If you have been the victim of a data breach, here are some simple steps to take to secure your information. These tips are good to know even if it has never happened to you. You can prepare and know what to do in case it happens. You can avoid personal data breaches if you use a security VPN like ibVPN. But if the data breach happens because a company got hacked, you cannot stop it. So here’s what you need to do to recover.
Be Vigilant – Monitor your Accounts and Companies
Many online companies get hacked. And tens of millions of accounts are compromised in each major attack. The first step is to monitor news about these breaches. Don’t wait for your company to inform you. Even if they don’t tell you that your data was compromised, it doesn’t mean it can’t or won’t be. They may not have been able to pinpoint what accounts were hacked. And it will take them a long time to find out anyway. And even longer to find out why and to fix the problem. You can take steps to secure your data during this time instead of waiting for it to get stolen.
Check Your Data and Reset It
Know what kind of data you have stored by different companies on your online accounts. If you hear news of a breach, be prepared to change your account information. The company will probably tell you that your password and credit card number are safe because they are encrypted. Don’t trust this. Most thieves know how to break the encryption that most companies use.
Your social security number and credit card number are the most important. If you cannot remove this information, at least inform your bank of the reported breach so they can prevent unauthorized transactions. Thieves will use the credit card information that they steal to load up on purchases as soon as possible, so you need to report the fraud risk immediately. Then contact a major fraud prevention or credit bureau (e.g. Experian, Equifax, TransUnion, Callcredit, Veda) about the breach. They will put out an alert so anyone trying to use your identity illegally will be stopped. Consider also signing up for a credit protection service like BillGuard.
Then change your email and password, or at least your password if you can’t change the email. Make sure you use secure passwords, not passwords that are easy to remember. If you use the same passwords for any other accounts, you need to change those too, and use unique ones for each account. Then monitor your email account to check for any unusual activity. Some accounts will allow you to suspend them so they can’t be used until the breach has been properly managed.
If a data breach has been confirmed, you must also file an identity theft affidavit. In the US, this is done through the Federal Trade Commission. Then file a report at the local police station. These steps are important so that you can avoid the negative effects of identity theft. Keep a record of everything so you can prove if something was done with your identity that you did not authorize.
