Freelancer's Guide to Cybersecurity

Today, the topic is zombie accounts, those accounts that keep on keepin’ on long after you’ve forgotten them. Problem is, they haven’t forgotten you. Your zombie accounts are likely more of a threat to your cybersecurity than the apps you use every day! Here’s why and what you can do to protect yourself from the … Continue reading "Episode 10: Zombie Accounts Kill Your Cybersecurity"

Strong passwords are your first line of defense against bad actors. They protect your bank accounts, your medical records, your client accounts, but they can’t do it all on their own! They need to be protected and managed to be secure. So why are your passwords weak and written on notes stuck to your computer? … Continue reading "Episode 9: Manage Those Passwords!"

Stretching your Wi-fi to its limits? Is the Wi-fi set up that served your freelance work load well now struggling to handle the pandemic reality of multiple people working and studying from home? Does your Wi-fi’s strength limit where people can work and study in your home? The Wi-fi that worked reliably for my freelance … Continue reading "Episode 8: Boost Your Bandwidth"

Many freelancers cut corners by using versions of software designed for the “home” user market, rather than versions for small businesses. This can be a problem when the software doesn’t have the functionality they require, especially security functionality. What can be worse is when freelancers double-down on this budget approach and load freeware onto their … Continue reading "Episode 7: The Danger of Cutting Corners"

The FBI has described the surge in IoT devices as giving bad actors—the formal term for hackers—“a virtual drive-by of your digital life.” These devices are vulnerable to bad actors and open all devices in the home to hacking. If you work from home, you need to protect your home office from your smart home. … Continue reading "Episode 5: Protecting Your Home Office From Your Smart Home"

On today’s podcast, we address the question: Are your consultants and employees broadcasting your company secrets from their home offices? Are your contractors, consultants, and employees adequately protecting your sensitive information and intellectual property when they work from home? As we have reported before, smart home devices with speakers—for example, Siri, Alexa, Amazon Echo, Google … Continue reading "Episode 6: Are Your Consultants & Employees Broadcasting Your Company Secrets From Their Home Offices?"

In today’s episode, I review password and encryption options so you can select and apply the best option for securing your projects. This topic is especially relevant now. With the sudden shift to remote work back in the spring, cybercrime has spiked as bad actors have taken full advantage of these security vulnerabilities that have … Continue reading "Episode 4: The Freelancer’s Guide to Passwords & Encryption"

On today’s episode we ask, “Have you been pwned?” More likely than not, yes you have, which means information about you is available on the dark web. What’s the dark web? It’s where data—from passwords to social security numbers and credit card information—is bought and sold, fueling cybercrime. It’s the big data for what has … Continue reading "Episode 3: Have You Been Pwned?"

The Freelancer's Guide to Cybersecurity isn't a scary true crime podcast—although one colleague did tell me the Freelancer's Guide to Cybersecurity webinar "scared the sh*t" out of her—but it is a brief weekly podcast that will teach you things like how to learn exactly what information about you is for sale on the dark web, or how frequently your digital assistant mistakenly turns on and records you during the day, stuff like that. The Freelancer’s Guide to Cybersecurity shines a bright light on all the digital problems you didn't know you had...and how to fix them.

Why do people who no longer work with or for you have access to your online accounts? Whether they are project files in the cloud or your website, why do people with whom you no longer collaborate have access? In this episode, we discuss why that's risky and how to quickly and easily "change the locks" to safeguard your business and your privacy.