National Computer Security Day was created in 1988, closely following an attack on ARPANET. That system was the predecessor of today’s internet and 10 percent of computers connected to ARPANET were harmed in that cyberattack.
The day is designed to raise awareness about cybersecurity issues. There are things you can do to help protect your privacy and limit how you share your information with others. Today is the perfect time to review some of those steps you can take:
- Use strong passwords. Make your passwords long, include numbers, symbols, uppercase and lowercase, and avoid using obvious personal information. Also, do not reuse passwords and keep them underwraps.
- Thinking twice before clicking on any email links from an unexpected sender.
- Know what’s on your device. Do an inventory of all the applications that are on your devices. Consider deleting what you don’t use.
- Check the privacy settings. It’s a good idea to check the privacy settings of apps, devices, and online accounts periodically. You could, for example, review privacy settings when you get a notice from a company telling you that their privacy policies have changed.
- Make sure any software and applications are up to date. This includes your apps, web browsers, and operating systems. Set updates to happen automatically.
- Public Wi-Fi is not secure, so take precautions if you need to use a public Wi-Fi hotspot.
Check out the FTC’s resources on privacy and online security for more tips and information. You can also follow the conversation on social media by searching the hashtag #DataPrivacyDay.
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