We have completed Module 2-2 “Cybersecurity awareness: real cases”, taught by Silvia Barrera Ibáñez, in which she provided us with answers to some of the most frequently asked questions regarding cybersecurity awareness.

You don’t have to be famous or have a lot of money in the bank to fall victim to fraud. We must be aware that we are within the reach of any criminal. Nowadays, thanks to encryption tools, we can safely surf the Internet and there is no risk in connecting to public networks, as these are secure protocols. However, it is strongly recommended to change the default passwords of the routers, as they can be accessed.

All of us have many applications and each requires a username and password. Having the same password for all services increases the risk. Computationally speaking, a strong password is at least 12 characters long, and it is advisable to use a combination of alphanumeric and special characters, as well as upper and lower case. A “familiar” pattern can be used, and passwords can be changed over time. It is not advisable to write them down in a notebook, since they can also be stolen from one’s home and, in that case, in addition to taking the devices, they would also be able to access them.

Citizens most commonly fall victims to fraud on their mobile phone. These devices store information, files and access to apps and services that require internet. Mobile phones account for 60% of all security breaches. The recommendation is not to store any sensitive information on the device. In case of loss, it is recommended to call the operator to deactivate the associated SIM card, as well as change the passwords of apps and online services, access remotely to delete and block (IMEI) the means of payment associated with the device, especially if they are contactless.

It is important to do one’s research and use common sense, and to be very careful with alarmist articles. There is a huge variety of disseminators and useful documentation on the internet, whether in the form of text, video, etc.

The full article can be read on News-365.

For further questions on this topic, don’t miss the opportunity to enroll in C1b3rWall Academy 2021 for free. In addition, you can learn more about internet security by doing the Master in Cybersecurity at the University of Salamanca. Registration is now open for the course in February 2022.

Posted by Juan M. Corchado

Juan Manuel Corchado (15 May 1971, Salamanca, Spain) is Professor at the University of Salamanca. He has been Vice-Rector for Research from 2013 to 2017 and Director of the Science Park of the University of Salamanca. Elected as Dean of the Faculty of Science twice, he holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Salamanca and a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from the University of the West of Scotland. He leads the renowned BISITE (Bioinformatics, Intelligent Systems and Educational Technology) Research Group, created in 2000. Director of the IoT Digital Innovation Hub and President of the AIR Institute, J. M. Corchado is also Visiting Professor at the Osaka Institute of Technology since January 2015, Visiting Professor at the Universiti Malaysia Kelantan and Member of the Advisory Group on Online Terrorist Propaganda of the European Counter Terrorism Centre (EUROPOL). J. M. Corchado has been president of the IEEE Systems, Man and Cybernetics Society, and academic coordinator of the University Institute for Research in Art and Animation Technology at the University of Salamanca, as well as researcher at the Universities of Paisley (UK), Vigo (Spain) and the Plymouth Marine Laboratory (UK). He currently combines all his activity with the direction of Master programmes in Security, Digital Animation, Mobile Telephony, Information Systems Management, Internet of Things, Social Media, 3D Design and Printing, Blockchain, Z System, Industry 4.0, Agile Project Management, and Smart Cities & Intelligent Buildings, at the University of Salamanca and his work as editor-in-chief of the journals ADCAIJ (Advances in Distributed Computing and Artificial Intelligence Journal), OJCST (Oriental Journal of Computer Science and Technology) or Electronics MDPI (Computer Science & Engineering section). J. M. Corchado mainly works on projects related to Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, IoT, Fog Computing, Edge Computing, Smart Cities, Smart Grids and Sentiment Analysis. He has recently been included in the board of trustees of the AstraZeneca Foundation, along with other health professionals and researchers recognised for bringing scientific knowledge closer to society.

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