Keep Your Data Safe

The convenience of being constantly connected to our data comes at a price — the risk of exposing or losing our private data to identity thieves.

How Can You Protect Yourself?

– Trust your feelings. If something doesn’t feel right, then it probably isn’t.

– Think before you click. Don’t open any emails or attachments you receive from strangers. Pay attention the sender’s email address. Check for improper formatting, typos, grammatical errors, and fake email signatures.

– Trust but verify. When in doubt, call the sender to confirm they sent you something. When in doubt, delete the email.

– Keep your personal information private. Avoid sharing your name, address, phone number, and other personal information when connected to the internet.

– Businesses are obligated to protect your personal information. They will NEVER ask you for your information by email.

– Protect your mobile devices with passwords or PINs. All passwords should be unique, long, and complex. Use biometrics such as Touch ID or Face ID whenever possible.

– Nothing is ever truly deleted from the Internet. Be thoughtful about the content you post before you publish.

– Check your privacy settings on social media sites. Most sites will enable you to secure your account and allow you to limit access to your personal information. This can help prevent someone from being able to gather personal information from you.

– Be careful whom you befriend on social media. Only add people you know personally or have met before. Not every mutual friend is trustworthy.

– Be cautious of public Wi-fi. Public Wi-fi is not secure. Do not use public Wi-fi to log onto online banking or make purchases, and instead wait to connect to a secure network. Public Wi-fi should only be used for non-financial, non-personal research.

– Block your screen and keyboard when entering personal information. This will help prevent someone being able to see your passwords or personal information by looking over your shoulder.