DELETE YOUR INTERNET FOOTPRINT

With spies lurking everywhere, how can you keep yourself safe? Try these 25 smart steps.

- BY Chris Hoffman WITH ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY Lucy Wildman

As the saying goes: The internet is forever. Once you've put something online—a credit card number, a silly photo, a heat-of-the-moment comment on social media—it can come back to haunt you.

But what are the risks, really? "There are two worst-case scenarios," says Thorin Klosowski, a security and privacy activist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "The most obvious one is a security issue. Everyone's email address and basic details are leaked somewhere online, and if you reuse passwords, that means a nefarious person will have an easier time getting into your accounts."

The problem is enormous: According to the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, scams cost more than $1.03 trillion worldwide in 2023, and most of that money was lost online.

"The second worst-case scenario is more primal: embarrassment," says Klosowski. And sometimes the blows to our pride are far more personal than blushing over an unflattering photo. "Many of us store our most intimate thoughts in a digital notes app and draft emails we never send, or pour out our private feelings into a direct message to a friend. This is the type of thing that can get leaked online, either through a provider being negligent or through your own misunderstanding of the often-confusing privacy settings in the software and services."

With these sorts of slip-ups, the stakes can be high. But you're not powerless. You can stand up for your privacy and begin to take control, starting right now. Here's how:

Mix Up Your Passwords

If you always use the same password, no matter how carefully crafted it may be, it's probably already out there.