5 Everyday Things You Should Be Aware Of To Improve Your Digital Literacy

The theme for Cyber Security Awareness Month this week is digital literacy. Digital literacy refers to how you find, evaluate, and produce clear information using digital platforms. Keep reading to learn how to improve your digital literacy every day. 

Canadians spend a lot of time online. On average 43.5 hours/month which makes us the biggest users of the internet worldwide. Because we’re online so much Canada just opened its first national center for Cyber Security— a proactive center dedicated to cyber security research (something that does not exist in the US). But just because we have a Cyber Security Center doesn’t mean we can stop being #CyberAware. This means you need to recognize the threats you’ll encounter.

McAfee antivirus is an easy way to block these threats by protecting your computer and privacy. Plus, you’ll get access to McAfee’s free extension that protects against typos, flags dangerous downloads, and blocks phishing.

Even with a trusted antivirus you still need to be aware of what you could come across: 

• When you’re surfing online you can come across adware without recognizing it. Sometimes it will be in your search results pretending to be FixMeStick support.
• More aggressive adware can lock your screen while prompting you to call a number. Never call the number! Use the keys CTRL + ALT + DEL to close the task, check out how here.
• Malicious downloads can automatically save on your computer if you visit the wrong site. Make sure you run monthly FixMeStick scans to make sure nothing snuck on to your computer.
• Be careful when you type in website names. Hackers buy domain names that are a letter away from popular sites then by typosquatting they bring you to their page and can get you to give away personal information.
• Attackers have targeted Safari and Microsoft Edge and can redirect you to fake web pages without you noticing. Download the latest updates for these browsers and run regular FixMeStick scans to make sure your computer is safe.

Digital literacy is about judgement. If someone is offering something that sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Check out the resources for Canadian Cyber Awareness week here!