Protect your family’s online data with these top tips compiled by women in tech especially for Cyber Security Month this October.

October is cyber security awareness month and the perfect time to give your family’s online data a safety check-up.

Have you been PWNED?

From finding out what to do if you’ve been ‘pwend,’ to creating passcodes that could take a hacker 34,000 years to crack and applying a tried and tested Second World War hack, these ten easy-to implement tips have been compiled by young tech employees at Sparta Global, a UK-wide business providing free tech training to youths.

TEN TIPS

Savvy young techie experts at Sparta Global, a UK-wide tech business employing 100s of young people, have compiled their ten top tips to help you shore up your family’s day-to-day online security.

David Rai, the founder and CEO of Sparta Global says: “As a dad and employer of hundreds of young people working in tech, online security is a subject that comes up on a daily basis. The talented team have compiled a handy ‘to do’ list for families who need a bit of a reminder about what to look out for, as well as some practical support to keep their data safe. Sometimes it’s just the little things like using a passcode instead of a password, using two-factor authentication and remembering to auto-update your software, that can make all the difference.”

David Rai, the founder & CEO of Sparta Global provides free training and placement into careers in tech for hundreds of early careers and graduates across the UK during a time of acute tech skills shortage in the UK. Trainees are placed in jobs ranging from Software Development, DevOps, Testing, Cyber Security, Data and Business Analysis.

Sparta Global was awarded the Princess Royal Award for Training and also for Equality Diversity and Inclusivity in the workplace. Sparta Global has a zero gender pay gap.

SPARTA GLOBAL’S TOP 10 TIPS FOR PROTECTING YOUR FAMILY’S ONLINE SAFETY.

1. Auto update software as often as possible

The world of software updates has significantly changed, with many system updates rolled out automatically. Auto-updates always seem like an inconvenience to do, but they are absolutely vital. But they are there to protect you and close security holes as quickly as possible. Schedule those updates to complete overnight so you’re always up to date.

2. Use an anti-virus

Anti-virus software is as essential as ever, and any software, paid or free, is worth having compared to having no protection. There are now a host of free anti-virus offerings that can be found with a quick search, and they will protect you from the most common attacks.

3. Passphrase not password

We all fall into the pattern of using passwords that are relatively simple and follow a pattern of various capital letters, symbols, dates, pets and names. Get into the habit of using a passphrase over 12 characters which with different letter cases, numbers and symbols could take up to 34,000 years to crack.

4. Opt for two-factor authentication for every account possible

Many online services and accounts allow for two-factor authentication, requiring extra information such as a short-life code emailed, texted or sent via an automated phone call so that, as well as your password/passphrase, you must input this code to access your account.

A hacker would now have to gain access to two different sources: email or mobile phone with a much shorter time window to execute their attack. Two-factor authentication is a great deterrent and will push most hackers away due to the difficulty to overcome.

5. Beware when using public WiFi

It is easier than ever to connect to WiFi spots, and more and more retailers, cafes and restaurants offer WiFi connection for free, trusting that you sign up for something. Unfortunately, this sometimes leads us to hunt for spots we do not have to sign up for, leading to danger.

Some hackers utilise portable routers in busy locations and emulate the free router name. As an example, we may see 'coffee_shop_name_wifi' followed by 'coffee_shop_name_wifi_FREE', which requires no sign-up. This could be what we call a MITM (man-in-the-middle attack), where a hacker could unencrypt and store your internet calls while you go about social media or browsing etc., exposing details you would rather not share.

So, be extremely careful when connecting to WiFi hotspots and use your phone data where possible.

6. Review and shut down unused accounts

Every service or product asks you to sign up to access their services. Unfortunately, due to the regularity of having to do this, we accumulate a lot of accounts and tend to forget we opened them.

Many services may not be secure, have shut down over time, or in some instances, have been breached, and you may not have been informed. These services will have your email and password and leave you exposed. Ideally, we should close down accounts rather than simply unsubscribing from their mailing list.

A handy site to assist your search is https://haveibeenpwned.com which highlights whether your email address has been identified in any data breaches pushed into the public domain.

7. Educate yourself on Phishing scams

Phishing is a form of social engineering with the intention of stealing your data or credentials. Phishing scams have become increasingly elaborate and can have swift, devastating impacts.

Phishing scams can come from texts, emails and phone calls. The messaging provided, the visuals and the language can be a completely identical copy of a particular service and may even contain some data that may lead you to think it is from your bank or delivery service. However, there are some tips and tell-tale signs to help you identify them.

Suspicious emails:

Most emails sent by organisations are easy to emulate and, as already mentioned, could contain some primary yet accurate data. However, these emails aim to get you to click on a link leading to a fake site that will capture your data. Remember, it is infrequent for a service provider to send an email to ask you to log in via a link. Instead, they would merely ask, "please go to the main site and log in to review your messages.".

So, to stay safe, NEVER click links from an email and access the service through their main login pages.

Check the web address (URL) in your browser:

When creating a fake site, it still needs a web address, and as you can imagine, most services have a well-known address, such as www.bankname.com or www.bankname.co.uk. Most incidents relating to being compromised relate to clicking the link from a phishing email.

However, if you are sceptical of an email and you click a link accessing a fake site that is a mirror or that service, and they can be a perfect mirror, the best thing to do is check the URL in your browser. You may notice the address does not look accurate such as www.bankname.co.uk.lo/123abc or www.bankname1.co.uk.

If you have any doubt, avoid the email and links and type in the correct address to your service, log in and check your notifications on the official service you are using.

8. Reduce personal data on social media

We give away an exceptional amount of data on social media, such as kid's names, hobbies, addresses, favourite teams and much more. Social media is the first place any hacker would begin to search for data on you. The less data they find, the harder it is to start guessing passwords, services, etc.

This data helps a hacker reduce their 'attack footprint' and potentially reduce the time to gain access to your services.

9. Avoid unexpected phone calls

Although most communications are digital, phishing attempts are still made via phone calls on a regular basis and can still be successful. In many instances, they will already have a great deal of data, and they need the last piece of the puzzle from your two-factor authentication to gain access.

A hacker may call pretending to be from a bank and asks for some of your keywords and then will mention that we will send you a code shortly to confirm it is you. These phone calls are an elaborate ruse to get you to hand over your authentication code but can be exceptionally convincing if they have gathered enough data on you already.

Remember, no service will call you and ask for these types of data unless you call them, and even then, the operators will never ask for an authentication code and will only read from data that you have given them. So, please feel free to hang up or not answer.

10. Be careful about what you say and where

The adage of 'loose lips sinks ships' still stands today. We may feel safe in various public areas and social settings, but you never know who is listening. This type of phishing is most prevalent in companies and small businesses. Hanging around coffee shops, pubs and restaurants at regular haunts of staff members can yield a lot of information and leave companies vulnerable.

ABOUT SPARTA GLOBAL

Sparta global is a technology services company specialising in the provision of highly skilled technology consultants – trained to add value in any workplace environment.

Predominantly an early-careers and graduate employer, Sparta Global gives individuals with a passion for technology access to free training in areas such as; Software Development, DevOps, Testing, Cyber Security, Data and Business Analysis. Spartan consultants are equipped with the exceptional collaborative and analytic skills they need to power short and long-term digital projects. Sparta Global connects organisations with a diverse pool of technology talent that has the knowledge to take advantage of emerging technology trends.

At the completion of their chosen training stream, our trainees transition to ‘Spartans’ and are assigned to work on projects with Sparta Global clients across the UK. We now attract, train, deliver and support business and technology professionals for more than a hundred organisations across the UK and Ireland.

All Spartans are geographically flexible, offer a refreshing alternative to outsourced IT models and are a cost-effective way for companies to build and sustain future talent pipelines. Employees for the duration of our programme, Spartans are also an IR35 compliant resource.

Sparta Global

Website: www.spartaglobal.com

Instagram: @spartaglobal

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLL-3SO5bUE1q6JRgFzjBrA

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spartaglobal

Address: 6th Floor, 125 London Wall, London EC2Y 5AS

Media Enquiries

Helen Hokin - Managing Partner Email: helen@golbornenash.com Telephone: 07958 234548

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