We live in a technologically advanced era where Hacker Ransoms are becoming common. How do you Protect Your Privacy as A Blogger, unfortunately, I am not excluded from the horrors of working online?
Over the years I have taken steps to be spared the horrors of working online as a blogger. Every so often we hear about cyber attacks and it makes sense to have *Cyber Security Insurance that protects your website from malicious attacks.
One aspect of blogging that can be truly terrifying is knowing your personal details are bared to the world. When I started blogging I knew I wouldn’t be blogging anonymously but I didn’t know how much I would be sharing either. Early on I learned the hard way to ensure you Protect Your Privacy as A Blogger.
In this post, our aim is to share ways to Protect Your Privacy as A Blogger and highlight handy tips to follow.
11 Ways to Protect Your Privacy as A Blogger
Blogging is an exciting adventure more so when you get paid to share what you love. But one thing that we almost always forget is protecting our privacy as bloggers and this more than using another name. In this article, I will list 11 ways in which you can Protect Your Privacy as A Blogger and safeguard your personal information.
But, before I proceed with these 11 handy tips, I wanted to talk a little about cyber liability insurance. I can hear crickets as people ask, *What is Cyber Liability Insurance and do I even need it as a blogger? The answer to this comes in two parts;
- What is Cyber Liability Insurance? – It is a type of insurance that “is used to guard your business against internet threats such as a cyber-crime hack.” Over the last couple of years, we’ve seen big firms and corporations targeted and customer information was stolen. It is therefore paramount to ensure, any businesses big or small working online to have adequate protection of their systems in place.
- As a blogger, do I need Cyber Liability Insurance? – Yes, and No, the yes part is agreeable to those whose blog is a business. And the no is for those whose blog is a hobby and no important personal details have been shared. Most insurance companies that offer cyber liability would always tailor the cover to your specific business needs.
Now that we’ve explained the cyber liability insurance, it is time to focus on protecting your privacy. Below we’ve listed 11 handy tips that you can use to safeguard your information.
1. Domain Privacy
When registering your website domain, you have to provide your personal details which appear in whoswho. All a someone has to do is type your domain in and they will know your personal details. Adding domain privacy when registering ensures your host is listed as opposed to yourself.
2. Back-up your Website
Though not a no-brainer but often overlooked, always back up your information somewhere secure. I am always wary about visiting unsafe websites and never enter my details on them.
3. Use a P.O
Though in the UK we are not familiar with P.O boxes, the Royal Mail does offer this service for a small fee. In most marketing emails, your address is required is this is one ways your information can be retrieved. Use a P.O box in all email marketing and even receiving products.
4. Use unique Passwords
Like most people, I used to use the same passwords from almost all my social media. Now each social media account: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter all have their own unique passwords. Make sure your passwords do not have anything personal in them that can be easily guessed.
5. Limited Personal Details
As bloggers we often provide our personal email addresses and names online, be careful about what you provide. When I started blogging, I created a email address specifically for the blog. I try and limit how much personal information I provide to people especially those I meet only online.
6. Click Smart
Over the last few years one of the most common traps hackers have been setting are click baits. We all love a good story, a good gossip but that can be a trap for hackers to steal your sensitive information. Be smart about what you click on and not only on your laptop but mobile too.
7. Firewall and Antivirus
For most of us bloggers, we get a million and one spammy comments and various login attempts. One thing to make sure you have is internet security, laptop firewall, antivirus and ways to blog malicious attempts.
8. Be Careful what you share
Most blogs are personal and we share personal information about our lives. Be careful what you share, make sure you don’t share exact locations, or even share pictures of your home. Be slightly
9. Respect other People’s Privacy
Most of us have people who know about our blogs and it’s important to protect their privacy. The same is expected of them when they share your content on social media. I often prefer to tag someone’s social media accounts rather than their personal accounts.
10. Be up-to-date with Software
Almost all software updates are designed to close up any bugs or breaches that might made customers vulnerable. It therefore makes sense to ensure you’ve updated to the latest software updates.
11. Separate Blog and Private Life
When I started blogging, I wanted to tell anyone who would listen and even work colleagues. I learned the hard way that this is a bad idea, it is always best to keep these two separate.
Though blogging is a great side hustle and for some the major job, it has its challenges. One of which is cybersecurity and ensuring we keep our personal details safe online. As technology advances, hackers evolve with it and become much smarter in how they get your personal information.
Stephanie says
We put a lot of our information out there don’t we, so thank you for the great tips
Sarah Ann says
Some great advice here. I’m always wary of what I share online, even more so as a blogger. Online safety is something we all need to take more seriously.
Amy - All about a Mummy says
Fantastic tips here. I need to double check I have all these areas covered.
Annette, 3 Little Buttons says
Great tips for bloggers! It’s so easy to forget how careful you have to be these days online. Definitely logging out of systems is a good idea and one that lots of people seem to forget.
Zoe says
Great advice, thank you. I will definitely take on some tips, my passwords could all do with a change around I think,
sonia cave says
I am quite careful with how much personal detail I include on everything related to my blogging work. I never even new this sort of insurance existed though, so thank you for the eye opener!
Sabina Green says
These are brilliant tips, such a useful list for us bloggers. I will have to bookmark this!
Treasure Every Moment says
This is such an important post and it has certainly inspired me to think about ensuring my privacy is even further protected – thank you 🙂
Michelle Murray says
Thank you so much for this. I have bookmarked as I need to up my safety definitely
Melanie says
Such a brilliant post with many top tips. A good one is about the PO address xx
Sarah says
Hacking is far too common nowadays, it’s scary! So these are really great tips to every blogger to follow. Thank you for sharing x
Stephanie says
Love these tips – I think I need to ensure my site is secure this year as I’m pretty sure it’s no where near as secure as it could be! x
Katie says
These are great tips and a lot of them are things I’ve never really thought about until now!
Katie xoxo
Kaz | Ickle Pickles Life and Travels says
These are great tips. I have been blogging for almost five years and probably share too much info online. Kaz
Super Busy Mum says
This is a great list – thanks so much for sharing!
Charlotte says
Thank you for sharing such an interesting post. I think it is so important to regularly update your password.
Mellissa Williams says
One simple tip when travelling as a blogger is to always log out when you are using a shared computer. I’ve seen peoples emails so many times when in a hotel as they don’t log out of their email system.
Miranda says
That is a great point, I too have seen that and wondered why someone wouldn’t log out when using a shared computer.
Jasmine says
Thanks for sharing! You brought up some very valuable points, some that I thought of and others that I didn’t!!
Miranda says
Thank you and hope the ones you didn’t know will come in handy one day in the future.