How to Protect Online Privacy?如何保护网络隐私？

It might be tempting to forget the warnings that told us， “Data is the new gold”， but with reporters still emphasizing that he who owns data owns the future， maintaining some level of online privacy is a must.

In this article， we’re going to give you some ideas and tips about how to best protect your privacy online and retain control over your financial and personal information.

1. Use a password manager to protect yourself

The average person has 70—80 passwords to remember. As a result， many of us end up reusing the same old passwords or relying on passwords that are easy to remember， but equally easy to guess.

A password manager gives you a safe place to store your passwords while monitoring their weakness and repetition and helping you create new， strong passwords. Many password managers are free， up to a point at least.

2. Use a VPN1 to stay safe on public networks

Public Wi-Fi networks are the virtual equivalent of the dodgy neighborhood， where cybercriminals， hackers， and other nefarious characters are loitering on every corner. Using a public Wi-Fi connection exposes you to a variety of cyber threats.

An unsecured public Wi-Fi connection could redirect you to a malicious website. Even if you only visit secure HTTPS2 sites， some of the apps on your cell phone could be connecting to HTTP3 sites without you knowing it. If you’ve not installed the latest security patches for your operating system， your device could come under attack.

3. Use a private browsing mode when surfing the web

While a private browsing session4 doesn’t offer the same level of security as a VPN， it does mean your browsing history won’t be saved and any cookies generated during the session， deleted.

Private browsing mode is “largely ineffective at blocking third-party monitoring， meaning that your internet service provider can still track your online activities”. It will， however， stop anyone else using that device from finding out where you’ve been or accessing sensitive information， like your online banking password.

It’s a step in the right direction but， if you want to protect your privacy online more effectively， you could try using an anonymous browser， or let a VPN shroud you in a cloak of anonymity.

4. Stop adware by using an ad blocker

Adware was sent to try us. It may be designed to gather information so we only see relevant adverts in our social media feeds， but it’s gone way beyond the call of duty5.

Some adware is so persistent， it will follow you through cyberspace， tracking your digital footprint and gathering up crumbs of information about your location. Once it’s finished， it will       inundate6 you with adverts that interrupt your browsing experience， devour your mobile data， and eat away at7 your device’s battery life.

Standalone adblockers like AdBlock Plus and uBlock Origin， are available as free browser extensions and some antivirus software and VPN providers bundle8 ad blockers into their suite of cybersecurity tools.

5. Update your privacy settings on social media account

You may have， inadvertently， given all sorts of apps and websites permission to interact with Facebook using your profile. You can， if you have a morning to spare， use Facebook’s Off-Facebook Activity tool to track them down and close them down but， I warn you， it’s not easy but it is worth it.

It’s advisable to tweak a few settings to improve your online privacy. These include：

· Not using location data when posting

· Preventing users from tagging you in photos

· Hiding your email address and phone number

· Turning off personalization and data

· Not giving Twitter permission to access your address book

6. Turn off your location

Turning your location on your cellphone is understandable if you’re looking for a specific address or want to find the nearest coffee shop. Once you’ve found what you were looking for， however， you should turn your location off again.

Leaving it open could mean giving unknown companies and peeping Toms9 more insights into your life that you’d give your best friend.

Turn your location off or use a VPN to hide it behind a fake IP address. That you’ll both protect your privacy online and opt out of “the greatest trick technology companies ever played”—“persuading society to surveil itself”.

7. Limit your applications’ access to personal data and settings

Before you agree to an app collecting data or monitoring your whereabouts， think about whether it really needs that information to operate—and whether you want to share it.

Some apps are rather more cagey. The Washington Post ran an article pointing out that， on the average iPhone， apps are using trackers to collect and share around 1.5GB of data over 30 days.

While you can stop them to some degree by limiting their access， a more effective solution is to install a different type of app altogether—one that will stop trackers instead of activating them.