5 ways to help protect your online information and accounts

(BPT) – On January 28, countries worldwide observe Data Privacy Day, to raise awareness and promote data privacy and best practices. As people across the globe increasingly use online accounts as part of their everyday life, data privacy and security is more important than ever.Ring, known for its Video Doorbell and other smart home security devices, has tips to help protect your personal devices, accounts and information.1. Create unique passwords — Use unique passwords for your various online accounts. Do not reuse username and passwords across multiple accounts.2. Use a password manager — Consider using a password manager to help you safely store all your passwords. Password managers are available as standalone apps and as extensions to popular browsers like Safari or Chrome.3. Take advantage of two-step verification — Though it may add a little time to your login process, this additional layer of verification provides enhanced security to your online accounts. Taking advantage of this feature when available helps prevent unauthorized access to your accounts even if someone has your password.4. Watch out for phishing scams — Phishing is when a bad actor attempts to trick you with a fake email or text that claims to be legitimate in order to gain access to your login credentials. If you notice a suspicious email or text that falsely claims to come from a company you do business with, contact them to alert them to the phishing attempt. If you’re a Ring customer, you can report phishing attempts to security@ring.com.5. Stay up-to-date with security — To keep up with the fast-changing cybersecurity landscape, new features and security updates are constantly being added to devices and apps to help protect consumers from threats, including customers using the Ring App. If you use products such as Ring Video Doorbell, make sure you’re always up-to-date with the latest security updates.Here are some helpful Ring features customers can use to help protect their accounts and information:The Control Center in the Ring app that allows customers to manage their privacy, security and account management settings right from the Ring App.Video End-to-End Encryption provides an optional added layer of protection to video and audio recordings captured by compatible Ring devices.To ensure that the privacy of your neighbors is protected alongside your own, Privacy Zones let you block areas as “off-limits” — such as your neighbor’s front yard. With this feature, you can designate areas you’d like blacked out from your camera’s field of view, so they’re not visible in Live View or recorded in your videos.Similarly, Motion Zones let you define a specific area where motion detection will trigger an event, so you can exclude high-traffic areas like busy sidewalks or streets that you don’t want to receive alerts from.If you need a secure way to save videos in your Ring account when you move, or when upgrading devices, the Deactivated Device State allows you to access saved events and videos, even after a device is removed from your account or ownership is transferred to someone else.Taking a few extra steps to reinforce the security features for all your devices, apps and your home security system can help prevent problems down the road, giving you and your family better peace of mind.All these measures are designed to help protect consumers’ privacy and security, and keep users in control, as they create a customized home security solution. Visit ring.com to learn more.