Cybersecurity discussion with a higher education IT leader
Cybersecurity is a large part of cybersecurity, making it important knowledge to have when navigating online. She emphasized that modern life exists in both physical and digital spaces, and because of this new reality every online user has to learn how to practice ethical online behavior, protect their digital identities, and build resilience against cyber threats. As someone that grew up with online gaming I have learned some of these skills to keep safe, but I learned a lot through this video in areas I hadn’t previously thought about in terms of safety.
Cybersecurity implicates everyones lives, as the companies we trust with our private data could face detrimental cyber attacks. There have been massive data breaches in the past exposing billions of personal records, with google often having to warn you when a password you use was proved to be revealed by hackers. Cyber attacks are a genuine concern since they can disrupt infrastructure and cost billions of dollars to resolve, not to mention harming hundreds of millions through stolen data. In 2024 there was a breach aptly named the “Mother of All Breaches” where 26 billion records were leaked, with information from LinkedIn, Twitter, Weibo, Tencent being exposed. I added an article by CyberNews to the bottom of this post if anyone is interested in learning more. I had previously heard of data breaches but was unaware how much I was implicated regardless of how careful I am online. I learned private data can very easily be publicised, forcing me to be more aware of these breaches and make efforts to minimize my risk when they occur.
Cybercrime is a growing illegal industry due to its low barrier to entry, high profitability, and difficulty to prosecute. The attackers are usually individuals, organized groups, or nation states, which I was more surprised than I should have been to learn.
Phishing scams account for 90% of successful cyber attacks, with many forms of this method existing. Students are usually targetted through offers that sound too good to pass up, creating a sense of urgency that insentivises people to act quicker. These threats continue to get more convincing through AI, making them harder to spot. An easy way to detect this category of scams is being skeptical of offers that sound too good to be true, ask you to pay right away, and have suspicious email addresses.
The IT leader stresses that students should:
- Use strong passwords
- Enabe two factor authentication (2FA)
- Avoid suspicious downloads
- Be cautious with private data
I am glad I already abide by these guidelines, but must now keep up to date with the world of cybersecurity to ensure my digital safety. I have learned a lot about what I can do to keep my data from getting exposed.
https://cybernews.com/security/billions-passwords-credentials-leaked-mother-of-all-breaches/