Data Privacy Week 2024 is a global campaign to raise awareness and empower individuals and businesses to respect privacy, safeguard data and enable trust.
Personal data is collected everyday by various devices and organizations, and can be used to make inferences or assumptions about individuals. Some companies sell the data for profit without the users' consent or knowledge.
79% of Americans are concerned about how data collectors use their data, and 59% have experienced a major data breach in their lives.
Do you know how much data you create online?
Every time you use a website, an app, a device, or a service, you leave behind some information about yourself. This information can show what you like, what you buy, what you do, and even how you feel.
You may not be able to stop others from collecting your data, but you can still protect your privacy. You can choose who you share your data with and how much you share. Your data is important and you have a right to control it!
Here are some simple tips to help you protect your data privacy:
- Be careful about what you share online. Some apps, websites, or services may ask you for your personal information before you can use them. This information may include your location, your contacts, and your photos.
- Think about whether you really need or want to use these apps, websites, or services. Is it worth giving them your data?
- If you don't use an app, website, or service anymore, consider deleting it or closing your account. This way, they won't keep collecting and sharing your data.
- Check the privacy and security settings of every app, website, or service you use. You can find these settings in a section called Settings or something similar. Change the settings to match your comfort level for data sharing. Usually, it's better to share less data, not more.
- You don't have to do this for everything at once. Start with one or two things and do it regularly. You can also use this free resources like to help you configure your private settings for some of the most popular devices and online services.
Manage Your Privacy Settings - National Cybersecurity Alliance (staysafeonline.org)
- Protect your data from hackers and scammers. Follow some basic cybersecurity tips to keep your data safe. We recommend following the Core 4:
1. Use long (at least 12 characters), different passwords for each app, website, or service you use. Use a password manager to store your passwords securely.
2. Turn on multifactor authentication (MFA) wherever you can. This adds an extra layer of security to your accounts.
3. Turn on automatic updates for your devices, software, and browser, or install updates as soon as they are available. This helps fix any security problems.
4. Learn how to spot phishing messages, which can be emails, texts, or messages that try to trick you into giving away your data or money.
You can learn more about Data Privacy Week and how to become a champion by visiting this link:
Data Privacy Week - National Cybersecurity Alliance (staysafeonline.org)
