Week 4 - The Internet and Privacy - YOU are the Product

The theme of week 4 is The Internet and Privacy - YOU are the Product.  The Internet these days is a trade-off of giving up bits of personal information in exchange for the information you want.  During this fourth and final week of National Cyber Security Awareness Month we'll look at some of the privacy issues that arise as we live and work on the internet.

Consider:

• Search Engine tracking, cookies and how your personal data is harvested and used.  How aware are you?
• Workplace and personal Internet privacy issues are the same AND different. The big difference is in the workplace we’re bound by legislation to protect the personal data in our care.
• Privacy is personal and each person’s “limits” are different.  

Protecting our personal privacy and the personal data that is in our care is one of the reasons behind the security awareness tips we’ve been discussing this month.  Without good security practices we can’t fully protect our valuable data, and that includes the personal data of ourselves and others.  That said, there are also specific issues around privacy that we need to consider. And that is what this week is about

Check back through the week as we will be posting resources all week long.

Want to know more about cybersecurity in the workplace?  The Security Awareness team has a series of short seminars that they will present to your team in your office.  Email securityawareness@royalroads.ca for more information. 

Further Reading

Targeted Advertising

Check this out.  It's an excellent example of Facebook and tracking  and a funny story as well.  Definitely worth the few minutes you'll spend reading it. http://mysocialsherpa.com/the-ultimate-retaliation-pranking-my-roommate-with-targeted-facebook-ads

Be Mindful of How Connected You Are and How Much Information Is Shared

The Internet of Things is an interesting concept and appeals to many, but with that connectivity comes a concern - how much personal information is shared and who can potentially have access to it? Are you comfortable having your personally identifiable information being compromised by poor security practices? While the designers and engineers of smart cars, TVs, fridges, and toys may be exceptionally good at what they do, what is their expertise and responsibility when it comes to information and confidentiality?

Late last year, VTech (maker of educational toys/devices) came under fire for their cavalier attitude towards a security breach that exposed information from their database: names, addresses, passwords, email addresses.  

VTech security breach details

VTech absolves itself of responsibility for personal data they stored

In other words, they changed the Terms and Conditions of your usage of their services to absolve themselves of any responsibility for lost/stolen data, which includes data on your children. And in the second article link, you'll note they want to branch out into the home security area... is that reassuring to you?