Influencers seem to multiply by the day. From baby boomers to Gen Z, everyone's got an influencer they love! These internet personalities are everywhere, from social media juggernauts like Instagram and TikTok to more niche communities such as Pinterest and Patreon. With the amount of content they publish daily, it's difficult to worry about anything else, especially their cybersecurity.
However, as an influencer, you know well that you rely heavily on your reputation for income. Therefore, any harm to your personal brand may have severe consequences for future contracts and collaborations with brands.
So spare even a few minutes daily to ensure that you and the brand you're building are protected from any kind of cybercrime.
If you're still considering putting this on the back burner, here are four reasons to start thinking about cybersecurity RIGHT NOW.
Why Is Cybersecurity So Important For Influencers?
To Protect Your Image And Reputation
Because your career is entirely based on social media, you must protect your accounts across various platforms to retain your engagement with your audiences and brand partners.
Even just one careless post that will alienate your audience or sponsors might mean the end of everything, especially if it comes from a compromised account. As an online personality, you are susceptible to being targeted by hackers, trolls, and stalkers from anywhere in the world. This is mainly because of the sheer magnitude and scope of your digital connections.
To Protect You From Identity Theft
Open-source material is accessible to the general public but is not indexed by Google or other search engines. Unfortunately, Google and other search engines cannot access every website, file, and database on the internet.
This information, along with readily accessible data found using specialized tools, means IP addresses, networks, webcams, printers, and anything else connected to the internet can put you at risk.
Because most of your audience is online, you must be aware of the digital risks and threats to which you are exposing yourself. This includes identity theft, influencer fraud, and data privacy. Knowing the dangers of becoming an influencer can make it easier for you to develop a successful defense plan.
To Protect Yourself From Stalkers
If you're an influencer or live streamer, you might not realize you're disclosing your location or sharing a personal matter with your viewers. Whatever you do or say may become public knowledge to the wrong person.
Make sure to protect your personally identifiable information. Turn off location tagging services on your devices. Think before you post content. Make sure it doesn't include details someone else can use to find you. While sharing your life is part of being an influencer, make sure to give your posts a quality assurance check before publishing them.
Some signs of a cyberstalker include:
Excessive comments on posts
Sending explicit and unsolicited messages
Mentioning you in unrelated posts
Impersonating
Attempting to hijack your devices
To Protect Yourself From Overfamiliar Fans
One of the biggest risks you'll encounter as an influencer is dealing with fans who are adamant about getting close to you. When you put yourself out there, it might seem impossible to protect your identity, but keeping as much personal information private as possible is important.
Most fans will be happy that their favorite online personality is connecting with them and has no malicious intentions. Others might simply troll on your posts. However, you have to be careful of those who present a danger to you in the real world.
Fortunately, you can block most of these users. However, with the possibility of personal information being exposed, it's crucial to take precautions against overly devoted fans.
How Do I Protect Myself?
Secure Your Accounts
Protect all your social media accounts with passphrases or complex passwords. The best strategy for doing this is to create a passphrase, which is a phrase that only you are aware of. Use one passphrase with at least four words and 15 characters.
To further secure your accounts, remember to enable multi-factor authentication! Then, if ever a cybercriminal attempts to hack into your account, they won't easily get in because they'll need a fingerprint or a face scan.
Know Who Has Access
If you’re collaborating with a team to help create and post content, you’re probably giving them access to your accounts. This might mean you’re sharing passwords and access with others who might not be as concerned about your cybersecurity as you are.
The thing is that there are way more potential weak spots when more people have access to an account. It also means that there are more opportunities for a cybercriminal to obtain a password or account access.
One way to avoid this is to limit the number of people who have access to your accounts. You can also adopt a cybersecurity policy that applies to everyone with access. A policy like this establishes the standards that your team will adhere to while they post content. Make sure to outline how passwords should be kept secure and the importance of logging out of accounts when not in use.
Stay Up-To-Date On Protection Measures
Your best defense against cybersecurity threats is information. Read up on GDPR compliance if you have your own website or e-commerce store.
Social media platforms and other service providers constantly update their services and features, so learn what they are to stay ahead of threats.
Stay safe by staying informed!
Make Cybersecurity A Habit
As social media influencers soar in popularity, so have the stakes for staying secure and safe in the digital space. So stay one step ahead of cyber threats by making cybersecurity a habit!
For more articles about influencer marketing, check out Clark Influence’s blog!