Cybersecurity for all audiences, in seven chapters | Technology

We move our fingers easily, but many clicks they should not be done without thinking twice, because cybersecurity is not just a problem for large corporations. Fraud, data hijacking, malicious programs, suspicious calls… Internet crime uses increasingly sophisticated technology and refines its deception techniques (social engineering) to obtain private and confidential information. Mobile phones and tablets are small everyday computers subject to the same threats as other computing equipment, and the most vulnerable segments are at the ends of the age arc. The older ones, due to digital inexperience and innocence; the youngest, due to overconfidence and the false security of knowing them all, being digital natives.

But we all live constantly interconnected with cyberspace and we must ask ourselves how many passwords we manage and how often we update them, if we have ever given bank details over the phone, do we have antivirus on our mobile phones or do we out of habit accept all cookies.

CaixaBank has just launched the podcast It happens to me too, which is a master concentrated in seven steps in which the journalist Gemma Nierga and the technology expert Antoni Noguera share the necessary clues to avoid the most common technological risks and frauds, based on real stories. Available on the Ivoox and Spotify audio platforms, It happens to me too helps identify situations that seem safe and may not be.

Healthy mistrust and no hurry

The security of personal data largely depends on choosing strong passwords. The access keys to any digital identity must be easy to remember, but inaccessible to cybercriminals. One of the chapters It happens to me too explain (again) not to use dates or names. Their security increases when they are long, with numbers and symbols as well as letters, and need to be changed periodically.

Once strong passwords are established, the first shield against computer fraud is common sense: do not answer an unknown number the first time, or click in a message without knowing where it leads. Taking time to respond and not reacting mechanically is essential.

There is not enough awareness that the ‘smartphone’ and the tablet need the same protection as a laptop or a fixed equipment

It started through email, but the phishing (illegitimate data fishing) has been extended to SMS and other messaging applications such as Whatsapp. To avoid falling into their nets, the chapter a new message remember that the user’s bank would never ask for information through those channels, so you should not give it to anyone. In addition, it helps to confirm suspicions of phishing observing who sends the message, the web to which it leads, the formality with which the user is treated and if the text contains spelling errors, among other keys.

Of every five calls received with offers and promotions, one is fraudulent, and the urgency with which they intend to close the deal can be a warning. The chapter deals with them. unexpected calls, that warns against those who assure that the user has a virus, a suspicious movement or a pending charge in his bank account.

How to protect data and shop safely

According to the report Digital 2022, published by the Hootsuite platform and the We Are Social agency, of the almost 44 million Spaniards who access the Internet, most do so through mobile devices. But there is not enough awareness that the smartphone and tablet need the same protection as a laptop or desktop computer. It is important to install an antivirus on all devices and update both those and the installed programs and applications, as well as the operating system, with the latest version.

my mobile and me is the title of the podcast It happens to me too dedicated to ensuring reliable downloading by carefully looking at what permissions it requires. Another good tip is not to make private transactions from free Wi-Fi. In My data is mine It is recommended that 87.1% of the Spanish population (40.7 million) who use social networks ‒according to the aforementioned report‒ limit access to their closest friends, as well as configure devices to automatically erase browsing traces and increased use of incognito mode.

54% of Spaniards buy products or services on-line every week, 18% order food at home, and almost 15% buy second-hand items, according to Digital 2022. Safe shopping guides to do it smoothly: you have to be wary of exaggeratedly low prices, use secure payment systems and analyze if the company you pay reveals your address, your CIF, and has a legitimate digital certificate.

Golden rules for minors

They used devices and applications before the reason, because of his condition digital natives, And they think they know everything. But the internet is a window that opens on two sides, and the youngest do not always know how to protect their privacy. digital graduation is the last audio in the series: it guides parents with these basic rules to save them (and their children) more than one disappointment:

• Money is money. Although it is in digital format, the money with which it is paid is real and there are supervised accounts for minors with parental control options.

• Be careful who you pay. Now it’s very simple, but sending money is not the same as sending photos to a friend. You have to check several times who is paid.

The elderly are vulnerable to cyber fraud due to digital inexperience; the youngest, due to overconfidence

• How much do minors know about the Internet? To educate them on cybersecurity, the first thing will be to understand what social networks they use and what web pages they usually visit.

• Be careful what you upload to the networks. The memory of the internet is infinite and social networks build a digital identity that should not harm them.

• Digital wellbeing. Tools such as dark screen mode and mobile viewing time regulation can temper the appeal of apps and devices designed to be addictive.