No matter how much or how little you use the web, the internet has probably had a positive impact on your life. It lets us stay connected to the people we love, buy the things we love and do jobs that hopefully we love, but at least that give us money.
But if we’re not careful, the internet might not offer such a lovely experience. In order to truly embrace what staying connected has to offer, it’s important to take steps to protect ourselves, our devices and our data.
Staying private lets us stay in touch
Last year, the internet kept us connected to just about everyone. But that’s nothing new. For decades, people have been using the internet to meet new friends and stay in touch with old ones through email, instant messaging and video chats.
In more recent years, social media has made connecting with loved ones even easier, but you need to make sure you use it safely. By taking a look at the privacy settings on your social media accounts, you can choose exactly who sees what you post, so you can safely share the special moments in your life with your family, friends and no one else.
Private networks let us work anywhere
Whether your office is closed or the coffee is just better at home, the internet allows many Canadians to work effectively from just about anywhere — but it’s very important to connect safely. By taking steps to make sure the network you’re connected to is secure, you can make remote work a seamless and stress-free addition to your usual routine.
Making sure you’re working on a secure Wi-Fi network can help you keep important files private and your workflow uninterrupted. And if your version of working from home looks more like working on a café patio, consider using a VPN. A VPN will encrypt your web traffic to help you work more securely — no matter where or how you connect to the internet.
Secure accounts let us shop from home
If online shopping wasn’t already popular before, it certainly is after last year! The internet is like every brick-and-mortar store rolled into one, letting you buy everything from your regular grocery order to one-of-a-kind crafts and collectables.
When you take steps to make sure your accounts are secure – like using passphrases, enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA) and not saving your credit card information in your browser – you can save yourself a lot of time, money and stress when you’re ready to shop online.
Conclusion
When you know how to use it safely, the internet can offer countless ways to make your life easier. Embrace your digital life to the fullest by finding simple ways to stay safe online, like following Get Cyber Safe on social media this Cyber Security Awareness Month (CSAM):