How secure are you online?

While it’s natural to want to make our lives easier online, avoid being tempted to use the same password for multiple accounts or use a password that’s very easy to remember (ie password123).

Criminals know that sometimes we don’t use secure passwords and use it against us to steal our data.

Top 10 tips

You can make sure your digital identity is harder to steal by following these simple steps or watching our short video.

Passwords

Make them at least 8 characters.
Try using 3 random words
You can even use numbers to replace letters “JU5T L!K3 THI5”.
Avoid using personal information eg anniversary dates or children’s names.
Don’t use one password for everything. As a minimum make sure you use a different password for email and banking/financial sites.

Antivirus software

Make sure you have firewall and antivirus software on all your devices, including tablets and smartphones, and update the software regularly.

Update your software

Make sure any apps and software you use, including your web browsers and operating software, are updated regularly.
Many updates are provided to address security issues as well as add new features. Failure to update may provide criminals an opportunity to hack into your computer and steal your data.

Check your security settings

Particularly with social media sites such as Facebook, regularly check your security settings to see who can see your data.
In many cases when software is updated some of the security settings are reset to the original setting. Remember to check you are still protected.
Where you can, limit who can see your page as much as possible.

Think before you post

Think about what information you post online, and who can see it.
Details such as your phone number, address, children’s age or school can all give hackers a way to find out more information about you.
On Facebook, that means removing any ‘friends’ you don’t know, minimising the details in your ‘About Me’ section and being selective about hitting the ‘like’ button.

Don’t be fooled by fake websites

Try not to click on a link in an email; type in the URL instead.
Clicking a link in a fraudulent email can take you to a phishing site that will look so real it will fool you into entering your login information.

Protect your devices

Password protect your devices including your Wi-Fi network (hub), smartphones, and other smart devices such as smart TVs.

Look for https://

Before entering payment details into any website, check the web address has an ‘s’ – which stands for secure – after the http.
If it doesn’t, don’t use it.

Check bank statements

Check your payment receipts with the payment history on your bank statements and keep an eye out for unfamiliar transactions to recipients you’ve never heard of.

Check your email properly

Beware of “phishing” emails which use a hook such as asking you to confirm security information in order to steal your personal data.
Spam email is getting more and more sophisticated so never respond to any emails with your account information or passwords.
Banks will never ever ask for your information in this way. If in doubt, call the bank directly to check or, better still, delete the email.