October is Cyber Security Awareness Month and an annual reminder for all Australians to stay secure online.

The overarching theme for 2022 is ‘Have you been hacked?’

Cyber security is important for everyone. The first steps are turning on automatic software updates, regularly backing up your devices, switching on multi-factor authentication, using passphrases, securing mobile devices, and watching out for cyber scams.

The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) has launched a number of tools and resources to help you take these simple steps to better protect yourself from common online threats and cybercrime.

The ‘Have you been hacked?’ Tool

The ACSC has launched the ‘Have you been hacked?’ tool. This tool will help you assess if you’ve been hacked by guiding you through a range of scenarios that will advise you on how to best respond to the situation.

Scenarios include ransomware attacks, malware threats, email compromise and identify theft, as well as phishing and fake website scams.

The tool is simple to use and includes typical warning signs, scenario explanations and easy-to-follow steps on how to remediate the situation.

• Tool: Have you been hacked?
• Quiz: How secure are you?

Act now to stay secure

The ACSC has a number of resources to help you act now to stay secure. The resources cover basic cyber security practices such as updates, multi-factor authentication (MFA), backups, and passphrases.

Your email is a common target for cybercriminal activity. If someone gains access to your email account, they could steal your sensitive information, change passwords for your other accounts, or even send emails pretending to be you.

The ACSC has resources available to help you keep your email secure:

• Multi-factor authentication
• Secure your Google account
• Secure your Microsoft account
• Protect your business from email fraud & compromise
• Quiz: Would you know what to do if you were a victim of business email compromise?
• Phishing – Scam Emails
• Quiz: Can you spot a scam (phishing) message?

If you think your email account has already been compromised, you can take the following steps to review your security and remove the attacker:

• How to check your email account security – Outlook
• How to check your email account security – Gmail
• What to do if someone has hacked your email account

The ACSC also has resources on how to secure your accounts and devices. It’s easy to improve your cyber security! Take these simple steps today to protect yourself:

• Update your devices
• Protect yourself: Updates guide
• Protect Yourself: Multi-Factor Authentication guide
• Turn on multi-factor authentication
• Set up and perform regular backups
• Set secure passphrases
• Recognise and report scams
• Watch out for threats
• A4 poster – Top Tips for Cyber Security