In this day in age everything we have seems to be connected to the internet: our television, phones and even refrigerators. Although being connected to the Internet is incredibly convenient, it puts all of us at risk for cybersecurity attacks.

Recently, there has been a rise of cyber-attacks against various colleges and universities. Last year, 144 American universities were hacked in an attempt to have some of their research stolen. In addition, there was an incident at Eastern Main Community College where someone was trying to access the staff’s personal information by impersonating the college’s president.

Even though NC State takes precautions to prevent cyber-attacks against students and staff, there is a possibility that someone may be exposed to some form of malware. Therefore, students and staff should take extra precaution to make sure their personal information isn’t stolen online.

One thing that students can do to protect their personal information is checking the validity of various emails to avoid any phishing scams. Phishing is when a person imitates an important figure or company to steal someone’s personal information.

However, there are ways to tell if an email is not valid. Normally, most organizations would not require you to send personal information over an email. In addition, if the link provided does not lead to a company’s domain, then it is likely a phishing attempt. For example, if an account that claims to be NC State sent me a link to enter my student ID but did not direct me to NC State’s website, then it is likely that someone is trying to steal my personal information.

Another thing students and staff can do to protect themselves against hackers is to have different passwords for each account. While sharing one password for various accounts is easy to remember, if someone manages to hack into one of your accounts and figure out your password, they could use the same password to access your other accounts. It is therefore heavily recommended that you have a different password for each account to prevent other accounts from being hacked.

Finally, students and staff should get a Virtual Private Network (VPN). A VPN protects a user’s identity when using a network, making it difficult for hackers to steal your personal information. This is essential when you are connected to places that offer free Wi-Fi, since these networks are not as secure. Luckily, NC State has its own VPN, so when students and staff work off-campus they can protect their data from being stolen.

Overall, students and staff should take cybersecurity seriously. Since technology is becoming increasingly reliant on the Internet, people are finding ways to access other personal information. We need to find ways to protect our identities online. The best way we can protect ourselves is to check for the validity of emails to avoid phishing scams, have unique passwords, and use VPNs to protect ourselves over unsecured networks.

I don’t know about you, but I would hate it if someone hacked into my Amazon account and stole my financial information, and I hope others feel the same way. So please, take cybersecurity seriously and protect yourselves online.