With today being in a digital world, data security is something that everyone takes seriously. Today, it is more important than ever to guard against cyber threats involving your personal information, as we move into 2024. Such as cyberattacks rising, or there’s a lot more data being collected – there’s a need for us to be aware and take the right measures when it comes to security.
The focus of this guide is to explain the proper ways of how to keep your information and data protected in 2024, from the use of the latest security practices, tools for protecting you privacy and what you should handle to remain safe i.e. smart protection strategies. By the end, you’ll be aware of how to protect your personal information and how to maintain your digital privateness.
1. Use Strong, Unique Passwords
Using strong and unique passwords is another best way to control your online accounts. Follow these tips to create robust passwords in 2024:
- Mix of letters, numbers and special characters should be used.
- Don’t use common words or guessable word combinations.
- You shouldn’t use the same password for all your accounts.
A good alternative is a password manager, a tool that does the work of remembering and generating complex passwords securely. That reduces the risk of having a weak password across a lot of sites.
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2. Turn on Two Factor Authentication (2FA)
Two factor authentication (2FA) is certainly the extra layer security, any 2FA requires to be authenticated with 2 things, usually a password and a code from your mobile device. That means if someone can guess your password, they have to have access to you second authentication method to log in.
Today there are many platforms that support multi factor authentication (MFA), and that includes biometric verification such as fingerprints or face recognition. In 2024, a must is to enable 2FA for it all email, bank, whatever.
3. Keep your Software and Devices up to date.
The reality is that older software is bad because it often contains security vulnerabilities that hackers can take advantage of. However, protecting your data relies on updating your operating system, applications and devices so they are secured with the latest security patches. Most operating systems will automatically update, so you always have the latest protection against the latest threats.
It also makes sense to always update your antivirus and firewall software that serves as a shield from cyber threats.
4. Another option for you is to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN).
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) provides encrypted internet connection protection (meaning it makes it extremely difficult for hackers to extract your data through the VPN) and, possibly better yet, hides your IP address. Using public Wi-Fi networks can be dangerous, especially when you don’t have your own internet connection available, and VPNs are therefore particularly useful. VPN helps protect your sensitive information and maintaining your privacy by hiding your online activity.
When choosing a VPN in 2024, look for:
- AES-256 strong encryption protocol
- A system to ensure the location of the VPN provider doesn't log your data.
- Fast servers combined with support on your other devices.
5. Sharing Data Limitation on Social Media
With social media platforms collecting massive amounts of personal data, and sharing way too much you can become a victim to scams and identity theft. To protect your information:
- Change your privacy settings and limit what you’re sharing.
- Don’t accept friend requests from unknown users.
- Don’t share sensitive information like your home address, birth date, or time when you’re taking a holiday.
- Be aware of such phishing attacks, since scammers may post to social media to try to extract information, pretending to be someone else.
6. Back Up Your Data Regularly
Just because you save your files shouldn’t mean you'll be able to retrieve them without skipping a beat. In 2024, aim to have at least two backups:
Physical Backups: To back up important files use an external hard drive.
Cloud Storage: Encrypt files before keeping them on a secure platform such as Google Drive, Dropbox or iCloud.
Automatic backups help you always have a fresh copy of your data without needing to manually update things.
7. Secure Your Home Network
Protecting access to data on all your devices, home Wi-Fi network should be secured. Here’s how to safeguard your network:
- Replace the default password of your Wi-Fi with a unique strong password.
- Set your Wi-Fi to WPA3 encryption, which turns Wi-Fi into the latest protocol.
- Control Remote Access and Change your Router’s Firewall settings.
You can set up a guest network that visitors will connect to, so that they won’t be able to access your main network.
8. Learn About Phishing and Cyber Scams.
Scammers are continuing to take phishing attacks and scams to new levels as they try to steal personal information using ever more sophisticated tactics. In 2024, common phishing techniques include:
- Companies or persons that send 'fake' emails from whom the company or person believes they are communicating to.
- False websites like links which capture information.
- Phone scams that ask for personal or payment-details.
To avoid falling victim to phishing scams:
- Make sure they double check email addresses before they respond, and don’t click on unfamiliar links they get.
- Contact the company directly on suspicious requests.
- Be suspicious of certain 'urgent' messages that ask for personal or financial information.
9. Adopt Data Encryption
Data encryption, a process that transforms your data into an unreadable format, is a protection method to protect your data from attack from unauthorized users. Sensitive documents like personal files and financial documents, in particular, need encryption. These days, many modern devices come with built in encryption tools, as well as programs like BitLocker, VeraCrypt and Apple’s FilVault.
If you share files, think about using end to end encrypted messaging app such as Signal, or WhatsApp, to keep your data secure.
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10. Think about the Biometric Security Measures.
Thanks to biometric security, including fingerprint, face and voice recognition, this becomes a more personalized layer of protection which is almost impossible to duplicate. While these biometric security options exist, this technology is becoming more accessible, as smartphones, laptops, and smart home devices grow available. Biometric measures may be especially effective to incorporate in 2024 for high security applications, that is, online banking, password access to sensitive files.
11. Track Your Digital footprint
When you use the internet, you leave a trail of data behind, that is referred to as your digital footprint. In 2024 it is important to keep an eye on and manage your online presence to avoid identity theft and to protect your privacy. Here’s how:
- Do a search regularly about your name and see what information is publicly available about you.
- The best privacy focused search engines are DuckDuckGo.
- Unfollow or delete shut or unused profiles and restrict apps and websites permissions.
12. Be Cautious with IoT Devices
However, convenience of the Internet of Things just brings other security challenges. Often, next to no security exists for most IoT devices, including smart home assistants, thermostats, and security cameras. To secure your IoT devices:
- Change the default passwords of each devices and use strong password in each device.
- Always do firm ware upgrade to fix security vulnerability.
- Put your IoT devices on a separate network than your main Wi-Fi.
In 2024, to protect your data, you need to be proactive and remain aware of what it means to be cyber secure. Following this data protection tips— including using strong passwords, two-factor authentication, securing your home network and monitoring your digital footprint —will help shield your personal information and help to prevent you from becoming a victim of cybercrime. Knowing and doing something is the best defense against the constantly changing landscape of digital security problems.
