HIGH SCHOOL JOURNALISM: A cyber takeover?

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By Jacqueline Ehrlich, Dyersville Beckman sophomore

DYERSVILLE - According to Mail Online, one quick refresh of a favorite social networking site can reveal 41,000 status updates, 278,000 tweets or 3,600 photos on Instagram in less than a minute.

Many do this without thinking about who can see it, but the reality is, it is floating in cyberspace forever - even if one thinks they may have deleted it. With easy access anywhere people go, social networking has become second nature for many, but do people consider the risks and effects of such actions or how does a person stop themselves from becoming victims of this cyber war?

Experienced hackers know the loopholes in these top  sites. When most hackers want to get somewhere, they will do one of two things - evaluate profiles and look for personal information that may be key to some of the security questions or pose as different people in hopes to have the people being hacked trust them enough with information. This second form is called social engineering. HowStuffWorks provides examples of this highly complex system. Calling someone, pretending to be a bank, and asking for their credit card number, or calling a systems administrator pretending to be an angry executive who forgot a password and requires a new one immediately, are just a few examples.

It is easy to see how some people may be inclined to believe this scam because the hackers are generally very good actors. People have to learn the warning signs and take specific precautions to avoid cases of identity theft and worse.

The easiest way to do this is by never giving out personal information online. Hackers can quickly and easily manipulate this information into something useful. Also, watch what is said through text messages and emails. One can never know who may be lurking in the shadows reading what is supposed to be uncensored information.

The National Cyber Security Alliance provides tips for safe social networking. These tips include never telling their password over email or text message. If a person absolutely has to exchange passwords with someone and doing it in person is not an option, call them. Although a cell phone call can be monitored, the chances of it getting into the wrong hands are far less likely. Also, use a different password for every account. Although this is inconvenient, it will stop hackers from being able to access much more than just one site. Make sure passwords are long and have many symbols and combined capital letters with lowercase letters.

Another good idea is to monitor ones friends and followers on social networks. The more people are allowed to see personal sites, the less safe one is. Use the security settings on these sites, protect tweets and never friend someone whose first name is not known.

Finally, keep computers updated with the latest virus protection and always be careful what links one clicks on. People never know what may not be a legitimate site.

Staying informed and being careful are simple ways to protect yourself in the crazy world that is cyberspace. The National Cyber Security Alliance reminds the public to utilize these tips and know that whatever is posted to cyberspace will be there forever, whether one thinks it is deleted or not.