5 Simple Cyber Security Tips For Your Family; It CAN Happen To You!

This is a Bitdefender sponsored post. 

Having your information stolen or your devices hacked is SCARY! A few years ago, as I was getting ready for a cruise, I discovered one of my online accounts had been hacked and the money drained from the account.

I had no idea to what extent my information had been compromised. Fortunately, it was only one account. Because I was leaving for a cruise and out of the country at a few of the stops, I needed to get it fixed immediately. It was a huge stress and continued to stress me out while on the trip.

Think About Security For Your Family Before You Get Hacked

That was the wakeup call I needed to be sure that we were securing all our devices in our home. Before that, I knew we should, but to experience even one hack was enough to scare me. I had to make changes to prevent this from happening again.

After the cruise, I spent a lot of time changing passwords and making sure our devices were properly set up to protect us. The security of our family and home is a big part of which devices we choose to add now.

75% of Americans believe cyber security attacks are on the rise. At the same time, 44% believe it will happen to them. The reality is that it can happen to anyone at any time. The best time to protect yourself is BEFORE you get hacked. 

How Protected is America at Home?

Recently, Bitdefender sponsored a survey to find out how protected (or unprotected) Americans are. I found the results both scary and interesting. Here is an infographic of the findings:

PDF version of the infographic

While I do take all the proper precautions to keep my family and our home secure, this isn’t a one and done solution. I want to be sure that the solution we choose will keep us secure in the future too. It needs to update as the hackers update.

5 Tips for Cyber Security In Your Family

Here are five tips to get you started on securing your family and home from cyber attacks. If you have kids, it’s important, they are involved too.

Passwords

The simplest step you can take is to change your passwords and make sure you create secure passwords. Do not use anything that is easy to figure out like your address, birth date or pet’s name. You should change your passwords often and do not use the same password for everything.

Total Security 2018 includes a password manager so you do not need to remember the passwords. Bitdefender Password Manager will secure all of your personal information such as credit card numbers, addresses and passwords.

Antivirus

All of your devices on your network should have antivirus software installed to protect again the latest antimalware and virus threats. Bitdefender’s Antivirus for Mac and Antivirus Plus (Windows) will protect your files, downloads from the Internet and email.

Bitdefender’s software will update automatically so you are always covered for the latest threats. Scans will run weekly to be sure your computer is clear of those threats. Since I’ve had it installed, Antivirus for Mac has stopped a few threats from being downloaded to my computer.

And the best part? It does not slow down your computer.

Parental Controls

You may be very careful with your devices, have the strongest passwords and antivirus installed on every computer, but what about your kids’ devices? Are they protected? Do you know what they are doing on their devices? Are they giving away personal information?

With Parental Advisor, part of Bitdefender’s Total Security & Internet Security, you can control what can be accessed on the web, apps, chats, games, monitor Facebook, calls and text activities. You can also check where your child is located (if they have their mobile device with them).

It’s also important that you discuss with your kids what information they should not be giving out and why. I went through this with my kids over and over and my son still gave out his phone number to a friend of a friend online once. He did feel comfortable enough to tell me and I used it as a learning opportunity.

Several years later, he told his little brother about the experience and taught him what he shouldn’t do online.

Parental Advisor for Android

Webcam Protection

Have you ever had, the light on your webcam turn on when you are not using webcam software? I have and it’s scary. Hackers will try to hack into your webcam and they can see everything that is going on in your house and it sometimes leads to extortion.

Bitdefender’s Webcam protection detects outside applications that are trying to connect to your webcam and blocks them. Webcam protection is available in Internet Security and Total Security.

Online Banking & Shopping

Online banking and shopping are transactions that involve money and you should be sure they are being handled in a secure environment. Bitdefender’s Safepay is a protected browser and keeps your online transactions private and secure.

Safepay is part of Total Security and Internet Security and can be used any time you want to send sensitive data and want to be sure it will be secure.

Bitdefender 2018 Features

Bitdefender 2018 security software is perfect for your family and offers the following features:

• You can check the security of all your devices in one place at home or on-the-go
• Updates are made automatically (one less thing to think about)
• Security that fits into your lifestyle. Bitdefender lets you #DoYourThing!
• Bitdefender has over 15 years of experience in cyber security and has been trusted by over 500 million users
• Options for iOS, Android, Windows and Mac. A solution for every family.

Bitdefender 2018 needs to be on your tech gift list this year. You can get 35% off right now at the Bitdefender website.

Which Bitdefender solution fits your family’s needs? Do you have any questions about Bitdefender or keeping your family safe and secure online?

Disclosure: This is a Bitdefender sponsored post. I was compensated for this post. All opinions are my own.