%PDF-1.3 1 0 obj << /Type /Catalog /Outlines 2 0 R /Pages 3 0 R >> endobj 2 0 obj << /Type /Outlines /Count 0 >> endobj 3 0 obj << /Type /Pages /Kids [6 0 R 20 0 R ] /Count 2 /Resources << /ProcSet 4 0 R /Font << /F1 8 0 R /F2 9 0 R /F3 10 0 R /F4 11 0 R >> >> /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] >> endobj 4 0 obj [/PDF /Text ] endobj 5 0 obj << /Creator (DOMPDF) /CreationDate (D:20250715185521+00'00') /ModDate (D:20250715185521+00'00') /Title (Report 07-2025) >> endobj 6 0 obj << /Type /Page /Parent 3 0 R /Annots [ 12 0 R 14 0 R 16 0 R 18 0 R ] /Contents 7 0 R >> endobj 7 0 obj << /Length 9624 >> stream 0.702 0.800 0.816 rg 34.016 34.016 543.969 723.969 re f 1.000 1.000 1.000 rg 45.266 82.378 521.469 664.356 re f 0.773 0.773 0.773 rg 0.773 0.773 0.773 RG 45.266 746.734 m 566.734 746.734 l 565.984 745.984 l 46.016 745.984 l f 566.734 746.734 m 566.734 82.378 l 565.984 82.378 l 565.984 745.984 l f 45.266 746.734 m 45.266 82.378 l 46.016 82.378 l 46.016 745.984 l f 0.200 0.200 0.200 rg BT 61.016 693.716 Td /F2 14.4 Tf [(CYBERSECURITY AWARENESS MONTH: WHERE DO SCAMMERS )] TJ ET BT 61.016 676.134 Td /F2 14.4 Tf [(GET YOUR INFORMATION?)] TJ ET 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 61.016 647.326 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Posted on )] TJ ET BT 104.045 647.326 Td /F4 9.0 Tf [(December 10,2018)] TJ ET BT 182.588 647.326 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( by )] TJ ET BT 197.096 647.326 Td /F4 9.0 Tf [(David Wiles)] TJ ET 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 61.016 619.837 Td 0.871 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(In the last article, we provided you with a few tips on how to )] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 312.328 619.837 Td 0.871 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(create strong passwords)] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 RG 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 312.328 618.686 m 412.107 618.686 l S 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 412.107 619.837 Td 0.871 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( in order to make the hacker's job )] TJ ET BT 61.016 608.848 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(harder at accessing your personal data. Using weak passwords is one way hackers and scammers get your information)] TJ ET BT 536.198 608.848 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(?")] TJ ET BT 544.397 608.848 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 588.859 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(But)] TJ ET BT 74.525 588.859 Td /F4 9.0 Tf [(where)] TJ ET BT 100.535 588.859 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( do scammers get your information?)] TJ ET BT 61.016 568.870 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(The graphic below depicts the world where most of us find ourselves, and where scammers might obtain important )] TJ ET BT 61.016 557.881 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(snippets of our personal data that, in many cases, is there for the taking:)] TJ ET BT 63.266 536.108 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(This is your world)] TJ ET 0.500 0.500 0.500 rg BT 63.266 547.876 Td /F1 8.0 Tf [(Image not found)] TJ ET BT 63.266 537.876 Td /F1 8.0 Tf [(http://blogs.sun.ac.za/gergablog/files/2018/10/this_is_your_world.jpg)] TJ ET 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 61.016 515.235 Td /F2 9.0 Tf [(Your personal information is in places beyond your control.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 495.246 Td 0.839 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(The )] TJ ET BT 79.863 495.246 Td 0.839 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(cell phone)] TJ ET BT 125.216 495.246 Td 0.839 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( has become an indispensable communications tool in the 21st century. According to the Pew Research )] TJ ET BT 61.016 484.257 Td 1.037 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Centre, South Africa is placed 24th on the world list with a smartphone usage of 37% of the total population. However, )] TJ ET BT 61.016 473.268 Td 0.487 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(according to a recent global survey by McAfee and One Poll, 36% of those smartphone users have no form or password, )] TJ ET BT 61.016 462.279 Td 0.178 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(pin or fingerprint protection on their devices. This means that if their phone falls into the wrong hands, they risk opening up )] TJ ET BT 61.016 451.290 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(all sorts of personal information such as bank details and online logins to whoever finds or steals the smartphone.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 431.301 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(How much of your personal information have you placed out there on the )] TJ ET BT 353.660 431.301 Td /F2 9.0 Tf [(internet)] TJ ET BT 386.663 431.301 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(?)] TJ ET 0.153 0.153 0.153 RG 85.866 414.128 m 85.866 414.540 85.696 414.950 85.404 415.242 c 85.113 415.533 84.703 415.703 84.291 415.703 c 83.878 415.703 83.469 415.533 83.177 415.242 c 82.885 414.950 82.716 414.540 82.716 414.128 c 82.716 413.716 82.885 413.306 83.177 413.014 c 83.469 412.723 83.878 412.553 84.291 412.553 c 84.703 412.553 85.113 412.723 85.404 413.014 c 85.696 413.306 85.866 413.716 85.866 414.128 c f BT 91.016 411.312 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(Over 30% of South African Internet users share at least 3 pieces of personal information posted on their social )] TJ ET BT 91.016 400.323 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(media profiles that can make stealing their identity easy.)] TJ ET 85.866 392.150 m 85.866 392.562 85.696 392.972 85.404 393.264 c 85.113 393.555 84.703 393.725 84.291 393.725 c 83.878 393.725 83.469 393.555 83.177 393.264 c 82.885 392.972 82.716 392.562 82.716 392.150 c 82.716 391.738 82.885 391.328 83.177 391.036 c 83.469 390.745 83.878 390.575 84.291 390.575 c 84.703 390.575 85.113 390.745 85.404 391.036 c 85.696 391.328 85.866 391.738 85.866 392.150 c f BT 91.016 389.334 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(60% of South African Internet users have revealed they had no idea what their privacy settings are and who could )] TJ ET BT 91.016 378.345 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(see their personal information on those sites.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 358.356 Td 2.283 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Old-style junk )] TJ ET BT 122.597 358.356 Td 2.283 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(mail)] TJ ET BT 140.606 358.356 Td 2.283 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(, invoices, receipts and ordinary letters can still provide scammers with a wealth of information. )] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 61.016 347.367 Td 1.420 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Dumpster-diving)] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 RG 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 61.016 346.216 m 126.527 346.216 l S 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 126.527 347.367 Td 1.420 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( can reveal documents with your ID Number, old bank statements with your account details, old credit )] TJ ET BT 61.016 336.378 Td 0.989 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(cards, unwanted junk e-mail, payslips and tax forms. Even old prescriptions & medical aid claims can provide scammer )] TJ ET BT 61.016 325.389 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(with a wealth of information from your personal information.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 305.400 Td 0.238 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(The modern equivalent of a filing cabinet, a )] TJ ET BT 237.511 305.400 Td 0.238 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(flash disk)] TJ ET BT 279.266 305.400 Td 0.238 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( poses a huge risk to the security of your personal data. Flash disks )] TJ ET BT 61.016 294.411 Td 1.695 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(are small and cheap and can often be forgotten plugged into computers, fall out of pockets and be stolen, providing )] TJ ET BT 61.016 283.422 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(scammers with all the data stored on that device.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Your )] TJ ET BT 82.908 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(bank)] TJ ET BT 103.914 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(, your )] TJ ET BT 129.689 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(employers)] TJ ET BT 174.707 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( and )] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 195.488 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(SARS)] TJ ET 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 195.488 262.004 m 220.490 262.004 l S 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 220.490 263.433 Td 0.382 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( all store and work with your personal information. You have placed a tremendous )] TJ ET BT 61.016 252.444 Td 0.311 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(amount of trust in these organizations to keep your personal data safe. How many people at your bank, for instance, have )] TJ ET BT 61.016 241.455 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(access to your personal data, who can they potentially give that data to?)] TJ ET BT 61.016 221.466 Td 1.380 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Your )] TJ ET BT 83.906 221.466 Td 1.380 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(driver's license)] TJ ET BT 150.464 221.466 Td 1.380 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( has a lot of information on it, including fingerprints, date of birth and ID number. The new style )] TJ ET BT 61.016 210.477 Td 0.899 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [("smart" licenses will hold even more information, and if the license gets into the wrong hands it can be used for identity )] TJ ET BT 61.016 199.488 Td 1.001 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(theft. For instance, in order to open up a cell phone contract, you would need an ID document or driver's license, bank )] TJ ET BT 61.016 188.499 Td 0.791 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(account details and proof of address, almost all of which can be obtained by dumpster-diving or someone rifling through )] TJ ET BT 61.016 177.510 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(your paperwork.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 157.521 Td 0.695 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Finally, your )] TJ ET BT 113.418 157.521 Td 0.695 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(computer)] TJ ET BT 157.619 157.521 Td 0.695 Tw /F3 9.0 Tf [(\(at work or at home)] TJ ET BT 237.925 157.521 Td 0.695 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(\) or your )] TJ ET BT 276.019 157.521 Td 0.695 Tw /F2 9.0 Tf [(laptop)] TJ ET BT 303.019 157.521 Td 0.695 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( holds a huge amount of your personal information. If stolen, )] TJ ET BT 61.016 146.532 Td 0.322 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(the hard-drives can easily be trawled for personal information. If there is )] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 352.995 146.532 Td 0.322 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(no password)] TJ ET 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 352.995 145.381 m 404.338 145.381 l S 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 404.338 146.532 Td 0.322 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [( or a weak password on the laptop it )] TJ ET BT 61.016 135.543 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(makes stealing this information much easier.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 115.554 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(This is your world:)] TJ ET 0.153 0.153 0.153 RG 85.866 98.381 m 85.866 98.793 85.696 99.203 85.404 99.495 c 85.113 99.786 84.703 99.956 84.291 99.956 c 83.878 99.956 83.469 99.786 83.177 99.495 c 82.885 99.203 82.716 98.793 82.716 98.381 c 82.716 97.969 82.885 97.559 83.177 97.267 c 83.469 96.976 83.878 96.806 84.291 96.806 c 84.703 96.806 85.113 96.976 85.404 97.267 c 85.696 97.559 85.866 97.969 85.866 98.381 c f BT 91.016 95.565 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(Since 2007, more money has been made from trafficking financial data acquired by identity theft, than money )] TJ ET BT 91.016 84.576 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(made from drug trafficking.)] TJ ET endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Oblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F4 /BaseFont /Helvetica-BoldOblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 13 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 312.3275 619.0048 412.1074 628.1623 ] >> endobj 13 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (http://blogs.sun.ac.za/gergablog/2018/10/05/cyber-security-awareness-month-creating-strong-passwords/) >> endobj 14 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 15 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 61.0157 346.5343 126.5267 355.6918 ] >> endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (https://www.techopedia.com/definition/10267/dumpster-diving) >> endobj 16 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 17 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 195.4879 262.6003 220.4899 271.7578 ] >> endobj 17 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (http://www.sars.gov.za/) >> endobj 18 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 19 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 352.9948 145.6993 404.3376 154.8568 ] >> endobj 19 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (http://blogs.sun.ac.za/gergablog/2018/10/03/common-passwords/) >> endobj 20 0 obj << /Type /Page /Parent 3 0 R /Annots [ 22 0 R ] /Contents 21 0 R >> endobj 21 0 obj << /Length 5249 >> stream 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg 0.153 0.153 0.153 RG 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 0.702 0.800 0.816 rg 34.016 34.016 543.969 723.969 re f 1.000 1.000 1.000 rg 45.266 450.943 521.469 307.041 re f 0.773 0.773 0.773 rg 0.773 0.773 0.773 RG 45.266 450.943 m 566.734 450.943 l 565.984 451.693 l 46.016 451.693 l f 566.734 757.984 m 566.734 450.943 l 565.984 451.693 l 565.984 757.984 l f 45.266 757.984 m 45.266 450.943 l 46.016 451.693 l 46.016 757.984 l f 61.016 466.693 m 550.984 466.693 l 550.984 467.443 l 61.016 467.443 l f 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg 0.153 0.153 0.153 RG 85.866 752.009 m 85.866 752.422 85.696 752.831 85.404 753.123 c 85.113 753.415 84.703 753.584 84.291 753.584 c 83.878 753.584 83.469 753.415 83.177 753.123 c 82.885 752.831 82.716 752.422 82.716 752.009 c 82.716 751.597 82.885 751.187 83.177 750.896 c 83.469 750.604 83.878 750.434 84.291 750.434 c 84.703 750.434 85.113 750.604 85.404 750.896 c 85.696 751.187 85.866 751.597 85.866 752.009 c f BT 91.016 749.193 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(8.8 million South Africans were victims of identity theft in 2015.)] TJ ET 85.866 741.020 m 85.866 741.433 85.696 741.842 85.404 742.134 c 85.113 742.426 84.703 742.595 84.291 742.595 c 83.878 742.595 83.469 742.426 83.177 742.134 c 82.885 741.842 82.716 741.433 82.716 741.020 c 82.716 740.608 82.885 740.198 83.177 739.907 c 83.469 739.615 83.878 739.445 84.291 739.445 c 84.703 739.445 85.113 739.615 85.404 739.907 c 85.696 740.198 85.866 740.608 85.866 741.020 c f BT 91.016 738.204 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(1 in 3 South Africans do not have a )] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 233.603 738.204 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(password)] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 RG 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 233.603 737.053 m 272.114 737.053 l S 0.153 0.153 0.153 rg BT 272.114 738.204 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( on their cellphones or computer.)] TJ ET 0.153 0.153 0.153 RG 85.866 730.031 m 85.866 730.444 85.696 730.853 85.404 731.145 c 85.113 731.437 84.703 731.606 84.291 731.606 c 83.878 731.606 83.469 731.437 83.177 731.145 c 82.885 730.853 82.716 730.444 82.716 730.031 c 82.716 729.619 82.885 729.209 83.177 728.918 c 83.469 728.626 83.878 728.456 84.291 728.456 c 84.703 728.456 85.113 728.626 85.404 728.918 c 85.696 729.209 85.866 729.619 85.866 730.031 c f BT 91.016 727.215 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(70% of South Africans change their passwords after being compromised. \(So 30% of South Africans don’t do )] TJ ET BT 91.016 716.226 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(anything even after they have been compromised\))] TJ ET 85.866 708.053 m 85.866 708.466 85.696 708.875 85.404 709.167 c 85.113 709.459 84.703 709.628 84.291 709.628 c 83.878 709.628 83.469 709.459 83.177 709.167 c 82.885 708.875 82.716 708.466 82.716 708.053 c 82.716 707.641 82.885 707.231 83.177 706.940 c 83.469 706.648 83.878 706.478 84.291 706.478 c 84.703 706.478 85.113 706.648 85.404 706.940 c 85.696 707.231 85.866 707.641 85.866 708.053 c f BT 91.016 705.237 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(1 in 3 South Africans admits sharing passwords with other people.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 685.248 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(There are 4 areas where we all neglect the security of our personal information:)] TJ ET BT 78.360 665.275 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(1.)] TJ ET BT 91.016 665.259 Td /F2 9.0 Tf [(Indifference)] TJ ET BT 142.028 665.259 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( - )] TJ ET BT 150.029 665.259 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Lack of Feeling)] TJ ET BT 78.360 654.286 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(2.)] TJ ET BT 91.016 654.270 Td /F2 9.0 Tf [(Ignorance)] TJ ET BT 134.027 654.270 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( - )] TJ ET BT 142.028 654.270 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Lack of Knowledge)] TJ ET BT 78.360 643.297 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(3.)] TJ ET BT 91.016 643.281 Td /F2 9.0 Tf [(Inability)] TJ ET BT 125.027 643.281 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( - )] TJ ET BT 133.028 643.281 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Lack of Training or Education)] TJ ET BT 78.360 632.308 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(4.)] TJ ET BT 91.016 632.292 Td /F2 9.0 Tf [(Inaction)] TJ ET BT 125.522 632.292 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( - )] TJ ET BT 133.523 632.292 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Lack of Respect)] TJ ET BT 61.016 612.303 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(What can you do to improve your personal data security and to prevent identity theft?)] TJ ET BT 83.516 592.314 Td 1.011 Tw /F3 9.0 Tf [(When someone comes and knocks on your front door, do you just open the door and let them in? No, you check )] TJ ET BT 83.516 581.325 Td 0.870 Tw /F3 9.0 Tf [(who it is and then you)] TJ ET BT 174.912 581.325 Td 0.870 Tw /F4 9.0 Tf [(decide)] TJ ET BT 203.424 581.325 Td 0.870 Tw /F3 9.0 Tf [( if you want to open your door to them or not. The power of access is in your hands )] TJ ET BT 83.516 570.336 Td 0.000 Tw /F3 9.0 Tf [(because you control the door.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 550.347 Td 1.064 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(The same principle applies to your personal data. Be careful and vigilant and be the gatekeeper of your personal data! )] TJ ET BT 61.016 539.358 Td 0.000 Tw /F1 9.0 Tf [(Control what data is given out and who receives it. You have the control!)] TJ ET BT 61.016 519.369 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [(Next time we will look at the )] TJ ET BT 174.551 519.369 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(modus operandi)] TJ ET BT 239.081 519.369 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( of identity thieves. )] TJ ET BT 61.016 499.380 Td /F1 9.0 Tf [( )] TJ ET 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 61.016 480.891 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Posted in:Phishing,Security,Tips | Tagged:Passwords,Phishing | With 0 comments)] TJ ET endstream endobj 22 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 23 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 233.6027 737.3716 272.1137 746.5291 ] >> endobj 23 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (http://blogs.sun.ac.za/gergablog/2018/10/03/common-passwords/) >> endobj xref 0 24 0000000000 65535 f 0000000008 00000 n 0000000073 00000 n 0000000119 00000 n 0000000312 00000 n 0000000341 00000 n 0000000479 00000 n 0000000582 00000 n 0000010258 00000 n 0000010365 00000 n 0000010477 00000 n 0000010593 00000 n 0000010713 00000 n 0000010841 00000 n 0000010994 00000 n 0000011121 00000 n 0000011232 00000 n 0000011360 00000 n 0000011435 00000 n 0000011563 00000 n 0000011676 00000 n 0000011760 00000 n 0000017062 00000 n 0000017190 00000 n trailer << /Size 24 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R >> startxref 17303 %%EOF passwords « Informasietegnologie
Language:
SEARCH

  • Recent Posts

  • Categories

  • Archives

passwords

Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Creating strong passwords

Tuesday, October 5th, 2021

Before we pointed out that most people underestimate the importance of having a secure password, and still make the mistake of using simple words and numbers as a password.

Keep in mind that your email and social network accounts contain very personal information about you. You must have a strong password to keep your personal life personal, and not become a victim of identity theft. 

  • Using email or your profile on Facebook, Whatsapp or Google, hackers can and do, extract a huge amount of personal data of your personal “online” life.
  • If you use the same password for multiple online accounts, you run the risk, if this password is hacked, of all your online accounts being compromised.
  • Using a personal name for an online account, the name of the city that you live in, the names of your children or your date of birth, give hackers vital clues for attempting to access your personal data.
  • For an average expert hacker, it is always easy to find passwords that are made up of words from the English vocabulary or other languages, using a basic technique called “brute force” or “dictionary” attacks.

What makes a password safe?

  1. A password at least 8 characters long.
  2. The password does not contain information that is easy to find online, such as the date of birth, the telephone number, your spouse’s name, the name of a pet, or a child’s name.
  3. The password does not contain words found in the dictionary.
  4. The password contains special characters like @ # $% ^ &, and numbers.
  5. The password uses a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters.

A trick that the experts use to create secure passwords:

Think of a phrase and use the first letters of the words in the phrase.

  • For example: “In South Africa, a barbecue is called a Braai!”
  • Take the first letters of each word and the password that is created is ISAabicaB!
  • This will be very difficult to guess, but easy to remember.
  • At this point, you can decide to make your the Google password is ISAabicaB!-G,  and Facebook ISAabicaB!-F and your university account  ISAabicaB!-US and so on.
  • There is already a capital letter and a special character (!), so you just need to add a number to finish off a good password like 9-ISAabicaB!-US (9 could be the month you created the password in – for example)

You will have already made your password a lot more difficult to hack, and it can be a lot of fun to create. 

Email

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in News, phishing, Security, Tips | Comments Off on Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Creating strong passwords

Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Where do scammers get your information?

Friday, October 12th, 2018

In the last article, we provided you with a few tips on how to create strong passwords in order to make the hacker’s job harder at accessing your personal data. Using weak passwords is one way hackers and scammers get your information?”.

But where do scammers get your information?

The graphic below depicts the world where most of us find ourselves, and where scammers might obtain important snippets of our personal data that, in many cases, is there for the taking:

This is your world

Your personal information is in places beyond your control.

The cell phone has become an indispensable communications tool in the 21st century. According to the Pew Research Centre, South Africa is placed 24th on the world list with a smartphone usage of 37% of the total population. However, according to a recent global survey by McAfee and One Poll, 36% of those smartphone users have no form or password, pin or fingerprint protection on their devices. This means that if their phone falls into the wrong hands, they risk opening up all sorts of personal information such as bank details and online logins to whoever finds or steals the smartphone.

How much of your personal information have you placed out there on the internet?

  • Over 30% of South African Internet users share at least 3 pieces of personal information posted on their social media profiles that can make stealing their identity easy.
  • 60% of South African Internet users have revealed they had no idea what their privacy settings are and who could see their personal information on those sites.

Old-style junk mail, invoices, receipts and ordinary letters can still provide scammers with a wealth of information. Dumpster-diving can reveal documents with your ID Number, old bank statements with your account details, old credit cards, unwanted junk e-mail, payslips and tax forms. Even old prescriptions & medical aid claims can provide scammer with a wealth of information from your personal information.

The modern equivalent of a filing cabinet, a flash disk poses a huge risk to the security of your personal data. Flash disks are small and cheap and can often be forgotten plugged into computers, fall out of pockets and be stolen, providing scammers with all the data stored on that device.

Your bank, your employers and SARS all store and work with your personal information. You have placed a tremendous amount of trust in these organizations to keep your personal data safe. How many people at your bank, for instance, have access to your personal data, who can they potentially give that data to?

Your driver’s license has a lot of information on it, including fingerprints, date of birth and ID number. The new style “smart” licenses will hold even more information, and if the license gets into the wrong hands it can be used for identity theft. For instance, in order to open up a cell phone contract, you would need an ID document or driver’s license, bank account details and proof of address, almost all of which can be obtained by dumpster-diving or someone rifling through your paperwork.

Finally, your computer (at work or at home) or your laptop holds a huge amount of your personal information. If stolen, the hard-drives can easily be trawled for personal information. If there is no password or a weak password on the laptop it makes stealing this information much easier.

This is your world:

  • Since 2007, more money has been made from trafficking financial data acquired by identity theft, than money made from drug trafficking.
  • 8.8 million South Africans were victims of identity theft in 2015.
  • 1 in 3 South Africans do not have a password on their cellphones or computer.
  • 70% of South Africans change their passwords after being compromised. (So 30% of South Africans don’t do anything even after they have been compromised)
  • 1 in 3 South Africans admits sharing passwords with other people.

There are 4 areas where we all neglect the security of our personal information:

  1. Indifference – Lack of Feeling
  2. Ignorance – Lack of Knowledge
  3. Inability – Lack of Training or Education
  4. Inaction – Lack of Respect

What can you do to improve your personal data security and to prevent identity theft?

When someone comes and knocks on your front door, do you just open the door and let them in? No, you check who it is and then you decide if you want to open your door to them or not. The power of access is in your hands because you control the door.

The same principle applies to your personal data. Be careful and vigilant and be the gatekeeper of your personal data! Control what data is given out and who receives it. You have the control!

Next time we will look at the modus operandi of identity thieves. 

 

Email

Tags: ,
Posted in phishing, Security, Tips | Comments Off on Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Where do scammers get your information?

 

© 2013-2025 Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the page author(s) and content contributor(s). The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by Stellenbosch University.