Here are some simple privacy tips to protect yourself from those Cybernasties.
Spring Cleaning
Conduct regular spring cleaning of your files and emails. Cleaning out your Gmail account can be quite useful. At least take a backup of it and maybe throw out the stuff you don’t need.
Generic Subject Lines for Emails
When you send emails that may have sensitive personal information, do not include personal information in the subject line. Yes, cybernasties can read the whole thing, but they sometimes only look at the subject lines. A subject line of, “Social Insurance Number 123 456 789 John Doe” is very bad.
Rambling Emails
Don’t write rambling rants in your emails. You can never tell what you might accidentally disclose if you write an 8-page missive on why red smarties are the best. Stay on Subject, better still one subject per email. Keep them short, and to the point.
Calendar Privacy
Don’t publish your calendar generically. This seems obvious but you might be surprised how many folks simply publish their calendar on Google or Outlook without thinking about it. How many calendars do you have? Google, Apple, Work, and others? Many folks have many calendars, and what are the privacy settings on those?
At Work
Don’t publish personal information if you use any social media, but even social media at work. It is just a bad idea. Remember that Facebook is now your reference letter, all new employers will check that feed and any other social media feeds. Privacy also includes telling your mates not to post compromising photos of you on their social media. Don’t tag you in photos, this is bad as well. It makes it easy for folks to see just how much tequila you can drink before throwing up.