Internet scammers are targeting you right here in Kansas City. Here’s how to stay safe

“See yourself in cyber.” That is a tagline you will surely start seeing more often as CISA, the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, works to help ensure a secure and resilient critical infrastructure for the American people.

As regional director for CISA Region 7 headquartered here in Kansas City, I manage a team of security experts leading the national effort to understand, manage and reduce risk to our cyber and physical infrastructure. In other words, CISA is responsible for connecting with all segments of our society and partnering to protect the functions of government and the private sector that are so vital to the United States that disruption, corruption or dysfunction would have a debilitating effect on our national security, economic security or public health and safety.

These critical services include the water we drink, the electricity that lights our homes, gas at the fuel pumps — all the systems and networks that underpin our everyday lives. It is a huge job, and the cyber component of our mission continues to grow in importance every day.

CISA is the newest agency in the federal government. It was created in 2018, so it is only a few years old. But being new has major advantages. By design, CISA was created specifically to build a collaborative network of public and private sector partners who work together to strengthen our nation’s defense against cybersecurity threats.

We are different. Our ability to bring partners together and avoid stereotypical government stovepipes is one of our greatest strengths.

At CISA, we often tell people that cybersecurity is a team sport. No single agency, organization, business or individual can confront today’s numerous and varied cybersecurity challenges alone. Now more than ever, when it comes to cybersecurity, we all need strong, trusted, reliable relationships with partners who have each other’s best interests at heart. Trust isn’t something that can be surged in a crisis. It is built over time and strengthened by delivering on your word. That’s exactly what the CISA team does across the U.S., in every region, every day.

You might now be wondering how these cybersecurity challenges affect you. To start, you have to understand that the threat is real. Malicious actors in Russia, China and other parts of the world are working to disrupt or disable our infrastructure by attempting to hack into our computer systems. Cyber criminals are constantly looking to profit from poor cybersecurity practices through ransomware. Critical infrastructure such as power grids and water treatment systems are being targeted. County and city governments are being targeted.

And ordinary individuals are also increasingly being targeted, too. We have seen hospitals, school systems and businesses large and small fall victim to online criminals here in Kansas City this year. You have to play a role in our collective cybersecurity. You can’t sit on the sidelines and simply hope you don’t become a victim of internet crime. You are a target.

Here are my calls to action:

▪ Enable multi-factor authentication on all of your online accounts. In basic terms, this means relying on more than just a password to access your accounts, opting into an extra step to validate your identity when your trusted websites and applications ask you to confirm it is really you. If you do nothing else, this simple step can make you significantly less likely to be the victim of an online criminal.

▪ Use strong passwords. Everyone has heard this one before, but it truly is one of the easiest ways to improve your cybersecurity. Strong passwords include one uppercase letter, at least one number and 11 or more characters.

▪ Learn to recognize and report phishing scams. Phishing scams are rampant, and they’re designed to fool you into revealing passwords, account numbers and other sensitive personal information. These fraudulent emails often appear to be from someone you know or a company you do business with, containing a link or webpage that looks legitimate. Even if an email looks familiar, beware of any requests to change your password or verify account information. And never click on links that you suspect may be scams.

▪ Update the software on all your devices regularly. Better yet, turn on automatic updates for all your devices and keep your systems and software up to date as soon as updates become available. Software updates contain valuable security patches that can protect you online. These tips and much more free information and services can be found on our website www.CISA.gov

Again, see yourself in cyber. See yourself taking action to stay safe online and see yourself being part of the solution. Cybersecurity is a team sport, and you are a valuable part of the team.