Today is Data Privacy Day. As discussed in https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/current-activity/2019/01/22/Data-Privacy-Day, the annual event is an effort to promote data privacy awareness and education. The US-CERT article has links to a host of resources which can help individuals become more aware of the importance of safe online practices. While by no means an exhaustive list, consider the following the next time you pick up that smart device:
- Be weary of email messages from businesses or organizations unknown to you expressing an unreasonable urgency to provide them your personal information.
- Be aware of the information that you share about yourself in social media outlets. Social posts never die.
- Be aware that free anything is never free. Many free apps comes with the cost of your personal information to download or use the app.
- Speak with your children about the online games which they are playing. Most of these games include the ability to converse and share information with other players. These players may not be the individuals that they profess themselves to be. Know who your kids are talking to.
I had the pleasure of speak with Logan @ News Talk 94.1 (https://newstalk941.com) about the data privacy and simple steps that individuals can take to improve their personal security profile. The article can be found at https://newstalk941.com/data-privacy-day-highlights-importance-of-online-security/.