Questions answered.

Problems solved.

What’s your reason for using social

media sites?

With billions of people using

the World Wide Web, how do

you know that ANY

information you release—or

your identity—is safe?

According to

shouldichangemypassword.com,

over 203 million e-mail addresses

have been released by hackers!

Are YOU among them?

(Check here to make sure!)

How much control

do you have?In reality, you have little control of your online privacy.

How can we be as secure as we possibly can?

Follow these steps!

Adopt Healthy Password Practices

• Use this strong random password generator.

• ALL of your accounts must have different passwords.

• Need help remembering all of them? Use a password

manager app! The most common:

Importance

• If one password is the same as another,

hacking becomes more attainable.

• Passwords with symbols are harder to crack.

• If you use a password manager, the only

password needed to remember is the one

that opens the password vault!

Be Observant and Defensive

• If you don’t know the sender, it

might be a pretender! 1

Read e-mails, pop-ups and

other texts carefully—if it

looks suspicious, it probably

is!

• Unsure how secure a website is?

Check if the address bar has

HTTPS! If so, it is secure.

Have A Back-Up

• All computer systems crash! It’s inevitable!

Use CrashPlan or iCloud to restore

information!

Use G-mail Above All Else

• Has unique security features:

Entire e-mail session is always encrypted. (HTTPS)

Special “Alert” setting notifies you of recent

suspicious activity.

“Last account activity” in bottom corner lets you

see what IP addresses are accessing account and

when.

Have a “Junk” E-mail for

Possible Spam

• It’s much easier to manage all

your spam messages in one

central location rather than

sifting through the spam

among your important

business messages!

• Helps protect your identity!

Keep Things Personal

• There are enough cybercriminals out there!

Don’t make it easy on them by posting your personal info!

Don’t think deleting a post will make it disappear forever—it

won’t! Think before you publish!

Manage Your Account Settings

• Take advantage of privacy

settings:

Control your profile visibility

Who gets removed / blocked

from your Friends list

Who may contact you

Be Computer Literate

• The digital world is constantly

changing. Beyond the scope of

this quick guide, if you don’t stay

updated on all the newest

security settings, you will feel the

repercussions.

• Naiveté is an excuse all too

common in identity theft! Don’t let

it be yours!

Establish Suitable Online

Identity

• It is easy to commit bad deeds behind a

computer screen where nobody can see

you!

Look the part: 37% of employers look on

your accounts, so make sure your page is

clean, professional, positive, and intelligent. 2

Don’t Mix Work and Play

• For all bloggers: keep

business and personal

social media separate.

Business: less detailed

profile, no personal info,

general view

Personal: profile shared

with trustable friends only

Use What’s Given To YouMany social media sites publish a list of security usage protocol that

they encourage users to perform.

Lastly…The most important security tip:

Prevents against: Spyware, Phishing, Firewalls

Quick Security Checklist

• Change passwords once a month

• Run your anti-virus software nightly

• Immediately trash all spam—otherwise leads to more spam

• Have a personal filter when posting comments

• Read news on tech sites like Pcworld.com to stay informed

Privacy: A Luxury Commodity?

Zizi Papacharissi:

“The balance between privacy and sociality takes on new

meaning as Internet–based platforms, like social network sites,

afford sociality for privacy, at the expense of personal autonomy.” 3

(Remember: don’t think that because everyone else is trading

information that you must as well! The proper computer safety

etiquette is far too undermined and such knowledge should be far more

universal!)

Don’t do something online that your

grandmother would not approve of!

Sources

• Top 10 Anti-Virus Software of 2014

• Computer Safety Slogans 1

• Should I Change My Password?

• The Best Password Managers

• Strong Random Password Generator

• Stay Safe on Social Networks

• Employers and Facebook 2

• Papacharissi 3

• Computer Safety Tips / Help