Tips for Conducting a Personal Online Security Audit to Protect Yourself from Threats This Year

Tips for Conducting a Personal Online Security Audit to Protect Yourself from Threats This Year

What can you do to protect your personal data in 2019?

Billions of consumers worldwide were impacted by security breaches in 2018, with hackers stealing everything from credit card numbers and passport numbers to social security numbers and home addresses. One of the most recent breaches, the Marriott hotel chain breach in November, exposed 500 million people’s information. In this attack, nearly 6.5 percent of the world’s population had their names, phone numbers, email addresses, passport numbers or credit card details exposed.

And if last year was any indicator, 2019 won’t be any safer. Unfortunately, many Americans are confused regarding data breaches. In fact, a recent survey by my firm Lexington Law found that a majority of Americans (56 percent) have never checked if they’ve been affected by a data breach. In addition, only 20 percent of respondents checked for a breach within the last month and 66 percent don’t know what to check if a breach occurs.

So with all this uncertainty, what can you do to protect your personal data in 2019? I recommend conducting a simple personal online security audit, which will help you avoid becoming a victim of cybercrime, including identity theft and identity fraud. Here are three ways you can kick it off: 

Review Your Passwords

This may sound like a no-brainer, but many people use the same passwords for multiple accounts, which automatically puts them at a higher risk to be hacked. Review your passwords to see how many you use on a regular basis, what you use to keep track of passwords and how long it has been since you changed them. Also, avoid using identifying information such as your birthday, age, the current year or address for passwords. Once you’ve had the chance to dig deeper into your arsenal of passwords, I’d recommend changing them and using a reliable password manager to help keep track of logins for the hundreds of accounts that many people have. 

Take a Look at Your Social Media Accounts

While social media may seem safe enough, unfortunately people unknowingly can give the public a lot of information through social media. Confirm all of the social media platforms that you use and how many social media accounts are yours on each platform. It’s also very important to review social media platforms that you haven’t used in a while or that are outdated to see if any fake accounts exist with your name or face. In addition, review your previous posts for sensitive information such as locations that you’ve tagged to posts and the types of photos you’ve posted recently. Last but not least, double-check your privacy settings for each social media platform. Many social media accounts have the option to limit the people who see your posts to your confirmed friends, which can keep your information more secure.

Check Your Credit Report for Signs of Identity Theft

One of the most unfortunate repercussions of identity theft is how it can damage someone’s credit report. People need good credit to do everything from purchases homes and cars to opening credit card accounts and securing jobs. If someone is a victim of identity theft, their credit score is at risk of plummeting through no fault of their own. To help avoid this issue, regularly check your credit report for signs of inaccuracies or potential fraud and report anything as soon as you see it. Also, for additional peace of mind consider identity theft protection tools such as Lexington Law’s recently upgraded Lex OnTrack, the only product on the market to combine identity protection and credit repair.

Make Sure Your Computer’s Software and Mobile Apps are Up to Date

It’s easy to forget to update your computer’s software and your mobile apps regularly, especially if it requires you to restart your computer or phone. While updating these things can be an inconvenience, the longer you hold off on doing it, the more you’re potentially putting yourself at risk to be hacked. Many software and app updates include enhanced security features and help everything run smoother. After ensuring that all of your apps and software are up to date, check to see if the updates are installed manually or automatically. If you’re the type of person that forgets to manually update, changing the settings to automatic updates could be helpful.

Conducting a personal online security audit does take time, but will give you peace of mind that your sensitive personal information is safe from hackers. I’d recommend conducting an audit like this a couple of times a year, because one small slip up could result in credit corruption, data exposure, a stolen identity or more. By being vigilant you can make sure that your data stays yours alone.

Featured

  • Video Surveillance Trends to Watch

    With more organizations adding newer capabilities to their surveillance systems, it’s always important to remember the “basics” of system configuration and deployment, as well as the topline benefits of continually emerging technologies like AI and the cloud. Read Now

  • New Report Reveals Top Trends Transforming Access Controller Technology

    Mercury Security, a provider in access control hardware and open platform solutions, has published its Trends in Access Controllers Report, based on a survey of over 450 security professionals across North America and Europe. The findings highlight the controller’s vital role in a physical access control system (PACS), where the device not only enforces access policies but also connects with readers to verify user credentials—ranging from ID badges to biometrics and mobile identities. With 72% of respondents identifying the controller as a critical or important factor in PACS design, the report underscores how the choice of controller platform has become a strategic decision for today’s security leaders. Read Now

  • Overwhelming Majority of CISOs Anticipate Surge in Cyber Attacks Over the Next Three Years

    An overwhelming 98% of chief information security officers (CISOs) expect a surge in cyber attacks over the next three years as organizations face an increasingly complex and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven digital threat landscape. This is according to new research conducted among 300 CISOs, chief information officers (CIOs), and senior IT professionals by CSC1, the leading provider of enterprise-class domain and domain name system (DNS) security. Read Now

  • ASIS International Introduces New ANSI-Approved Investigations Standard

    • Guard Services
  • Cloud Security Alliance Brings AI-Assisted Auditing to Cloud Computing

    The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today introduced an innovative addition to its suite of Security, Trust, Assurance and Risk (STAR) Registry assessments with the launch of Valid-AI-ted, an AI-powered, automated validation system. The new tool provides an automated quality check of assurance information of STAR Level 1 self-assessments using state-of-the-art LLM technology. Read Now

New Products

  • A8V MIND

    A8V MIND

    Hexagon’s Geosystems presents a portable version of its Accur8vision detection system. A rugged all-in-one solution, the A8V MIND (Mobile Intrusion Detection) is designed to provide flexible protection of critical outdoor infrastructure and objects. Hexagon’s Accur8vision is a volumetric detection system that employs LiDAR technology to safeguard entire areas. Whenever it detects movement in a specified zone, it automatically differentiates a threat from a nonthreat, and immediately notifies security staff if necessary. Person detection is carried out within a radius of 80 meters from this device. Connected remotely via a portable computer device, it enables remote surveillance and does not depend on security staff patrolling the area.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • HD2055 Modular Barricade

    Delta Scientific’s electric HD2055 modular shallow foundation barricade is tested to ASTM M50/P1 with negative penetration from the vehicle upon impact. With a shallow foundation of only 24 inches, the HD2055 can be installed without worrying about buried power lines and other below grade obstructions. The modular make-up of the barrier also allows you to cover wider roadways by adding additional modules to the system. The HD2055 boasts an Emergency Fast Operation of 1.5 seconds giving the guard ample time to deploy under a high threat situation.