Cybersecurity Safety

We take steps to protect you and any accounts created on our website; however, there are a number of steps you should take to protect yourself online as well. While the tips below aren’t intended to be exhaustive, these are basic measures that you can take to ensure your own protection.

Protect Your Identity

  • Cybersecurity breaches do occur! If you have created accounts on this or other sites, and if any of those sites have been attacked, take steps to ensure that you have protected yourself on all sites that you use. If you use the same username or password on multiple websites, take steps to change your password and update any security questions that may have become compromised.
  • Avoid Public Computers and Public Wifi. While you may feel secure on public computers or wifi, you make your information vulnerable by using and submitting your information. Avoid the use of public computers and wifi to access sensitive sites or to transmit sensitive information.
  • Look for “https”. When using websites to submit secure information, especially ecommerce sites, always look for the “https” instead of “http”. The “https” address is more secure than http.
  • Avoid clicking suspicious links. Whether in an email or online, sometimes suspicious links can make you vulnerable to hacking. Many of these links look like legitimate sites, or from trusted providers like software companies. Look for signs that the link might not be legitimate by evaluating the source. Check to see if you know the email address (and be careful of those email address that might imitate known addresses). While not everything is malicious, just be cautious when using the internet. Trust your instincts if something seems off!
  • Avoid Phishing. Sometimes, you might receive emails that appear to be from legitimate sources, for example from your IT department. These phishing attempts can be very sophisticated. Be wary about unexpected links being sent to your email. When in doubt, as your IT administrator.

Protect Your Devices

  • Install and Use a Firewall. Having a firewall can help to filter out malicious content on your devices. Set up firewalls on your devices and router for maximum protection.
  • Update Your Software and Antivirus Software. Updating your software helps to ensure that any security issues that might exist in enterprise software are dealt with as these companies make improvements. Often times, companies both identify vulnerabilities and generally make their coding more secure. By keeping up-to-date, you are ensuring that any necessary patches or security issues are improved.
  • Protect Your Devices with Locked Screens. By setting up a password on your phone, tablet, or computer, you can avoid having individuals use your devices without your knowledge. Be sure to enable screen locking on your devices.

Protect Your Accounts

  • Use Strong Passwords. Having passwords that are long and strong helps to improve the chances of keeping your accounts secure. This involves regularly updating your password, but also using passwords that are difficult to guess. Best passwords are those that use a variety of characters and cannot easily be guessed. Use upper-case and lower-case letters, numbers, and special characters wherever possible.
  • Password updates. Regularly updating your password makes it more difficult for malicious individuals from getting access to your devices.
  • Use Unique Passwords. Try using new passwords that are unique to each account.
  • Secure Your Passwords. Saving your passwords in your browser may seem like a good idea, but your make yourself vulnerable to those who might use your computer accessing your accounts unintentionally. Keep track of your passwords securely. If you write them down, be sure that they cannot be accessed by others. If you use password managing applications, be sure to establish a strong password to protect yourself.
  • Setup your Security Questions Responsibly. Some information is available about you online, whether intentionally shared or unintentionally so. For example, you might have your mother’s maiden name accessible on social media accounts. Therefore, try to select questions that you can remember, but also might not be readily accessed by others.