Security Officials Say Basic Steps Can Protect You From Cyber Attacks
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- After daily headlines about cyber attacks on your banking, healthcare and your identity, consumers wonder just how they can compete with international cyber conspiracies.
But local federal law enforcement says some old school practices, like protecting social security numbers and changing passwords, are still effective.
"Passwords, simple things," said Eric Zahren with the Secret Service. "Take the time to have a password that's going to protect you. And these small things, in many cases, become larger vulnerabilities that criminals exploit."
"Sometimes we click on an email and we don't know who it's from and there's an enticing attachment and we open it and now you've let the criminals into your life and it's difficult at that point to reverse it," added Scott Smith with the FBI.
U.S. Attorney David Hickton said that while it's been difficult to bring international cyber defendants to Pittsburgh for trial, he's still optimistic that Adam Busby, charged in connection with the University of Pittsburgh bomb threats that terrorized the campus in 2012, will eventually stand trial in Pittsburgh.
Busby is in the midst of legal proceedings in Dublin, Ireland.
Busby is from Scotland and Hickton says Scotland "has first dibs on him because he's committed crimes there. But we are resolute to try and bring him here to Pittsburgh to make him accountable for what he has done here."
Hickton made the remarks after recounting a number of criminal charges filed locally against international figures involving computer crimes.
The FBI says if you do think you've been a victim of a cyber attack, log onto IC3.gov.
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