Tips and Tricks: A Few Easy Steps to Improve Your Email Security

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While the speed and convenience makes email an indispensable business communication tool, email also presents an ongoing security risk. Spammers, scammers, and hackers are always coming up with new ways to use email as a way to distribute viruses and collect our confidential information.

Follow good password practices:

1. Make it difficult for hackers to crack your password. You can create a smart password by incorporating capital letters, numbers, special characters and using more than six characters. An example of a strong password is: $aF3M@!l.
2. Use different passwords for company and personal email accounts. Make sure that critical accounts have the strongest passwords.
3. Write down passwords and keep them in a safe place away from your computer.

Use email wisely:

1. Never give personal or professional details over email or pop-up screens. These are almost always phishing attempts.
2. Be careful when opening attachments and downloading files from emails, even if it looks like the email is from someone you know.
3. Always use security software to scan attachments before opening them. When in doubt, throw it out.
4. Avoid posting your work email address on forums, websites and blogs unless it is necessary. It will be grabbed by a hacker.
5. Don’t accept email calendar invites that look suspicious or are from people you don’t know.
6. Do not reply to spam emails.

Protect your system:

1. Use comprehensive and up to date email security software at all times.
2. Keep an eye out for suspicious email activity and notify your IT department if you have any concerns or notice strange happenings on your computer.
3. If you think you may have clicked on a malicious link or attachment, shut down your machine and inform your IT department right away. This may minimize damage by preventing the spread of malware.