Amid countless phishing and ransomware attacks on individuals and organizations alike, many of you are worried about your privacy—and rightfully so. According to the president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center, Eva Velasquez, "In 2021, there were more data compromises reported in the U.S. than in any year since the first state data breach notice law became effective in 2003."
That's a shocking statistic if you consider how long the internet has been a prevalent part of our lives. And if the current trend in data breaches continues, we can expect instances to keep rising.
Say goodbye to your privacy.
You're probably wondering what this has to do with your virtual assistant. Well, let me ask you this: do you share your passwords with your VA? More importantly, how do you go about that?
Got you thinking, didn't I?
Look, I'm not saying don't trust your virtual assistant. The point I'm trying to make here is there is a right and safe way to share passwords (and it's not by sending them via email or creating an excel sheet with a passcode on it).
I'm sure you're eager to find out how you can safely share passwords with your virtual assistant, so without further ado, let's get started.
Step 1: Start With a Clean Slate
We begin with the Great Password Reset of 2022! Sounds daunting, I know. Changing all your passwords isn't necessarily difficult, but recalling all the platforms that you use for your business and their respective login credentials can be pretty tedious. Regardless, you have to do this if you want to ensure that your privacy is secure.
Take note of this important reminder: You have to do this yourself.
Step 2: Enable Two Factor Authentication
Alright, since you're changing your passwords anyway, it's a good idea to enable multi-factor authentication (if you haven't already). This helps mitigate unauthorized access to your accounts even in the event of a password breach.
Make sure to choose the verification option that is readily available to you so you can quickly coordinate with your VA if they need to log in to something that's yours.
Step 3: Use A Password Manager
After changing your passwords, we suggest logging them into a password management system like LastPass. Password managers can do a lot of things aside from storing and sharing login credentials.
They can also revoke items, autogenerate strong passwords, autofill entries on trusted devices, and more. When choosing a platform, look for one that is easy to navigate and—most importantly—secure.
Bonus Tip: Should You Change Passwords Regularly?
Protecting your information is an ongoing battle, and you can never be too lax. But there is another way to keep your data private. While most security experts will tell you to change passwords every three months, there are those who think differently.
Dave Hatter, a cyber security consultant at intrust IT, said in an interview with Business Insider,
"Unless you become aware of a password breach, there is no need to change your passwords regularly if each is a strong, unique password. This is even more true if you are using two-factor authentication."
So what's the alternative to having to constantly change passwords?
Make sure each password you use is unique. This will prevent other accounts from getting compromised if one gets hacked.
As soon as you detect a security breach, change your password for that account immediately. Make sure to log out of all devices as well.
See Steps 2 & 3.
Later!
Now that you know how to safely share your passwords with your virtual assistant, you're probably wondering what's next? Well, you can take a look at our other blog posts for more insightful articles.
Sources:
https://www.bankinfosecurity.com/data-breach-trends-global-count-known-victims-increases-a-18543
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-often-should-i-change-my-password
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