With recent news of one of the largest game-streaming services falling victim to a data breach, and October being Cyber-Security Awareness Month, it’s a good idea to review some basic steps you can take to help safeguard yourself and your company.

Just remember to Be Prepared, and you’ll be fine. Here’s how we do it:

Be Unique
Passwords are hard to remember. It’s so much easier to have one that’s kind of difficult for someone to guess and then just use it everywhere, right? No. That’s what scammers are counting on.

Once your email and password have been breached, scammers will then try that combination everywhere. Their hope–that you reused your password for other accounts. If you did, then all those accounts are now open to the scammer.

Having a unique password for every login is the best way to safeguard yourself if one of your accounts is exposed to a breach. Yes, the growing list of passwords needed in the world today can be intimidating. We recommend using a password manager to help. (We go into more detail in our blog about password managers which you can read here).

Be Suspicious
Dear Employee Name,

This is your CEO. I need you’re help. We missed one payments and need to send the payments before they shut off our service. Please send $3,000,000 to the following account number: XXX-XX-XXXXXX.

Thank you,

CEO

Sure, that email is obviously a fake, but scammers are becoming more and more clever with their phishing emails. The very first line of defense against falling prey is to scrutinize every email you receive.

We go into greater detail in our blog about Phishing Emails (Read here) but check every part of the email and if something doesn’t feel right, then report it to your IT department, immediately.

Be Aware (Part 1)
Some days you just need to get out of your office (or home if you work remote). You pack up your work laptop and head down to the local coffee shop for some morning java and a change of scenery. You even use your phone’s hotspot because you’re a responsible employee.

But are you opening confidential documents on that computer? Leaning back and taking a drink, allowing the person behind you to look at your computer? Being aware of your surroundings is important. Scammers don’t just try to trick you with phishing emails, they use Social Engineering to mine your personal and company information. For the same reason you’re careful to cover your bank pin at the ATM, you need to be careful about what you the people surrounding you can see and hear.

The better practice is to turn your coffee house stay into a quick trip and head back to a secure location before pulling up those confidential documents.

Be Aware (Part 2)
Unfortunately, being aware of your surroundings also extends to your online surroundings–most specifically, social media.

While you may not put your password or social security on your Facebook page, the information you post could be just as useful for scammers. Most accounts have security questions to allow you to reset your password. These questions usually ask questions that only you would know (i.e., what street did you grow up on; what was your first pet’s name).

But in today’s world of over-sharing, is that really private information? Have you posted a nostalgic tweet about growing up on Chamberlain Ave? Have you posted an Instagram picture of your first dog, Fluffy, in remembrance of his passing? Welp, you just gave social engineers answers to two of your security questions (and in most cases, that’s all it takes to gain access to an account).

Being aware of what you’re posting online and being crafty with your security questions is a great way to leave social engineers stumped. (We go into this in greater detail in an article here.)

Be Secure
You have unique passwords for all your accounts. You have a healthy suspicion of your emails. You’re careful with private information in public and online. You’re like a superhero of responsibility…

And then you get up to use the restroom and leave your computer logged in and your office unlocked. You’ve just undid all your hard work by literally handing over the keys to your company's private information.

It may seem improbable that someone would come into your office, but scammers have no shame and have posed as IT, delivery people, even coworkers, for that opportunity to snatch any information left out in the open.

Password-protect your computer login, set automatic logouts on your computer (in case you forget to log out), and lock your office or filing cabinets when you leave. A little extra caution is worth preventing the massive amount of damage a breach can cause.

But even with taking every precaution, mistakes happen. That is life. No one is expected to be infallible. If you suspect that you accidentally clicked on a phishing email, that someone might have gained access to your office, or any other variety of vulnerabilities that could have happened, happen, you can still mitigate the damage by being prepared.

Be Calm
First and foremost, be calm. Panicking will help no one. This may seem like a small step, but it’s important. Once you are calm and identify the problem move on to the next, and most important step…

Be Upfront
One of the key factors in ensuring an accident doesn’t become a disaster is speed. As soon as you realize that you’ve been exposed to a vulnerability, be upfront about it. Hiding the accident from your company will just make matters worse.

Reach out to IT as soon as the incident happens and work with them to take the necessary steps to mitigate and reverse the damage.

Be Thorough
Don’t skimp on damage control. Depending on the type of vulnerability, a hack can affect a single account, your entire computer, or even an entire network. Follow every step your IT department gives. If they believe your computer may have been accessed, changing just a handful of passwords might not be enough.

Be thorough in every measure taken to rectify the accident. Extra time is worth ensuring further damage doesn’t incur.

We know that the threat of a hack can cause anxiety, but following our suggestions on how to Be Prepared will go a long way to helping to keep you safe, secure, and stress-free.