How to Protect Data from the Dark Web – Guide
The dark web looks as scary as a horror movie, but unfortunately it’s a troubling reality. The activities carried out there can harm your finances or, even worse, your identity. It’s good to be cautious because it means you’re ready to learn how to take cover. Take some time to learn about safe practices when browsing the Internet. Historically, the dark web was conceived as a network for professionals such as government officials and journalists to collaborate on confidential projects and share proprietary information. Today, predators, criminals, and identity thieves often lurk on the dark web. The Dark Web gets its name because it hides tracking information such as IP addresses and URLs, allowing all activity to essentially take place in the dark. It is a hidden area of the internet where stolen social security numbers can be traded or sold for the purposes of identity theft and fraud. Dark websites cannot be found with traditional search engines or visited with traditional browsers. Dark website URLs use router software that prevents search engines and crawlers from indexing your links. This software also prevents tracking – which makes the dark web a perfect place for illegal activities. The websites are typically used to provide criminals and dissidents with anonymity, sale of contraband, and access to taboo information. Financial institutions, including CFNA, and their partners often search the dark web for this information to determine whether their institutions or customers have been compromised.
How to Protect Dark Web Data
Witt offered several tips on how individuals and businesses can protect themselves against account takeover and credential theft.
Use a password manager.
Password managers like Keeper, Zoho Vault, True Key and many others generate complex, unique and encrypted passwords for all the websites you need to access. There are many types of password managers, but no matter which one you choose, they go a long way toward eliminating the problem of password reuse, according to Witt. In combination with other security steps like two-factor authentication, password managers can create significant obstacles for cyber criminals trying to break into your accounts.
Be pro active.
Witt recommends allocating part of your budget to external credential and identity monitoring systems, which reduce the risk of your data being disclosed after a breach. Often companies don’t know they’ve been breached until the damage has been done. Criminals can stay in breach data for 12 to 18 months before exploiting it, giving your data time to roam clandestinely, Witt said. However, they can share or sell breach data on the dark web without acting on it, which gives companies the opportunity to find their stolen material before criminals use it. “You want to constantly monitor your credentials and identity for exposure,” Witt said.
Protect employee personal accounts
As people tend to use the same password on multiple accounts, if an employee’s personal email account is hacked, cyber criminals can gain access to your company’s networks using the same password. Witt suggested that companies extend security protection to employee accounts to lessen the risk of harm from password reuse. He also recommends extending these protections to employees’ family members to protect their larger online networks. “Most people will use the same password for many aspects of their identity. They will use it for their work mail, for their personal email, etc,” he said. “Knowing that an exposure in one area can definitely affect another.” When an employee or customer whose credentials have been compromised logs into their systems, “if a password is exposed, criminals are likely to use it.”
Automate account takeover prevention.
Witt advocated taking choice out of the equation when it comes to password and account protection by automating every possible step in the process, such as scanning the web for credentials, comparing credentials with known compromised material, and monitoring account creation for signs of fraud alert. Automation using technology such as SpyCloud’s ATO Prevention software, Imperva’s ThreatRadar, or LexisNexis’ ThreatMetrix ensures that your protection activities are constant, current, and as routine as possible. “Whatever technologies you use, integrate them into your environment and automate the process. Anything that relies on a human doing something will be left out or put on the back burner,” said Witt. “Automate your security measures whenever possible.”
Final note
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