Cyber-security: an inside job

I have a great question for you. If someone were to walk up to you on the street and state “Hey I know you, aren’t you John Doe?” What would be your reaction? Would you tell them no, sorry, my name is such and such? Would you ignore them and walk away? Would you invite them to go have a cup of coffee with you? Whatever the case, as you left that situation that would be the end of it. You could choose whether to continue communication with that person or cut it off.

Looking at it in the light of the Internet. Someone on a social media drops you a message saying they know you. “How have you been?” “Do you remember me?” The difference between this situation and the situation above is answering their text message you have already given that person information and made a entry that can't be deleted.

They have ascertained enough information on your social media profile to make it seem as if they truly do know you. Your answering them confirms this information and opens the front door. Some of us don’t realize that our online profiles are like giving the keys to the front door of your house to a stranger.

Just because you feel protected by the apparent distance a computer screen gives between you and the person you're talking to. The online world is still the real world, you may not be face to face but it’s still real. The big difference is, everything you do over the web is captured forever and can come back to haunt you.

A good example of this is a few years ago I filled out an application to rent a home. The application was approved but what the real estate agent said after caught me off guard. They told me “they had reviewed some of our social profiles on the Internet to complete the approval for the Lease.”

Many employers, real estate agents, law enforcement agencies and even school administration look at social media profiles when researching new students, staff or candidates.

The Internet is a great place, but you must be careful what you do and what you say when you’re there. Don’t ever say things which you wouldn’t talk about in conversations with your family or friends. Once you have written something on the Internet you can’t delete it despite what Internet service providers tell you. Matter fact, if what you do or say is controversial it will be copied many times and will always come back and bite you.

How you connect is as important as what/where and who you connect with. Any device used to connect to the Internet needs to be protected but that’s only a small part of it. Using correct passwords and up-to-date protection is a very big key in providing a safe environment online. These connections must be maintained with strict rules to prevent some of the not so legal entities from accessing your information.

These days we lock our doors and windows, some of us even have alarms that are monitored by an external company. We have weapons in our homes secured, for protecting ourselves and our families. When you park your car at the mall, most likely you lock the doors and hide any valuables in the car from anyone walking by.

These habits need to be reflected in your online experience, its more vulnerable than your home or car. Cyber security should be a habit, we need to lock our Internet doors/windows, set up online security systems, and hide our valuables from other Internet surfers.

I have two suggestions that will move your safety online going in the right direction:

#1. Protect online activities like you would protect your families at home.

#2. Any information given on the Internet, should also be the same information you share with your worst enemy.

In closing, Discuss this with your children (Age 1 – 100). They could be giving out information about themselves and YOU online.

Paul Capuano

Senior Technical Support Engineer

Technical Support Solutions

[email protected]