Develop Safe Habits

Common cybersecurity tips

Backing Up Your Data

What is a Backup?

A backup is a second copy (or more) of your digital files and it can protect you from data loss. You can access this backup in the event your device or data become inaccessible, destroyed, or damaged. Data loss can occur in many ways: a computer or hardware crash, a lost or stolen device, data corruption, or malware that encrypts it and holds it for ransom.

Two types of backup are sync services and traditional backups: Sync (or cloud) services backup individual files and do not include...

Password Management with LastPass

Overview

Creating strong, unique passwords for each of your personal and work accounts isn't a chore when using a password manager - like LastPass. LastPass can generate and remember passwords for you - no more writing your passwords down and potentially exposing your credentials. Using strong and unique passwords on each of your accounts increases your personal and professional online security.

UC Berkeley offers FREE...

Traffic Light Protocol

Overview

The Traffic Light Protocol (TLP) was created to facilitate greater sharing of information. TLP is a set of designations used to ensure that sensitive information is shared with appropriate audiences.

TLP uses four colors to define sharing boundaries to be applied by the recipient(s) indicating when and how sensitive information can be shared, and by facilitating more frequent and effective collaboration. TLP is optimized for ease of adoption, human readability and person-to-person sharing; it may be used in automated sharing exchanges...

Declutter Your Digital Files

It's easy for our digital selves to get cluttered and disorganized. A proper Marie Kondo approach to thinning out old files can keep your devices and information more secure. Plus it can improve the speed and performance of your devices.

Here are a few things you can do to improve your digital security and online safety:

1. Review Online Accounts Delete any online accounts no longer in use. If an account is still in use, remove any information that is no longer needed, like saved credit cards or documents in cloud storage. Review the privacy and security settings on websites...

Best Practices for Telecommuting Securely

Please note: personally-owned computers used by multiple people in the household are unlikely to meet the Campus Minimum Security for Networked Devices (MSSND) Standard. Risks to consider with home systems include:

Multiple users with administrator access allow for download and spread of malware

Insecure configurations leave the systems vulnerable to attacks

Home use software installed that are not supported and may not be patched for vulnerabilities

Institutional information...

How to Protect Against Technical Support Scams

What are Technical Support scams?

In a Technical Support scam, a scam artist will try to contact you by phone or initiate contact via a website (often through a pop-up window in your web browser). The scammer will claim to be a representative from Microsoft, or sometimes pretend to be from UC Berkeley Technical Support. They will highlight common concerns regarding your computer, such as viruses or malware. They will offer to "fix" these manufactured issues by connecting to your system.

What is the possible impact of such scams?

The goal of the scammer is to gain remote access to...

Protecting Your Credentials

1. Beware Social Engineering and Phishing Scams

Phishing scams are a significant source of compromised credentials. These scams are a form of social engineering attacks used to trick the unsuspecting user into revealing account information. These scams can occur by phone, email, or text.

Most commonly, a phishing scams are initiated by an email that has the appearance of official business and request that you perform an urgent action, like logging into your account.

Sometimes emails...

Preventing Laptop Theft

Every semester, UC Berkeley Police receive numerous reports of stolen laptops on the campus and University properties. According to theft reports, many of those stolen laptops were the result of "smash-and-grab" car break-ins. UCPD warns that, "it only takes 10 seconds for a thief to smash a window and grab a laptop.” To protect your devices and data, follow these basic security practices.

1. Physically Protect Your Device From Theft Never leave your laptop or mobile device in a vehicle Do not walk away from your laptop, even for a minute If you...