5 important tips for online privacy: Protect yor online identity

You may have to constantly share your email address and phone number to sign up for an online service, access a website or app, read the news, or log into your social media account. Submitting your personal information to sign up for a new service or shop online can also pose security risks.

Signing up for many websites requires an email address, and most of us only use our primary email address. When we open a new account or provide our email address to access restricted content, we often agree to the transfer of our contact information from one service to another for marketing purposes.

Using email addresses, phone numbers, and debit cards to which you don't have a direct connection is the best way to shrink your digital footprint and reduce the risk of becoming a victim of a data breach or fraud. Cybersecurity company experts shared five suggestions, sharing that a safer virtual environment can be created by ensuring online privacy.

First, create temporary email accounts for content that asks for your email address to bypass the restricted access block and use a reputable email provider such as Gmail or Outlook to create a secondary account for online services and website registrations.