Cyber security is one of the biggest problems in the modern age. As we migrate onto the internet for every purpose from running our daily business operations to buying our next pint of milk, we’re giving hackers more reason and the ability to steal what they can get their data on. So, yes, cyber security is something that everyone should worry about. Even if you think it won’t affect you, you could be the way in for hackers reaching into either your purse or a business’ data, and therefore the purses of countless customers.
But there are loads of other reasons why cybersecurity is important, and it’s something we have to think about now that more of us are spending time away from the office. With people working from home, traveling for business, or embracing the digital nomad life, businesses not only had to scramble to gain laptops when lockdowns sent everyone home but then deal with the fact that everyone was tapping into new networks, unsecured networks, and were under the impression that a password would be enough to protect their hardware. To get a crash course in proper cyber security, we’re looking at why hackers hack and what you can do to stop it.
Cover yourself should the worst happen
If all else fails, you can still have a safety net so that you don’t lose everything. Many people ask, Is it worth getting laptop insurance? In answer to that, it has to be a resounding YES! Even if someone were to get into your laptop, laptop insurance will ensure that your hardware is able to be replaced easily.
All the preventative measures below handle the software and data aspect of your computer, but if you’re left with a glitching brick, you’re out of pocket, or perhaps getting the price of it taken off your salary, if you’re working with an office laptop.
Plus, Lemonade insurance covers other means of damaging your laptop, including by aircraft or vehicle, windstorms and hail, riots and civil unrest, volcanic eruption, smoke, freezing, fire and lightning, vandalism, and explosions, falling objects, and even theft.
Types of hacking
There are loads of reasons why someone might want to hack into your laptop, with varying degrees of criminality.
The first is obvious. Someone might hack into your laptop for financial crimes, trying to access either your bank account details or the details of the company you are working for. Another is vandalism, where a hacker might simply be out to cause chaos by altering a business website for the sake of a laugh with fellow hackers. There is also hacktivism, which might use the same methods but for the sake of sending a political message or making a point. And then there is corporate espionage, which is simply spying through the computer rather than intercepting coded messages.
Preventative measures
None of these ideas is anything you want to get too friendly with, so you can take steps to make sure that no one gets into your laptop in the first place.
For one thing, you might want to avoid public Wi-Fi. This might be difficult if you are traveling for work and therefore have to tap into the train or hotel Wi-Fi, but it’s a good measure to avoid hands getting into your laptop. If you can’t avoid it, make sure you have the appropriate security downloaded. Firewalls block any unauthorized users from getting into your network, but you’re not on your private network. A VPN will make public networks a lot more secure for you by creating a virtual private network between your device and the server you’re trying to access. From the outside looking in, it is creating the illusion to potential hackers that your hardware is in any random location in the world, changing all the time so that no one can target your data.
This is good for avoiding Man-in-the-Middle attacks, which see your device, be that a laptop, tablet, phone, etc. sending data to the website or server you’re using. Man-in-the-middle attacks will intercept the data between these two points, which is why modern contactless payment methods, for example, offer end-to-end encryption on financial transactions.