In the world, the scandal surrounding the leakage of information from the popular Facebook social network does not cease. It turned out that a private data analysis company collected on the expanses of the network personal information about 50 million users and used it without permission to influence the American elections. As a result, for a week Facebook shares fell by $ 58 billion, and indignant users launched a flashmob under the hashtag #deletefacebook, calling for the removal of their accounts from the social network. Boycott was supported by many IT investors, famous actors, Ilon Mask.
Mark Zuckerberg, the head of Fasebook, in response to the hype, promised to make the service safer, introduce an “suspicious activity” application check and reduce the amount of information requested from users.
Online: without cookies and history
In the world Internet network, access to your data is easier to control than in social networks.
If Facebook shares their content with friends, then on third-party sites, few will simply merge their data.
However, some caution is necessary here. Do not use public wireless networks, because they are stealing data through them most often.
If the connection is still necessary, it is better to go through VPN-applications, which provide an encrypted connection anonymity in the network.
To keep private data in private access will also help to disable cookies, which collect information about visited web pages for websites. In most browsers, cookies are disabled in the settings under the “Content settings” tab. In this case, there is another way not to leave a digital trace – to go online through the “Incognito” mode, which does not preserve the browsing history and information inscribed on the sites. It’s also worth ignoring banners and pop-ups on sites and suspicious links in e-mail messages.
In social networks: dig in the settings
The best way to prevent social networks from collecting information about you is to stop using them.
Those who can not completely abandon social networks, we advise responsibly to adjust them.
In the case of Facebook, you should prohibit third-party companies from collecting your data. To do this, go to the “Applications” page, in this section click the “Edit” button, and after that – “disable the platform.”
A less radical step is to remove the marks from all categories of data that you provide them (marital status, date of birth) on the “Applications” page. Filter what is in the social network.
Photos, likes, transitions from the page and even a list of friends tell a lot about a person and his preferences. These data allow companies to populate people with suitable advertising and manipulate their opinions.
Information about the hobby, location and work schedule can be successfully used, for example, apartment thieves. Therefore, photos with geotagging from travel are better to spread already after the return.
To maximally secure your information, you need to publish in social networks the minimum, do not go through advertising links and do not pass entertainment tests – they also collect information about users.
It is impossible to mention in the correspondence the data of passports, propiska, bank cards, passwords and logins. There are no guarantees that these data will not be used by hackers who break into accounts.
Take the habit of regularly changing your passwords and be sure to do this every two to three months.
Shopping: protocol and trust
Particular care must be taken to buy online. After all, online stores ask for information such as name / surname, phone number (for feedback), place of residence (for delivery) and bank card number (for payment of goods).
To prevent this information from being used by cybercriminals, first of all you need to select only proven online trading platforms, and carefully study the reviews about the store before purchasing.
This is evidenced by the corresponding company logos on the page, as well as the green indicator of the secure HTTPS protocol in the address bar. But to make sure for sure, it’s better to call the online store and ask the staff how the security of personal data is ensured. The company should take this issue as seriously as possible. If the store employees are not aware of the protection of personal information, it is better to refrain from buying on this site.
It is also recommended for purchases on the Internet to create a separate bank card and replenish it immediately before shopping.
This applies to e-mail – it is better to have a separate address, where the confirmation letters from the stores will come, as well as their dispatch. Do not forget about the danger of public wi-fi. Criminals can intercept unencrypted bank card data and take advantage of them. Because the purchase should be postponed until the next time there is a secure connection.
Image credit: stux