Tackling Digital Safety for Women

Did you know that women are disproportionately affected by cybercrime,
cyber stalking, cyber bullying, cyber harassment, and image-based
sexual abuse? We asked Cris Kittner, Principal Analyst at Mandiant
Threat Intelligence, and Lillian Teng, Director of Threat
Investigations from Verizon Media to join us for a discussion around
their recent talk on digital safety for women and practical strategies
women of all ages can take to increase their online safety.

Cris and Lillian provided their reasons and motivations for putting
together the talk, which they first presented at the Grace Hopper
Celebration in 2020. They highlighted the connection between physical
and cyber stalking and the need for these conversations to be
normalized. Far too often, Cris and Lillian heard from young
professionals that they believed the cyber harassment that was
happening to them in the workplace or at conferences was “normal.”

To combat the issues many women are facing online, Chris and Lillian
provided a list of practical considerations that women should follow,
such as using a password manager, knowing what permissions are being
given to third-party applications, understanding that Snapchat images
can be recovered, adjusting (or eliminating) location tags, and how to
report abuse happening on social media sites.

Listen to the episode today for online safety strategies that can help
you or a loved one stay safe online.