How to Score 3-Pointers for Online Security

Finding the Hidden Threat

How much time do you spend online?  Four, Five, Six Hours? More?  Many of us spend upwards of half of our days typing or texting away for either work or pleasure.  Some even use the internet as stress relief.  In doing so we share things with our online friends, some pictures here or there, many even a blurb or two on how we are feeling that day. 

We share more than we know or would like to think about because social media and the Internet gives us an outlet to be the sociable creatures that nature dictates us to be, but it also leaves us vulnerable to online attacks and identity theft.  We need to be constantly vigilant of the data we put out there. 

Now more than ever hackers and online criminals are smarter than we give them credit for.  In fact now they are literally making us do the work to give up your information.  In a practice known as phishing, hackers lure you in with deceiving emails perhaps from your boss, spouse, or relative.  Once you click on the attachment or link you are sending them millions of data points about you and your digital profile. 

But there are ways to stop practices like this, using a metric commonly found in basketball we can apply the same gamepoint strategy to protecting yourself online.  Known as the 50-40-90 metric, this means that you are one of the greatest players in basketball, and it is something that any player strives to reach.  While there are nine players that have achieved this, there is still one more that has reached it but is undetected. 

Like this undetected player, unseen threats are the most deadly threats out there. Underestimating your competition is the first way you get beat.  On the internet there is no time for underestimation.  You must figure out how to stay on top of your game and never overlook anything.  This can seem tiresome and oftentimes people don’t think that deeply when they log on online. 

Don’t let yourself be the person who loses the game.  Take stock of the information you have out on the Internet.  Know how many social media profiles you have and what you posted in them.  Know who you are friends with on the internet and try to evaluate if they are real. Keeping yourself safe is how you win the game!