–Oversharing on Social Media
Yes, your avocado toast looks delicious. No, the internet does not need your full daily schedule.
Bad Idea Posts: “Headed to Vegas for 7 days! House is totally empty lol”, “Here’s my new driver’s license pic!” or “Here’s my kid’s school, their name, and what time I pick them up!”
When you overshare – you’re giving strangers a free guide to your life.
Simple Rule: If you wouldn’t shout it to a room full of random people, don’t post it.

–Posting Private Details Online
Info You Should Never Post on Social Media and/or Random Websites: Your full birthdate Your home address Your phone number “We’ll be out of town all week!” Work stuff that’s meant to stay at work.
That’s not “content.” That’s “please stalk me” energy.

–Photos That Leak Your Location (Metadata)
When you take a picture, your phone usually hides extra secret info inside the file called metadata.
That can include:Where the photo was taken (exact GPS location), The time and date, The device you used – and sometimes even your name.
So that “cute selfie at home” might also be saying – “Hey strangers, here’s my house on a map!”
What To Do: Turn off location / geotagging in your camera app. Before posting pics, remove metadata using tools like: ImageOptim (Mac) or EXIF Purge (Windows)

–Sending Sensitive Stuff in Text or Basic Chat
Regular text messages (SMS) and many chat apps are not safe for: passwords, credit card numbers, bank details & private photos.
If someone hacks your phone company or your messages – they get all of that like a free snack.
Better Option: Use an app like Signal. It uses end-to-end encryption (translation: only you and the other person can read it, not apps, not hackers, not your phone company). Turn on disappearing messages, too – so old chats auto-delete instead of sitting there forever.

–Not Using a Password Manager
If your password strategy is: “I just use the same one everywhere” or “I add a 1 at the end if I need a new one”…you are in danger, my friend. Use a password manager like Bitwarden.
It will: Create strong, random passwords for every account, remember them all for you & lock everything behind one master password
Don’t: Use passwords from “Top 100 Most Common Passwords” lists
For Important Stuff: Turn on Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for email, banking & your password manager itself. Even IF someone gets your password – they still need your code or device.

Ignoring Software Updates
Those “Update Available” popups? They’re not just there to annoy you. Updates often fix security holes that hackers already know about. If you delay updates – you’re basically saying: “Yes, I’d like the buggy, hackable version, please.”
Do This: Turn on automatic updates for your operating system (Windows, macOS, Linux), your browser & your antivirus.

–Trusting Incognito Mode Like It’s Magic
Incognito mode is not invisibility mode.
It Only: Stops the browser from saving your local history & deletes cookies when you close the window.
It Does NOT: Hide you from your internet provider, websites you visit, your job’s network admin, governments or logged-in accounts (Google, Facebook, etc.)
Incognito Is Great For: Not showing your weird searches to people using the same device.
For Real Privacy : You need bigger tools like Tor Browser & a trusted VPN.

–Using Non-Private Browsers
Browsers like Chrome & Safari are “privacy-light” & “ad-money-heavy“. They collect data so they can send you “better” ads (translation: track everything you do).
Privacy-Focused Alternatives: LibreWolf – Firefox, but with extra privacy tweaks. Brave – Blocks trackers & ads by default. Tor Browser – Routes your traffic through multiple relays so it’s very hard to trace you. Tor is overkill for everyday cat videos, but great when you want maximum anonymity. Personally, a beefed up Firefox is what I use. Add a few plugins to Firefox and it is everything you need in 1 browser. As a backup I use a newer browser called Helium.

Searching Everything With Google
Google is powerful – but it also saves your searches, builds a detailed profile about you & uses that to blast you with targeted ads
Superior Alternatives: DuckDuckGo – Doesn’t track you. Startpage – Google results, minus tracking. Qwant – Privacy-focused search engine based in Europe
Just change your default search engine in your browser and Boom! Instant upgrade.

–Plugging In Random USB Drives
“Free USB from that event? Cool, let me just—” No. Stop. Abort.
A malicious USB drive can: Install a keylogger to steal your passwords, Encrypt your files and hold them for ransom, Steal files silently and/or Turn on your webcam or mic
Pro Tip: If you don’t know where a USB came from: Do. Not. Plug. It. In.
If you have old USB drives you do control, use them safely – there are tons of fun, useful things you can do with them instead of turning your PC into a hostage.

–Using Public Wi-Fi With No Protection
Public Wi-Fi is like a public bathroom: use it, sure, but don’t touch anything you don’t have to.
On a sketchy or unsecured network, attackers can:Spy on what you’re doing, Steal your login details, Redirect you to fake websites, Inject malware into your traffic
Use a VPN when you’re on public Wi-Fi. It encrypts your internet traffic & makes it unreadable to snoopers on the same network
TOP VPN Options: PrivateInternetAccess, ProtonVPN, MullvadVPN (recommend PrivateInternetAccess)
Skip most “free” VPNs – they often make money by tracking you instead.
At Home: Set a strong Wi-Fi password & use WPA2 or WPA3 on your router.
Extra Credit: Hide your Network Name (SSID) – so it doesn’t scream “HERE I AM!” to everyone walking by.

–Leaving Your Webcam Uncovered
Yes! People actually get spied on through their webcams. It’s rare – but when it happens, it’s creepy as hell.
Examples From Real Life: Schools secretly watching students at home, hackers spying on beauty pageant contestants & zoom bugs forcing people into calls with cameras on
Easy Fix: Put a small piece of tape or a sliding webcam cover over your camera when you’re not using it. Super low-tech, super effective.

–Using One Email Address For Everything
Your “main” e-mail is like a master key. If someone gets into it, they can reset passwords for tons of your accounts.
Try This: Make a Primary, Secondary & Throwaway e-mail account
Primary E-mail: Banks, health, work, truly important stuff
Secondary E-mail: Shopping, social media, random apps you sort of care about
Throwaway E-mail: One-time signups, spammy junk, things you don’t trust
Bonus Trick: Use the + trick (e.g. myemail+shopping@gmail.com) – so you can see who’s sharing or selling your email.

–Not Locking Your Devices
Leaving your phone or laptop unlocked is like leaving your house with the door wide open and a sign that says: “Back in 10. Please don’t steal anything.”
Do This:
On Windows: Press Windows + L to lock
On Mac: Press Control + Command + Q
On Phones/Tablets: Use a PIN, fingerprint and/or face unlock
Lock it everytime you walk away. Yes, even “just for a second.”

–Ignoring “Shoulder Surfers”
You’re in a café, working on something private, and someone behind you is casually reading over your shoulder like it’s a free show. That’s called shoulder surfing.
Protect Yourself: Use a privacy screen on your laptop/phone. Be aware of who’s around you. Avoiding super sensitive work in public places. Lock your screen when you get up
Nosy people exist. Don’t make their hobby easier.

–Recycling Devices Without Wiping Them
Donating or recycling electronics = Good. Doing it without erasing your data = Very Bad. Even if you “delete files” or do a basic reset – a tech-savvy person can often get them back.
Before You Get Rid Of:
–Computer: Use disk wiping tools (like DBAN) to overwrite the whole drive.
–Phone / Tablet: Encrypt the device. Then do a factory reset
That way, even if someone recovers data, it’s scrambled and useless.

–Letting Old Accounts Just Sit There
Remember that one website you signed up for in 2013 and never used again? It might still have: Your name, Your email, Maybe your address or other details
If that site gets hacked, your info goes with it.
Do a cleanup every now and then: Close accounts you don’t use anymore
If you can’t delete: Remove as much personal info as possible. Change the password to something random
Less stray data = less risk.

–Never Skimming Privacy Policies
Privacy policies are boring, yes.
They Quietly Tell You: Whether they sell your info, Whether they track you everywhere, Whether they share your data with random “partners”
When you see stuff like: “We may share your information with third parties” or “We may use your location data even when the app is closed”.
Or it’s just super vague and sketchy…that’s your cue to nope out and use something else. You don’t need to read every word—just skim for red flags.

–Thinking “No One Will Target Me”
The biggest privacy lie is: “I’m not important. No one’s going to hack me.”
Hackers don’t care if you’re “important”. They care if you’re easy.
They want: passwords, accounts, identity and/or money.
You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to stop being the lowest-hanging fruit.