Are You Ready for October - National Cyber Security Awareness Month?

Whether you are an individual consumer or a small business owner, everyone needs to keep track of their Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and/or the PII of their small business customers and employees.

A great way for consumers and businesses to be proactive in protecting their information is to participate in the 10th Annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) this October (read about it here).

NCSAM was created as a collaborative effort between government and industry to help consumers and businesses have the resources to be more safe and secure online.

That said, NCSAM is providing a different cybersecurity theme for each week in October including:

Week 1, October 1-6 Theme: 10 Years & Beyond: General Online Safety & STOP. THINK. CONNECT.
Week one is to raise online safety awareness among all Americans and reinforce the simple measures everyone should take to be safer and more secure online and their understanding that cybersecurity is a shared responsibility.

Week 2 October 7-13, Theme: Being Mobile: Online Safety & Security Week two highlights the need to maintain a focus on safety and security wherever and whenever we use the Internet.

Week 3: October 14-20, 2013 Theme: Cyber Education and the Next Generation of Cyber Leaders Week three highlights the importance of cyber education and workforce development, including the advancement and opportunities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education.

Week 4: October 21-27, 2013Theme: Cybercrime Week four will highlight how people can protect themselves against cybercrime and how to get help.

Week 5: October 28-31, 2013 Theme: Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Week five highlights the need to take every step necessary to protect our critical infrastructure.

Unfortunately, the reality is that consumers and small business owners are challenged everyday by a constant barrage of attacks such as hacking, phishing, pharming, spoofing, caller ID spoofing, spyware, and more on their personal and financial privacy.

At the same time, consumers and small business owners have to be equally aware of the insider threat including family members, friends, and current/former employees and vendors.

While keeping track of where your PII is located can help protect your personal and small business information, there is no one company that can prevent any one individual from becoming a victim of ID Theft or from preventing a data breach of your personal or small business information.

In summary, consumer and small business identity theft can happen at anytime so take advantage of National Cyber Security Month to increase your education and awareness on how your PII and privacy can be compromised.