In today's world, good digital citizenship means protecting yourself online at work and in your personal life.

Maybe you’ve already experienced your security or privacy being violated or heard the news stories about Target, Home Depot, and JP Morgan Chase being hacked or heard the recent stories of some celebrities having personal photos stolen. For every big news story there are thousands of small stories of people having their online identity stolen, accounts accessed, or malware surreptitiously installed on their computing device. Following are some simple steps to protect yourself from experiencing these unfortunate incidents.

1. Use long and strong passwords. A strong password uses more characters and a combination of upper and lowercase letters along with numbers and special characters.

2. Use a unique password for every account. Many times a hacker will crack one password for an individual and then try that password on any other accounts the person has.

3. Install updates to your computer(s) and mobile devices. Hackers often exploit a vulnerability that could have been eliminated by a software update.

Additional resources:

• Homeland Security

• Educause

• Stop Think Connect