Executive Summary
The Effects of Online Privacy and Security:
Executive Summary
Brett Estes
The Effects of Online Privacy and Security:
Executive Summary
Introduction
Online security is an issue that most people tend to ignore or do not understand. This includes secure passwords, online scams, malware, privacy and data breaches. The biggest issue of these is privacy, which is often taken for granted. People should care about their privacy as almost all apps, websites, or services collect a vast amount of information about their users. Cybercriminals think of this data as a goldmine and it only takes the simplest mistake for these criminals to gain access to that data. So how do we prevent issues like this from occurring and how do we better protect our privacy?
Privacy and Data Collection
Online privacy is different than real world privacy. Online privacy includes your personal information, such as your name, date of birth, etc. and the actions you perform online (“NortonOnline”). Most mobile apps or websites collect this data from you whenever you use them. This creates a trail of data on the person, which can then be sold completely legally. This data is often sold to companies, mainly for marketing or advertising (“NortonOnline”). A lot of this data from people is given away voluntarily. Every time you use a search engine or check into your social media account you are handing away your information. To use these services, you have to consent to their data collection. Even if you have been cautious and careful with your information, you can still have your information susceptible to data breaches. Because many companies host enormous amounts of user data online, cybercriminals tend to target them (Kovacs 2015).
There are many ways you can prevent your information from being tracked or stolen. One of the ways is to browse the internet anonymously using a VPN or you could use a search engine that doesn’t track you, such as DuckDuckGo. When it comes to your privacy there are several ways of keeping it as such. Good passwords should be at least eight characters long, and use uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. You should also never save passwords to your device even if it’s convenient. Two-Factor Authentication is another way of verifying your identity as opposed. Most apps allow the user to change their privacy settings. You should always change this to the least amount of data sharing. On social media platforms you should make sure who you are sharing your information with. These settings should be not be set to the public but rather to trusted individuals.
Conclusion
Online security is an issue that the majority of people tend to not understand or just ignore. These issues can include secure passwords, online scams, malware, privacy, or data breaches. The biggest of these issues is privacy, which is often taken for granted. Most people assume that because they have done nothing wrong that they do not have anything to hide, but they should care about their privacy as almost all apps, websites, or services collect a vast amount of information about their users. There are many different ways of protecting your privacy and preventing your information from being stolen. Using VPNs and private search engines can prevent websites from tracking you. Having a secure password and changing your privacy settings on different websites or apps can reduce the amount of data that you share. Even though there are different ways that we can prevent or reduce the amount of tracking of our information, nothing we do online is ever truly private.
Kovacs, N. (2015, May 29) What Happens When Your Identity Is Stolen?. Retrieved from https://community.norton.com/en/blogs/norton-protection-blog/what-happens-when-your-identity-stolen
NortonOnline. Why your online privacy matters. Retrieved from https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-privacy-why-your-online-privacy-matters.html