The Iowa Department of Revenue has issued a Cybersecurity Awareness Month message about how you can protect yourself when using social networking. Never click and tell. Limit what information you post on social media, from personal addresses to where you like to grab coffee. What many people don’t realize is that these seemingly random details are all criminals need to know to target you, your loved ones, and your physical belongings, online and in the physical world.

• Think before your post.  What you publish online is widely accessible and will be around for a long time, so carefully consider the content before you publish
• Connect only with people you know and trust.  Don’t accept “friend” requests unless you know the person well
• Limit what you share.  Keep certain things private from everyone
• Backup your important data.  Ransomware won’t be nearly as devastating if your data is safely and securely backed up
• Limit personal info on social media.  Don’t include personal information such as birth date, home town or phone numbers.
• Enable privacy and security settings.  Review your social media policy settings as they occasionally change
• Limit social logins.  Many applications will suggest your Facebook or other social logon account as a single sign on for their application. This may be convenient for you but it is also easy for a cybercriminal to easily access all of your associated accounts using just that one social media account password.
• Change your passwords.  Your passwords should be regularly changed at least every nine months to one year.
• Manage your passwords securely.  Use a password manager application to store your account credentials.
• Never click and tell

Remember to keep Social Security numbers, account numbers, and passwords private, as well as specific information about yourself, such as your full name, address, birthday, and even vacation plans. Disable location services that allow anyone to see where you are – and where you aren’t – at any given time. Read the Social Media Cybersecurity Tip Sheet for more information.

Next week’s message will focus on password recommendations to protect your identity.