SAFER SURFING

How to keep you and your information secure

by Erin McKnight

Cyber security is more critical now than ever. Stories of data breaches and compromised logins splash across the headlines regularly.

“At OEC Fiber, we value our subscribers’ security and online safety above all else,” said David Goodspeed, president of OEC Fiber. “We actively monitor for threats and do our best to block them before they gain access to the network. We want everyone to feel safe online, and educating our subscribers on what to do is part of that.”

Ready to make sure you stay secure when browsing online? A few preventive measures can help protect you against cyber threats before they strike!

Check Your Passwords

Hackers love it when we get lazy with our passwords. According to pcmag.com, 70% of people use the same password on more than one online account. While it may make them easier to remember, using the same password on multiple logins gives hackers more access to your sensitive data. Use a unique password for each account to help keep them secure.

While having multiple, unique passwords is ideal, remembering all of them can be difficult. Using a password manager such as LastPass, BitWarden or 1PAssword can be an excellent solution for remembering unique, secure passwords for every site. Password managers allow you to store all your passwords in one secure vault and automatically fill in your login information on each website with just one click. Not only that, but they also help protect against malicious hackers by preventing brute-force attacks and other cybercriminal techniques used to glean user data.

Remember, two-step authentication! Have a code sent to your email or phone; some services may have you answer a security question for an extra layer of protection. Two-step authentication will ensure only YOU can access your account and give you the heads up if someone else tries to get in.

Scan For Scammers

“When it comes to your online safety, scammers are getting smarter all the time,” said OEC Fiber’s senior manager of technology services and network operations, Michael Tomas. “They can make malicious emails look nearly identical to the real thing. That’s why you should always double-check any email addresses or content for anything suspicious before clicking on a link.”

Stay vigilant. Look for strange punctuation, spelling mistakes and email addresses from odd domains. Why would Amazon be sending you something from a Gmail account? These are all signs of a scammer trying to get their hands on your data.

Safe Social Sharing

Stay connected to the people you care about while still practicing caution online. Social media is an excellent tool for communication and a source of entertainment. Still, only some people need access to our lives.

“Don’t post everything online,” said David Madden, OEC Fiber’s supervisor of subscriber support. “Keep personal information private.”

From geo-tagging your vacation photos to live-tweeting an event, social media can be a great way to express yourself and document memories. But before you hit post, it is important to remember the potential danger of oversharing location information. You could tell unwelcome individuals where they can find or take advantage of you!

Limit the information in your profile. Even if the platform suggests it, try to leave any personal details off. When in doubt – keep it out; the fewer specifics you share online, the less likely someone can use that info for something nefarious.

Taking cyber security seriously is more important than ever. OEC Fiber is committed to doing all we can to keep you and your information safe. To learn more about online safety and the steps you can take to keep yourself safe online, visit oecfiber.com/blog to find more articles with online safety tips.