By Lindsey Schibelhut, Senior Reporter.
So you get an email saying you’ve just inherited five million dollars from a distant cousin in Zimbabwe. You then decide to give out your personal information and find out not only is there no cousin in Zimbabwe and no money, but you’ve just had your identity stolen. That is what approximately 17.6 million Americans experienced in 2014 according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Identity theft isn’t all you should be aware of either- scams, viruses and malware can also effect your computer. Office of Information Technology network manager, Chris Mallory, and Technical Support Manager, Steven Rushing, explain how Delta’s OIT department helps students and faculty compute safely while surfing the internet and what else can be done to protect your online data.
“The IT team keeps the Delta servers and the operating systems, the applications and antivirus software all up to date,” says Mallory.
Some of the other ways OIT protects information is routinely scanning for vulnerabilities and making sure the password protocol is secure.
“We utilize a strong password requirement when creating your Delta log-in information,” says Rushing.
But even when you’re at home there are ways to make sure you are shielding your computer from attacks.
“People should exercise caution when being asked to provide any information electronically or over the phone,” says Mallory.
Mallory says reputable businesses shouldn’t be contacting you out of the blue for information that they should already have.
“People should be suspicious of emails that are inflammatory or too good to be true or they need an urgent response in order to avoid a negative outcome,” says Mallory.
If you get an email that you don’t feel is legitimate, Rushing says steer clear of the links you were provided.
“If interested in the content go directly to their site,” says Rushing.
Another aspect people should remember is making sure they’re getting computer software from a trustworthy source.
“Avoid sites that are offering pirated software,” explains Mallory. “A large majority of the software that comes from those file sharing networks has been altered to include malware.”
Some signs that your computer may have been infected or hacked include: slowness, excessive pop-ups or a message from anti-virus software that isn’t yours according to Rushing.
When you do find that reliable source, you don’t necessarily have to buy software to get protection when there are free options.
“There’s software such as AVG or Sophos or Kaspersky or Microsoft Security Essentials all of those have free versions of those antivirus softwares,” explains Mallory. “These companies understand now that from a home use perspective that’s where a lot of malware comes and goes.”
On that same note, Mallory also expresses the importance of making sure you are keeping up with the routine updates to your operating systems.
“Whether that’s a PC or Mac, your cell phone, your tablets, your mobile devices, keep up with the operating system updates,” explains Mallory. “Half of the reason is of course feature updates but the other side of that is there’s always security vulnerabilities that they put patches in place for, so staying up to date is always a good idea.”
One of the more headache inducing ways to make sure your online information is secure, is to use different passwords to your accounts.
“So, if you do happen to get swept up in a phishing scam or you accidentally give your username information, somebody can’t take your email address and your password that you use all the time and go to all the common websites [and get into those accounts],” says Mallory.
OIT hosts several events in October during National Cyber Security Awareness month which are also there to provide students with more information on how to keep safe online.
“[We show] threat maps of current cyber-attacks worldwide, showing students what information can be found out about them with simple internet searches, and make students aware of resources to find out more information,” says Rushing.
Finally, everyone is encouraged to stay alert and not be complacent about the cyber risks we face everyday.
“The best thing you can do to stay safe online is to educate yourself, be suspicious and most importantly, stop and think before you click and that will help elevate as many situations as are preventable,” says Mallory.
For Rushing he concludes, “Be mindful of your actions and aware that due to so much of our lives being connected online it is more important than ever to be aware of the dangers and careful what you click on. Stop. Think. Click. Every time.”
For more information about cyber security students are recommended to visit stopthinkconnect.org or staysafeonline.org
