big tech – IDefendForYou https://www.idefendhome.com Ultimate Protection for Your Digital Life Thu, 08 Aug 2024 19:56:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://idefendforyou.com/wp-content/uploads/cropped-idefend-favicon-32x32.png big tech – IDefendForYou https://www.idefendhome.com 32 32 How to Secure Your Digital Life: The Online Privacy Playbook https://idefendforyou.com/blog/onlineprivacy/theonlineprivacyplaybook/ Tue, 23 Jul 2024 21:49:28 +0000 https://idefendforyou.com/?p=6262 Every interaction you have online is tracked and stored somewhere. Here is what you need to do to safeguard your privacy online.

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Cyberhood Watch >

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  • How to Secure Your Digital Life: The Online Privacy Playbook
Every interaction you have online is tracked and stored somewhere. Here is what you need to do to safeguard your privacy online.

In this article

In today’s digital age, the internet is a central part of our lives. We use it for everything from social networking and shopping to banking and working. However, with this increased connectivity comes a significant risk to our privacy. Cybercriminals, corporations, and even governments can track and misuse our personal information. This is why protecting your privacy online is crucial.

Why Limiting Your Digital Footprint Matters

Every interaction you have online is tracked and stored somewhere. Unfortunately, not everyone who tracks your digital footprint wants to keep your personal information private or protected. Many big tech platforms have been known to take customer information and sell it to data brokers and even sometimes the dark web. 

Identity thieves aim to steal your personal information by hacking companies or by coming up with clever ways to trick you into revealing your social security number, date of birth, usernames, passwords, and other personal information. Cybercriminals can steal your money and hack your financial accounts by using this private information. Online predators and stalkers can use information they find online about you or through the dark web to harass and stalk you and your loved ones. 

A concerted effort to limit your digital footprint can go a long way in helping you remain out of the surveillance spotlight, keep your personal information private, and avoid online predators. So the question is, how can you limit your digital footprint and secure your online privacy?

7 Steps You Can Take to Secure Your Online Privacy

1 – Limit social media platforms data collection by following these tips:

    • Limit the personal info you enter into the platform.
    • Make your accounts private.
    • Turn on all privacy settings.
    • Disable personalized ads.
    • Limit app access and sharing.

2 – Use a private web browser: Consider using a more private web browser such as Brave or Firefox. These browsers provide much more privacy and data protection. They can be downloaded for free by searching for them on your current web browser.

3 – Leverage a virtual private network (VPN): When banking, shopping, web browsing, or using public Wi-Fi networks, use a VPN to secure your connection and data. There are many great VPN solutions available online. The IDefendForYou service also includes a VPN.

4 – Remove your personal information online: When your data is collected from various online places it is often sold to data brokers. These data brokers then sell your data to advertisers,  telemarketers, and other organizations that want to monetize you. Services such as IDefendForYou can  help you remove your data legally from these data traffickers and people search websites.

5 – Limit your mobile device privacy settings in these areas: 

    • Personal info access
    • Location tracking
    • Active device listening
    • App access and tracking
    • Access to contacts
    • Personalized ads
    • Find my device
    • Health and fitness tracking

6 – Enable two-factor authentication (2FA): Two-Factor Authentication adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification in addition to your password when signing into online accounts. This is typically  a code sent to your phone, an email, or an authentication app. Enabling 2FA makes it much harder for cybercriminals to gain access to your accounts.

7 – Be cautious entering and sharing personal information online: Limit the amount of personal information you share online. Avoid posting sensitive details like your home address, phone number, or financial information. The more you put online the more your information will be collected and tracked.

Protecting your privacy online requires a proactive approach and a combination of strategies. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can significantly reduce the risk of your personal information being compromised. Stay vigilant and take the necessary precautions to safeguard your digital life.

Don’t Wait to Secure Your Online Privacy.  IDefendForYou Can Help

Not everyone has the time or expertise to do everything required to keep themselves and their family safe against growing digital risks.  IDefendForYou makes it easier than ever to protect your family’s personal information from data traffickers, scammers, predators and unwanted surveillance. 

Learn more and get protected today with IDefendForYou. Try it risk free and save 30%.

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]]> Big Tech Companies Will Never Call You Directly https://idefendforyou.com/blog/identityandfinancial/bigtechwillnevercallyou/ Wed, 08 May 2024 22:45:01 +0000 https://idefendforyou.com/?p=5660 If the guy on the phone tells you he's from Microsoft, he's lying.

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Cyberhood Watch >

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  • Big Tech Companies Will Never Call You Directly
If the guy on the phone tells you he's from Microsoft, he's lying.

In this article

When your phone number is exposed online, you can expect multiple sources to begin calling you in an attempt to compromise personal information. With that comes the danger of random people impersonating companies and services in order to try trick you into giving out personal information.

One of the Most Common Phone Scams

Recently there has been an uptick in phone calls in regards to people calling out and impersonating well-known tech companies and services to gain your trust and allow them to connect onto your computer in order to “fix” the issues. This has become a much higher threat recently, including people claiming they are Apple or Microsoft, even providing realistic-looking identification numbers and saying that their techs have noticed suspicious activity on your computer.

But they say it will be so easy!

At that point, they will explain how your computer has been hacked, but how they can resolve the issue with a swift cleaning. Once you allow them into your computer, they can show you a number of fake sources to appear that there are much more serious problems while also stealing your personal information that is stored on your computer. These threats can appear legitimate and believable, but never allow them onto your computer.

Erroneous credit card charges

Another way they will try to compromise your information would be to inform you that there was a high cost charge on your card, and asking if you were the one who made the purchase. You’ll say no, and they will inform you of the fraud and ask to connect to your computer to show you where it happened and how to resolve it. The tricky thing here is, is that they attempt to use scare tactics to cause you to jump to action. The charge is fake, never existed, but because they said it was a $350 charge, and that they can help you fix it, it’s easy to allow them in.

What You Can Do

The best action to take at this point is to hang up and verify the information on your own. If it is a major corporation, find their direct number and reach out. If it was a legitimate problem, they will have a record of the outgoing call and assist you from there. If not, then you dodged a bigger issue here.

Otherwise, consider taking advantage of IDefendForYou’s unlimited tech support service which can clean and discover any threats, if any, and ensure everything is in order.

Remember: big companies will never call you directly

It’s also worth noting that companies such as Microsoft, Apple, etc. will never call you directly about things like this. Think about it: they have millions (if not billions) of customers. There is no way they could have active monitoring on every single computer and call that person when they “discover” a threat. It’s just not realistic or feasible for these companies to do this, so don’t fall for it.

Compromised phone numbers are common

Also important to remember here is that having a compromised phone number is not itself a serious threat, and is actually pretty common. The risk comes, however, from the information you give out over the phone as this can quickly grow into a real problem. They can be asking for something as simple as confirming credit card information for a billing issue before your package ships or as serious as a person impersonating your bank asking you to give out your social security number. Always be wary of people asking for this information over the phone.

Monitor your information

Having your information monitored through an identity theft monitoring system can better inform you when your number is compromised. Remember, you are the greatest protector of your information. The spam calls will cease over time. Your private information is invaluable and nearly impossible to recover once you’ve given it out. Still, with the proper protection and safety measures set up, you can find that peace of mind.

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