The Internet gives you access to the world. But it also gives the world access to you. The borderless, dynamic nature of the web makes it more likely that you’ll be a victim of a crime online than in your real life.
In real life, we take basic safety precautions. So why wouldn’t you do the same online. To get you started here are basic principles or 10 commandments, so to speak, to prepare for Safer Internet Day on the seventh of February.
- Thou shalt not use public WiFi without a VPN. (You can try our FREEDOME VPN for free.)
- Thou shalt not click “Enable Macros.”
- Thou shalt not open attachments which were unexpected or from a stranger.
- Thou shalt not share personal, identifiable information on social media platforms.
- Thou shalt use a unique, uncrackable password for all important accounts and — ideally — store them in a password manager.
- Honor your privacy settings by checking them regularly.
- Thou shalt not keep the default password on anything, especially routers.
- Thou shalt not do online banking without security software that includes anti-phishing and banking protection features.
- Remember two-step verification and use it whenever possible.
- Thou shalt not leave your devices unlocked.
We even put together a set of high quality graphics in support of these commandments. Now go forth and connect safely.
P.S.: If you’re a parent who is interested in how to keep your devices secure for your kids, check out this conversation between our computer security experts/dads Erka Koivunen and Sean Sullivan:
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