3 Ways You Can Protect Your Personal Information Online

The number of reported data breaches in the U.S. increased to a record 3,205 in 2023, up 78% from 2022 and 72% from the former peak in 2021, according to the nonprofit Identity Theft Resource Center, The Wall Street Journal reported.

That means personal data and sensitive information remain at high risk, and unfortunately, many Americans aren’t doing enough to protect themselves.

Although people want more online security and data regulation, they ignore simple measures that can help them safeguard their information, a new survey from U.S. News and World Report found.

Related: Why Data Privacy Is the Key to Building Consumer Trust in Marketing

Read on for three online security strategies you shouldn’t overlook if you want to keep your online accounts and devices safe:

1. Creating strong passwords

Strong passwords can be the first line of defense against unauthorized access to your sensitive personal information.

Despite that fact, only 22% of survey respondents said they changed their passwords on a regular basis, and 55% admitted to using the same ones for multiple social media platforms.

Related: AI Can Crack Most Common Passwords in Less Than a Minute — Here’s How to Set a Safe One

2. Adjusting privacy settings

Some 77% of Americans have little or no trust in leaders of social media companies to publicly admit mistakes and take responsibility for data misuse, according to a recent survey from Pew Research Center.

Updating privacy settings allows users some control over their personal information, yet only 41% of users manage these settings “sometimes” — and 11% don’t manage them at all, per U.S. News and World Report’s findings.

Related: How a Privacy-Centered Social Media Platform Acquired Millions of Customers With No Paid Marketing

3. Using a VPN

A VPN — or virtual private network — creates an encrypted connection (or “tunnel”) between your device and a remote server run by the VPN service.

VPNs offer an important layer of security when someone connects to a public WiFi network, but nearly two-thirds (63%) of people said they don’t use them when connecting to public networks, potentially putting their personal information at risk, U.S. News and World Report’s survey revealed.