Ever clicked a “Remind me later” button instead of “update now”; used the same password for different sites because it is simply too many to keep track of; or left your account open to avoid the hassle of resigning in?
I am guilty of these myself. Is it because we have a false sense of security which has led us to believe that we will not get hacked? The probability of facing a hacking attempt, in reality, is 100 percent. However, the probability of that hack being successful depends on us, the user.
I came across an interesting expression on the web: “security=inconvenience.” The contrapositive equality can then be: “convenience=losing all your money.”
Cyber threats are real, happening now and growing exponentially. Close to a billion people worldwide were affected by cybercrime. According to the FBI, victims lost more than $1.4 billion to internet crimes in 2017. Cyber-attacks pose the third-highest risk to society right next to extreme weather and natural calamities in the next five years, according to the 2018 Global Risks Report by the World Economic Forum. You can’t prepare for a test after you take it and, in the same manner, you can’t prepare for a cyberattack after it occurs.
St. Louis ranked in the top 5 among the least vulnerable metro cities, according to Coronet, a cloud security company. The ranking was based on infrastructure and a device vulnerability score in 55 cities. Richmond, Virginia topped the list, and Las Vegas was the least-secure cyber city. This is great news for St Louis, but it does not imply that we are immune from attacks.
The importance of daily etiquette – such as looking before you click; being vigilant of opening suspicious emails, attachments, links, and files; avoiding suspicious sites; having an antivirus installed; using strong and unique passwords, taking regular backups, keeping your system updated – cannot be overstressed.
While shopping online, use sites whose addresses begin with “https://” or “shttp://” because they provide enhanced security over sites with “http://”. One can also take the extra step of using dual authentication, a password manager to create unique passwords every time, encrypting your files, and periodically searching yourself on the web to see what information exists and attempt to scrub it if needed and possible. In 2018 we will see personal cyber insurance policies and the use of blockchain-related solutions for more security.
It is essential to engage every member of the cyber ecosystem including governments, organizations and schools. Spam emails claiming to be from a bank make it to our inbox almost every day. St. Louis is home to Citi mortgages headquarters and one of Mastercard’s five technology hubs, several credit unions, banks and hospitals. These institutions must proactively host cybersecurity sessions for the community periodically to educate them on how to keep their financial information safe while enjoying shopping from the comfort of their homes.
Schools are also facing an increasing number of cyberattacks. According to a 2016 report, over 90 percent of cyberattacks start with phishing, the practice of sending legitimate-looking emails that entice users to reveal personal information or click on links that install malicious software. Phishing emails are becoming increasingly sophisticated and difficult to detect. Imagine the number of students, staff, and parents in each school system who can be exposed to one such email. The damage to our education apparatus can be catastrophic. With schools providing devices to kids and kids spending significant time on the web, there is an imminent need for security education, not only to keep themselves safe, their identity safe, and school data safe, but also to bring those disciplines into the future workforce.
If we invest the time and energy on cybersecurity now, it will eventually become a habit similar to washing hands and locking doors. Everyone should urge cyberspace, financial institutions and hospitals to take time to educate their customers and schools to make cyber education a part of math and reading beginning from kindergarten.
There may never be a perfectly secure world because the more things we fix, the more things hackers come up with. The only solution is for all of us to get cyber smart in an effort to outsmart those trying to impose harm.
Sri Jaladi is a student at Parkway West High School, the founder and president of Cybersecurity Club at Parkway West High School, and a Youth Ambassador to Bright Life Foundation.
