Are you concerned about how much of your personal information is on the internet and vulnerable to theft or misuse?
While much of this is out of your control, you can take steps to protect yourself. Here are 3 Tips to Better Privacy: 1. Use a VPN when using public Wi-Fi and regularly delete history, cookies, and temporary internet files.
1. Use Strong Passwords
You’ll need a password for just about everything on the Internet, from checking your email to doing online banking. But it’s important to create passwords that are long and strong while still being relatively easy for you to remember. Otherwise, hackers can easily gain access to your account or information, and you may even become a victim of identity theft.
Passwords are often the first line of defense against cyberattacks, and weak ones can lead to a variety of problems. For example, attackers can use stolen passwords to gain access to your personal accounts and steal your financial information, including credit card numbers and pins. They can also sell or leak your data, which can impact your reputation and cause you financial loss.
A good password is unique, long, and includes a mix of letters (both upper and lowercase), numbers, and symbols. It should also avoid common words or personal information, like your name, date of birth, or favorite sports team. Using a password manager, which randomly generates and stores passwords for you, can help. Additionally, you should use a website like Have I Been Pwned to see if your password has been part of a previous data breach.
You should also avoid reusing passwords across different accounts, as hacking one site can instantly compromise all your other accounts. Changing your password regularly is another best practice, as is using multiple-factor authentication to protect your accounts.
2. Use a VPN
A VPN, or virtual private network, provides a secure point-to-point tunnel that encrypts your data and protects you from hackers. It creates a private connection between your device and the VPN server that your browser connects to, making it nearly impossible for cybercriminals or government agencies to intercept your activity.
Your device’s IP address can reveal your location, but a VPN service hides this information by connecting to a server in another location. This enables you to access websites that are otherwise blocked in your country. It also helps you avoid bandwidth throttling by making sure your ISP and wireless network can’t see what you’re doing online.
Using a VPN also keeps your browsing habits private from third-parties that use data like your device and browser fingerprinting to track your activity on social media sites and online shopping platforms. It can even prevent price discrimination that occurs when websites hike up prices based on your geographic location and purchasing history. However, you should note that your internet speed may decrease when using a VPN since the data must go through the encrypted tunnel. It’s best to choose a premium VPN such as Surfshark One that has extra privacy features, including an ad blocker and anti-tracking, to keep you safe and secure on the web. You can also get a free trial of the service to try it out before committing to a subscription.
3. Set Up Encryption on Your Device
When it comes to protecting your online privacy, encryption is one of the best things you can do. Encryption scrambles your data into a collection of letters and numbers that looks like gibberish to anyone outside your device, unless they have a special decryption key. This helps to prevent hackers and ad networks from spying on your online activity.
Luckily, many newer Android devices have file-based encryption (FBE) built in, so you don’t have to go out of your way to set it up. To see if your phone or tablet has FBE, head to Settings and find the Security menu. If you see a screen lock option that requires a PIN to access your device, you’re already using FBE!
On older devices, you can manually turn on encryption via the security menu by going to System Preferences > Security & Privacy and selecting “FileVault.” You will need to back up the recovery key, which should be saved somewhere off your computer, so that you can regain access in the event of an issue with your device.
However, be aware that encryption can slow down your device a little because it has to decrypt all of your data every time you use it. Fortunately, the speed difference won’t be noticeable on most high-end devices. This is especially important if you often connect to public Wi-Fi, since hackers can intercept information transmitted over unencrypted connections.
4. Delete Unused Apps
There’s a good chance that many of the apps on your phone aren’t even being used. From the app you downloaded for five minutes last month to the shopping apps that came preloaded on your phone, these unused apps can be hogging up space, battery and data.
These bloatware apps are not only annoying, but they can also leave your phone susceptible to malware attacks or personal data breaches. Regularly deleting unused apps will help to ensure that your phone is running smoothly and securely.
Not only that, but regularly deleting unused apps will also free up some valuable storage space on your smartphone. You can find unused apps by going into your Settings and tapping on the ‘Apps’ option. Here, you will see a list of apps that you haven’t opened in three months or more, and you can delete them as you see fit.
Be sure to also check the permissions for apps that you do use, such as camera and microphone access, location services and tracking. Companies should be able to explain what information they will collect and how it will be used, so you can make an informed decision about whether to keep an app on your device.