Protecting your email is the first step!

 When you sign up for a new program, software, website, you always enter your email. New bank account? Email address. Fun new app? Email address. Kid signing up for sports programs? Email address.

If someone were to get into your email, they would have everything they needed right at your fingertips. Lets secure your email first. 

Using the tips I've given you over this four part series, you should already understand how to upgrade your password and implement MFA to secure your email inbox from hackers and dark web users. But there are other ways they can try to import themselves into your every day inbox.

Phishing.

If you've ever received an email telling you all about a brand new phone that costs nothing to get and you'll get a credit on your account if you switch, you probably knew that it was some type of spam or junk mail. But phishing is different. Phishing is where the sender tries to incorporate some type of fear, stress, or deadline to make you interact with the email in a way that gives them all the personal information they need to access your account.

"Your Facebook has been hacked and you must change your password in the next 24 hours or you will be locked out of your account. Click here to change your password"

"We noticed some suspicious activity on your account and you have been locked out for security purposes. Click this link to talk with our accounts management team."

"You have been reported for suspicious activity and you can dispute it for the next 12 hours. Click here to begin your dispute process"


All of those can be phishing activities. The biggest things to note are each one has a deadline. They are all pulling on your stress factor with "Oh, no, I need to get this done now!" They also all have a warning or some type of emergency that has been created to cause you to react instead of think.

Phishing is very real and can cause a huge headache for you later on. If you receive something suspicious in your email that you weren't expecting, did not activate, or was suddenly out of the blue, don't click it. Instead, go to a known website link, call a known phone number, or email a known email address for that company or person and confirm that they sent the email. Otherwise, mark it as spam and get it out of your inbox!

This goes for kid accounts, too. Your kids will have emails, social media, and more and you need to be able to keep them safe as well. Teach them what to look for inside those inboxes, how to build a secure password, and if they're old enough, how to activate MFA on their own personal accounts.

Discuss how to be safe online as a family and use the tips above to begin securing your personal data today. Its easy, fast, and can keep you from having a very big problem later on!

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