Today I read a proverb “ We Will Be Known Forever By The Tracks We Leave “ and my thoughts started wondering what it means for a security professional.
In the digital age, the tracks we leave behind are not just footprints in the sand—they are indelible marks on the vast landscape of cyberspace. Every piece of personal data we share contributes to a digital profile that can be accessed, analyzed, and potentially exploited if not safeguarded properly.
The personal data that we share in the real world like email addresses, names, phone numbers , birth dates, bank or credit details and sometimes special categories of data like race, health related data etc does leave a track of us in the databases forever which means we will be known forever – unless we explicitly ask to delete the data or the organization comes back and asks if you still want them to retain your information in their data bases or it needs to be removed or they have a good retention policies.
Th digital tracks that we leave behind has to be protected.
What does an individual must do to protect themselves?
- Keep a track on which websites you are registering and what personal details has been shared with the companies.
- Regularly update your passwords and use a combination of letters, numbers, and special characters to make them strong and difficult to guess.
- Ensure that you explicitly ask for the company to remove your data from their records based on your personal preferences like you no more using the company’s product or the subscription has ended or remove your data from the job portal if you are not looking for jobs etc.
- You can always go back to the company and ask for a copy of your personal data and ask how the data is been processed.
- Ensure that elderly people in your families understands how these systems works and educate them to take those required actions.
- Teach children and young adults about the importance of online privacy and the potential risks of sharing too much information on social media platforms.