5 best practices to secure your social media accounts
Do you think all your social media accounts are safe? Then, maybe it’s time to reconsider. Take for example, if you have a weak password, it’s easier for hackers to break it down, as long as they have the right skills to do so. The solution? It’s time to go over all your brand profiles on social media and audit them to be on the safe side.
In this article, we’ve compiled five best practices to ensure your social media accounts are secured. In times like these, it’s crucial to be prepared to prevent attacks from happening.
Formalize the policy objective
Develop a policy, select the right security tools, and distribute it with the right individuals in your organization. Then, formalize a policy objective.
First and foremost, ensure that every member of your organization understands your goal. Make your language clear and concise as much as possible. Your objective should have a brief outline of how your organization should be proactive in preventing risks that come with using social media ‒ things like user access; content publishes breaches and other security risks.
Moreover, your policy should also clearly state the people who will have access to specific accounts ‒ what they will use the account for, and how will they access these profiles. For example, if the company has interns that will work briefly in the summer, they must sign to the policy, which will clearly state that their access to specific company accounts will be revoked after a particular period.
Change Passwords Regularly
It’s always a good idea to change your passwords on a regular basis. Cybersecurity company ExpressVPN recommends strong passwords longer than 12 characters and contain a mix of letters, numbers, and special characters (examples such as @!<). However, if there are multiple users in the account, keeping them updated with the recent changes can be challenging.
A good practice is to utilize a password manager, so you won’t encounter any problems when it comes to changing passwords. The password manager ensures that any recent changes in the password will be pushed directly to other users (such as team members that have direct access to the software/ password manager application.)
Enable Two-factor Authentication
One of the most secure ways to protect your social media accounts is through two-factor authentication. Passwords are easily hacked ‒ so it’s essential to add another extra layer of security. While social platforms do it in a variety of ways, a popular option is via text. To enable this feature, go to your profile’s account settings, in the help or FAQ page.
The moment you log-in, you’ll receive a code through text or email so that you can verify your account. This feature works well because a hacker will need to steal your phone before accessing into any of your social accounts. Although it’s not an impossibility, having that extra blanket of security can make a huge difference in keeping your social profile safe.
Be Vigilant with Third-party Applications
When you utilize third-party applications, it often requires direct access to your account. Be selective with the third-party apps that you are using. See to it that you’re only authorizing legit apps to gain access with your account. Read the details first so that you’re aware of what you’re allowing a specific application to.
Chances are, there will be apps that require only minimum permissions, such as the capacity to read and post content. It’s always a great idea to understand these things first before permitting these third-party apps to gain access. You can also login into your social media accounts and review which apps are you currently allowing to access your profiles.
Keep an Eye on Your Respective Social Media Channels
Monitoring your social media channels at all times is essential. As much as you can, analyze your data, and keep track of your competitors. Also, be aware of what’s being said about your brand.
As part of your social media strategy, monitor on your social media profiles on a regular basis, so that it effectively reinforces all the policies you’ve carefully set up.
That way, if someone breaks in unknowingly into your account, and there’s a negative thing that is mentioned directly involving your company, you’ll be able to control the situation more efficiently. There are also products and services that are readily available on the market to help you keep track of what’s being said to you online.
In Summary
In this ever-growing digital world, hacking is getting more and more prevalent. It’s crucial to safeguard all your social media accounts because even celebrities and giant companies like Facebook aren’t immune from it. So, it’s high time to be vigilant and take these practices into consideration. Although it may seem tedious at first, your company or brand is likely going to benefit from it in the long run.