Protecting Online Data
Data privacy is the protection of data that people should not have access to and the ability of individuals to decide who can access their personal information. This information can include a person’s name, phone number, date of birth, geographic location, or online behavior. Data privacy is a fundamental human right. In recent history, people have used the Internet so often and widely that the necessity for data privacy has increased immensely. This blog will give customers tips and tricks to protect their online data so that they can safely control access to their confidential information.
Importance of Protecting Your Data
According to everyone in tech, but also specifically Forbes, “data privacy is a must.” When it comes to data protection, organizations should go above and beyond to find ways to protect their confidential data and intellectual property. Individuals need to have faith that their data will be secure and protected with care. Over time, businesses have learned that protecting data can be a major competitive advantage for customers, especially when it comes to standing out from competitors. According to McKinsey & Co., “the data businesses generate create both an opportunity for enterprises to improve their consumer engagement and a responsibility to keep consumer data safe.” Personal data can be misused and mishandled in so many ways, especially when it’s hacked and accessed by unauthorized parties. Nowadays, criminals find tactics to use personal data to harass people and commit fraud. They also sell personal data to unwanted sources without consent, resulting in people being scammed through phishing, hacking, and identity theft strategies. For businesses, a breach like this can be a major setback for their reputation.
Create Strong Passwords
When creating a password, most of us go for the obvious and think of our personal details because they are the easiest things to remember. This is the biggest mistake customers make when they create their passwords for important accounts. Using personal information in their passwords is what hackers crave. According to National Public Radio, customers should “bring some randomness and special characters into their passwords.” You want to make sure your passwords stay unique to the respective accounts you create for yourself. Don’t make the mistake of using the same password for every single account you create. A great way to prevent hacking is using a strong password manager and two-factor authentication. According to Forbes, “a password manager is a software program that creates unique, secure passwords for all of your accounts and stores them in one place, so you don’t have to keep track of many complicated passwords.” This way, the only thing you need to remember is the passphrase for both methods.
Make Sure Your Data is Encrypted
To keep it simple, encryption takes your data and scrambles it into a format that seems broken and unreadable. This format is known as ciphertext. Ciphertext helps you protect the confidentiality of your data that is stored on your computer or transmitted through the internet. An example of the application of encryption is messaging apps like WhatsApp. When people send any information on WhatsApp, they may not realize that there is a possibility for hackers to get into the system and take the information to misuse it. Luckily, WhatsApp updated its features by installing encryption data software so that people’s data can be safe and always secured. The best thing about encryption data is that it allows your customers to protect the data that matters most to them.
Watch Out for Phishing Scams
According to Forbes, “all your digital preparedness will only get you so far if you are unable to identify the red flags associated with potential online threats.” Phishing scams are the most common method for customers to be targeted and for their data to be stolen. These can come in the form of emails, phone calls, and text messages that claim to be real and legitimate entities, such as banks or phone companies. Most of the time, scammers want your money. The rest of your data is just bonus points for them to misuse and possibly sell to other unauthorized people. Phishing scams can be rather intricate and sophisticated. According to Forbes, here are some key tells for whether some form of communication, especially emails, are a phishing scam attempt:
- The message claims to be from a business, however, uses a public email address.
- A message informing you that your account has been locked, or that you have to click a link in order to change security or account information.
- Typos: correspondence from legitimate organizations will rarely have obvious misspellings or grammatical errors.
- Offers that are too good to be true.
- Messages meant to create a sense of urgency. If your bank tells you that you must “act quickly or your account will be permanently frozen,” or that you will “miss out on a one-time offer” these should definitely be red flags.
- Any message that seems to have the explicit goal of getting your phone number.
Use Free Wi-Fi with Caution
Public places with public Wi-Fi, such as coffee shops, are the easiest ways for hackers to steal and solicit your data. Normally, customers operate from coffee shops for a change in location and energy. According to Forbes, customers are “better off creating a hotspot with their phones than linking up to whatever nearby Wi-Fi network isn’t password protected.” This way, their online data can stay secured and protected, rather than misused and violated. Should customers have the desire to use public Wi-Fi, they should be wary of logging into bank websites and other websites with their confidential information.
How Does PxidaCX Protect Customer Data?
PxidaCX keeps customer data anonymous so that customers feel safe filling out surveys with their personal information. By protecting their data privacy, the businesses that use our platform know that they can also trust us with their information. PxidaCX is a great survey tool that can help your customers feel safe while taking the surveys businesses create for them. Sign up for a free trial today!