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Protect yourself against hacking attacks

Protect yourself against hacking attacks

Trojans, adware, spam, phishing...

These are words that we often encounter and of which we are warned again and again. Hackers are using increasingly sophisticated systems to get personal data or money. Phishing mails, for example, are often difficult to distinguish from conventional mails. Therefore it is important to consciously protect yourself against attacks by hackers.

 

Here are some tips that are easy to implement:

Use complex and different passwords

The password is still the main attack vector for companies. Everyone should be aware that "123abc" or "qwert" are not very suitable as a secure passwords. A remedy for this is, for example, a password manager, in which passwords are stored in encrypted form.


Use virus scanners and firewalls

These programs help if a malware can not be detected by the user himself. These should also be kept up to date to provide maximum protection.

 

No download of unknown programs

Programs from unknown third party providers may cause problems on the device or may contain a trojan. Therefore it is important to only download software that has been tested and/or is already known.

 

Encrypt personal and sensitive data

Sensitive data should not simply be stored unencrypted on the device/drive where anyone can view it. It should also be noted that such data can be misused or copied not only by hackers but also internally by colleagues. For example, if an employee misuses customer data, this represents a concrete threat to the employer's business interests. Disregard can lead to termination without notice.



Protect from prying eyes

A 2017 study by the Ponemon Institute says that 87 per cent of mobile workers have already noticed intrusive glances from so-called "shoulder surfers".
Visual hacking is also a big topic in the current time. Anyone who commutes, works in a co-working space or an open-plan office should protect their data from prying eyes, for example with a privacy filter.



Masking the webcam and microphone

If a device has been hacked, the webcam and microphone can be switched on and off unnoticed and at any time.
The lamp next to the webcam does not necessarily have to light up if the webcam has been hacked. Therefore the webcam should be covered with a cover and the microphone should also be taped off when not in use.

A picture of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg from 2016 shows him doing just that on his laptop. Webcam and microphone were taped over.