The City of Seattle’s Data Privacy team celebrates Digital Privacy Week by helping raise awareness of the value of your personal data and providing a few useful tips to help reduce the likelihood that you fall prey to a bad actor. Some of the most common dangers on the internet include:
Identity theft, Data breaches, Malware and viruses, Phishing and scam emails, Fake websites, Online scams, Romance scams, Inappropriate content, Cyberbullying, and Faulty privacy settings.
The Value of your Personal Data
Our personal data is valuable. When we interact online, make purchases, or simply log on to our devices, we must often evaluate how best to protect ourselves — and the data we provide. Just as we’ve learned safety precautions in other aspects of life – locking doors, fastening seat belts, checking smoke alarm batteries, or looking for broken food safety seals, we need to adopt online safety precautions in this digital age. The internet, with its anonymity, is a breeding ground for deception. What seems like a harmless chat might very well be a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
Use your “Spidey sense”
Criminals are continually changing their game by creating new ways to help you part with your money, data, or both. They often use emails, texts, and phone calls with increasingly complex lies and tricks. They will spoof caller IDs, create fake websites, and even use AI voice clones. Even if it seems as if the request is coming from a known entity, treat any unexpected, urgent request with suspicion and proceed with caution. Teach yourself to watch for red flags. If your “Spidey sense” goes off and you become suspicious that a scammer is on the prowl, wait a bit — don’t respond immediately. Follow your heightened intuition. Pause. Breathe. Contact a trusted source directly or track down an email or phone number on an official website. Never click on a link in a suspect email or text. Unknown attachments, no matter how enticing, are best left unopened. They could unleash viruses that can steal your data or hijack your device.
TMI
Always be cautious about sharing TMI (too much information) online – including social media bios. This includes (among others of course) your full name, social security number, address, date of birth, phone number, and financial information.
These are the keys to your virtual castle. Guard them cautiously. Oversharing can lead to identity theft and other cybercrimes. Early in this author’s career, while working in DC, a mentor said, “Don’t write anything in an email that you wouldn’t want to see on the front page of the Washington Post.” The same should apply to social media. You can use privacy settings all day long to control who initially sees your posts, but even the strongest privacy settings won’t prevent someone from re-posting what you shared.
The internet does not come with a delete key. Images or comments posted have he possibility of being around forever; removing the original won’t remove copies made by others. There are no “take-backs” on embarrassing posts. You wouldn’t hand personal information out to strangers individually, so don’t hand it out to potentially millions of people online.
Keep your data secure
Use a secure Wi-Fi connection and consider using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) when accessing public networks. VPNs encrypt your internet traffic, making it unreadable to anyone intercepting it. This protects sensitive information like passwords and financial data. Choosing a secure browser with built-in features like ad blocking, anti-phishing, and malware protection strengthens your initial barrier. If you use public Wi-Fi, avoid conducting personal transactions, such as online banking or shopping.
Safe browsing
Software updates can assist in keeping you safe. Security holes get patched and help protect against hackers. Turn on automatic updates whenever possible. Practice safe browsing by only visiting secure websites. Look for “https” in the URL, rather than just “http,” as the “s” signifies a secure, encrypted connection. These websites will have a padlock icon in the address bar.
Be cautious when downloading files or software from the internet. Use reputable antivirus software to protect your devices and detect and neutralize malware — harmful programs that steal data, damage your device, or disrupt online activity. Many antivirus programs offer additional features such as phishing detection, ransomware protection, and vulnerability scanning, further strengthening online defenses.
Tread cautiously with those you meet online
People you interact with online are not always who they claim to be. Often, they’re not even real. Fake social media profiles on dating apps are a popular way for hackers to groom unwary internet users and pick their cyber pockets. Apply the same caution in your online social life as you would for your in-person social life. Online dating scams–or romance scams–are rapidly increasing each year and the scammers continue to grow braver.
In 2021, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center estimated the amount of money lost by romance fraud victims was one billion dollars. And those are just the victims who reported losing their hearts—and their bank accounts—to such scammers. This number is likely low, according to Emma Fletcher, an FTC analyst, speaking to USA TODAY in 2022: “The bottom line is most consumers are not reporting fraud when it happens, and romance scams may be particularly unlikely to be reported because there can be a lot of embarrassment around it.”
Common themes in romance scams
Be on the alert if your new online love wants you to exit the dating app where you met to move to a more private messaging option, such as text, email, or WhatsApp. Beware of the ask for compromising photos or videos of yourself. They may be setting you up for potential financial extortion. See above in the TMI section; there are no “take-backs” on embarrassing posts.
Do not send money, trade, or invest at the advice of someone you have only met online. Only a scammer would ask you to send or invest in cryptocurrency or give them the numbers on a gift card.
Do not ever disclose your financial status to unknown and untrusted individuals. Some scammers will ask what you do for a living — or who you work for to determine your level of ability to provide funds. If you see red flags, screenshot their profile photo and run a reverse-image search on Google. Check whether the provided photo matches someone with a different name.
Passwords
Criminals make use of powerful tools to guess short passwords. Current best practices suggest that a strong password should be at least 16 characters long, unique to the account, including a mix of letters, numbers, and symbols. Consider using a password manager program to keep track of all your passwords. Do not write down or share passwords with anyone. In crafting a password, make it make sense — to you. Think of it as modern-day poetry, but in upper- and lower-case letters with a few well-placed, discerning symbols to confuse your opponents and make you smile as you enter your award-winning password haiku with ease and rapidity.
Make sure the kids are alright
For children, the internet is a playground ripe with possibilities. But without proper guidance, it can be rife with possibilities, and they can easily stumble into harm’s way. As a parent, be their vigilant guide. Build Safe spaces and offer copious amounts of continual parental guidance. Set up parental controls. Keep the computer in a common area. Monitor your children’s online activity. Establish clear rules about website visits, time limits, and online interactions. Open communication is key. Online stranger awareness is a critical aspect of internet safety, especially for children and teens. Teach and promote online stranger awareness and how to recognize and respond to potential dangers and unwanted approaches on the internet.
Given the rising number of threats, it’s now increasingly essential to understand internet safety rules. Protect yourself, your family, and loved ones from threats that harm data and devices. Stay safe online and be vigilant of your privacy — and that of others we support in life and work.
Data Privacy Week, January 26 – 30, 2026, is an international effort which aims to educate, inspire dialogue, and empower individuals, families, consumers, companies, and governments to act, respect privacy, safeguard data, and enable trust. The recognition of the day offers opportunities for collaboration among governments, industry, academia, nonprofits, privacy professionals, educators, and the public. It serves as a reminder to all organizations that privacy is good for business. For more information about the City’s privacy principles, visit https://www.seattle.gov/tech/data-privacy. You can learn more about Data Privacy and protecting your privacy online at the National Cybersecurity Alliance website.