Google’s new security key takes data protection to another level

These days data breaches have become commonplace and protecting one’s personal data has become a major concern. A vast majority of us use our mobile phones to store sensitive information, often in our Google account. Bank account numbers, balances, log in details, photos and contact information of you, your friends and your family, is at risk of been accessed by hackers.
The Google Advanced Protection Program protects your personal information by requiring a physical security key – the Google Titan USB-C. Data breaches are often carried out remotely, via the Internet. However, without the security key cybercriminals are unable to hack your account from a remote location.  You don’t need to plug it in, but you do need to keep it nearby your phone or laptop when you need to access Google account.

So what does it do?

The ultimate defence against scams – the security key protects you even if you fall victim to scams. This includes phishing emails, a common method used by cybercriminals to trick you into giving away your username, password, 2-Step Verification code, and other personal information. Even if you were to provide scammers with this information, they would still require your physical key to access your account.
Putting a stop to identity theft – the security key stops hackers from accessing your account by impersonating you and pretending to be locked out of your account. The key, acting as an added verification step, blocks fraudulent behaviour in its tracks.
Safeguarding your data – the security key also limits new apps or services from accessing your personal data. Sometimes when you sign up for a new app or service, you are asked to give access to your Google account. Google’s Advanced Protection Program only allows Google apps and select third-party apps to access your emails and Drive files. The downside to this is that it could affect the functionality of these new apps.
Google has referred to it as their “strongest security for those who need it most” recommending it to at-risk individuals such as journalists, activists, business leaders, and political campaign teams. However, with the rise in cyber scams this may be the way forward for everyday individual’s data protection.
Video courtesy of Google.