Practicing good personal security takes more than installing a few of the best security cameras around your house or subscribing to a top-of-the-line identity theft protection service.
You also need to consider factors like your lifestyle and behaviors. For example, do you tag your location when you upload a vacation selfie to Instagram? If you have a public account, you might not realize you’ve let the world know your house is unoccupied. It’s basically an open invitation to thieves.
Did You Know: Our report on Parents’ Social Media Habits found that 8 in 10 people have followers they’ve never met. Sharing photos of your workplace, residence, and location with complete strangers could lead to consequences like burglaries and identity theft.
Small behavioral and lifestyle changes can make a huge impact on your personal security when combined with hardware and software like home security systems and VPNs.
However, you need to better understand your current situation before deciding on the services you need and actions to take. That’s why we encourage you to use our security score checker to find out what threats you’re vulnerable to.
How is Your Security Score Calculated?
We calculate your security score using multiple factors relating to your physical location and online activities. After entering your zip code, we establish a baseline score using FBI data on physical crime and cybercrime in your area.
The remaining questions help us learn more about you. Some topics we cover are your social media usage, where you store your vehicles at night, and if you reuse passwords for multiple accounts. Every answer impacts your overall score and helps us suggest personalized, actionable tips.
Did You Know: If you reuse passwords, you’re not the only one. We surveyed Americans on their password habits and learned more than two in three people use the same passwords across several accounts.
How Can You Improve Your Security Score?
Once you have your security score, the next step is to take action to improve it. You’ll see a summary alongside your score, which includes helpful links to articles that can significantly impact your personal security. Some that we recommend everyone read are:
How We Can Help
We’re not just here to give you a security score and send you on your way. Our team is here to share their 96 years of combined experience in the security industry through in-depth guides, original research on security and safety topics, and reviews covering physical and cybersecurity products. You’ll even find over 450 videos on our YouTube channel with expert tips and recommendations on how to stay safe both online and offline.
We’ve also built a suite of free tools to strengthen your privacy, such as our Password Generator that generates strong and unique passwords and our Privacy Policy Analyzer that breaks down complex privacy policies so you don’t miss any red flags. These tools are at your disposal for free.
If you’re ready to start improving your security score, we recommend beginning with our guide to digital security.