The Complete Guide to Improving Your Online Security and Defending Your Privacy Written by James Frew
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! Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! The Complete Guide to Improving Your Online Security and Defending Your Privacy Written by James Frew Published July 2017. Read the original article here: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/improve-online-security- defend-privacy/ This ebook is the intellectual property of MakeUseOf. It must only be published in its original form. Using parts or republishing altered parts of this ebook is prohibited without permission from MakeUseOf.com. Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! Table of contents Web Browsers 4 The Ever-Present Threat of Tracking 4 A Focus on Privacy 5 Browser Extensions 6 Email Providers 7 Privacy-Conscious Search Engines 8 Virtual Private Networks 9 Password Managers 9 Operating Systems 11 Going Mobile 12 Secure Messaging 13 Cloud Storage 13 Encryption Tools 15 Defenders of Data 16 Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! In our always-on society we generate a lot of data, with some estimates suggesting 28,875 GB per second. With this massive trove of data we divulge a huge amount of personal information. From our cloud-based photo collection, to what websites we visit, it’s getting easier for malicious attackers to do the digital equivalent of rummaging through our garbage. Whether it’s Facebook selling your data to advertisers, overreaching government surveillance, or cyber criminals looking to make some fast money — there are a lot of people out there who want your data. Sadly, this invasion of your privacy doesn’t benefit you at all. If you want to build up your defenses and protect yourself online, let us guide you through how to improve your security and safeguard your privacy. Web Browsers Web browsers act as our window into the great wonderland of the internet. Nearly everything we do online, from a quick Google search to online banking, happens through the browser. This ease of use makes it incredibly convenient for us, but also means our browser knows a lot about what we get up to online. In fact, your browser’s history may be one of the most invasive databases ever created. There once was a time that your history would only be available locally on your computer. Most modern browsers now allow you to sign in to enable settings to sync to the cloud and between devices. This is especially true of Chrome, where all the information is stored in your Google account. History syncing is turned on by default when signed into Chrome, but you can head into Settings to turn it off. The Ever-Present Threat of Tracking Most of us are aware that our online activity is monitored and stored by the browser. What you may not know is just how much information about you is given away to every website you visit. We compared your browser to a leaky tap as it will often give away a large stream of information to any website that wants it. Websites like What Every Browser Knows About You (WEBKAY) can give you a window into this world of background data sharing. Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! Your location, hardware and software setup, internet connection, and social media accounts are all up for grabs. Some of this data allows for the smooth operation of the internet, while other parts — like your social media accounts — are there to scrape data for advertisers provide you with personalized content. Your smartphone browser can even access your phone’s gyroscope to decide if your phone is in your hand or on the table. A Focus on Privacy Microsoft was one of the first to popularize Private Browsing mode after adding the feature to an Internet Explorer 8 beta. The main advantage to the Private Browsing mode is that anything you do is only stored just for that session. As soon as you close the window, all traces of it are removed from your computer. It allows you to quickly and easily browse the web without everything being stored in the history and log into multiple accounts simultaneously. It is widely considered one of the easiest ways to protect yourself when browsing on a shared computer. As it turns out though, Private Browsing isn’t always private. Watch the YouTube video here: 8 Second Demos - Private Browsing Google’s entire business is based on selling your information to advertisers. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that their popular Chrome web browser is often seen as a means to that end. Supposing that you want to switch from Chrome, the open source Firefox is an excellent choice. Mozilla even developed an entirely privacy focused version for mobile called Firefox Focus. If that isn’t quite private enough for you, then there are choices that offer even greater anonymity. Remember though that total anonymity on the internet is almost impossible — no matter what the developers claim. Recommendations • Firefox — Mozilla’s Firefox rose from the ashes of the once-beloved Netscape Navigator and now ranks as the second most popular web browser. Firefox offers opportunities for customization, while also standing by its commitment to privacy. Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! • Opera — Opera is based on the same open source Chromium browser as Google Chrome, but makes privacy a priority. Only a single click is needed to erase all browsing data, and security badge details every sites credentials. Opera even offers a free, built-in VPN. • Tor Browser — Short for The Onion Router, the Tor browser (based on Firefox) connects you to a chain of Tor nodes. Your traffic is encrypted and sent through the chain before ending up at its destination. This is done in an attempt to obscure where it came from. Tor is also your gateway to the Deep Web. Browser Extensions Chrome and Firefox have become the dominant browsers in part because of their ability to customize and improve the default experience with Extensions. The Chrome Web Store and Mozilla Add-Ons collection allow developers to submit extensions that you can easily download and add to your browser. Firefox even lets you take your extensions on-the-go with their smartphone apps. As Chrome is the world’s most used browser, it has a large collection of security extensions. Firefox also has a healthy range, as the open source movement is naturally disposed towards privacy and security. Extensions like Disconnect, HTTPS Everywhere, Ghostery, and Privacy Badger are even cross-platform. One advantage that extensions have over native applications is that they aren’t usually blocked by workplace management systems. This means you are able to freely install security and privacy focused extensions — letting you browse safely and privately wherever you are. Recommendations • HTTPS Everywhere (Chrome, Firefox, Opera) — If HTTPS is in the address bar, then the data sent between you and the website is encrypted. HTTPS Everywhere adds this protection to all websites. Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! • Privacy Badger (Chrome, Firefox, Opera) — Developed by privacy campaigners the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Privacy Badger blocks spying ads and invisible trackers. • Web of Trust — The Web of Trust extension adds a small symbol next to any website that ranks its trustworthiness. They were found to be abusing their position, but have since taken steps to remedy this. Email Providers We think of email as a relatively recent innovation, but the seeds were first sown over 50 years ago. As computers became more commonplace throughout the 1980s, email turned into an essential part of our work and personal lives. Some estimates even say that we collectively send 205 billion emails every day. With so much information being sent around the world, it’s no wonder that criminals and governments are only too eager to peer inside our global mailbox. Recently, concerns over government surveillance have become increasingly commonplace. Encryption is your best line of defence against unwanted eavesdropping. By scrambling your emails, only parties with the encryption key can decrypt your messages. The end-to-end encryption (E2EE) is generally considered the most secure method. Only you and the recipient hold the encryption key, so neither the server or any third party can decrypt your messages. Unfortunately, a mix of technical and commercial reasons mean that most mainstream email providers do not offer E2EE. Fortunately there are at least a few that do have your privacy in mind, like ProtonMail. Developed by researchers at CERN, the service uses E2EE, and disables IP logging by default. Their servers are based in Switzerland under strict privacy laws, and the software is even open source. At present ProtonMail can only be accessed through their website or mobile apps. Despite its privacy-enhancing advantages, the E2EE prevents you adding ProtonMail to Outlook or other desktop clients. If finding a secure email provider sounds like too much hassle then it may be worth considering just getting rid of email altogether. Copyright © 2017 MakeUseOf. All Rights Reserved ®. ! Recommendations • ProtonMail (Android, iOS, Web) — Based in Switzerland and developed by CERN researchers, ProtonMail puts privacy and security front and centre. They cemented this reputation by recently launching a free VPN. • TutaNota (Android, iOS, Web) — TutaNota offers a similar service to ProtonMail, except their servers are based in Germany. Their platform is open source, and offers E2EE. • MailFence (Web) — MailFence distinguishes itself from the competition by offering a full suite of productivity tools alongside its secure mail service. They demonstrate their commitment to privacy by donating 15 percent of their income to the EEF and EDRi. Privacy-Conscious Search Engines First there was Yahoo, AltaVista, and Ask Jeeves. Then along came Google and they proceeded to dominate the market. Search became synonymous with Google — so much so that their name became a verb.