Tips and best practices for keeping your information secure.
Education & Training
The cybersecurity team at CapU offers online and in-person cybersecurity training to all employees. Ask IT to request personalized training for you or your team.
Download this PDF for help on how to access your training.
Secure Passwords
Having a strong password can greatly reduce the chances of a hacker breaching your accounts and devices. Never share your passwords with anyone, and don’t write them down or store them in areas that others can access.
For passwords, length always beats complexity. Create strong and distinct passphrases for each of your accounts that are a minimum of 12 characters. A passphrase is a password with multiple words together; a "space" counts as a special character!
Password managers
A best practice is to create strong and unique passwords for each of your accounts rather than re-use the same password. Password managers such as LastPass, 1password, or Dashlane can help so that you don’t have to remember each unique passphrase.
Reach out to IT Services as needed for assistance with installing and using password managers.
Avoid public networks
Using public networks can put you at risk.
They allow attackers to see open connections and get in between communications between yourself and the internet. This allows them to watch everything you are doing online as well as slip malware onto your device without you knowing it.
Avoid using all public Wi-Fi networks, even if they are password protected.
Secure your devices
Your personal and work devices likely contain sensitive and confidential information.
Ensure you are taking the necessary steps to keep this data safe, by locking your computer (windows+L in windows or control+shift+power for mac) each time you step away from your desk.
Enable passwords on all your personal devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and laptops.
Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
MFA requires an individual to provide two or more credentials to prove identity before logging into applications or systems. This security measure will successfully stop hackers from gaining access to your accounts even if they know your password.
Enabling MFA for all services where it is available is recommended to keep your information secure. In certain high-risk scenarios, IT may enable MFA for you to keep your account safe. Once MFA is enabled, you can use these MFA instructions to assist with the MFA setup process.
If you would like MFA enabled on your account, you can contact IT Services for assistance.
Internet Security
Although the internet is a powerful tool when used safely, it can also result in compromised devices, malware infections, and other viruses if not used appropriately.
Websites that offer free downloads of music, software, or video and/or contain adult content are considered high risk and should be avoided.
Using a Free DNS firewall or adblocker can minimize threats from risky advertisements and when connecting to compromised websites.
Social media safety
Hackers sometimes use social engineering methods to find information about their intended victims so they can execute more targeted attacks.
Privacy settings on social media are an effective way to keep your personal information safe. As “terms and conditions” change, often so do privacy settings. Review your privacy settings regularly and update them as needed.
A best practice is to ensure none of your personal information is available to the public, and to the limit information, you share on your profile.
Google yourself and see what public information you can find!
Virtual private network (VPN)
Using a VPN (short for virtual private network) can help protect the data you send and receive while you work off-site.
A VPN provides a secure link between employees and the organization by encrypting the data going to and from the network.
Reach out to IT Help if you need assistance with connecting to the CapVPN.