Today we live in a techno – driven era where we tend to behave like robots and rely on computers to an extent that we have the uncontrollable urge to constantly use technology. We depend on technology to perform everything from mathematical calculations to communicating with friends and entering into relationship. Technology, on one hand has made work easier and productive, but on the other hand, has a negative impact on our mental health and make us prone to cyber bullying. The usage of technology has increased the level of crimes and criminals. We are increasingly dependent on technology and store most of our crucial data in the software, which face threat of information leakage, security breaches, data theft and other cyber attacks. Moreover, Cyber criminals are becoming smarter than ever leaving us to think about different ways and means of security. Cyber criminals often commit crime by targeting computer networks or devices.

Cyber security is not only important for companies and government, but also for individuals as they are victimised for revenge porn, cyber stalking, harassment, bullying and child sexual exploitation which has become a major part of daily news. Cyber security is the pressing need of the hour because it protects all categories of data from theft and damage. This includes sensitive data, Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI), Personal information, Intellectual property, data and Governmental and Industry Information Systems. Cyber security is of great importance to individuals, Companies, Banks and Government. As is rightly said by Stephane Nappo, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and few minutes of Cyber – incident to ruin it”. Cyber security is the most powerful weapon to fight Cyber crimes in a technology enabled world today.

Cyber security is about protecting networks, programs, data, other personal information and also from virus attacks. Its main role is to prevent hackers from gaining access to information or using despicable actions that would put the users information at risk. Cyber security is of increasing concern for the government, military, private sectors, law enforcements and individuals. Due to advancing technology it has become easier for hackers to exploit vulnerabilities in operating systems, hardware etc. Despite the control measures taken vigilantly, many cyber attacks form a part of news headlines everyday.

Children fall easy prey to the cyber criminals. They attract the young children and teenagers using legitimate e- mail accounts and social media sites like Facebook, Twitter or Instagram in an attempt to gain access to their networks. They try to gather personal information about the children and their families like address, Aadhar Card number etc, pretending to send them Birthday gifts which would be nothing but malware. Thus, it leads to breach in trust.

We hear a lot about cyber crimes and have a great chunk of information about it. The question is not about getting abreast, but the concern is to focus on the ways and means to protect the networks and our personal data from theft and illegitimate use. I, thought of writing on this topic not only as a part of my project, but also as a member of the world of technology by doing a bit on the topic having already researched a lot upon.

So, how one can be safe from the Cyber crime ????? Does Cyber security really work?? I postulate that some of the given tips can help protect our networks from theft. ☆ Instead of simple passwords we can use strong, unique passwords and making them complex lowers the risk. Avoid using your name in the password. “Passwords are like toothbrushes. They are best when new and should never be shared.” (Kara Kirschner-Brooks CUDE; Learning & Development Specialist). ☆ We must keep our softwares updated and use an anti-virus software to protect our systems from malware . ☆ Encrypt and backup your data. ☆ We ought to be careful while using public Wi-Fi. ☆ Do not give your personal information unless it is safe and well secured. ☆ Be cautious while visiting unknown websites or URLs. If you have doubt, then do not open it.

CONCLUSION : Cyber security is one of the most important aspects of the fast-paced growing digital world. The threats of it are hard to deny, so it is crucial to learn how to defend our systems from them. Securing the data is a big concern to government, companies and individuals because the world is becoming closely interconnected and networks are being used to share critical and secret information and cyber criminals hack this information and misuse it. “Cyber security helps us to mitigate the theft though not completely curb it. ” Taking everything in account I feel that we still have a long way to go to assume complete protection of the data but stringent actions taken against cyber attackers can help subside the ever increasing cybercrime. As the quote says “Report data spills before molehills becomes mountains or small leaks become fountains.” (info@nativeintelligence.com)

Written by Mehveen Fatima