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What does a hacker want with your social media account? Plenty.Β
Hackers hijack social media accounts for several reasons. Theyβll dupe the victimβs friends and followers with scams. Theyβll flood feeds with misinformation. And theyβll steal all kinds of personal informationβnot to mention photos and chats in DMs. In all, a stolen social media account could lead to fraud, blackmail, and other crimes.Β
Yet you have a strong line of defense that can prevent it from happening to you: multi-factor authentication (MFA).Β
MFA goes by other names, such as two-factor authentication and two-step verification. Yet they all boost your account security in much the same way. They add an extra step or steps to the login process. Extra evidence to prove that you are, in fact, you. Itβs in addition to the usual username/password combination, thus the βmulti-factorβ in multi-factor authentication.Β Β
Examples of MFA include:Β
With MFA, a hacker needs more than just your username and password to weasel their way into your account. They need that extra piece of evidence required by the login process, which is something only you should have.Β
This stands as a good reminder that you should never give out the information you use in your security questionsβand to never share your one-time security codes with anyone. In fact, scammers cobble up all kinds of phishing scams to steal that information.Β
Major social media platforms offer MFA, although they might call it by other names. As youβll see, several platforms call it βtwo-factor authentication.βΒ Β
Given the way that interfaces and menus can vary and get updated over time, your best bet for setting up MFA on your social media accounts is to go right to the source. Social media platforms provide the latest step-by-step instructions in their help pages. A simple search for βmulti-factor authenticationβ and the name of your social media platform should readily turn up results.Β
For quick reference, you can find the appropriate help pages for some of the most popular platforms here:Β
Another important reminder is to check the URL of the site youβre on to ensure itβs legitimate. Scammers set up all kinds of phony login and account pages to steal your info. Phishing scams like those are a topic all on their own. A great way you can learn to spot them is by giving our Phishing Scam Protection Guide a quick read. Itβs part of our McAfee Safety Series, which covers a broad range of topics, from romance scams and digital privacy to online credit protection and ransomware.Β Β
In many ways, your social media account is an extension of yourself. It reflects your friendships, interests, likes, and conversations. Only you should have access to that. Putting MFA in place can help keep it that way.Β
More broadly, enabling MFA across every account that offers it is a smart security move as well. It places a major barrier in the way of would-be hackers who, somehow, in some way, have ended up with your username and password.Β
On the topic, ensure your social media accounts have strong, unique passwords in place. The one-two punch of strong, unique passwords and MFA will make hacking your account tougher still. Wondering what a strong, unique password looks like? Hereβs a hint: a password with eight characters is less secure than you might think. With a quick read, you can create strong, unique passwords that are tough to crack.Β
Lastly, consider using comprehensive online protection software if you arenβt already. In addition to securing your devices from hacks and attacks, it can help protect your privacy and identity across your travels onlineβboth on social media and off.Β Β Β
The post How to Protect Your Social Media Passwords from Hacks and Attacks appeared first on McAfee Blog.
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