Three Ways To Avoid Being Visually Hacked

[Audrey McNeil <audrey () riskbasedsecurity com>]

http://www.fwbusiness.com/online_features/tech_talk_and_innovation/article_a996e17b-aaa4-521d-8754-cd08244c1147.html

Many people don’t really leave their work behind at the end of the day or
when traveling. Connecting to work e-mail and network files away from the
office is increasingly common. While this growth of connectivity brings
greater productivity, it can also mean greater risks as 75 percent of
employers say it is hard to keep workers off unsecure networks.

As for your personal business, you can access your bank account or health
information right on your smartphone, or make purchases at any number of
online retail accounts.

The Problem

Think about the last time you accessed work or personal information using a
mobile device in a public place. It may have been on an airplane or
commuter train, in a hotel lobby or in a coffee shop.

How aware were you of your surroundings? Would you have noticed if an
onlooker—whether sitting next to you or standing several feet behind
you—viewed or even photographed your screen? Did you have hard copies of
your work or other information, such as log-in details, that could have
been seen?

Visual hacking is the act of viewing or capturing sensitive, confidential
or private information for unauthorized use on a device screen, workspace
or copier and the like. The growing sophistication of smartphone cameras
and inconspicuous wearable technology is only making visual hacking easier
to pull off and harder to detect.

What You Can Do

There are three actions you can take to help safeguard sensitive
information:

1. Use privacy filters. A physical filter, available for laptops and mobile
devices, can be applied to your device’s screen. It lets you see a clear
image while showing a dark, blank screen to anyone viewing the display from
a side angle.

2. Don’t invite an audience. When possible, angle your device away from
your fellow customers or seatmates, high-traffic areas, and windows.

3. Secure your workspace. Password-protect your device and shut it down
when it’s not in use—even for something as brief as a phone call. Any
documents that might contain sensitive information should also be securely
stored away when they’re not in use.

If you’re a mobile worker in particular, don’t wait for your employer to
implement policies and technologies regarding visual hacking. In a recently
conducted 3M Visual Hacking Experiment, the Ponemon Institute found that a
white-hat visual hacker was able to enter a participating company and get
sensitive information 88 percent of the time.

Individuals and organizations need to take a more proactive approach to
combat these attacks. Your vigilance can help drive that change.

_______________________________________________
Dataloss Mailing List (dataloss () datalossdb org)
Archived at http://seclists.org/dataloss/
Unsubscribe at http://lists.osvdb.org/mailman/listinfo/dataloss
For inquiries regarding use or licensing of data, e-mail
        sales () riskbasedsecurity com 

Supporters:

Risk Based Security (http://www.riskbasedsecurity.com/)
YourCISO is an affordable SaaS solution that provides a comprehensive information security program that ensures focus 
on the right security.  If you need security help or want to provide real risk reduction for your clients contact us!