Individuals

Helping Oregonians Stay Safe Online

Let’s make the internet safer for everyone

All Oregon residents need to protect themselves from the digital threats we face in today’s world – from hackers to scammers to ransomware and malware, not to mention growing concerns about the dark web. Compounding the problem is the rise of social media where we overshare our personal information, compromising our privacy and opening the door to fraudulent activities.

How big is the problem? In a recent survey, almost 50 percent of respondents indicated they definitely or most likely were victims of cyber abuse – everything from online harassment to ID theft. Even more telling, nearly 80 percent of respondents indicated that family or friends have experienced cyber abuse of one form or another.

Unfortunately, cybersecurity awareness is at best an infrequent topic of conversation for most people. As shown in the research, just 6 percent of families have regular conversations about cybersecurity issues, with an additional 20 percent indicating that it’s a topic that comes up from time-to-time. The conclusion from this and other research is obvious: individuals and families are failing to even minimally protect themselves from cyber attacks.

The good news? Keeping yourself and your loved ones safe online is achievable. Here in Oregon and on this site, we have a wealth of information, software tools and industry professionals on tap to help keep you and your loved ones from becoming cyber crime victims. Cybersecurity for individuals and improving cybersecurity for all Oregonians starts with awareness of the risks and taking advantage of the available resources. And remember, we’re all in this together.

News

Stay current with the fast-changing cyber world.

Resources

Find what you need to stay safe online.

Events

Connect with the cyber community, get informed.

Help

Be more secure online with these tips.

Spotlight Profile

Lewis Howell

Lewis Howell, CISSP, Founder & CEO, Hueya, Inc.

Lewis Howell is founder and CEO of Hueya, Inc. an Oregon-based company that helps empower people to secure their online world. Hueya is leading the charge to protect individuals and families, employees and businesses against cyber abuse including identity theft, identity fraud, cyber crime, and cyberbullying. Hueya's online safety tools, scans, and software help people make more informed decisions about what they share and click.

Years of extensive security research experience have made Lewis a thought leader in cybersecurity and how humans intersect with technology. Inspired by his desire to protect his own family online, Lewis is passionate about exploring new paradigms for personal digital health and safety.

Lewis believes the human is the biggest and easiest target for cyber criminals  because we overshare information. To highlight the problem, Hueya recently released the Hueya Report 2017: Cyber Abuse and the Human Factor, a new report and survey that raises awareness about cyber abuse and personal online security, and highlights trends in social engineering.

Lewis began his technology career hacking away on a Commodore 64 in 1984. This early interest in computers sparked his passion for technology, a passion that led him through the dotcom era with jobs at major companies. His career has spanned roles as systems engineer and CIO, and teaching courses about technology at the university level. He also started multiple companies in the IT and security space. His expertise in security and hacking—combined with his passion for understanding how people work and making them safer online—are at the epicenter of Hueya, Inc.

 

Hueya logo

“Basically, all of us are at risk. Since we are so communicative, social, and trusting, we overshare too much information, making life far too easy for cybercriminals. People tend to have a lax attitude toward their personal online security and the vast amounts of personal data they are willing to share—information that can be accessed by anyone, anywhere in the world. At Hueya, we want to fix that.”

Lewis Howell

Individuals Resources

While cybersecurity efforts often seem to focus on things like software updates, most cyber abuse is preventable through awareness and good cybersecurity hygiene. Phishing scams and weak passwords are still behind most successful cyber attacks. Educating people on how to protect themselves and spot would-be hackers goes a long way toward keeping Oregonians safe online. You’ll find plenty of resources here and across the web.

Stop. Think. Connect.

Cybersecurity information from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

FDIC

Consumer protection from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Connect Safely

Non-profit organization dedicated to educating individuals and families about safety, privacy and security.

internetmatters.org

Non-profit dedicated to helping parents keep children safe online.

Electronic Frontier Foundation

Advice on surveillance self-defense with numerous guides and tutorials.

Help for Individuals

Here are nine cybersecurity basics everyone in Oregon can implement today to protect their data, privacy and online security.

  1. Share with care

    Be careful about what you share on social media and review your privacy settings (not everyone in the world should be able to your family photos).

  2. Protect your data

    Backing up your computer is your first line of defense against a disaster.

  3. Update your software

    Apply software updates on a regular basis, including your operating system and all applications

  4. Email scams

    Distrust communications even from trusted vendor until you can verify whether it’s a scam or not.

  5. Phone scams

    Scammers and social engineers use public data about you to their advantage and they sound very legit. Hang up and call the institution back at a verified phone number.

  6. Passwords

    Use complex passwords you can remember and do not use anything in your password (or password hints) that you might have shared on social media.

  7. Multi-factor authentication

    More and more companies offer multiple ways to identify you. When offered, be sure to take advantage of the extra protection.

  8. Credit Monitoring

    This is an effective way to see in real time if someone is attempting to take financial advantage of you or your family. If you have not frozen your credit – go ahead and do that as an added layer of protection.

  9. Hack Yourself

    Type your name in Google to see what comes up. In many cases you can choose to op-out and limit the information being published online about you.

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