Essential Cyber Hygiene Habits

Good hygiene is something you learn as a child and usually keep for life. But have you heard of cyber hygiene? While brushing your teeth and taking a shower aren’t typically associated with technology, the term “cyber hygiene” is a useful metaphor for making smart decisions when using your digital devices.

Just like personal hygiene, cyber hygiene involves three main principles: using the right products and tools for your needs, performing these tasks correctly, and establishing a routine. But what exactly is cyber hygiene, and how does it relate to your computer and connected devices?

Cyber hygiene means proactively managing your cybersecurity—just as you do with your daily personal hygiene—to defend against cyber threats and online security issues. Unfortunately, cybersecurity isn’t always taken as seriously as brushing your teeth or washing your hands before eating. Some people see cybersecurity as purely technical, but that’s changing as cyber threats continue to evolve. In the meantime, establishing strict cyber hygiene rules should be as routine as brushing your teeth.

Here are some tips to help you and your family develop good cyber hygiene habits.

Use the Right Tools for Cyber Hygiene

Have you ever tried brushing your teeth without a toothbrush? Without the right tools, maintaining personal hygiene would be much harder, if not impossible. The same goes for managing good computer hygiene. Without the right products and tools, your personal information may be at risk.

Trusted antivirus software, a network firewall, and password protection help safeguard the personal data stored on your home computer. Together, these tools can help you feel confident about the security of your home computer, laptop, smartphone, and other devices.

Also, before installing anything on your computer or other devices, always make sure the software manufacturer and the source are trustworthy.

Be Attentive and Careful with Cyber Hygiene

Everyone should floss, right? But does everyone do it as recommended by their dentist? Similarly, files you think are deleted from your computer may still need special attention.

For example, regularly emptying your recycle bin does not permanently remove personal or confidential data from your hard drive. To permanently delete files, you should use data wiping software. Whenever you install new software, add hardware, or modify system files, you risk losing data. Make it a habit to regularly delete unnecessary data and wipe it from your hard drive using secure erasure tools.

Password protection is another area that requires your attention. Don’t cut corners when creating strong, unique passwords for each account—use combinations of at least 12 letters, numbers, and special characters. Change your passwords regularly to improve your cyber hygiene. If you can’t remember all your passwords, use a password manager.

Make Cyber Hygiene Part of Your Routine

Learning to regularly monitor your cybersecurity can increase your chances of avoiding online threats. But like any habit, it requires routine and repetition.

Start by setting reminders or calendar notes for tasks such as running antivirus scans, updating operating systems on all your devices, checking for security updates, cleaning your hard drive, and changing your passwords. Once you get used to these cyber hygiene practices, they’ll become second nature.

Key Steps for Good Computer Hygiene

Good cyber hygiene is a general practice that can help keep you safe online, but there are several recommendations to maximize your security. Here are nine essential steps:

1. Install reputable antivirus and anti-malware software.This is the first and perhaps most important step. Antivirus software scans for and removes computer viruses and other malicious programs. It’s a vital part of your overall cyber hygiene, protecting you from security breaches and other threats. Antivirus software can:
   • Identify specific files to scan for malware
   • Schedule and perform automatic scans
   • Scan individual files, your entire computer, or flash drives as needed
   • Remove malware
   • Confirm the “health” of your computer and other devices
2. Use network firewalls.Firewalls are a key habit for maintaining good computer hygiene. They are the first line of defense in network security, preventing unauthorized users from accessing your websites, mail servers, and other information sources accessible from the internet.
3. Update your software regularly.Keep your apps, web browsers, and operating systems up to date to ensure you’re running the latest versions with security flaws fixed. Setting updates to run automatically helps ensure you always have the latest protections. These updates often include security patches that fix vulnerabilities hackers could exploit.
4. Set strong passwords.Use unique, complex passwords for all your devices—at least 12 characters, including numbers, symbols, uppercase, and lowercase letters. Change your passwords regularly to reduce the risk of them being compromised. Each password should be unique. Also, consider device-level controls like firmware passwords, which protect your hardware from unauthorized resets or reboots.
5. Use multi-factor authentication.Two-factor or multi-factor authentication adds an extra layer of protection. Typically, you’ll enter your username and password plus a unique code sent to your phone. Multi-factor authentication can also include biometrics like facial or fingerprint recognition, making it harder for hackers to access your device and personal information.
6. Use device encryption.While many companies automatically use data encryption, you may also need to encrypt your own devices and media containing sensitive data, such as laptops, tablets, smartphones, external drives, backup tapes, and cloud storage. Many devices now use default encryption for data stored on smartphones. Some apps use end-to-end encryption, while others encrypt data on your device and store it in the cloud. You can also use encrypted USB drives to protect sensitive data.
7. Back up your data regularly.Protect your files by backing up important data offline, on an external hard drive, or in the cloud. This helps prevent data loss, especially if hackers gain access to one of your devices.
8. Keep your hard drive clean.If you’re selling your laptop, tablet, or smartphone, make sure your personal or confidential information isn’t transferred with it. If your device is hacked, a clean hard drive means less information is accessible. Simply deleting files may not be enough—good cyber hygiene includes reformatting and then wiping your hard drive to remove software and data.
9. Secure your router.Don’t forget to protect your wireless network. Change the default name and password that came with your router, disable remote management, and log out as administrator after setup. Make sure your router uses WPA2 or WPA3 encryption to maintain the highest level of privacy for information transmitted over your network.

Remember, practicing good cyber hygiene habits is smart. If you install reputable antivirus programs, keep them updated, create strong passwords, and keep everything clean, you’ll be on your way to developing cyber habits that help keep you safe online.