Make Cybersecurity Part of Your 2012 Resolutions

Posted by Stop. Think. Connect.

If you’re still looking for a New Year’s resolution, it’s not too late to join the Stop.Think.Connect.™ Campaign in setting online safety resolutions for 2012.

Follow these simple steps from the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) to enhance increase your devices’ cybersecurity:

• Adjust your privacy and security settings to make sure that sites are not collecting personal information about you without your knowledge.
• Once you have installed an anti-virus package, manually scan files you receive from an outside source on a daily basis before opening them directly from the source.
• Limit the amount of personal information you post online, especially in public forums.
• Beware of grand promises—they are most likely spam, hoaxes, or phishing schemes. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
• Update and create strong passwords on a monthly basis.

Cybersecurity is a shared responsibility and each of us has a role to play. For more basic tips to stay cyber fit, visit http://www.dhs.gov/gallery/stop-think-connect