Chapter Six

After reading about the numerous ways attackers can try and violate any user’s privacy and data, it reminded me of an episode of Black Mirror I watched years ago called “Dance, Monkey, Dance.” As it opens, you see the protagonist get caught by a bug on his webcam after his sister accidentally downloaded a virus onto his computer, even after scrubbing his computer with an antivirus; back then, I wondered what the point of these antiviruses are, if they attackers can just avoid detection anyway? Would that classify as a Trojan Horse or a piece of spyware at that point? Regardless, it always makes me cautious to cover my webcam when it’s not in use.

Another aspect that stood out to me ended up being the section about password managers. Anymore, I don’t use them and instead leave myself vague hints in pieces of media, if I need the reminder. Something about a program, regardless of encryption, storing all my full passwords is extremely unsettling; what’s stopping these managers from having data breaches? That’s why the section about multifactor authentication is so important, too, since its typically device based that’s separate from any login program. With more than one blanket and diligent practice of basic internet security, there shouldn’t be any concerns about your information being taken due to your decisions.