In the current digital era, personal data must be kept secure from fintech applications, e-commerce and other platforms such as social networking. The reason is, cyber crime always lurks internet users who have a low security system.
10 Tips to Maintain Online Privacy
To keep personal data safe from unwanted information such as information leakage, cyber security company Kaspersky revealed some tips for maintaining online privacy well in today’s digital era.
Checking Social Network Privacy Settings
Nowadays, social media is embedded in our daily lives. Imagine how much personal data in that network can be seen by anyone on the internet by default.
Therefore, to keep privacy safe, it is regulated which information can be shared with strangers and with people who are known.
Don’t Use Public Storage for Personal Information
Sharing everything on social networks is never limited. Do not use online services that are intended to share as a place to store personal information, for example, Google Docs, it is not an ideal place to store password lists.
Then there’s DropBox, it’s also not the best place for scanning a passport unless it’s stored in an encrypted archive.
Avoid Tracking
When visiting a website, the browser will reveal many things even surfing history. Advertisers use this information to track and target it. Use a private browsing application to avoid internet tracking.
Save Primary Email Addresses and Cell Phone Numbers to Keep Privacy
By sharing email addresses and telephone numbers on the internet, that means opening the way for other people to send spam in your email inbox and also to phone numbers.
If it is necessary to share the two contacts, use email and telephone numbers separately for personal or other purposes.
Using the Message Application with End-to-end Encryption
Most modern messaging applications use encryption, and the encryption is stored on the server of the service provider.
Choose end-to-end encryption like WhatsApp, because that way even the messaging service providers themselves cannot see the conversation.
Use Secure Passwords
Using a weak password to protect personal information is tantamount to shouting that information to people passing by. Use a password that is quite long eg 12 characters or more and use a different password for each service.
It is difficult to memorize long and unique passwords for all services used, but it is comparable with valuable personal data.
Review Permissions for Cellular Applications and Browser Extensions
Cellular applications often ask permission to access contacts or files in device storage, use cameras, microphones, geolocation, and so on.
Some applications really cannot run without this permission, but some applications actually use this information to target their users as advertising targets or even hacking.
For this, control which permissions can be given to the application. This also applies to browser extensions, which also have a tendency to spy.
Secure Your Phone and Computer with Passwords
Computers and cellphones have a lot of data that should be kept confidential, so protect your device with a password.
This password does not have to be complicated, on a mobile device use a six digit PIN or four digit password and screen lock pattern. It’s even safer if the device supports biometric authentication for both fingerprints or faces.
Disable Lock Screen Notification (Lockscreen Notification)
Your phone is protected with a long and secure password, but if you let the notification on the lock screen just show up it’s a lie.
To prevent that information from appearing on the locked screen, set notifications correctly, turn off lock screen notifications or hide sensitive information from the lock screen.
Maintaining Privacy on
Wi-Fi Networks Public Wi-Fi networks usually do not encrypt internet user traffic, which means anyone on the same network can peek at other users’ traffic.
Avoid sending any sensitive data such as logins, passwords, credit card data, etc. via public Wi-Fi, and use VPNs to encrypt your data and protect it from snooping.
Thus you can maintain online privacy. If you have any questions, comment us in the comment box.