Every Big Tech business you work for (and even those that you don’t) has at least a little bit of information on you. What precisely do they know, though?

While maintaining fundamental IT privacy and security procedures is crucial at all times, if you’ve been slacking, now is an excellent moment to start.

Here are the top five precautions you should take as we begin 2023.

  1. Use passwords that are different for each account.

How many accounts do you have online? Reusing the same password across other accounts is one of the worst things you can do, even though managing all those login credentials is difficult.

For each account, you should pick a separate password that is either fully random or hard and challenging to guess.

More password advice is provided below:

  • Create a password that combines letters, numbers, and alternate capitalization; avoid using simple passwords like “glitteringprizes123” because they are too obvious to crack. Better would be “gL1trngpRzs3764,” where the letter case alternates between the letters and the numbers don’t follow a set pattern.
  • Don’t make it personal: Your name, birthday, user name, or email address are frequently made available to the general public, making it simpler for someone to guess your password. To remove your information from spooky persons search websites, tap or click here.
  • Use a password generator: Struggling to think of a strong password? Create strong passwords without guesswork with Random.org.
  • Use a password management: A password manager generates login information for all of your devices and accounts and stores it. These apps can be accessible via a website, browser extension, or the cloud or installed as software.
  • Put two-factor authentication to use.

Your accounts gain an additional degree of security thanks to two-factor authentication, or 2FA. This includes things you only know (like the answer to a question), possess (like your smartphone), or use to personally identify you (fingerprint, voice pattern or facial scan).

  • Use a VPN

Your gadgets and the internet are protected by a virtual private network, or VPN. Your data is encrypted and your IP address and location are concealed. Using a VPN shields you and your online traffic from hackers, con artists, and even governments. With the aid of this practical tool, you can access websites and services that could be blocked in some regions while maintaining the privacy of your online behavior. A VPN also enables you to unblock websites and get around filters while preventing your internet provider from tracking you. You require it for your phone, tablet, laptop, and PC.

  • Always use an antivirus program

A reliable antivirus program is among your first defense against viruses, malware, and other cyberattacks. No matter what you use your devices for — work, school, personal, banking, socializing — you’re always vulnerable to attack.Antivirus software scans programs and files as they enter your device and scans those already on your device, looking for any suspicious behavior. These critical programs detect malicious code and quarantine or delete it to protect you and your device.