Cyber Security Month – Top 3 Easy Tips on How To Become More Secure At Home
October is the official Cyber Security month in the EU! We asked our CISO Jimmi Ernberg about his top 3 tips on how to become more secure at home.
There are many things to recommend within the area, but I want to focus on some practical tips on how you can become more secure at home. It is important to understand that your company is exposed to risks through all your employees, both at work but also at home. The list is not exhaustive, but it’s top 3 picks with simple advice that can make a big difference on your private security in your home.
Top 3 easy tips on how to become more secure at home
Password manager
One of the biggest problems today is that we have to handle many passwords in our private life. People therefore tend to come up with “smart” ways around that. For example, using the same password for several sites or permutations of the same password. The best way to get around this is to use a password manager. By using such a tool, you only need to remember one password and make sure to keep that one secure (see the next point). Personally, I use LastPass. But there are many other good examples such as Dashlane or KeePass. It doesn’t matter which one as long as you use one of them!
Two-factor authentication
Using just a username and password is good for most sites, but for some you want that extra layer of protection that 2-factor authentication gives. Most major sites have support for it, such as Facebook, Gmail and LinkedIn. Go to the security settings for the site and check if it has support for 2-factor. And if there is one place you MUST have 2-factor, it is your private e-mail account. If someone gets access to this, they can easily get access to everything else.
WiFi security
Most of us use WiFi at home to get access to the internet. And most of us are not technical enough to manage the security for the network. Here are some good pointers:
- Change the default password of the router login. Routers are often provided with a default account and password (admin/password or similar). Make sure this is changed to prevent intrusion.
- Use a non-descriptive name and not the default name for your network. If you use the default name it is easier to try to access your network. Also, it is not recommended to use names such as “Jimmi’s private network”. Use something general instead, such as “Fluffy network”.
- Use a guest network. Most modern routers have the functions for a guest network. Let any guest to your home us this network instead of your primary one. It is also recommended to put other “high risk” objects, such as IoT devices, on this network.
If you want to read more tips about WiFi security, go to this page: https://routersecurity.org/#StartHere. It contains my tips and some other ones as well.
That’s my top 3 simple tips on how to be more secure at home. Remember to stay safe out there!
