January 21 - 27, 2024 is Data Privacy Week! Every year, the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) uses this week to generate awareness about the importance of privacy, and they highlight ways to protect personal information. This year, the NCSA is encouraging everyone to "take control of your data."
How to “Take Control of Your Data”
Here are some tips to help you effectively manage your personal information and make smarter decisions about who receives your data:
- Know the tradeoff between privacy and convenience.
- Adjust privacy settings to your comfort level.
- Protect your data.
- Create long (at least 12 characters), unique passwords for each account and device.
- Use a password manager to store each password – maintaining dozens of passwords securely is now easier than ever.
- Turn on multifactor authentication (MFA) wherever it is permitted – this keeps your data safe even if your password is compromised.
- Turn on automatic updates for devices, software, and browsers, or make sure you install updates as soon as they are available.
- Learn how to identify phishing messages, which can be sent as emails, texts, or direct messages.
Visit the NCSA website to learn more about Data Privacy Week and how you can take control of your data.