With the internet and social media as a part of our everyday lives, it can be difficult to avoid sharing personal information online. Having an online presence can be valuable, but sometimes sharing personal information is risky. If you want to know what information about you is online, Google yourself.
Your Search Results
If you Google your name, you may find public information about yourself that you didn’t expect to see, such as your phone number, email address, or home address. Some information is available online through government agencies, while other information is posted by data brokers. Data brokers are organizations that collect and sell information.
Cybercriminal's Scams
Cybercriminals can use your public information in phishing attacks to try and scam you. They often use specific details to make their phishing attacks appear more legitimate. For example, if your home address is publicly available online, cybercriminals can use it in delivery scams. For these scams, cybercriminals will send you a phishing email about a package delivery. This email will prompt you to click a link that appears legitimate but is actually malicious.
What Can I Do To Stay Safe?
Follow the tips below to stay safe online:
- Be careful about what you post online. Cybercriminals could use this information in a phishing attack.
- Analyze your online presence often and remove information that you don’t want cybercriminals to know.
- Many websites have security options that can easily be overlooked. Review and edit your privacy settings to protect your information.
Meet the Cyber Monsters!
Count Hackula
Whether by brute force or the charm of social engineering, Count Hackula is desperate to drain your networks of vital personal identifiable information (PII). Ensure your systems are safe from this monster with secure passwords and employees who know enough to see past Count Hackula’s mesmerizing gaze.
Spoofy Steve
Wrapped in ancient layers of digital cloth, Spoofy Steve hides his scammy intentions from all but the most insightful of employees. Use well-honed social-engineering-spotting skills to avoid his tricks as he pretends to be a coworker or supervisor asking for sensitive information.
Breachatrix le Phish
This sister of the night has her evil eye set on the most valuable of targets; C-suite and finance managers beware! Breachatrix le Phish will swoop in to cast her spear phishing spells to steal secrets and treasure but can be warded off with a resilient security culture in your organization.
Ransomwolf
Lurking in that innocent-looking file attachment you just downloaded, Ransomwolf is ready to gobble up all your important files, bounding from folder to folder through the forest of your network. Unlike other werewolves, Ransomwolf is invulnerable to “silver bullets.” Organizations need both regular backups and a well-trained employee base to keep this monster at bay. Don’t wait until this monster turns into something worse!
Frankenphisher
Frankenphisher is stitched together from all the most dangerous pieces of phishing emails; compromised links, malicious attachments, you name it! Before he gets a chance to bust down the door of your network, make sure your people know what makes a phishy email phishy.