Your digital footprint: Steps to personal data privacy

January 28 is Data Privacy Day in the US and Canada, but a look at recent news headlines indicates that concern about information leaks and dataveillance is top of mind for web users every day.

A 2013 survey by ISACA confirmed that “consumers are conflicted about the trade-offs among privacy, security and convenience factors,” when we join social networks, download smartphone apps, purchase “smart” home appliances, and participate in eCommerce.

Data breaches

As we should be. Recently, millions of consumers were put at risk for credit card fraud and identity theft when database hacks revealed credit card and password information at Target, Neiman Marcus, and Adobe.

And in the wake of a wave of Internet-connected washing machines, televisions, and fitness bracelets launched at CES 2014, experts warn that such items “open a Pandora’s Box of security and privacy risks that cannot be ignored.” Could your tweeting scale or texting houseplants really be hacked? Experts say yes indeed, they can. Case in point: a recent cyberattack resulted in more than 750,000 malicious emails sent from compromised smart home appliances including a tweeting fridge.

Digital tracking

Not long ago, Apple suffered a public relations nightmare dubbed “locationgate,” when it was revealed that iPhones were collecting and transmitting user location data and storing it in an unencrypted file on the device.

More recently, concerns about geolocational data privacy came to the forefront when Ford executive vice president Jim Farley confirmed “we have GPS in your car, so we know what you’re doing.” Despite a quick apology and retraction, the internet exploded with stories warning about the privacy implications of those data trails left by connected cars.

What you can do

So what steps can you take to protect your digital footprint? Here’s some of the most frequent suggestions from privacy experts:

• Think twice before sharing your birthday, home address, phone number, or your location on social sites. Since these personal tidbits are used to verify identity for forgotten password retrieval, having them posted on the social web can make you vulnerable online.
• Opt out of participating in the data-tracking used to create targeted advertising on Google, Facebook and the like. This step may help to reduce the amount of information that is being collected about you online.
• Avoid using open wifi in public places, or if you must, at least be aware that everything you do online is visible to a third-party stranger.
• Secure your data with a better password and consider enabling two-step verification on your email and other web accounts  (such as Dropbox, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon.com, and LinkedIn). A mobile phone is required for activation.
• If you share your mobile phone or tablet with kids, (or they have their own), ensure you’ve configured the mobile device permissions and privacy settings (for Android, for iOS).

Any use of a mobile device or participation in e-commerce or social networking online results in what Deborah Estrin famously described as a digital breadcrumb trail of small data traces. Rather than avoid engaging digital culture altogether, on National Data Privacy Day take these digital precautions to manage and better secure the personal data online about you and yours.