BANDUNG, unpas.ac.id – Indonesia is at the 4th rank of most internet users in the world, following to China, India and the United States of America. Reported from aptika.kominfo.go.id in 2021, internet users in Indonesia have been increasing 11% from the previous year, from 175,4 million to 202,6 million.
This increase is certainly needed to be balanced with the knowledge of having activity in digital space, including about digital security, digital culture, technical skill in operating digital media, as well as digital ethics.
In surfing on digital media, the thing that is often overlooked by internet users is the digital footprint. They take various forms, including internet search history, posts (text, photos, videos), locations visited, as well as cookie access approvals on the device.
Netizens should get to know the effect as well as positive and negative implications of digital world. Digital footprint is really possible to be used by irresponsible party to tear down a person’s reputation. So, how could we protect this digital footprint? These are the steps of doing it, according to the teacher of Informatics Engineering Department, Ferry Mulyanto, ST., M.Kom.
- Deleting the History of Cache and Cookies
Cache dan cookies will appear when we are going to delete the history on the browser. It has function to save the website data which has been visited, while cookies are for saving the username and password data while logging in. Cache and Cookies should be soon deleted to reduce the risk of people knowing what websites which we have visited and accessed to.
- Deleting the Old Account
You should only need to delete the account of social media, game, or any other accounts which have not been used anymore. You often register for many accounts by enclosing full name, as well as putting your cellular-phone number in, but in the end, the account being made is not taken care of because it is not used properly.
The account is still saving your personal data. Therefore, if possible, deleting it would be necessary. If you cannot do it and do not know how to do it, replace the data attached to the account to the fake ones.
- Separating the Profiles for Work and Personal
In order not to get confused in organizing profile’s account, such as email, make ones which specifies for certain function. Do not rely on one account for all your needs, because apart from being risky, it is also ineffective and inefficient. Create separate emails for work, social media, as well as personal use.
- Actively Organizing the Account
You should need to organize the account properly and pay attention to whom the account gets attached to. It often happened that breaking-in cases via email occur because the account is linked to the website which can be used for doing cyber-attack.
- Protecting the Main Email
If you have created several accounts based on your needs, do not forget to take security actions. Several email providers provide account security feature, such as two-step verification and others.
- Protecting the Device being Used Often
You should need to protect your smartphone, PC/ laptop, or computer, by using pin and two-factor authentication if possible. Do not use easy-to-guess passwords and pins, such as birthdays or the names of those closest to you.
- Avoiding Logging in with Social Media Account
There are a lot of mobile and desktop application which make it easier for the user to register the account by only one single click. For example, by using the email and social media account. It seems that the step is indeed simple, but you also indirectly allow the website (owner/party) to access the data from your social media account.
- Limiting Sharing Personal Data
Sosial media makes many people connected to each other. With one single post, other people/follower will easily find out where you are, when the event takes place/time, as well as with whom you are now. You should need to understand the after-effect of your post after being shared.
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