How to protect your online identity like a celebrity
Dr. Chris Pierson is on a mission to protect people from cyberattacks. His clients are high-net-worth individuals like celebrities, athletes, and prominent executives.
“We’ll protect them from privacy harms, from cybersecurity harms, protect their entire home and home networks, and then be there for their concierge,” explained Pierson, founder and CEO of BlackCloak.
The rich and famous certainly have more to lose, but he says we can all use the same tips to protect our digital identity.
“The average person still has a lot to lose, right? They have their identity, they have their social security number. They also have finances that they really do need to keep a tight handle hold on,” said Pierson.
First up: use strong, unique, strong passwords, especially on key accounts lke email, financial, health and social media. Then, lock them down with dual-factor authentication.
“What that does is it prevents a bad guy from logging in if they know your username and password,” said Pierson.
As for software updates, Pierson recommends setting aside time every other week to install them.
“If your device is vulnerable – and software always has vulnerabilities – but if it’s vulnerable in terms of major vulnerability, then every other step that you’re doing to protect it isn’t going to work,” he explained.
Virus and malware protection can only go so far, so be cautious when it comes to clicking links and attachments in emails and texts – especially those that seem to originate from a friend or co-worker.
“They’re trying to just flip your brain to move over from that rational thinking side into the more impulsive, there’s a threat, there’s something you have to do quickly side. And that usually spells disaster,” Pierson said.
Sidenote: I often get the question of whether you need to install anti-virus protection on your mobile phone. The short answer is no if you have an iPhone, and probably yes if you have an Android.
Next up: Back up your data! It’s your best protection against a ransomware attack.
Also, stay on top of the latest cybersecurity news. The more you know about the latest hacks, the better you can protect yourself.
On my Rich on Tech Radio show, which is heard on stations across the country, I often share the latest tactics hackers and scammers are using to get between us and our hard-earned money, data and personal information. Just search “rich on tech” to subscribe in your favorite audio app like Apple Podcasts, Spotify or iHeartRadio.
You can listen to my full interview with Chris Pierson below.
Finally, while headlines focus on major companies and celebrities, everyday people are also at risk – and often, you’re not being specifically targeted, but caught in a widely cast net.
“We’re seeing all of these things play out because they’re tried and true. They work and they can be applied to a mass population” concluded Pierson.
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