Laxness lets in hackers

Comedian Raybon Kan learned to safeguard his files the hard way when hackers accessed his computer. Photo / Hagen Hopkins

Sloppy security allows criminals into our online life.

Kiwis are being urged to be smarter when safeguarding themselves against digital attacks on their online accounts.

Government initiative Connect Smart is highlighting the need for online protection and encouraging people to keep sensitive personal data safe from criminals.

National Cyber Policy Office director Paul Ash said people were using more devices connected to the internet with increased capabilities.

Despite widespread coverage of online bullying and hacking, most New Zealanders think they're immune from the risk.

"The cellphone is now a powerful computer. It is likely to have more power than Nasa when it set two astronauts on the moon in the 60s," Ash told the Herald on Sunday.

"That power enables you to do much more online, which in turn exposes you to potential threats, such as spam, hacking, virus downloads and even people being able to hijack your smartphone or desktop."

A recent Colmar Brunton poll revealed that 83 per cent of New Zealanders experienced a cyber breach but most had not changed their behaviour online.

In addition, 35 per cent of New Zealanders do not use passwords on their smartphones. Nearly half the workplaces surveyed admitted to not using passwords on work phones.

"Given that many of us virtually run our lives from our phones, that's a real concern," said Ash.

Kiwi comedian Raybon Kan was caught out by a phishing scam five months ago and was locked out of his Gmail account. "It's like you've shown up to your house with the key but the locks are changed."

Google quickly shut down the hackers and restored Kan's accounts, but several of the comedian's private folders had already been deleted.

Ash said it was easy to improve online security by making sure all devices were secured with different, complex passwords and antiviral protection was updated.

Online survival tips

• Make sure your desktop computers, laptops, tablets and mobile phones are secured with different passwords.
• Use a combination of upper- and lower-case letters, numbers and characters.
• Store your passwords in a password locker like LastPass
• Use an online password generator like https://identitysafe.norton.com/password-generator
• Change passwords regularly.
• Keep software and computer anti-viral protection up to date.
• Review social media settings.
• Watch out for scams, online fraud and false suppliers.
- Source: Connect Smart