someone is trying to steal your money and this data is crucial to keep your bank account secure, never provide it!Below you can find some important tips on how to stay protected online. If you’ll keep those in mind, you should stay out of harms way!
1. Multi-factor authentication can help you stay protected
Imagine a simple situation: someone, somehow learns your bank account password. If you are using a single factor authentication, you will probably lose your money. But then, if you are using a multi-factor authentication, after someone tries to log in to your bank account online, you will get a notification on your smartphone, a SMS or an e-mail. You can contact your bank and stop the attack from happening!The multi-factor authentication is a more and more used solution not only in online banking, but also on:
- social media,
- most popular e-mail platforms,
- government websites that require logging in etc.
While many pages and applications allow you to choose, whether you’d like to stick to a single factor authentication or use the more advanced multi-factor one, we strongly advice you to pick the latter. This way you can keep yourself protected even if some of your data gets stolen or you loose your PC/smartphone somehow.
2. All the apps/programs should be up to date!
The updates which are regularly performed on operating systems, but also applications and programs are crucial if you want to keep yourself secure. While it might not be visible if you don’t have extensive knowledge when it comes to programming, many of the changes are made in order to keep your data secure. The programmers, who work for the biggest companies are trying to stay up to date with the newest hacking techniques, and they fix any holes in their security systems by giving you updates.
3. Correct password policy
This is one of the most important rules, which you should keep in mind at all times: never, ever use the same password for multiple pages. This way if you loose it – everything gets compromised: your bank account, your social accounts and many more. If you don’t like making up passwords, you can use an app, which will help you generate one. If you have to write the passwords down, always keep this information secure, preferably at your house. Don’t keep this data on you!
4. Protect yourself with a VPN
VPN is a great solution to keep yourself protected when you are using public networks. If you are at work and you’d like to check your bank account using public WiFi, connect to it with a verified VPN. Using it makes it harder for third parties (namely, hackers) to track your true identity. So you should read What is a VPN and How To Choose best one on VPNPerf.net.Using these four simple tips will help you stay protected at all times. Keep in mind, that hackers are learning more and more advanced techniques over time, so you should stay alert and if anything looks suspicious to you – report it to the proper authority or company immediately!
