Today ends the 2009 edition of National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NSCAM). Throughout the month, I and many others have been posting guides, tips and advice on how to stay safe online and how to keep the online experience a secure and enjoyable one for you and your family. For my part, each day I tweeted a daily tip via my Twitter account @BurgessCT and attached the hash-tags #onlinesafety and #NSCAM for ease of compilation by others.
I was heartened throughout the month so many asked, “Will you expound on these daily tips? Yes, I’ve already begun, see ( Online Safety – UserID’s and Passwords [October 25, 2009]) and I plan to continue. Others have asked will you provide all of the daily tips in one comprehensive list? Yes, I provide these below (and I have tossed in a few bonus items).
Keep in mind, none of these are highly technical, some are behavioral and all are easy to implement.
National Cyber Security Awareness Month Tips 1-31:
- Passwords: Practice good cyber-hygiene – Passwords are like toothbrushes – you don’t share them with others and you change them often.
- Passwords: Passwords should be used for one site only. For strong passwords, use symbols, numbers and letters – never a word from any language dictionary.
- WI-FI: Home or Business wireless networks (WI-FI) – Enable WPA2 encryption with strong passwords. If your router does not support WPA2 encryption, time to upgrade that router to new technology.
- WI-FI: Configure your router to suppress the broadcast of your Service Set Identifier (SSID)
- Guidance & Direction: Guide your young. The internet is to receive information only and not to be used to share information. Only Mom & Dad share information over the internet.
- Browser Settings: Web-based email (e.g. Gmail, Hotmail, etc.) configure your browser log-in to HTTPS (S=secure) and avoid having your password sniffed and grabbed when connecting via an open (not secure) network connection.
- Software Settings: Does your family use Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file sharing? Know your settings. Tips from the FTC’s OnGuard OnLine
- Computer Settings: Disable Auto-Run and scan all USB/CD/DVD even if you received it from a trusted source, their USB/CD/DVD may be ill from having visited a machine with malware/crimeware prior to visiting yours.
- Software Settings: Software auto updates – DO IT. May be inconvenient but updates close previously unknown vulnerabilities.
- Email: Phishing Scams – No replies or click-on-links of emails asking for personal or financial information.
- Computer Settings: Administrator control? Who has control of your computer? Take control, set a unique password so that the computer settings can only be changed by the administrator, you?
- Anti-Virus Software: Have it and use it! Auto update both the engine and the data. Don’t ignore warnings. Train your family to call out and alert you when a warning presents itself – don’t ignore these warnings.
- Anti-Spyware Software: Have it and use it! As with Anti-Virus don’t ignore the warnings – Spyware can capture your data at the point of entry or harvest from your hard drive.
- Data Backup: Regular data backup(s) should be a part of your security regime. Data includes, but not limited to photos, videos, music, documents, etc. If your device (laptop, pda, etc.) goes down, your data is safe.
- Malware/Crimeware: Be wary of ‘scareware’ pop-ups which announce your computer’s compromise and offering you a “free” software to remove – a tried and true technique to have you install malware. (NB: FTC v. Innovative Marketing, Inc., et al – an excellent read of the FTC’s Complaint taking down a purveyor of “scareware”)
- E-mail: If a retailer or vendor asks you to “email your credit or debit card data” – Say “Absolutely Not” and don’t do it.
- Browser Settings: Do enable the “Pop-up Blocker” and “Redirect Disable” settings on your browser – this puts you in control of your internet experience.
- Firewalls: Have it and use it! Think of the firewall as your computer’s guard force – blocking attempts to communicate with your computer which you haven’t authorized.
- System Scans: Security checks for your computer – a list of free scan software from reputable vendors, courtesy of http://www.staysafeonline.org/
- Public Computers: Use an internet connection at the library, airport, etc? Clear the browser’s history and cache’s when you are finished to remove “easy” accessibility to the websites you visited.
- Electronic Media: Recycling or discarding media? Reformat or degauss your electronic media prior to recycle or discard. This will prevent inadvertent sharing of your personal or business data.
- Computer Settings: Do visitors use your computer? Create a guest account with separate log-in for your guests so they have their own environment on the computer w/o access to your personal data or browser history or cookies.
- Computer Location: For families, PC’s to be used in a central place – not behind closed doors. All can keep an eye on activities.
- Online Friends: Talk to your children about the need to talk to Mom or Dad prior to meeting online friends face-to-face.
- Parents Online: Go where your children go online. Browser history will guide you; if history doesn’t exist or has been selectively deleted – time to pay attention.
- Chat rooms: Chat rooms are great for learning and sharing, children should obtain Mom or Dad permission and review first
- Data Security: Consider encryption, with a robustly strong key phrase, for your important data (i.e., medical, personal, financial and private). Extend this protection to your data backups.
- Chat rooms: Select user-ids which are age and gender neutral, as filter userids is a methodology used by online predators: “Pineneedle” not “Seattle1084”
- Laptop Security: Do you travel with your laptop? Protect it, it may be the gateway to your online presence and accounts, and hosts ur data – see the FTC’s Onguard Online which has some great laptop tips.
- Internet Connectivity: Know how your children are getting online – home, school, mobile phone, friends, library and craft rules/boundaries
- Reporting: If you believe you have passed your personal identifying information (PII) to a criminal do file a complaint with the FTC (http://www.ftc.gov/) .
Bonus: Think of online safety and security practices as a basic extension of your family security plan – no less important than smoke detectors, alarm systems, and how to interact w/strangers.
Bonus: Do your children wear their Name & Address on the back of their jacket? Then why post it on a website’s profile.
Bonus: Some good advice on how to avoid being hooked by phish from FTC’s Onguard Online
Bonus: Do you know where your data is stored? Knowing allows protecting. It is important to clear your temporary files and caches as you save and store your data.
Bonus: You, the individual may not have the resources of a company to protect yourself, don’t let that deter you. Select your ISP w/care – some ISP’s leverage their access to security vendors to provide you with:
- SPAM filters for your email;
- CONTENT filters for your browsing;
- ANTI-VIRUS and ANTI-SPYWARE scanning for all the data passing through their pipe; and
- WEB PAGE scanning for malware, crimeware, pop-up and redirect protection.
You can focus your individual budget to those areas you need “enhanced” coverage and capability.
I hope the above are of use and you and your family will continue to be safe online.
Thank you for your time
All the best,
Christopher