Festus Aubyn, a Security Analyst
Dr Festus Aubyn, a Security Analyst, has urged Ghanaians to be mindful of personal information they share on social media.
He warned that putting out too much personal information on social media such as Facebook and WhatsApp would enable cybercriminals to exploit them for their personal gains.
Dr Aubyn gave the caution in his presentation at a virtual seminar organized by the Graduate Students’ Association of Ghana (GRASAG), Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), branch on the theme, “How to Stay Safe and Still Do Your Job”.
The one-day seminar was designed to equip students on the need for them to be security conscious in their daily activities.
“The internet can be a valuable source of information, education and entertainment. However, you should be cautious online with the amount of personal information you publish, especially for social networking purposes,” Dy Aubyn stated.
“Popular sites, such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, allow individuals to create a personal profile and interact with other users online. Additionally business networking sites, such as LinkedIn, also require personal profiles to include an individual’s work history.”
He noted that whilst these were useful tools to communicate with others or advertise your professional skills, publishing personal information online presents potential risks, saying “You may be susceptible to identity theft as dates of birth, full names, home addresses and email details are key pieces of information for identity fraudsters”.
The Security Analyst said in addition, information regarding employment, personal or work addresses, family members, hobbies or vehicle details were also extremely valuable to criminals.
“You should regularly review your privacy settings for these sites otherwise some or all of your personal profiles could be seen by a large audience unknown to you.”
He cautioned against dating emanating from social media conversations, declaring that “You can be killed or exploited (naked pictures), young girls are mostly victims. Advise your children and yourself”.
With regards to the use of mobile devices, Dr Aubyn said mobile devices hold a variety of personal details such as online banking, emails, diary, contacts, social media, and photographs, “some of us have all our passwords stored on our phones and people have become victims of cyber fraud and attacks”.
“To keep your device secure, you should use all its security features. These include setting up device tracking and creating screen and SIM passcodes.”
Dr Aubyn, who urged car owners and drivers to switch off the Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking when it was not required, also appealed to the public as much as possible to void using public Wi-Fi hotspots as they might not be secure.
“You should consider disabling location services on your phone, if appropriate, and review privacy settings to prevent someone fom tracking your movements and identifying your home address or place of work.”
Mr Iddi Yire, President, GRASAG-GIMPA, urged the participants to be security-minded in their daily activities.