Know Your Devices – Protecting Your Data and Other IT Tips

​The recent upswing in computer attacks serves to remind us that everyone can experience phishing, ransomware, or other theft of your data. Once a hacker has your data, it is not simply a matter of “getting it back” or “recovering” your images, accounting, correspondence, and whatever else you keep on your devices. That data is now Free Range – it is out in the world and cannot be pulled back. If that data includes access to your banking and investments, you may really be sunk.

At minimum, for phones and other portable devices, learn about privacy settings on apps. Apps often have permissions to access personal information such as contacts on your device, your physical location, and your camera images – that’s for apps that have nothing to do with snapping a photo. Some apps need this information to work, but most do not – and worse yet – they may share the information they get from your device with other companies. Sign into apps from your email using a unique password, instead of signing into apps directly from a social network account. Using a social network account often allows the app to collect and distribute information about you that you may be unaware is being transmitted. That permission can be buried in Terms of Use, but is not obvious to you as you use the app.

A false sense of security may be fostered through backups and cyber insurance. For those individuals and companies who go to great lengths to protect their information, they are likely to discover that backups are equally corrupted by malware and/or their cyber insurance does not cover them for the event they have experienced. Create a series of backups that are separate from your device (and family or business networks) and secure the backups in a safe (preferably fire and waterproof) location – best practice is a separate backup drive combined with a backup in the cloud. To learn more about how to go about protecting your data, the pictures of your family and friends, your bank accounts, and everything else digital in your life, the FTC provides free tips for consumers and businesses at: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/. You can search by topic and get up-to-date, easy to follow instructions.

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