Three Pillars of Online Defense: How to Stay Safe (and Productive) Online

More than 31% of U.S. adults, when asked, said they go online "almost constantly." As many as 85% say they're on every day. More and more, we are spending almost every waking moment browsing, tweeting, texting, watching, or working online.

The internet has become an essential part of our lives; it's a great resource for work, play, and connecting with others. But it's also not something that is fully understood by the average consumer. One survey had 80% of its respondents claim they don't understand how the internet works. 

If you were alone in the Sahara desert, without any survival experience or familiarity with the area, would you feel safe? So why, for so long, have so many of us felt safe online, when we have so little understanding of how it works or how to protect ourselves?

People want data privacy (but they don’t understand how to get it)

That is changing. 

In Cisco's 2022 Consumer Privacy Survey, 89% of respondents now answered that they care about data privacy, and want to protect themselves and others. 

Critically though, the number of people who are classified as "Privacy Actives" - those who have already acted to shield their data - is only 32%, and it didn't increase at all from last year. 

That's a problem, and it's not their fault. Despite an increasing percentage of the population caring about online privacy, the number of people actively pursuing an answer isn't changing. It comes back to that "explain the internet" statistics - they don't know how. 

It's the fault of education - not just school, but the education of the market as well - and one that needs to change. In the same Cisco report, 79% of people who didn't feel they could effectively protect their data, responded that they couldn't figure out what companies were doing with it. Worse, 44% didn't understand the other choices.

This is about education, so why not start right now? Below, we'll examine three crucial (and simple) ways to protect yourself online, and how to choose an effective service for the job.

The three pillars of online defense

Like the three orders of Greek architecture (Dorian, Ionic, and Corinthian, for those interested), there are three pillars of safety for the average user's internet experience.

VPN

Everyone has seen the ads for VPN services on their favorite streaming site or has been recommended one by their browser, but they may not understand what they do. 

A VPN is a service that encrypts all of the data coming to and from your device, making it impossible for anyone on the same network as you - like your ISP or a public wifi connection - to see what you're doing. It's an important first step in online privacy, and one that everyone should take.

Like Clark Kent's glasses, it completely fools anyone trying to take a peek, but it doesn't make you completely invisible. The data is still going out from your device to the internet and can be seen by anyone between you and the VPN server. 

That's why it's important to choose a reputable service with a strong zero-log policy. What is a zero-log policy? It means that the service doesn't keep track of any of the data that passes through it. Nothing is attached to your profile, your IP isn't logged, and nothing can be traced back to you. 

So when looking for a VPN, don't just grab the first thing that advertises on your favorite podcast. Make sure they offer:

• A strong zero-log policy
• 24/7 customer service in case you have any issues
• Compatibility with your devices
• Servers in multiple countries
• Otherwise, you're building that wall with playdough bricks.
• DNS firewall

DNS firewall

Speaking of walls, the second pillar of online defense is a DNS firewall. A DNS, or Domain Name System, is like the internet's phone book. It's what translates a website's name (like www.example.com) into an IP address that your browser can use to connect to it. 

A DNS firewall is a service that filters the requests made to DNS servers, based on a set of rules that you create. So, if you want to avoid known malware sites, you can create a rule that says "block all traffic to and from any IP address on this list."

It's a simple way to stop dangerous traffic before it ever reaches your device. 

Malware is now the most common cyber attack method - it's not hooded figures smashing away at a keyboard anymore. These are automated programs that can do a lot of damage, and they're only getting more sophisticated. If it's attacking a business, malware attacks can cause millions of damage. 

For individuals, the total might not be as high, but the devastation caused can be catastrophic. Malware can encrypt all of your files and hold them for ransom, it can delete them entirely, or it can use your device to take actions like mining cryptocurrency without you ever knowing. 

A DNS firewall is an important line of defense against these attacks, and it's something that everyone should have.

Password protection

Think of your most common password for a second. Spell it out in your head.

Now realize that you shouldn't have a most common password. They shouldn't be repeated at all. But we have dozens (if not upwards of 100) accounts to keep track of, and who wants to remember that many passwords?

Luckily, there are some smart people out there who figured out a way around this problem.

The solution is a password manager. A password manager is an app (or built into your browser) that stores all of your passwords in an encrypted format. You just need to remember one master password to unlock the app, and then it will automatically fill in your credentials for any site you visit. 

Not only does this make it easy to have strong, unique passwords for every site, but it also means you don't have to remember them! 

Wait, what happens if you lose that master password? Reputable services are solving that issue too, by giving you a recovery key that you need to store securely. 

Credential breaches continue to happen, and phishing scams are one of the most likely ways for your online activity to be breached. Using a password protector is critical to staying safe without decreasing your productivity at all. 

Nothing is built without a strong foundation

There are a lot of other ways people can protect themselves. But if you add the trio of VPN, firewall, and password manager, you create the foundation for a formidable defense against most online threats. 

The open-source community often refers to a "build on top" philosophy, and that's exactly what can happen if you start right. More services can be added to make your shield more comprehensive, but without one of the essentials, there will be vulnerabilities.

Remember this, if nothing else

It's an education problem. But there are ways to help people even if they can't completely understand the problem. Security packages like MonoDefense offer a high degree of protection with a single purchase.

The best way to protect yourself online is to be proactive. Get a VPN to hide your traffic and encrypt your data. Use a password manager to create and store strong passwords. Install a firewall to block incoming connections. Stay safe out there.