In case you haven’t heard, Facebook announced this week that they have exposed millions of Instagram users’ passwords. This is just the most recent massive breach over the last year. Why does it matter?
If you are like most people you reuse your passwords on websites, email accounts, bank account and so on. A breach of this size along with our behavior means that the bad guys will ultimately have access to our entire digital life. If you don’t believe me, go to this website https://haveibeenpwned.com/ and enter in your common email that you use for most websites.
It is likely that you have been pwned! Your data is out there being sold to anyone who wants it. General logins go for a buck, online payment service logins can fetch $20 and up. Now what? The answer is very easy, but somewhat inconvenient.
The first thing you should do right now is find a password manager that you can trust – this is a good starting point https://www.consumersadvocate.org/password-manager. Install the password manager on your computer and pay the extra amount to have it on your other devices as well. Once you have the password manager installed and configured, go to your frequent websites and log in. Each website should have a profile or change password link, allow your password manager to generate a strong password for you. This will ensure you won’t use the same password across sites.
Next, enable two-step or two-factor authentication on all of these websites (the inconvenient part). The site may use a text message or call, some require an app such as Google Authenticator. This step will give you an extra level of security if there is a breach in the future. Changing your passwords will prevent people who have your logins from accessing your accounts, the two-factor authentication will help keep them out even if they have your login information.
Finally, set a reminder for 90 days to change your passwords again. This is especially true for your bank, credit card, 401K account and other financial institutions. Most password managers make changing a password very easy through their interface and will warn of you breaches that affect your accounts. Securing your passwords in this manner is a massive step to safeguarding your digital life.
Do you have questions about your security? At Forward Systems we are in the business of protecting our customers. We are a security focused Managed IT company located in Roswell, GA supporting businesses in the Atlanta area. Schedule a free consultation to assess your security at https://www.safeguardsus.com/security/ or call us at (770) 217-4566.
