We know, it’s hard enough to keep current with your teenager’s latest narrative let alone all that cyber stuff because, let’s face it, #boring. But simply increasing knowledge of cyber terms and phrases can really help build cyber confidence.

So without further ado, let’s start with our three fave cyber terms:

Human Firewall
If you’ve been in the workforce anytime from the 90’s onward you will know that a “firewall” in computer-speak is a security system that stops unauthorized or malicious access to a private computer network. Similarly, you and I are part of a “human firewall” protecting sensitive data and information.

As employees we can be the last line of defense against a fraudulent or malicious cyber-attack. We can’t stress enough how necessary it is for employees to take up any cyber security training offered by their employer or the SPD Adventist Computer Technology Services department. Training will help you “think before you click” and better understand what action to take when something doesn’t feel right. It may help you identify red flags in a dodgy email, what to say when an unfamiliar voice on the phone asks for confirmation of your password or a manager’s email address, and how your personal information shared on social media can be used to manipulate you into divulging sensitive information – which brings us to our next word of the moment…

Social Engineering
In terms of information security, social engineering is the employment of deceptive means to manipulate people into giving away information that they probably shouldn’t. In other words, tricking you into believing a fake representation of a legitimate business or person. Typical social engineering methods include ‘Phishing’ emails, bogus customer service phone calls, scam competition prize wins, and counterfeit social media accounts, posts and messages that tempt you into clicking links to websites that might be untrustworthy. For example, there are known fake Facebook accounts pretending to be the GC President, Elder Ted Wilson, asking people for monetary donations.

Stay informed by signing up to alerts from both the Scamwatch and Stay Smart Online websites provided by the Australian government.

Internet of Things (aka IoT)
If you were waiting until the year 2050 for the world to resemble tech-noir cyberpunk science fiction, well, wait no more! The Australian Computer Society’s 2016 Cybersecurity guide defines the Internet of Things, or IoT for short, as “the many and varied devices currently on the market, or soon to be on the market, that will connect to and stay connected to the internet 24/7”. The guide goes on to explain that this includes products such as webcams, smart TVs and, “a broad range of products most of which you won’t actually see – electronics, sensors, actuators and software soon to be built into everything from your car to your home.”

A simple way to protect your privacy on these perpetually connected devices is to change the factory set password, only connect to the device when you need to, and switch electronic equipment off at the power outlet rather than leave it on standby.

As we said in our first article on this topic, we don’t want to overwhelm you, so we’ll explore these concepts and how to protect yourself and your organisation in more detail in future articles. Now that you’ve explored these key cyber phrases you’ve got another layer of knowledge to strengthen your cyber confidence. Well done, you!

Related reading:
Cyber Confidence – An Introduction
Cyber Confidence – The Human Firewall
Cyber Confidence – One Question to Rule Them All

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