In this day and age, tech privacy is a major concern given how connected everything has become. With the rapid developments in tech, many solutions have been developed to help keep users secure. Here are some options to consider in order to better protect yourself and fix common privacy issues with tech.
Using a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
In order to digital privacy, you may want to use a virtual private network (VPN) to create a secure internet connection. VPNs add an extra layer of security to your connection by shielding your browser activity and hiding your real geographical location. They can be especially useful when connecting to public Wi-Fi or if you suspect your ISP is tracking your internet activity. Thanks to VPNs, users can now better protect themselves from hackers, cybercriminals, and companies looking to sell their data.
Use a password manager and two-factor authentication
In this day and age, using the same password for each website can leave you vulnerable to a slew of different tech privacy issues. On the other hand, it may be difficult to keep track of long and unique passwords for each website or service you use. Password managers help store all your different passwords and login information securely. With a password manager, you’ll just need to remember your master password in order to access all the others.
If you’d like to take things a step further, you can also turn on two-factor authentication for your accounts. This adds an extra step when logging in, which usually requires entering a code sent to your mobile or email. This way you can prevent intruders from accessing your account even if your email address and passwords are stolen.
Turn off unnecessary location tracking.
We take our phones with us everywhere we go, however, this also introduces potential tech privacy issues. While location tracking works well for applications such as Google Maps, it may be a good idea to disable location services for other applications running in the background. Also, you can turn off location history in order to stop Google from keeping records on your whereabouts via Your Timeline on Google Maps.
Filter out suspicious emails
If you receive a weird email asking you to provide your personal or financial information, it is most likely a scam. In general, you must never send your private information to anyone online. The same can be said about phishing links that take you to fake websites that are almost identical to the real ones. In both cases, you can use email services that automatically detect these attempts and mark them as spam. Of course, not all of these scam attempts are detected so you should still exercise caution when receiving a suspicious email.