Problems that result to Data Leakage
Phishing – Phishing is a very common practice that hackers participate in to trick you into giving them your personal information such as passwords, debit card information, social security number. These can come in form of emails or fraudulent text messages that may tell you something outlandish such as you winning a $1000 Amazon gift card for no particular reason. If a random email sounds too good to be true, it is.
Malware – Malware are software created for malicious intents on a computer of an unsuspecting victim. Malware are made to be harmful, it doesn’t matter if they’re a virus or not, they are made to either steal information, wipe information or destroy the computer altogether. If your computer catches a virus or any other form of malware then it’s in big trouble and action must be taken in order to handle the situation.
Human error – A hacker doesn’t always have to create some sort of malicious program to infiltrate your computer and steal your information. Sometimes a careless person can accidentally forget a flash drive in a coffee shop that contains highly classified data such as passwords, medical records, payroll information like direct deposit. A careless person could cause a lot of problems for the company they work for and themselves if they lose their flash drives with information stored within.
Outdated Systems – There is a reason why Microsoft makes you update Windows every so often and why companies like Apple consistently send update notifications on your phone and prompt you to update. Other than quality of life improvements such as more responsiveness or fixes to glitches and bugs, these updates can also improve security with updated databases on malware and stronger firewalls. A mobile device with an outdated version can easily be infected with a malware. The equivalent of this issue would be trying to protect yourself with wooden walls against cannon fire.
Misleading Terms – Sometimes when using an app or when signing up. You agree to terms and conditions, otherwise your continued use is considered agreement. Companies like to use this tactic to get an end user who is unsuspecting and collect their data.
