Given the reports of the past few days, it's understandable that you could be worried about your information.
On Tuesday, it was revealed by the UK's elections watchdog that they had been targeted by a complicated cyber-attack that potentially impacted millions of people who were registered to vote.
It became known that personal information about police officers in Northern Ireland had been released mistakenly.
If you worry that your data may have been exposed, what steps can you take? And how can you keep this from happening again?
In general, when the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) responds to inquiries made under the Freedom of Information Act, steps should be taken to remove any personal data that could be used to identify individuals.
In this instance, though, the force unintentionally released confidential information, which caused certain personnel and their relatives to be anxious about their safety.
Though one may feel rattled when their data is exposed, an average person affected by a data leak or hack should not be put into a panic.
The Electoral Commission has issued an apology to those impacted by the cyber-attack occurring in the UK, yet they have mentioned on their website that the information they possess is "restricted, and most of it is already considered public knowledge".
The Information Commissioner's Office, the data regulator, determined through its risk assessment process, that the personal data usually held on electoral registers- name and address- does not inherently carry a high risk to individuals.
This info, in combination with other details about you, such as your posts on social media, could be used to recognize you - though this would be a lengthy process and typically hackers will only go to this extent for people who are well-known.
Unless you have chosen to not have your name listed in the public electoral register, then much of your personal information is already online.
If you are anxious that your personal data may have been compromised due to a breach, there are websites that can let you know if your email has been associated with a reported breach.
The Electoral Commission specifically advises people use the free online service Have I Been Pwned to conduct this check.
If you think that someone else might have gained access to your account password, it is prudent to change it.
Be cautious not to answer to any emails proposing this, as they could be attempting to trick you - rather visit the site as usual, and shift your password there.
It is essential to have unique passwords for every account.
One way to reduce the risk of a major hack is to ensure that you use different log-in credentials for each service you use. This means that even if your data is compromised, the hackers will be restricted to accessing just one service.
People should keep watch over their online activities so as to avert any data losses.
A study by Barclays revealed on Wednesday that the majority of scams (87%) occur on platforms featuring technology, for example, dating websites, social media and online marketplaces.
It is stated that the frequency of these scams is increasing, consequently prompting tech platforms to take on some of the responsibility.
According to Matt Hammerstein, CEO of Barclays, unless we receive assistance from tech organisations, the Government, and regulators, we will be exposing ourselves to the risk of freely allowing the most widely-occurring crime in the UK to increase unrestrained, thus causing significant injuries to numerous people and cutting our country's economy by billions of pounds a year.
The evidence suggests that the majority of scams now originate from tech platforms, particularly on social media. However, there is currently no legal or regulatory requirement that obliges the tech industry to help combat this issue, unlike there is for banks.
Nevertheless, you can take some straightforward steps to help secure your data and your finances while surfing the web.
In order to stay secure online, it is important to employ certain practices such as selecting a unique and secure password for each site you access, disregarding emails from unknown sources, and exercising caution when visiting sites you are not familiar with.
Action Fraud has a second list which is accessible to those in the UK and gives details on reporting fraud and cyber crime.
Comments