At UNC-CH and at home, we now take the convenience and productivity of the Internet everywhere we go. We work untethered from a physical location, stay connected as we travel and use portable devices to study, shop, bank, and manage our daily lives from anywhere.
Week two of NCSAM highlights the need to maintain a focus on safety and security wherever and whenever we use the Internet, whether on campus or elsewhere.
Keep a Clean Machine
- Check your mobile devices to be sure security protections are built in and all software is updated on a regular basis.
- Keep security software current: having the latest mobile security software, web browsers, and operating systems are the best defenses against viruses, malware, and other online threats.
- Protect all devices that connect to the Internet: computers, smart phones, gaming systems, and other web-enabled devices all need protection from viruses and malware.
Protect Your Personal Information
- Phones can contain tremendous amounts of personal information. Lost or stolen devices can be used to gather information about you and, potentially, others. Protect your phone as you would your computer.
- Secure your phone: use a strong passcode to lock your phone.
- Think before you app: review the privacy policy that goes with the app and understand what data (your location, your access to your social networks) on your device an app can access before you download it.
- Only give your mobile number out to people you know and trust and never give anyone else’s number without their permission.
- Learn how to disable (http://icanstalku.com/how.php#disable) the geotagging feature on your phone.
Connect with Care
- Use common sense when you connect. If you’re using an unsecured or unprotected network to get online, be cautious about the sites you visit and the information you release.
- Get savvy about Wi-Fi hotspots: limit the type of business you conduct and adjust the security settings on your device to limit who can access your phone.
- Protect your $$: check to be sure the sites are security enabled. Look for web addresses with ‘https://’ or ‘shttp://’, which means the site takes extra measures to help secure your information. An address beginning with ‘http:// is a not secure site.
- When in doubt, don’t respond. Fraudulent texting, calling, and voicemails are on the rise. Just like email, requests for personal information or to take immediate action are almost always a scam.
The web page https://its.unc.edu/security has more information about staying safe online.