Data breaches are inevitable heres how to protect yourself anyway

Data breaches are inevitable heres how to protect yourself anywayData breaches are inevitable heres how to protect yourself anywayIts tempting to give up on data security altogether, with all the billions of pieces of personal data Social Security numbers, credit cards, home addresses, phone numbers, passwords and much mora breached and stolen in recent years. But thats not realistic nor is the idea of going offline entirely. In any case, huge data-collection corporations vacuum up data about almost every American without their knowledge.As cybersecurity researchers, we offer good news to brighten this bleak picture. There are some simple ways to protect your personal data that can still be effective, though they involve changing how you think about your own information security.The main thing is to assume that you are a target. Though most individual people arent specifically being watched, software that mines massive troves of data enhanced by artificial intelligence can tar get vast numbers of people almost as easily as any one person. Think defensively about how you can protect yourself from an almost inevitable attack, rather than assuming youll avoid harm.Whats most important now?That said, its unproductive and frustrating to think you must pay attention to every possible avenue of attack. Simplify your approach by focusing on what information you most want to protect.Covering the obvious, keep your software up-to-date. Software companies issue updates when they fix security vulnerabilities, but if you dont download and install them, youre leaving yourself unprotected from malware such as keystroke loggers. Also, be smart about what links you click in your schmelzglas or when browsing the web you could inadvertently download malicious software to your phone or computer, or allow hackers access to your verbunden accounts.In terms of online data, the most important information to protect is your login credentials for key accounts like banking, gover nment services, email and social media. You cant do much about how well websites and companies safeguard your information, but you can make it harder for hackers to get into your account, or at least more than one of them.Reusing login names and passwords is a significant risk.Mihai Simonia/Shutterstock.comHow? The first step is to use a different username and password on each crucial site or service. This can be complicated by sites limits on username options or their dependence on email addresses. Similarly, many sites have requirements on passwords that limit their length or the number or type of characters that they can include. But do your best.The reason for this is straightforward When a bunch of usernames and passwords fall into malicious hands, hackers know its human nature to repeat usernames and passwords across many sites. So they almost immediately start trying those combinations anywhere they can like major banks and email services. A chief information security offic er we know in the banking industry told us that after the Yahoo breach of a few years ago, banking sites were hit with multiple attempts to log in with credentials stolen from Yahoo.Use long passwordsThere has been a lot of research about what makes a strong password which has often led to many people using complex passwords like 7hi5sMyPs4w0rd. But more recent research suggests that what matters much more is that passwords are long. Thats what makes them more resistant to an attempt to guess them by trying many different options. Longer passwords dont have to be harder to remember They could be easily recalled phrases like MyFirstCarWasAToyotaCorolla or InHighSchoolIWon9Cross-CountryRaces.It can be daunting to think about remembering all these different usernames and passwords. Password management software can help though choose carefully as more than one of them have been breached. It can be even safer despite conventional wisdom and decades of security advice to write them do wn, so long as you trust everyone who has access to your home.Use a third line of defenseHave hackers driven us back to the age of the physical key?BautschTo add another layer of protection including against troublesome housemates many sites (Google, for example) let you turn on whats called multi-factor authentication. This can be an app on your smartphone that generates a numeric code every 30 seconds or so, or a physical item you plug into your computers USB port. While they can afford at least some protection, be wary of sites that send you a text with a code that method is vulnerable to interception.With these straightforward steps and the new mindset of thinking like a target who wants to avoid getting hit youll be far less worried when news breaks of the next breach of some companys enormous data files. Bad guys may get one of your usernames, and maybe even one of your passwords so youll have to change those. But they wont have all your credentials for all your online ac counts. And if you use multi-factor authentication, the bad guys might not even be able to get into the account whose credentials they just stole.Focus on whats most important to protect, and use simple but effective methods to protect yourself and your information.W. David Salisbury, Sherman-Standard Register Professor of Cybersecurity Management, Director Center for Cybersecurity Data Intelligence, University of Dayton and Rusty Baldwin, Distinguished Research Professor of Computer Science Director of Research, Center for Cybersecurity and Data Intelligence, University of DaytonThis article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

They got $5,000 raises. How

They got $5,000 raises. HowThey got $5,000 raises. HowI hope youre ready for a little raise.Ask for it welches my advice two weeks ago. I asked for it, and got it welches the response from many of our 9 million members.I thought Id share a couple of the best stories, with names and locations altered to protect their negotiating secrets. First up is ThomasI welches unhappy at my old job, mainly because of the salary. Old Job refused to give me anything more than a token raise, which would have been fine if my actual salary wasnt below my market value i the first place. With two years under my belt there, a security clearance, and incredibly specialized training out of the way, I was making only $3k more than the day I was hired and the day I was hired I had none of those.I was making less than $50k. I told myself I wanted to make low-60s in my new job, which was humble and realistic but would still represent a dramatic increase to me.So I interviewed at competing firms and, after wee ks of interviews at both, coincidentally got two offers in the same day.My first choice company offered $65k. $65k met my goal, and as Im in my mid-20s in the defense industry, I knew the role itself would open many more doors - I knew the small fish in a big pond factor was also worth a lot.I was about to accept but decided to ask for more. Worst they could say is no, right?I recalled advice to Ask for 10-15% more right off the bat. See how they react.So I asked for $72k. It was done instantly, and they didnt bat an eye.I started in August 2016. I went from $46,000 to (currently) $73,000 just by a couple rounds of interview a few times at a competing company.Salary-wise, I completely skipped the 50s and 60s.A 49% increase in salary.Same city, same industry, same exact job.And I all I did was ask.Thomas Thats a terrific example ThomasNext up is DaveHi, Marc,I have an interesting story for you.When I was interviewing with my current employer almost 5 years ago, I had another possibi lity brewing. This was a little weird for me a few years prior I had lost my job and was unemployed for 11 months straight, followed by being bounced through 3 other jobs for economic reasons. Having two employers at once trying to have me felt odd.Anyway, I got the job at what I thought was a reasonable salary $6,000 more than their initial offer and definitely higher than Id ever been paid, anyway and started working. A couple of weeks in, I got an offer from this other company that was very close to what I already had. I told them I couldnt justify leaving the job I had just started and had begun to settle into, for essentially the same compensation.After a little back-and-forth, they said, We dont normally do this, but were going to offer you $5,000 more.I agreed to think it over.A day later I decided to speak with my manager. I told him about the other offer, and said that I didnt really want to leave, but their offer was somewhat compelling. He asked whether I would stay if they could match the other number. I said I would, even if it were just close to being a match. He promised to present it to upper management and I told him that I appreciated his assistance.A couple of days later I was called up to the VPs office to speak with him and my manager. I went in and had a seat.My manager said, Weve talked it over, and I have to tell you that we are notlage going to be matching the other offer. He held a somewhat defeated expression.I sank a little as I processed what this meant Id either leave the job I had (something Id never done) for a better offer and accept burning a bridge, or Id keep what I had and accept losing the extra money.My manager then continued, We ARE going to beat the other offer by $5,000. The VP then said that it makes him proud when a manager comes to him to support their people, because that means to him that they have good people. Handshakes were had. I then had to call the other company to decline their offer.So its almost as if I didnt negotiate at all rather, I let the companies battle it out. I actually said relatively little. And it played out very much in my favor. It all seemed very lucky.Thanks for the emails in helping me to find something better-DaveWhat a terrific job these two members have done in improving their economic situation for themselves.And all it took was asking for it.Good luck with your ask this weekIm rooting for you.

10 surprising ways you may be reinforcing sexism in the office

10 surprising ways you may be reinforcing sexism in the office10 surprising ways you may be reinforcing sexism in the officeMost people have been the victim of workdistributionspolitik incivility at one point or another - from snarky comments from a coworker, rude interruptions or disrespect via email. Some workplaces can be a breeding ground for this kind of uncalled for behavior, but we often assume that its gendered given the power dynamics of men and women in the workplace.Research from a large-scale study indicates that women tend to report experiencing mora incivility at work than their male counterparts- and the perpetrators are quite often from other women. The theory Women may be mistreating other women because they are more likely to view each other as competition for advancement opportunities in companies.The research composed of three complementary studies involving rather large samples of between 400 and over 600 U.S. employees per study, across a variety of service ope rations and time periods. In each study, the researchers consistently found that women reported experiencing more incivility from other women than from their male coworkers. And examples of this incivility included being addressed in unprofessional terms, having derogatory comments directed toward them, being put down in a condescending way, and being ignored or excluded from professional camaraderie.Of course, this isnt good for anybody.In response to incivility experiences, 48 % of employees intentionally decrease their work effort, 47% intentionally decrease their time at work and 38% internationally decrease the level of quality in their work. Plus, 80 % of employees studied indicated that they lost time at work due to merely ruminating about experienced incivility, with 66% indicating that their performance declined and 78 % indicating that they lowered their commitment to their organization. And due to cognitive distractions and time delays - the monetary cost of incivility c an be upwards of $14,000 per employee. That means that there are financial and human well-being-related costs that come of exposure to incivility at work.So how do you know if youre perpetuating incivility toward other women in the workplace? Here are 10 signs that you could be the culprit.1. You address other women in unprofessional terms.This could be in the way you speak with them verbally or in the way you email them.2. You make derogatory comments directed toward other women.Of course, such comments could hurt them and hurt you if/when you lose your own job for it. Derogatory comments can take a much more serious toll on womens well-being, too. The women studied reported lower job satisfaction, lower levels of vitality and increased intentions to quit their job when they were victims of incivility.3. You put other women down in condescending ways.Again, putting anyone down in condescending ways has no place in the workplace.4. You ignore or exclude some women from professional camaraderie.Keeping some women from attending coworker outings like happy hours isnt good for anybody. It affects team bonding that, ultimately, affects productivity.5. You expect other women to be warm and nurturing instead of dominant in the workplace.Society places expectations on women to behave a certain way and, when they dont, theyre criticized for it. Having expectations for other women is just as wrong as others who have expectations of you.6. You compete with other women for advancement opportunities by putting them down.Its one thing to put your own best foot forward in competition, but its an entirely other thing to knock down your competition to get yourself ahead.7. You assume that assertive women are ruthless.It may also be the case that behauptung assertive behaviors are viewed as ruthless by other women, the researchers write. Given that women are more likely to compare themselves against each other, these behaviors may signal competition, eliciting incivility as a response.8. You place judgement on women for taking charge.Our research suggests that when women acted more assertively at work - expressing opinions in meetings, assigning people to tasks, and taking charge - they were even more likely to report receiving uncivil treatment from other women at work, the researchers explain. We suspect that it may be that women acting assertively contradicts the norms that women must be warm and nurturing rather than emphatic and dominant. This means that women who take charge at work may suffer backlash in the form of being interpersonally mistreated.9. You speak poorly of some women with other women in your workplace.Gossiping has no place in the workplace, both because its inappropriate and because it distracts people from the work they should be focused on completing instead.10. You dismiss other womens professional opinions.When you have no regard for other womens professional opinions, youre silencing them and holding up the glass ceiling tha t hinders all women.AnnaMarie Houlis is a multimedia journalist and an adventure aficionado with a keen cultural curiosity and an affinity for solo travel. Shes an editor by day and a travel blogger at HerReport.org by night.This article first appeared on Fairygodboss.