STOP. THINK. CONNECT.

CADNA is a proud partner of the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and its STOP. THINK. CONNECT. campaign.

In 2010, the Heart + Mind Strategies conducted the national survey online with 1,007 U.S. adults ages 18. The poll was part of an extensive analysis on online behaviors and attitudes for NCSA and the AntiPhishing Working Group (APWG), and it came up with the following results:

  • 61 percent believe that much of online safety and security falls under their personal control, and consistent with those feelings, 90 percent said they want to learn more about keeping safer on the Internet.
  • 48 percent feel their actions to stay safe and secure can have a positive impact on financial, economic, and national security of the country, indicating Americans are open to making the bridge between their own safety and the nation’s security.
  • Concern about identity theft rates slightly higher than fears of job and healthcare loss. 54 percent of Americans are extremely concerned about loss of personal or financial information. To place this is in context, 53 percent are concerned about losing their jobs, while 51 percent feared not being able to provide healthcare for their family.
  • Nearly two-thirds of the American public have heard, read or seen something about online safety and security issues recently. However, most of what the news they remember is negative: identity theft, privacy loss, and increased frequency of attacks.
  • When asked why they don’t always do all the things they can or should do to stay safer online, Americans said they simply lacked the information or knowledge (28 percent) – a surprising finding that surpassed other hurdles often cited by the media. Only 12 percent said online safety was too expensive, while just 5 percent said they were too busy to take the extra step.

STOP. THINK. CONNECT. is about taking a moment to stop and think about the places we visit online, the information that we share, and the communities in which we participate before and while we are connected to the Internet. The campaign also provides the information Internet users need to more confidently navigate the Internet.

Connect With Care:

    • When in doubt, throw it out: Links in email, tweets, posts, and online advertising are often the way cybercriminals compromise your computer. If it looks suspicious, even if you know the source, it’s best to delete or if appropriate, mark as junk email.
    • Get savvy about Wi-Fi hotspots: Limit the type of business you conduct and adjust the security settings on your device to limit who can access your machine.
    • Protect your $$: When banking and shopping, check to be sure the sites is security enabled. Look for web addresses with “https://” or “shttp://”, which means the site takes extra measures to help secure your information. “Http://” is not secure.

Be Web Wise:

  • Stay current. Keep pace with new ways to stay safe online: Check trusted websites for the latest information, and share with friends, family, and colleagues and encourage them to be web wise.
  • Think before you act: Be wary of communications that implores you to act immediately, offers something that sounds too good to be true, or asks for personal information.
  • Back it up: Protect your valuable work, music, photos, and other digital information by making an electronic copy and storing it safely.