Online privacy in 2020 seems to be a rising theme. However, very little people do anything about it. Learn how you can take your privacy to another level.
Do you take your privacy seriously? Would you leave your front door open for strangers to have a peek inside? Would you leave your bank details on a piece of paper lying around on your front doorstep?
It can be easy to think that it’s just the internet and it doesn’t really matter but your privacy online is just as important as your privacy in real life. As more and more of our business goes online we must learn to protect ourselves thoroughly.
Here’s what you need to know about online privacy in 2020 and how you can protect yourself.
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Privacy in the Era of Mass Surveillance
Hero or villain, traitor or martyr? Like him or loathe him Edward Snowden exposed mass government surveillance. Governments around the world conduct mass surveillance on their citizens. They use programs to keep a record of websites that you’ve visited and listen in on your phone calls and webcam sessions.
The U.S and European governments argue that this is done in the name of keeping people safe and foiling terrorist attacks while privacy campaigners argue it’s the biggest invasion of civil liberties we have ever faced.
Whatever you think about it, it’s important to recognize that any steps you take to protect your privacy online from fraudsters and hackers will not prevent the government. Governments of every color in conjunction with big tech companies will collect information on you. This is one of the biggest privacy 2020 concerns.
Use Privacy Conscious Browsers
You can, however, stop big companies tracking you around the web by using privacy-conscious browsers that prevent websites from tracking you and block annoying adverts. These will stop you from getting contextual adverts.
One of the best known is Duck Duck Go. While this is a great browser, particularly if you also use its private browsing or ghost browser feature, it can be quite restrictive blocking many pages you might need to click on.
Remember that if you need advice on clearing your browsing history or recent searches then be sure to check out this website: https://setapp.com/how-to/delete-recent-searches
If you don’t want to download it as a browser then you can use Duck Duck Go as a search engine alternative to Google but your browsing history might still be recorded.
Use a VPN
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is one of the best ways to protect yourself on the internet. It disguises your Internet Protocol (IP) address that you can pretend you are in a different country to the one you are currently in.
A VPN is helpful if you want to access location restricted content, e.g if a show is only showing on Netflix in the U.S but you are currently in the U.K. But it’s also helpful for privacy as it prevents websites from tracking your location and gathering details about you.
Without an IP address, it’s difficult for websites to track you. This is internet privacy in 2020.
Use a Password Manager
Do you have the same password for everything? It’s understandable why you do, you don’t want to get locked out of everything. But that can prove an unwise decision if a hacker were to ever get hold of one of your passwords. They would then have access to everything.
A password manager can make up strong passwords for you that are different for every website. Rather than being something memorable to you they will often be a string of letters, numbers, and symbols that are very hard to guess. The password manager will automatically input your passwords for you every time and you can usually use touch ID or Facial recognition to unlock your password manager.
Don’t Have A Public Social Media Presence
If you are not intending to be famous or you don’t work in an industry that requires it then ask yourself what the point is in having a public social media presence.
If you don’t need one there is little point in broadcasting yourself online, you could easily become a target for those want to hack your information.
If you are going to post publicly be sure to hide any information about yourself such as your location or other personal information.
Avoid Having Important Conversation on the Internet
This might sound like paranoia but if you don’t speak or write about something on the internet there is no chance that a hacker could ever access that information.
If you have something sensitive to say to a friend like medical details, a secret, bank details or passwords then have those conversations in-person, if you can. Use apps like Facebook Messenger and Whatsapp for arranging meetups or sharing silly cat videos.
This will make your real-life conversations more lively and give you peace of mind that anything you say is strictly between the two of you as there is no record of it on the internet.
Online Privacy in 2020: Worth Thinking About
The internet is the biggest technological innovation for the past one hundred years and it’s changing the way we think, communicate and interact with each other. It’s no surprise then that how we handle our personal data online is a big issue.
But there are some basic steps you can take to secure your privacy online. Use a password manager to ensure you have the strongest set of passwords and always browse the internet using a VPN as well as browsers such as Duck Duck Go that stop websites tracking you around the web.
If you can, avoid having a public social media presence which can lead to you giving away personal details that hackers can use.
If you are interested in reading more about online privacy in 2020 and how to protect your privacy online be sure to check out the rest of our site.
