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Celebrating Safer Internet Day: Five Key Ways to Stay Safe Online
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Safer Internet Day
is being celebrated around the world today! It’s an initiative that originated in the European Union two decades ago and is now observed in as many as 150 countries around the world. In Canada, we are focusing on these five key ways to stay safe online:
1. Set up a recovery phone number or email address, and keep it updated.
For many web services, your
Google Account
included, having a recovery method can help alert you if there’s suspicious activity on your account or if you need to block someone from using your account without permission. And of course, adding recovery information to your account can help you get back in more quickly if you ever lose access or can't sign in.
To set up recovery information, visit your
Google Account’s Security section
and scroll down to “Ways we can verify it's you.”
2. Use unique passwords for your accounts.
Create a unique password for each account to eliminate this risk. Make sure that each password is hard to guess and better yet, at least eight characters long. It can be hard to keep track of many different passwords—60 percent of people report having too many passwords to remember. To help, consider using a password manager (like the one
built into your Chrome browser
) to help you create, safeguard and keep track of all your passwords. Alternatively, you can even write your passwords down on a piece of paper (but keep it in a safe place!), since hijackers are most likely to be online, rather than physically near you.
3. Keep your software up to date.
To help protect your online activity, make sure you’re always running the latest version of software on all your devices.
If you’re using the below operating systems, here’s where you can look to learn how to check & update the software on your devices:
Windows support
Mac
Android
iOS
Some software, like Chrome, will automatically update so you never need to worry about doing it yourself. For other services that send notifications when it’s time to update, don’t click “remind me later”— take the time to install the update right away.
4. Go a step further by setting up two-factor authentication.
Setting up two-factor authentication (2FA)—also known as 2-Step Verification—significantly decreases the chance of someone gaining unauthorized access to your account.
2FA requires you to take a second step each time you sign in to your account on top of your username and password. Examples of second verification steps include: an SMS text message, a six-digit code generated by an app, a prompt that you receive on a trusted device or the use of a physical security key.
Set up two-factor authentication for your Google Account by visiting
g.co/2sv
and clicking “Get Started.”
5. Take the Google Security Checkup.
The
Security Checkup
gives you personalized and actionable security recommendations that help you strengthen the security of your Google Account, and it only takes two minutes to complete.
Taking the Security Checkup doesn’t just help make you safer while using Google. The Checkup also includes personalized tips to keep you safer across the web, like helping you set up a screen lock on your mobile phone and advising you to remove risky third-party sites and apps that have access to your account.
Find more online security tips like these by visiting our
Safety Center
; you can also visit your
Google Account’s Security section
to find all the settings and tools mentioned in this post.
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