Cybersecurity Tips

 

The Autauga County Sheriff's Office wants to remind you of simple safety tips that will help make our community safer online.

By following the tips, we will not be as vulnerable to online criminals looking to scam or steal information.

 

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency provides the following safety tips to help stay safe online:

• Create strong passwords - do not use the same password for multiple accounts, never share your password, and when creating a password, include sixteen characters or more that use a random combination of mixed-case letters, numbers, and symbols.
• Recognize and report phishing - if you have doubts about the legitimacy of a message received, reach out to a known sender by phone or your Internet Service Provider (or, if at work, your company's IT Department) before opening the message, and do not click on any links included. 
• Turn on multi-factor authentication (MFA) - turn on and complete the steps for MFA on all accounts with the available setting. Ask your email provider for assistance, if needed.
• Update software - install all expected, confirmed updates for your device as soon as possible or turn on automatic updates.

 

For more information on how to stay safe online, please visit the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. 

Children being online present additional challenges because of their innocence, curiosity, and desire for independence.

Common dangers encountered by children online are cyber predators, bullies, and identity theft.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has the following tips for parents to help keep their children safe online:

• Be involved - supervise your child's online activities while teaching them good computer habits (consider online activities you can work on together).
• Consider implementing parental controls - restrict or allow certain websites to be viewed on your computer using a password (you can set some parental controls within your browser).
• Keep lines of communication open - let your child know they can approach you with any questions or concerns about behaviors or problems they may have encountered online.
• Keep your computer in an open area - easily monitor your child's computer activity in a high-traffic area.
• Monitor computer activity - be aware of what your child is doing online (which websites they are visiting, who/what they are emailing, etc.).
• Set rules and warn about dangers - ensure your child is aware of the boundaries of what they are allowed to do on the computer (boundaries should be appropriate for the child's age, knowledge, and maturity).

 

For more information on how to keep your child safe online, please visit the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. 

 

Cybersecurity Tip: Use Strong Passwords

To protect your private information and online accounts, use strong passwords! By using a strong password, you will significantly increase the difficulty for hackers to gain unauthorized access to your accounts and steal information, data, etc.

 

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has the following tips for strengthening your passwords:

• Make passwords long - use at least 16 characters.
• Make passwords random - use a random string of mixed-case letters, numbers, and symbols (Example: cXmnZK65rf*&DaaD)

or use a passphrase including 4-7 unrelated words, a number, and a symbol as a word separator (Example: Horse-Purple-Hat-Run-Bay-Lifting1).

• Make passwords unique - use a different strong password for each account; do not reuse the same password.

 

Instead of writing down or saving credentials in your computer files, store your credentials for accounts in a secure and trusted password manager.

A password manager allows you to access all your credentials after logging in with one strong password, gives notice if you have a weak or re-used password,  and generates strong passwords for your accounts.

Using a password manager makes it harder for someone to steal your valuable information by assisting you in creating and storing long, random, and unique passwords for every account.

For more information on strengthening your passwords and using a password manager, please visit the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency.

 

Thank you for making our community a safer place to live and raise a family,

Sheriff Mark Harrell