Digital security checkup

What's inside

1. Set up a password manager

   One master password instead of reusing the same one everywhere — if one service leaks, your other accounts stay safe. It also generates strong passwords for you.

2. Lock down your email — it recovers everything else

   Email resets passwords for your bank, social media and everything else, which makes it the single most valuable account you own. A unique password and mandatory 2FA are non-negotiable.

3. Turn on 2FA for banking, government and social accounts

   Even if the password leaks, login fails without the second factor. Go through the security settings of each important service one by one.

4. Print your 2FA backup codes

   If the phone gets lost along with the authenticator app, printed codes are the only way back in. Don't just save them as a photo on that same phone.

5. Check your recovery phone and email are current

   Account settings often still list a phone number from years ago or an email you no longer control — update them before you actually need account recovery.

6. Check your email against breach databases

   Services like haveibeenpwned show which breaches your address appeared in. Change every password tied to those breaches immediately, even for services you no longer use.

7. Review active sessions on your main accounts

   Google, Apple and social accounts all have a list of devices currently signed in — kick out anything unfamiliar or a forgotten laptop from a café.

8. Back up your important files in two places

   Photos and documents belong in at least two places: cloud plus a separate drive. Cloud alone won't survive the account itself getting hacked; a drive alone won't survive a fire or theft.

9. Turn on auto-updates for your OS and browser

   Most break-ins don't rely on clever hacking — they exploit holes patched months ago in outdated software. Auto-updates close them without you lifting a finger.

10. Change the admin password on your router

    The factory admin password (admin/admin and similar) is public knowledge and sits in open databases — it's a way into every device's traffic on your network.

11. Enable a lock screen and encryption on your devices

    A passcode or Face ID on phone and laptop plus built-in disk encryption — if the device is stolen, the data stays unreadable even if someone pulls the drive.

12. Audit third-party app access

    In your email and social account settings, check which apps and sites are connected via "Sign in with Google/Apple" — revoke anything you haven't used in the past year.

13. Delete old, unused accounts

    A forgotten forum account from five years ago, still holding your password and email, is one more unguarded door to your data. Fewer accounts mean a smaller surface for a breach.

14. Cross-check subscriptions against your bank statement

    Scan the last 2–3 months of statements: there's usually a forgotten subscription draining money for nothing. It also catches charges you never actually authorized.

15. Check what shows up on your lock screen

    Bank confirmation codes often show up in notifications without unlocking the phone — hide them in settings, or anyone holding the phone can read them.

16. Review app permissions

    Check which apps have location or microphone access set to "always" rather than "while using" — very few apps actually need that level of access.

17. Review your social media privacy settings

    Check what a stranger sees on your profile: phone number, birthdate, friends list, geotags on old posts. Trim it down to what you're actually fine sharing publicly.

18. Set up emergency access for someone you trust

    Trusted contacts for account recovery or a family sharing setup — an awkward conversation, but if something happens to you, someone close should have a way into your important accounts and files.