The Internet can be a dangerous place, malicious attacks using viruses, malware or even scams can make your personal details and sensitive information easily compromised. Therefore, protecting your domain privacy should be one of your priorities while surfing the internet.
7 ways to protect your privacy online
In this article, we will help you do that by discussing the best 7 ways to protect your privacy online.
Limit Online sharing
If you were ever wondering, how can I protect my privacy online? Then you should start with social media sharing. Most social media platforms can be accessed easily by the public, even if you have locked your profile, there will always be a way to get your private data.
That’s why the easiest way to protect your online privacy is to stop sharing information about yourself or your beloved ones. Also, it is very important that you don’t respond to people asking you questions that can be used as security questions like the name of your pet, which model your first car was, or even what your favorite color is.
It’s also worth mentioning that some apps can collect details about you and your activities which can later be compromised in a security breach. However, to put limits to the damage that can happen, you can use a throwaway email address in case you need to subscribe to a specific service online.
Also, it’s better that you avoid filling in any “Optional “blanks while using your details online and always remember, the fewer data you share online, the better privacy you will get.
Use VPN
VPN or Virtual Private Network is a guaranteed way to protect your connection against most types of attacks. Using VPN adds an extra layer of protection to your network to neutralize many threats. Despite the fact that using VPN might have a negative effect on speed and performance, VPN is considered the best option available when you connect to a public network like a coffee shop, an airport or a library.
Review your privacy settings.
Reviewing the privacy settings on the accounts you use on a regular basis is the easiest way in the 7 ways to protect your privacy online. This is due to the fact that companies tend to collect information about you, your habits, and your interests all the time.
Therefore, you need to adjust your privacy settings on those websites to make sure that you share only the information you want to share.
Reviewing settings such as location tracking and who can see your public information on social media platforms is very important to protect your privacy online.
Use secure connections and firewalls!
Having a firewall, Anti-virus and Anti-spyware is one of essential recommendations to protect your data from theft or hacking. Also, it’s of high importance that you don’t click on links from unfamiliar or suspicious sources because that’s how most hacking attacks happen.
The attackers usually send you a link that appears as if it’s from a trusted brand and then later you get surprised as your credit card details were stolen. Moreover, it’s not recommended to use public networks without VPN due to the increased risk of hacking threats.
Don’t ignore the updates.
Making sure that your Antivirus software is updated to its latest version is something you should follow up on a regular basis to make sure that you are using optimal security to protect your privacy online.
Use stronger passwords and two-factor authentication.
Your username and password combination are of critical importance, and that’s why choosing a strong password is your first firewall against identity theft and hacking. Choose strong passwords with a minimum of 8 characters and a combination of capital letters, small letters, and special characters.
It’s also important to avoid using the same password for multiple accounts because if one account gets compromised, this will generate a threat to all your other accounts.
One more thing to consider is to activate a Two-factor authentication to log in to your accounts, this will help add more security even if your passwords were shared due to a hacking attack.
Don’t allow cookies.
The last tip in the 7 ways to protect your privacy online is blocking third-party cookies. Meanwhile disabling cookies might cause some inconvenience for users, blocking cookies can have a great impact on privacy protection.
Blocking cookies would stop the website from storing data on your computer to track your visits and remember the username you used to log in previously.
Protecting your privacy online is something you should put into consideration on a daily basis. Follow our guide for the 7 ways to protect your privacy online and stay safe.