June is Internet Safety Month. The internet has become essential to most people’s daily lives, and in online spaces, things can change quickly.
Knowing the latest tips on how to keep yourself safe and your privacy protected becomes more important every day, says the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
Social Media Privacy
Something as simple as a photo of your home can be enough to identify your location. A post about an upcoming vacation can indicate an opportunity to steal from you. Or, scammers can use A.I. to copy your voice in a video of you speaking. This can lead to convincing scam calls against your friends or family.
Consider making your accounts private so you’re in control of who sees your posts.
Account Takeovers
Email and social media accounts can be taken over by scammers and used to trick other people in the victim’s network. Never give anyone the phone number associated with your accounts, send someone a verification code sent to your phone or email, or open links or attachments in any messages you didn’t expect to receive.
If you receive a login attempt notification that didn’t come from an action you took, change your password right away.
Passwords and Login Info
If a scammer gains access to one of your accounts, they may be able to use it to take over other accounts too. This is because many people reuse the same password on multiple accounts. Passwords should be unique to each account and long and memorable to you, but difficult to guess. Try using a password manager program or a passphrase.
Consider activating two-factor authentication to provide an extra layer of security to your online accounts.
