October is National Cyber Security Month!

Yups, cyber security is such a big deal that it actually has its own month of the year dedicated to its awareness! By now, you should realize that the Internet isn’t as small as you think of it. In fact, many people actually consider the Internet as their second home. I, in fact, can be considered one of those people. I can’t imagine life now without the Internet (whether you think that’s a good thing or bad is up for debate). I’m allowed to shop online and purchase items that cost many times less than if I were to buy them locally, I get to catch up on TV episodes I’ve missed during the week, trade emails with friends and colleagues, listen to music, etc etc. However, with all the fun and goodies that comes from the Internet, it also requires of us to be responsible and to protect ourselves as well.

While October is officially the ‘month’ to be aware about cyber security, it’s actually a 24/7 thing. When October passes by, we don’t just let our guard down and invite the hackers in to our computers! However with cyber security month, it is your job to spread the word about it to your neighbors and other not-so-geeky friends and family members. You don’t have to read dictionary sized books about computer security in order to fully understand it. There are many easy to understand methods to protect yourselves from the bad guys out there on the net.

To learn more about cyber security month, I highly urge everyone to visit some websites. These websites educate their readers by going over how they can protect themselves when they are online.

- Staysafeonline.info is one of the best places to learn about cyber security, especially if you are the not-so-technical computer user. I highly urge everyone who isn’t so security aware to thoroughly go over the tips and methods listed here to better protect you and your family. There are a lot of resources and you can even print out free materials like posters and bookmarks to help promote cyber security month.
- Microsoft also have partnered with the National Cyber Security Alliance to help promote cyber security awareness. Once again, you’ll find a lot of information about how to protect yourself online and offline. Topics of interest includes phishing scams, SPAM emails, password strength, online shopping and much more. The information is again presented in an easy to read format so just about everyone can understand it.

Here at Anotherwindowsblog, I’ve also written about many security articles that can also be of help:

- Educate Yourself and Others on the Dangers of Phishing Scams!

- Learn How To Filter Websites On Your Network!

- Start Creating Strong Passwords and How To Keep Them Safe!

- How to Secure Your Wireless Connection

- 3 Quick Protection Methods: Use Antivirus Software!

- 3 Quick Protection Methods: Use a Firewall!

- 3 Quick Protection Methods: Update Your Software!

No matter the source of information, it’s imperative that we all learn about cyber security. I can’t stress this enough but if you are the dude/dudette who is considered the computer guru in your friends and families circle (chances are high that you are the person if you actually read all the way up to this point without yawning), it is your job to spread the word on cyber security awareness. Show them a tip or two on how to stay safe when on the Internet. If they spend a lot of time in social networking sites, than you even have a bigger reason to educate them on cyber security as those sites are often one of the biggest platforms for the bad guys to pick out their victims. Whatever the case may be, just understand that while it’s never going to be possible to educate everyone in the world about these issues, we just need to do our best. At the very least, we can help keep the people close to us safer than they were yesterday.