2018 Q1 LIFE@reliance Newsletter

C Y B E R S E CU R I T Y

RELIANCE TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS Information Security

Keep Your Information Safe in the Cloud

WE’RE ALL IN THE CLOUD If you use Google, Facebook, Apple, or log in to almost any website, then yes, your personal information is in the cloud. “The cloud” is a name for websites that store information in a remote location, allowing you to access it from anywhere. This information may be your name and contact info; it could be photos from your phone; or it could be business and financial information. While these websites make things convenient, it’s important to know how to protect yourself. SAFETY IN THE CLOUD When you have information on paper or saved on your personal computer, it’s easy to know and control access to it. But in the cloud, you have to be Your password is your main line of defense. If you write posts about your family, friends, pets, hometown, etc. consider it all public knowledge. Choose a password that doesn’t relate to any of them. Many services offer “two-factor authentication” as an option. Using it makes your account much more secure than having a password alone.

proactive to make sure the cloud shares only as much or as little as you want it to. Some cloud services are secure by default. For example, theBox file sharing service offered by RTS starts out by not sharing your files with anyone. You’re in control and other people can only see the files you’ve specifically given them access to. Other cloud services share your information as widely and effortlessly as possible. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram are all designed to share what you give them with anyone who’s willing to pay attention. Fortunately, they also provide you with privacy

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Cloud storage services can change policies, suffer disasters, and occasionally go out of business. Use them in addition to, not instead of, keeping your own copies of important files. Many of the services have a free feature to automatically keep the cloud copies of your data in sync with what’s on your computer. You can’t put the genie back into the bottle. Once the public sees what you post on social networks, assume it’s permanent. Even if you delete your account, others may have saved or forwarded copies. Before posting, make sure you understand the sharing policies and how you have your privacy controls set up.

control settings so that you can limit just how much is shared.

Talk to your kids about what’s okay to share. Kids are the biggest social

network users. Kids and their parents often have different levels of comfort with sharing information on the internet. Get an understanding of how they use social networking and help them recognize what’s okay and not okay to share.

ISSUE 12 | FEBRUARY 2018 5