How many online accounts do you have?
Do you know how many online accounts you have? A 2013/14 survey by research firm Radicati found that by 2019, email users will have around two accounts on average - and these probably control a bunch of different accounts with sensitive information1. Think about it: You've got multiple social media profiles, online bank accounts, subscriptions to a handful of different shopping sites - not to mention all the accounts you use for work. Spread these across all your devices and it ends up being a mind-boggling number.
Instead of calling the internet a web, it's probably more accurate to call it a snowball - you might have started with just one account, but over time the number has grown and grown until you can't keep track of them all. But not knowing how much data you have out there can be a dangerous game. If any of your accounts share passwords, secret questions or even addresses, crafty crooks can crack into your sensitive information.
In fact, research from Veda shows that 17 per cent of Australians are aware that they've been a victim of online identity theft - and many more could be at risk without even knowing2. So how can you avoid being one of them? Here are some ways you can be clever with all your accounts.
Do a clear out
It's not just your home that needs a good clean out from time to time - your online personas do too. In all likelihood, you're probably not even aware of how many accounts you've got going at one time. The first thing to do is take a step back and do a stock take. Sure, it sounds as enjoyable as pulling teeth, but sift through your email. Newsletters, promotions, discounts, reminders - all these bits and pieces link back to you and your personal details. Even the ones gathering dust can put you at risk!
You can figure out which accounts are the most important by the types of information they use. Does your favourite online store have your credit card on file? Put it in the most important basket. The same goes for anything with bank details. Now comes the fun bit - take a high pressure hose to your accounts. This might mean erasing it completely, or just clearing out all the details you're not comfortable with.
Lock it down
Let's be honest - when you're tying to juggle dozens of accounts at once, you're probably using the same password for a number of them. Unless you've got a memory like a steel-trap, keeping these combinations at your fingertips can be tricky. You might even be tempted to use a single password for all of your logins! In this case, you might as well leave your front door, back door and car keys under a large, blinking, neon welcome mat.
Reusing passwords across multiple accounts can land you in hot water, particularly when it comes to incredibly sensitive logins like online banking. Even if you're a whiz at creating hard to crack passwords, not all internet sites are secure - hackers regularly break into firms' databases. Take Adobe, for example - the 2013 hack compromised tens of millions of accounts across the globe, and nearly 2 million were using '123456' as their last line of defence.
Once you've culled your accounts, it should be easier to protect them. Think about it this way: The more important the data, the bigger the wall should be. Try a different combination for all your top-priority logins, while less important ones can have a slightly simpler mix.
If you're worried about all your account details falling into criminal hands, let Identity Watch be your eyes and ears. We'll keep an ear to the ground, making sure your details don't pop up in unexpected places, like illegal forums where personal information is traded. If your information is found we'll alert you so you can take action before further damage is done.
1 Email Statistics Report 2015-2019. The Radicati Group, Inc. March 2015.
2 Identity Theft in Australia: The Current Problem. Veda Group. Omnibus Survey by The Leading Edge. n = 1511 Australians aged 18+. March 2015.
3 Top 100 Adobe Passwords with Count. Stricture Group. November 2013.