10 Ways To Stay Safe On the Internet

10 Ways To Stay Safe On the Internet

Cybersecurity is an important part of everyday internet usage so knowing what cyber security is can save you a lot of trouble. Cybercrime increased up to 600% due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s estimated that cybercrimes will cost $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, according to a report by American-based Cyber Security and Data Statistics Company PurpleSec, US. Also, the global annual cost of cybercrime is estimated to be $6 trillion annually, which forms a value worth 1% of the Global GDP.

Cybersecurity attacks are becoming increasingly common, so learning how to stay safe and protect your online information is imperative. While there is a lack of ways to prevent an attack, there are many things you can do that will help lessen the risk.

Sometimes, some of our online activities expose us to the growing cyber-attacks gradually gaining ground in our society. This article will discuss the different types of cyber-attacks and how we can prevent them.

Here are some practical ways to avoid cyberattacks on the internet

  1. Change your passwords regularly and use solid alphanumeric passwords, which are difficult to crack. Refrain from using too complicated passwords that you would tend to forget. Do not use the same password twice.
  2. Update both your operating system and applications regularly. It’s a primary prevention method for any cyber attack. It will remove vulnerabilities that hackers tend to exploit. Use trusted and legitimate Anti-virus protection software.
  3. Use a firewall and other network security tools such as Intrusion prevention systems, Access control, Application security, etc.
  4. Avoid opening emails from unknown senders. Scrutinize the emails you receive for loopholes and significant errors.
  5. Make use of a VPN. It encrypts the traffic between the VPN server and your device.
  6. Regularly back up your data. According to many security professionals, having three copies of your data on two different media types and another copy in an off-site location (cloud storage) is ideal. Hence, even during a cyber attack, you can erase your system’s data and restore it with a recently performed backup.
  7. Employees should be aware of cybersecurity principles. They must know the various types of cyberattacks and ways to tackle them.
  8. Use Two-Factor or Multi-Factor Authentication. Two-factor authentication requires users to provide two different authentication factors to verify themselves. When you are asked for over two additional authentication methods apart from your username and password, we term it multi-factor authentication. It proves to be a vital step to securing your account.
  9. Secure your Wi-Fi networks and avoid using public Wi-Fi without using a VPN.
  10. Safeguard your mobile, as mobiles are also a cyberattack target. Install apps from only legitimate and trusted sources, and keep your device updated.