Consider that last point. Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and others spend millions touting their security protocols. “The security of your data is our highest priority . . .blah, blah, blah.“ Yet most data breaches are not flagged by these mega corporations. Hackers are not caught-in-the-act. Companies only realize they have a problem when their compromised data is spotted online.
The reality of online data security falls well short of its marketed ideal.
What can one do to fight identity theft? Firstly, follow the advice of LifeLock and other security firms. Freeze your credit. Use complex passwords of >20 characters and change them often. Subscribe to a password vault or similar service.
Next, stop using Single Sign-On (SSO). Do not use your Facebook, Google, and Microsoft logins as your login credentials to other accounts. If you do, when millions of Google, Facebook, and Microsoft login details are leaked, guess what? Those leaked login details may be used to access your other accounts too.
Want additional advice? When online:
- Use virtual credit cards like Privacy.com.
- Use anonymous emails like Protonmail
- Use a virtual phone service like Youmail.
- When using search engines, do not click on sponsored ads. Spoofed sites are common; hackers can afford to pay for top-of-page ad space.
Finally, use your common sense.
- No legitimate company will send you an email message with a high-importance flag or exclamation point.
- Never click on links, download files, or call back numbers in unexpected texts and/or emails. Google another way to contact the firms in question.
- If it sounds too good to be true, it’s not true.
Be cautious. And remember: The security of your data is no one else’s highest priority but your own.
Peter has spent the past twenty-plus years as an acting/consulting CFO for a number of small businesses in a wide range of industries. Peter’s prior experience is that of a serial entrepreneur, managing various start-up and turnaround projects. He is a co-founder of Keurig.
