Data Breach Fatigue
Do you find yourself unbothered by yet another data breach notification? Maybe you feel like no matter what you do it doesn’t work, so why keep trying? Ignoring security alerts, or digital hygiene like changing passwords regularly? Congratulations, you have data breach fatigue (aka privacy fatigue). Don’t worry, we are all feeling it. But here’s the deal, it’s REALLY important.
Why should you care?
There are consequences to ignoring those data breach notifications. Sensitive information like your social security number, banking info, and passwords that get leaked can result in identity theft, bank fraud, etc. It really isn’t fun to deal with untangling those messes.
Simple ways to protect your data.
If you get a breach notification, change the password for that site/account right away. If you reuse passwords(please don’t reuse passwords!), you will need to change the password anywhere else you’ve used it. We highly recommend using strong unique passwords for each account/site. A password manager will create a unique, complex password and remember it for you!
Set up multifactor authentication (MFA). There are authenticator apps you can use that will send you a push notification for authentication. Many sites and apps are set up with the option of built-in MFA. Just check your settings to see if it’s there.
Check your credit reports often. You are entitled to get a free copy of your credit report from each of the three credit bureaus every 12 months. Annual Credit Report. com is the only site that is authorized to process orders for the free credit reports you are entitled to.
If you want to take it a step further, you can freeze your credit. This prevents any new credit lines from being opened. You’ll need to contact each of the three bureaus (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion) to put a freeze on your credit and to remove it.
We get it, it’s exhausting to try and keep up when it feels like breaches are happening every other day. Start small, just fix the password situation first. You don’t have to do it all at once, every small action can make a big difference when it comes to data privacy and cybersecurity.
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