Protect Yourself

• Do you suffer from security fatigue? Here’s an interesting article from the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
• Use a PIN or passphrase to access your phone and make sure your phone has encryption turned on.
• Don’t share your passwords with anyone else.
• Never reuse passwords – different site/service, different password.
• Use a password vault application to manage all your unique passwords.

Take a look at this article about password managers.

See here for “free” password manager reviews.

See here for “pay for” password manager reviews.

To choose between “free” and “paid for” password managers, ask yourself: How comfortable are you with new software? (Free can have a slightly larger learning-curve.) How much integration do you want? (If you want to be able to synchronize your passwords across your workstations, phones, tablets, and laptops, paid for are often better choices out-of-the-box.)

• Never click through unknown links.

• Read about the four fundamental steps to staying secure.
• Do you know what is and how to configure two-factor authentication (TFA) or multi-factor authentication (MFA)? Use it, where applicable, for better security. Mines employees can now apply for access to the school’s own MFA system.
• Lock down your login – tips for keeping your login secure.
• At home, is your wireless setup to be WPA2 encrypted with a unique, not vendor supplied, password and SSID? Take a look at this article on securing your home network. Or this one from our friends at the National Security Administration.
• Identity theft: online, if someone can be you, is that a problem? The answer is a resounding YES! Also check out identitytheft.gov for more information. Finally, check out this identity theft guide written by Jefferson County’s District Attorney’s Office.