Big results can be achieved without a lot of effort.
Maintaining your online and offline privacy can seem like a Herculean task. Every day seems to bring with it a new privacy scandal, and companies with vaguely menacing names regularly brag about violating it. There are a few small and painless steps you can take right now to protect your privacy.
Take a few moments to make privacy-focused New Year's resolutions, no gym membership required.
1. Your computer should be locked.
Your computer is your secret weapon. Tax documents, bank accounts, and medical records are just a few of the personal files people keep on their laptops and desktops. Those files can end up in the wrong hands if a computer is ever lost or stolen.
It's easy to protect yourself with the use of a computer password.
"It's a really fantastic bit of basic security hygiene, like washing your hands or wearing a mask, that anyone can do that really gets you a lot of benefits," said Cooper Quintin, a security researcher with the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
2. You can adjust the smart TV settings.
You are watching it. Credit: Vicky Leta.
The conception of watching TV as a passive activity fails to take into account all the questionable things happening behind the screen. With smart TVs now the default, viewing is no longer a one-way activity.
The FBI warned that the television can be a gateway for hackers to come into your home, despite the risk that your TV manufacturer and app developers may be listening and watching you. They can turn on your bedroom TV's camera and microphone and cyberstalk you.
tweaking some settings is all it takes to mitigate some of the risks posed by smart TVs.
3. You can see your house on Street View and Bing Maps.
Street View is both useful and intrusive.
The tool, which grants anyone with internet access a street-level view of houses and apartments around the world, seems custom built for online stalkers. It is easy to partially opt out by requesting that Bing Maps blurs your home's image.
Anyone hoping to get a glimpse through your windows will be out of luck.
4. You should check your phone for stalkerware.
When it's not, your phone is your phone. A family of apps, secretly installed on victims' phones, that report all kinds of private data back to abusers is called stalkerware.
"Stalkerware can track your location, record your phone calls and text messages, steal the passwords to the social media accounts you log into through your phone, reveal your contacts, your photos, your emails, and even your end-to-end communications," the Electronic Frontier Foundation said
It's a good habit to check for stalkerware on your phone, even if you don't suspect it. Start that habit now if you haven't already.
5. Tell your provider to stop sharing your data.
There is a tap. Bob Al-Greene is a writer for Mashable.
Cell providers know a lot about you, and that knowledge is used to make cold, hard cash.
T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon all share customer data with third parties. T-Mobile's "web and device usage data" isn't so private, despite the different details that the carrier has.
Tell your provider to stop sharing your data with third parties. It's the least they can do to protect your privacy when you pay them.
6. You should check your computer for keyloggers.
A computer can feel like a solitary act. It often consists of sitting alone in a room and typing. A keylogger is a type of hidden software that is running in the background on your computer.
The name suggests that keyloggers record and save every action a person takes. Every email, password, and web search you make is stored and presented to whoever installed the keylogger. Keyloggers are often used as a form of abuse.
They're perfectly legal with a work computer.
Lewis Maltby, the head of the National Workrights Institute, said that employees have no right to privacy on employer-supplied computers. If an employer computer is involved, highly personal communications that would be protected over the telephone are not protected.
It's common sense to check your computer every now and then.
7. Be aware of when and how to watch porn online.
If you watch pornography online, you don't want a corporation looking over your shoulder. porn websites record user data and often leak it to third parties.
There's a good chance your attempts to mitigate it are a complete failure because of the unappealing nature of this corporate voyeurism. Incognito Mode, which people assume keeps their browsing anonymous, does nothing of the sort. It prevents Chrome from saving browsing history.
"Your activity isn't hidden from websites you visit, your employer or school, or your internet service provider," warns Incognito Mode.
There is a free tool that can do this. It's not hard to use, just remember to keep it updated! It's a secret that your pornography preferences are kept between you and your keyboard, so you can download and use Tor and feel safe.
