Prevent Bitcoin Fraud by Securing Your Identity

/0 Comments/in /by

Are you thinking about jumping onto the Bitcoin train? If so, you might be worried about security. The truth is, Bitcoin is definitely secure, but as with anything, there are bad guys out there who are ruining it for many. Bitcoin identity theft is when a criminal steals your identity and poses as you by phishing your passwords or hacking your computer. Here are some common cryptocurrency scams that can be prevented and some tips to protect yourself:

Bitcoin Private Security Keys:

What are they? A Bitcoin private key is a number only you should know, a secret number which allows bitcoins to be used in commerce, traded, exchanged etc. Bitcoin wallets contains the private keys and are mathematically related to all Bitcoin addresses generated for the wallet.

How do they work?

When a private key is entered in a wallets “transaction” window meant to move your funds from one wallet to another, the transaction is broadcast and sends the balance to a new address in another wallet. Simply, they are for spending and sending your bitcoins to anyone and anywhere.

How to get one?

This secret, alphanumeric password/number that is designed to spend and send your bitcoins to another Bitcoin address. Is a 256-bit long number which is picked randomly as soon as you make a wallet.

Protect Your Security Keys

The private key “ticket” allowing its owner spend bitcoins and like cash, they must kept secure. Private keys are usually stored on computers, and can be printed on paper.

Again, it’s so important that you protect your private security key. Remember, if someone gets this key, they can spend your currency.

Backup All Security Keys

If you are using private keys for your cyber currency, make sure that they are backed up on a offline

You Give Up Your Private Key

Another mistake that people often make is to give up your private key. Again, cyber criminals can get this information through your email or maybe over the phone. They also can hack into your computer and access your key if you have it stored there.

Preventing It

Keep your devices as secure as possible using security software and keeping your operating system updated. Maybe always store your private key off of your computer. You can write it on paper or store it on a USB drive. Make sure to keep this information locked up somewhere, like a safe or safety deposit box.

Cyber Thieves Steal Passwords

Many people use services to store their currency. However, to access these, you must have a password, and cyber thieves know this. So, they break into your email, ask your chose storage service to reset the password, and this gives them access to your currency.

Preventing It

To prevent this, make sure to use two-factor authentication for both your email account and your cyber currency storage account.  And don’t use the same password (password re-use) for any critical accounts.

The Bad Guys Start Impersonating

You also must make sure that you don’t get scammed by a bad guy impersonating a cyber currency employee. They might, for instance, contact you over the phone of via email about initial coin offerings. They ask you to send Bitcoins to them for fundraising purposes, but then promise that you will get that back with a return on that investment. Wrong. They just steal it.

Preventing It

Always confirm that you are investing in legitimate companies. Contact them directly

Keeping Your Bitcoins Safe

There are other things that you can do to keep your cyber currency safe, too:

Use a VPN for Your Transactions

When trading cryptocurrency, make sure to use a virtual private network, or VPN. These networks scramble your data so hackers, even if they access it, can’t read it.

Keep Separate Wallets

Instead of using a single wallet for all of your currency, it’s best to have at least two; a “hot” wallet, which is used for your various day to day transactions, and a “cold” wallet, which is where you store your currency. Think of it like a checking account (hot) and savings account (cold.)

Additional Security Tips

Finally, here are some additional security tips to keep all of your accounts safe:

Password Tips

  • Make sure every online account you have has a long, strong password. This should be a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. Also, make sure that you have a unique password for every account.
  • All passwords should be 8 to 12 characters. Use both upper-case and lower-case letters, and make sure that you aren’t making it easy to guess. For instance, “hwR7os$9*” is a much better password than “IL0veD0gz.”
  • Use two-factor authentication on all of your accounts. This way, even if someone gets your password, they can’t get into your accounts unless they also have access to your cell phone.

Antivirus Tips

  • Antivirus software is required, but it’s not going to keep your devices completely safe. Yes, this software will keep the vast majority of viruses and bugs out of your system, but not all of them.
  • Make the investment and buy your antivirus software instead of using a free one. The paid versions come with other services like firewalls and antispyware. This helps to keep your information even safer.

Updates to Your System

Finally, make sure that you are always updating your computers, tablets, and smart phones. Yes, those pop-ups are annoying, but try to resist clicking the “remind me later” option. Many times, these updates contain important security updates that protect your device and data from becoming vulnerable. It’s also a good idea to set up automatic installation of these, so you never have to worry about it.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Child Identity Theft: Protecting Your Child’s Identity

/0 Comments/in /by

Do you have a kid who has gotten a pre-approved credit card offer in the mail? If so, their identity might have been stolen. Child ID theft is when a person uses a minor’s Social Security number to commit some type of fraud, which can include opening credit cards, taking out a loan, or even applying for government benefits.

Child Identity Theft

Something like this can go on for years, and you might not even know it. But there are things you can do to protect your child’s identity, so keep reading.

How Does Child Identity Theft Occur and What are the Warning Signs?

In general, child identity theft happens when their Social Security number is stolen. There are plenty of ways that this can happen from stealing official documents to electronic data breaches. So, what are the signs that this might be happening?

  • Getting a Pre-Approved Credit Offer – As mentioned, a pre-approved credit card offer might be a sign that your child’s credit is at risk. A credit card company only send these offers if it has access to a credit file.
  • Getting Turned Down for Benefits – You might also be trying to apply for some type of government benefit for your child but keep getting denied.
  • Receiving an IRS Notice – Letters claiming that your child didn’t pay income taxes is a big sign, too.
  • Getting a Letter or Call About an Unpaid Bill – If a collection agency is calling for your child, there is a big problem.

Protecting Your Child’s Identity

Here are some tips for protecting your child’s identity:

  • Don’t share your child’s Social Security number unless it is absolutely necessary.
  • Keep documents with your child’s information secure and locked away.
  • Shred any documents with your child’s information before tossing them out.
  • Be aware of anyone in your household who might use your child’s identity.
  • Learn about your child’s school’s directory information policy. Can you opt out?

What Can You Do if Your Child is a Victim of Identity Theft?

If you think that your child’s information is compromised, you should do the following:

  • Contact all three major credit reporting companies: Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian.
  • Ask them to do a manual search of the file with the Social Security number and a separate search with the name AND Social Security number.
  • Keep records of letters and phone calls.

If you confirm that your child has been a victim, you need to do the following:

  • Reach out to all of the credit bureaus and explain the situation. Ask them to remove any collection notices, accounts, and inquires. You will have to give them proof that the child is a minor.
  • Contact any business where the information was used and ask them to close any open accounts due to identity theft.
  • Place a fraud alert on the child’s credit report by contacting one of the three credit bureaus.
  • Consider a credit freeze. Freezing a child credit is the best, most proactive way to prevent “new account fraud” and lock down your child’s identity until and after the age of 18. There are “do it yourself” ways of accomplishing this or they can be done for a nominal free at org.
  • Order a copy of your child’s credit report, which shouldn’t even exist if they are 17 or under. If there is a credit report, they are likely a victim of fraud.
  • File a report with the FTC by phone or online.
  • Go to identitytheft.gov and create a report.

This could be a bad thing for your child’s future, so it is very important that you take steps to fix it, right now.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Kids Home? Rethink Their Digital Security or it Will Bite You

/0 Comments/in /by

If you had asked me a few months ago what I felt about “screen time” and kids, I would have told you that I wouldn’t give my kids their own devices or allow social media accounts until they were 15. But things have changed. Now, I’m happy to let the kids on the family tablet, and even allow them to use things like FaceTime, games, and email. Why? Because I want to make sure that they have some type of connection to the outside world.

However, this didn’t happen without some ground rules, not only to keep the kids safe, but to make sure they don’t totally fall headfirst into cyberspace. Here’s some tips:

No Social Media

Oh you didn’t think I was gonna give you a pass did you? No, my 14-year-old is still not on social media, and she doesn’t complain about it, she doesn’t miss it, and she’s better off for it. First of all, it’s a time suck, it’s often a cesspool of BS, misinformation, disinformation, and just plain mean-ness.

Sure my kids might get the occasional TikTok video from one of their friends, but they don’t have the app, they’re not spending any time on it, and while they might learn a TikTok dance or two, they’re certainly not recording one and posting it online.

Teach Your Kids to Respect Digital Devices

There are a number of ways that you can do this, including setting a rule that they must ask permission before they use the device or go online. By doing this, you are making them conscious of their actions.

Set Rules on When They Can Have Access to Certain Apps or Devices

Another thing you can do is make sure that you set rules about when your kids can access certain devices or aps. For instance, maybe make a rule that they must use devices in common areas, or they can only use game apps after dinner. Whatever the case, you should be checking in on what they are doing.

Create a Schedule

Only allow your kids to use devices when you are available to help or when you know they can’t get in trouble. Allow them to watch Netflix while you are in an online meeting but bring the remote with you.

Create an Agreement

Also, think about a “tech agreement” for your kids. If they break the rules, there will be consequences, just like they have with other rules in your home.

Discuss Online Privacy and Tone

One of the most important things to do is discuss online privacy and tone. Kids don’t always realize that what goes on the internet can stay there forever. Suggest, perhaps, telling your kids not to do anything they wouldn’t do or say with grandma in the room. It works.

Tell Them Your Expectations

Talk to your kids about what you are comfortable with…or not…when they are online. For instance, if you don’t want them talking to strangers, there are email programs that allow you to approve and email that is sent and received. There are similar chat programs.

Is it Time to Talk About Pornography?

This might be the perfect time to talk about pornography, too. Experts say conversations about this should start around kindergarten. To minimize the chances your kid will access it, use parental controls or kid-friendly browsers.

Understand that Kids Will be Kids

Finally, take a deep breath and realize that kids will be kids. As long as they are being safe and polite, allowing them access to these things might be the best way to get through these nationwide quarantines.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Survey Shows Most People Back Up…But Not as Often as They Should

/0 Comments/in , /by

According to a new survey, we now have a good idea of the habits of the regular person in regard to backing up their devices. The survey, which covered almost 3,000 people, looked at people around the world. What it shows is that 91 percent of people back up their devices and their data. But, 68 percent of people still lost data because of a different reason. These include accidentally deleting the data, software or hardware failure, or even because they hadn’t backed up their data recently. The truth is, only 41% of companies and people back up each day, which leaves most of us…and most businesses…vulnerable to data loss.

surveyThe data from this survey stress how important it is to implement some type of cyber protection strategy for a business, which includes backing up data several times a day, and using the 3-2-1 backup rule. This is creating three copies of your data (a single primary copy and two backups), storing your copied on two different types of storage option, and then storing one of the copies in the cloud or remotely.

Change the Game with Cyber Protection

With more cyberattacks happening all of the time, the traditional methods of backing up our data is no longer working. We simply cannot rely on only backing up our information. It is way too dangerous.

Cybercriminals will target backup software with their own ransomware, and then try to modify the files, which makes it even more important to protect your information.

Recommendations for Cyber Protection

There are a number of different ways you can protect your personal or company’s information. Here are just five things you can do to ensure that your data is relatively safe:

  • Create a backup of your most important data…always – Keep a number of different copies of your backup locally and in the cloud. You want to do it locally so you can access it quickly and frequently, and you want to save it in the cloud to make sure that even if there is a fire, flood, or other disaster, your data is safe.
  • Ensure your OS and applications are all the current versions – If you are not updating your OS or apps, it means that they are much more vulnerable to getting hacked. These updates often contain patches and fixes that can keep cybercriminals out.
  • Beware of any suspicious links, emails, or attachments – Most ransomware and virus infections are created by using social engineering, and they trick unsuspecting people into opening these infected attachments or clicking on a link that installs malware to the device or network.
  • Install anti-virus, anti-ransomware, and anti-malware software – While you are doing your automated updates for your apps and OS, you should also be using all of these different software options, too.
  • Consider using an integrated cyber protection solution – You want to choose an option that combines anti-ransomware, anti-virus, backup, patch management, and a vulnerability assessment all in a single solution. This type of solution increases efficiency, ease of use, and the reliability of your protection.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

 

Beware of Job and eWork at Home Scams

/0 Comments/in , , , /by

Pandemics can be quite stressful. There are millions of people out of work, and there we really don’t know when the economy will truly bounce back. Those who are out of work are seeking other jobs, at least temporarily, and many are looking for jobs that they can do from home…right from Google.

jobsSince people have been losing their jobs, searches for terms like “laid off,” “unemployment benefits,” and “unemployed” have skyrocketed. Though some people are finding legitimate search results, others are falling for sites that are scams, and Google is allowing these sites to stay.

We have often used Google search data to determine what type of economic anxiety people are feeling, and this is certainly true right now.

Google makes its money through advertising, so it’s not totally surprising that these sites are allowed to stay on. When people are searching for information on unemployment, advertisers are seeing this, and are able to determine where they should market. This includes those working for predatory companies, who are targeting people who are unemployed.

One such example is “unemploymentcom.com.” This is a site that seems, at first, like it might be a good resource for someone who is unemployed. While there are some legitimate links there, in general, the site is trying to get people to sign up for “site profiles” and other things. It also urges people to sign up for access to your credit score…for a fee, and it absolutely sells all of the data it gets to other organizations.

When you look at the privacy policy of this website, you can see that it is owned by OnPoint Global, a conglomerate, which claims it has around 11 million people filling out unemployment surveys each month. However, what people doing this don’t realize is that the information the site is collecting is likely being complied into a package for advertisers, which also includes any other public information they can find about the person filling out the survey.

Keep in mind that it is not just the pages for people looking for information on unemployment that we are talking about. It can really be anything similar, like “unemployment insurance.” Some of these searches can even lead you to sites that can hijack your browser. Other sites simply collect as much data as they can, and then sell the information to marketers.

Everyone who is out there scared and unemployed are still considered to be consumers to these companies, and they still are seen as people who have money to spend. So, Google is still pushing sites like these to the top of search results, and still making a pretty penny from clicks. So, do yourself a favor and start being aware of the ads you are clicking, and better yet…don’t click them at all.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Disinformation From Russian Troll Farms to Sway 2020 Election

/0 Comments/in /by

The Russian trolls are at it again, and they are trying to influence the American people in this year’s upcoming election cycle. This time, however, they have learned some lessons, and they are getting more difficult to track and identify.

One huge part of avoiding scams and fraud is to recognize well, scams and fraud. And that also means recognizing disinformation campaign’s.

Disinformation i.e. Dezinformatsiya

Disinformation, fundamentally, is lying. Disinformation used to be spread by the spoken word only.  But with the invention of the printed word and the press, disinformation was spread using pamphlets, leaflets, books, magazines, political cartoons, and in planted clandestine newspaper articles. Agents of influence, political spies, and journalists can all be used to spread disinformation. Digitally, social media spreads disinformation like the proverbial wildfire.

The birth of the word “disinformation” comes from the Russian word (dez-inform-ahhT-see-ahh) dezinformatsiya. Joseph Stalin coined the term in 1923 derived from the title of the KGB black propaganda “special disinformation office” department. Disinformation was formally defined in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia in 1952 as “false information with the intention to deceive public opinion”.

Disinformation is meant to instill fear and confuse its intended target by blurring the lines between fact and fiction. Disinformation’s primary purpose is to spread conspiracy theories that isolate readers and viewers from alternative viewpoints to create a cloud of confusion and paranoia.

In 2016, the operation was fairly simply. Most of the trolls were coming from a big office in St. Petersburg, Russia, but now…they are getting help from scammers in Nigeria and Ghana.

These trolls have almost totally focused on racial issues in the US, and they promote things like the empowerment of African Americans and pushing anger on white Americans. The goal is to divide the American public and promote unrest in society. Which unfortunately isn’t all that difficult.

There have been hundreds of accounts created by trolls in Ghana, and it is very possible that the content on these accounts has reached millions. But Twitter and Facebook have been looking into suspicious accounts, and they are removing accounts that are not legitimate. Facebook has said that almost 300,000 people were following these accounts on Facebook and Instagram, and about 65% of these people are in the US. Twitter has removed accounts, too, and notes that so far, these accounts had almost 70,000 followers. Most of these accounts are posting in English and alluding that they are in the US, specifically in Florida, New Orleans, and Brooklyn.

These posts are focusing on things like police brutality, the Black Lives Matter groups, shootings, and general racism.

What is interesting is that the US is not the only place these trolls are targeting. Lately, Russia has begun to show more interest in some other African countries, as it is believed that they want to exploit the resources that are present in Africa, including things like diamonds and gold. This has occurred in places like Sudan, Libya, and Mozambique. Politics are also on the table.

Divide and Conquer via Disinformation

The desired outcome of disinformation by its author is to divide and conquer or rule the persons who are manipulated by it. The Oxford definition of “divide and conquer” is the policy of “maintaining control over one’s subordinates or subjects by encouraging dissent between them”. In other words, from the perspective and motivation of the conman, “don’t trust them, trust me.”

Who is behind this? It is thought that all of these campaigns have some type of association with a Russian financier and close friend to Vladimir Putin.

This interest in Africa and the US is troubling, as it is showing how much control these people have on the public viewpoints of these countries. In other words, these groups are working hard to manipulate and divide us.

These groups are also not going away anytime soon. As soon as one of these accounts are discovered, a new one is quickly added.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

8 Scams That go Beyond Pandemics

/0 Comments/in , /by

As you might know, scammers often take advantage of people during times of trouble, such as in the current atmosphere of the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are some of the scams that you should be on the lookout for:

pandemicAccount Takeovers

This is a scam where the cybercriminals take credentials obtained from data breaches to take over accounts. They are also trying to reach out to kids to give up their account credentials, as they know most of them are out of school.

Phishing

There are a lot of phishing scams out there that are taking advantage of peoples’ fears about COVID-19 pandemic. Right now, the most prolific are coming out about the World Health Organization, WHO. Preying on fears is a common tactic that people use, and when people click on links in emails that look like they come from WHO, they can get access to your devices, collect private information, and even steal address books.

Vishing

This is a tactic that scammers use to get access to people’s back account information. The scammer informs people that there is something wrong with their bank account, and that they should call a number. When they do, it is a VoIP number, and the victim can unknowingly give up their personal information, including their banking information.

Smishing

A smishing attack is similar to a vishing account, except it uses SMS instead of emails or phone calls to lure in their victims. Most of these smishing attacks are focused on the coronavirus and have a sense of urgency to them.

Social Media Attacks

Social media attacks are looking pretty legit these days, and that’s why it’s easy to fall for them. Essentially, they look like a social media post from a real retailer who is giving something away.

Fake e-Commerce Sites

There are also a ton of new fake e-commerce sites popping up, most of them claiming to sell things like masks, gloves, and other COVID-19 related products.

Rogue Mobile Apps

Fake mobile apps are also on the rise, and when downloaded, these apps can install things like spyware, malware, and ransomware on the person’s device.

Work at Home Scams

Finally, we have work at home scams, which are becoming very popular due to so many people being out of work. Often, these scams make people lose more money than they could make.

Don’t be a Victim

Here are some tips that you can use to stop yourself from becoming a victim of these scams:

  • Don’t respond to any texts or calls from numbers you don’t know or that seem suspicious
  • Don’t share any financial or personal information via text, email, or on the phone.
  • Be careful if you are asked to share information or make an immediate payment.
  • Scammers might try to spoof numbers to trick people into answering. Remember, there are no government agencies that will ask you for money or personal info.
  • Don’t click on links that you get in text messages. If you get one from a friend, make sure it is legitimate before clicking on it.
  • Always check that a charity is real before making any type of donation.

These cybercriminals are poised to profit from this pandemic, and they are doing all they can to take advantage of people. So, it’s important that you use caution.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Keeping Your Zoom Event Secure and Private

/0 Comments/in /by

There are many public forums out there, and wherever you are or whatever you are using, anyone with some smarts can disrupt an event that is meant for bringing people together. Here are some tips on keeping your next Zoom meeting secure and private:

You definitely don’t want anyone taking control of your screen or sharing information with the group. Thankfully, you can restrict this by controlling screen sharing. Preventing participants in your meeting from sharing is done by using the host controls before starting the meeting.

You also might want to familiarize yourself with the features and settings available from Zoom. The Waiting Room, for instance, has a number of controls available, and is a setting you should always be using. It essentially allows you to control who comes in. As a host, you can customize all of these settings, and even create a message for people waiting for the meeting to start, such as meeting rules.

You shouldn’t use your PMI, or Personal Meeting ID for hosting public events. You also only want to allow users who are signed in to join your meeting. You can also lock the Zoom meeting. This means that no new participants can join, even if they have the meeting ID and the password.

Another thing you can do is set up your own version of two-factor authentication. With this, you can generate a random Meeting ID, and then share that with participants, but then only send the password via a direct message.

If there are disruptive or unwanted participants in your meeting, you can also remove them via the Participants menu. Is a removed participant wants to rejoin, you can also do that by toggling the settings that you did in the first place. This is helpful if you remove the wrong person.

You can also put anyone in the Zoom meeting on hold. This means that the video and audio connections of the attendees are disables. To do this, you can click on a video thumbnail and select “Start Attendee On Hold.” Totally disabling the video is also possible. This will allow you, as the host, to turn off someone’s video. You can also block things like inappropriate gestures or distracting behavior.

Muting participants is also a possibility during a Zoom meeting. This allows you to stop the sounds of barking dogs and crying kids during these meetings. If you have a large meeting, you can also choose to mute everyone by choosing Mute Upon Entry.

File transfers are a possibility during Zoom meetings, but you might not want to allow this. In this case, you can turn off the file transfer capabilities before starting the meeting. Additionally, you can turn off annotation, which allows people to markup shared documents or doodle. Finally, you can also disable private chat. This will stop people in the meeting form talking to each other, which helps to cut back on any distractions that they might have during the course of the meeting.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

This is Why We Hoard Toilet Paper

/0 Comments/in /by

Remember that whole lack of toilet paper thing? If you are like most of us, you have noticed the shortage of toilet paper in stores near you. But, is there really a shortage or are we just natural hoarders?

toilet paperBefore we get into this, it’s important to recognize, that if you ran out of toilet paper, then it must be acknowledged that you might be lacking a certain proactive mindset that is necessary to maintain a basic personal security posture.

Having plenty of food, water, toilet paper, sanitary napkins, even a generator, back up heat source, and essentially anything that you might need should the grid go down for any period of time, is what it means to be a “prepper” and be prepared.

Is there Really a Toilet Paper Shortage?

The first thing we want to look at is if there really is a shortage of toilet paper in the US. On average, each person uses about 100 rolls of toilet paper a year, or one every 3-4 days. When you use that stat and multiply it by the number of people in the country, as a whole, we need about 3 billion rolls per year.

With more than 150 different companies manufacturing toilet paper in the US, we are not at risk of running out, so why are people stockpiling it?

The Psychology Behind Toilet Paper Hoarding

A number of experts have been weighing in about why people are suddenly hoarding toilet paper. Here are some of the suggestions:

  • Other people are hoarding, so I will too – A lot of people are falling into that lemming mentality where they think “I will do whatever everyone else does.”
  • I see photos of empty store shelves – If you have been on social media recently, you probably have seen those photos of empty toilet paper shelves. This creates a sense of urgency that you, too, must fill up in case the supply is not replenished.
  • I am worried, so I want to do something – There is so much about this pandemic that is out of our control, and this can make people feel even more fearful and stressed. To fix this, we want to do something, and stocking up on toilet paper is something that can make us feel more secure.
  • Toilet paper is an easy thing to hoard – There is also the fact that toilet paper is a thing that is easy to hoard. First of all, it isn’t a perishable, so you can keep it for many years. Another reason for this is that it is fairly inexpensive. Plus, you probably don’t have a ton of it anyway, unless you have room to store it. There is also the fact that you can use toilet paper for a tissue or even a paper towel, but we generally aren’t comfortable using paper towels or tissues as toilet paper.

The message about coronavirus that is presented to us is one of cleanliness and hygiene. You are told to not touch your face, always wash your hands, and don’t get too close to other people. Another thing that is all about cleanliness and hygiene is toilet paper. So, when you think about it that way, it makes sense that people would want to have it in their homes.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Working from Home Due to COVID-19? Protect Yourself from Cyberattacks

/0 Comments/in , /by

As we start to get used to living in a world where COVID-19 is changing everything, one of the differences that many have people are doing is working from home. With so many people now working on their home networks, cybercriminals are stepping up, and they are hoping to take advantage of people making security mistakes and doing more searches, specifically on COVID-19. This is a great opportunity for these thieves to target their victims.

COVID-19

Keep in mind that most people who are working from home are not working on a very secure network. Cyber attackers know this, and its important that both individuals and companies take the steps to protect themselves from COVID-19 and their information.

What Can Companies Do?

During this time, managers, owners, and supervisors should be setting clear expectations about how their businesses are going to work in these new environments. When these changes come down, they should come from the top. Here are some things to keep in mind:

  • You Must Understand the Threats – Business leaders should understand what threats are likely and prioritize protection methods based on that.
  • You Must Release Clear Guidance – It is also important that your organization’s at-home policies are easy to understand for all employees. This should include informing staff to communicate with security teams in the case of suspicious activity.
  • You Must Offer the Right Security – All business leaders should ensure that any company-owned devices are equipped with the best security capabilities. This includes the following:
    • The ability to connect securely to a business-owned cloud, and access to video teleconferencing apps that are important for remote workers.
    • Endpoint protection for all mobile devices and laptops including VPN tools and encryption.
    • Enforce the use of multi-factor authentication.
    • The ability to put a block on malware, exploits, and other threats using the best types of software and hardware.
    • A plan to filter any malicious domain URLS and stop any phishing attacks.

What Can Individuals Do?

People working from home should also take steps to ensure that they are remaining safe when working remotely.  Here are some things to do:

  • Create Strong Passwords – You should always create strong passwords and consider a password manager to facilitate multiple passwords opposed to the same passwords across multiple accounts.
  • Update Software and Systems – Install any system updates or patches as soon as you see them.
  • Make Sure Your Wi-Fi Access Point is Secure – Look at your Wi-Fi access point and make sure to change the passwords and default settings.
  • Use a VPN (Virtual Private Network) – A VPN is a good way to create a safe connection between a home computer and the worker’s organization.
  • Be Smart About COVID – 19 Scams – There are a ton of scams out there, including fake apps, so be smart.
  • Don’t Mix Work and Personal Tasks – Use your work device for your work and your personal device for personal tasks.

By taking these steps into consideration, either as a business leader or an employee, you can help to address some of the most common risks that you might face when working from home. Keep all of these tips in mind, and if something seems a little weird or strange, it’s probably best to report it to your company’s IT professional.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.