Governor Kristi Noem proclaimed October as Cybersecurity Awareness Month in South Dakota.
This year’s theme is "It’s easy to stay safe online."
The governor said her proclamation is meant to increase the public’s awareness of digital security.
Jeff Clines is Commissioner of the state’s Bureau of Information and Telecommunications. He said there are steps you can take to help avoid common online threats and fears.
“The more you dive into it, when they talk about billions of attacks, and all of this type of stuff, it can get daunting and it can get overwhelming. But that’s why when we talk about the staying safe online, we try to simplify," Clines said. "If you keep your software up-to-date, you have a secure password, you're cautious about where you browse, and you question links and different URLs, you're generally going to be fine online."
Clines said one common cyberattack involves phishing for personal data through social media. He also warns people against using common information in their passwords.
“They have these questions and things and it's meant as an engaging thing, but that’s a hacker’s gold mine. They can go out there and see, ‘oh look, their favorite color is this, their dog’s name is this, they were married on this month,’ Those hackers can take that information and then say, ‘hey, I am going to try to hack your password,” said Clines.
Clines said passwords have become a focus of research for best avoiding bad actors online. He said people should consider using "pass phrases" instead of traditional passwords.
“We’re finding that longer passwords, over 16 characters, even if they’re just a few dictionary words strung together, are more secure than a shorter password that has the complexity on there,” said Clines.
October has been recognized as Cybersecurity Awareness Month since its presidential declaration in 2004. Each October the declaration offers a different awareness focus and provides updates on ever-evolving cybersecurity threats.
