When it comes to the avoidance of giving out all of your personal data online unknowingly, then there are steps to take in order to stop this from happening. The problem with the internet nowadays is that everyone has grown so comfortable with all of its many features that now allow us to do everything with ease. This includes giving websites personal information, entering credit card numbers on sites that may not be secured, and divulging all of our most intimate secrets on social media sites.
However, awareness is the first step, and once you are aware of how much information you give out, then you can start making safer choices when online. This can include a plethora of steps to take that won’t take much time out of your day but will ensure that you can browse safely online.
How To Avoid Hacking
When it comes to protecting your online data, then you want to keep it secure with some simple methods. Listed here are a few common ways that you can use in order to avoid identity theft online:
1. Change Your Passwords
The first step to take is to change all of your passwords. It is highly advisable to use different passwords for everything that you do online. Another thing to keep in mind while changing your passwords is to make them both unique and random at the same time. You’ll want to use a variety of letters and numbers that are nonsensical to the naked eye in order to give your accounts the most security and to avoid hacking.
2. Don’t Use Your Admin Account
Whenever you log into your computer, then you can choose to log in as the administrator or as another user. Whenever you choose to log in and then browse using the admin account, then you are increasing the vulnerability of your computer. Hackers can hack your admin account while you are using it and browsing under it. It makes it more difficult for them to hack into an account that isn’t under your admin login.
3. Use A VPN
Using a VPN will protect your data whenever you are on a public network. You’ll want to consider the different pros and cons for each type of VPN, NordVPN vs ExpressVPN, and see which ones will work best for you. Using a VPN not only secures you while browsing at coffee shops but also if you have public wifi in your condo building or apartments. This will protect your data and everything you do online from hackers that can hack into these systems quite easily.
4. Turn Everything Off
With the ease of sleep mode and keeping everything logged in all of the time, our computers and phones have never been more susceptible to hacking. Turning off your computer, disconnecting from WIFI at night, and logging out of apps and websites can greatly reduce your risk of being hacked or having your private information stolen.
5. Encrypt Everything
Encrypting means that you can scramble the content of everything that you send out and everything that you receive. This is called an end to end encryption and ensures that everything is safeguarded from hacking. Think about all of those text messages that you send out on messaging apps such as Facebook. None of these messages provide any type of encryption, and everything is stored on the platform’s server in various locations.
This means if it were to get hacked, then all of your messages could be plainly read by anyone that wanted to see them. Encrypting them scrambles their appearance and safeguards them in the event of your phone, computer, or the platform’s server getting hacked.
6. Protect your Phone
It is just as important to protect your phone as it is your computer. In fact, your phone is just as likely to get hacked as your computer. Don’t forget to keep your phone locked at all times when you aren’t using it. Keep any webcams covered on both your computer and your phone at all times. It is also important to know how to wipe both your phone and your computer in the event that it gets stolen.
With these methods that are easy to do and easy to maintain, you can greatly decrease your risk of being hacked. Protecting all of your gadgets is vital, and keeping safeguarding methods on, such as using a VPN at all times, is highly recommended. Following all of these tips will keep you safe for all of your web browsing activities
