AAA offers advice about cyber theft for virtual learners

COLUMBUS - As students get ready to start fall classes, many will be hitting the virtual books, leaving them vulnerable to cyberattacks and identity theft. AAA offers advice to protect families from these attacks and help them recover should one occur. "Cyberattacks are more common than people may think," said Rob Zahn, chief information officer for AAA Ohio Auto Club. "According to the University of Maryland, hackers attack every 39 seconds for an average of 2,244 times a day. It is important to protect your home network, so that your own personal data is not hacked or exposed to criminals." AAA's Information Technology experts recommend virtual learners consider these common security tips when using their computer at home: Spot phishing attacks - Phishing is when an attacker attempts to fool you into clicking on a malicious link or opening an attachment in an email. Be suspicious of any email or online message that creates a sense of urgency, has bad spelling or addresses you as "Dear Customer." Only go to official websites and never from a link unless from a trusted source.Avoid being tricked - Be suspicious of unexpected emails. If an email or website asks you to perform actions on your computer or asks for personal or sensitive information, that should be an immediate red flag that something may not be legitimate and needs to be confirmed.Protect home networks - To secure your wireless network at home, make sure that you are using a strong password. Your provider can also offer instructions to further secure your network based on your specific router. Accept computer updates - One of the most effective ways you can protect your computer at home is to make sure both the operating system and your applications are patched and updated. Enable automatic updating whenever possible.Use strong, unique passwords - Create a strong password consisting of at least 10 characters that includes a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Make sure each of your accounts has a separate password.Enable two-step verification - Two-step verification is when you require both a password and code sent to your email or generated by your mobile device - consider enabling this two-step verification on your home devices and any of your outside accounts (i.e. Facebook, etc.).