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Scam emails that know personal details about your family. Advertisers that follow you across the web. Burglars who use social media to find out when you're away. These threats are real, but there are plenty of ways to protect yourself.
Online privacy shouldn't be such a burden. Deleting old, forgotten accounts and methodically working through privacy settings is dull and onerous, but it's worth it when data breaches continue to hit organisations.
Below, we've rounded up our top tips to secure your online data. You don't need to go through all of them at once, so consider bookmarking this page and revisiting it when you have time.
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⏱️ How long does it take? Around 10 minutes to check settings for an existing account.
For many people, Google is the web, using Chrome to access Gmail, relying on Maps to get around, watching YouTube videos and so on. But Google is also one of the world's largest digital advertising companies, which is worth bearing in mind when it comes to protecting your privacy.
If you're creating a new account, you'll usually be offered an Express setup or a Manual one. Choose Manual, as it walks you through the various privacy settings, including Web & App Activity, which controls whether Google saves your activity across its services for personalisation and other purposes.
If you already have a Google account, sign in, select your profile picture and go to Manage your Google Account. Choose Data & Privacy, then select Privacy Check-Up.
The guided tool walks you through Google's main privacy controls, helping you review what data is collected and how it's used. You'll be able to review your Web & App Activity settings, adjust your personalised ads settings, check the phone number linked to your account and review other key privacy controls.
While you're in your Google Account, it's also worth enabling 2-Step Verification (2FA). Select Security & sign-in, then 2-Step Verification. This adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification, such as a code sent to your phone or generated by an authentication app, as well as your password when you sign in.
While we're talking privacy, consider enabling 2FA for your online accounts. See our advice on phone apps you need to secure right away.
⏱️ How long does it take? Around 10-20 minutes to open the tool, sort through your saved passwords and update compromised ones.
If you already use Google's services, it's worth making use of Google Password Manager, too. Available at passwords.google.com, it stores your passwords, generates strong new ones and warns you if any have been exposed in a known data breach.
The tool lists the login details you've saved for websites and apps, including shopping sites, social media platforms and gaming services. Simply select an entry to view the associated username, password and website address.
We also suggest you select Password Checkup to check whether any of your saved passwords have been flagged as compromised, reused or weak. If a password has been compromised, change it as soon as possible. Replacing reused and weak passwords with strong, unique alternatives will also improve your security.
Google isn't the only password manager available. To find out more, see how to create secure passwords.
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⏱️ How long does it take? Around 5 minutes per category in the Privacy Checkup tool.
On the Facebook app, tap Menu > Settings & Privacy > Privacy Checkup. On some Android devices, this may appear as Privacy shortcuts instead.
On desktop, select your profile picture in the top right, then go to Settings & Privacy > Privacy Checkup.
The Privacy Checkup tool lets you review several key areas, including:
⏱️ How long does it take? Around 5 minutes to explore the privacy tab on desktop and mobile.
In the web version of Outlook, select the Settings cog in the top-right corner, then go to General > Privacy and data. From here, you can manage your privacy settings, including downloading your data and clearing your search history.
It's also worth enabling two-step verification for your Microsoft account. Select your profile picture, choose My Microsoft account, then go to Security and Manage how I sign in. Under Additional security, select Two-step verification.
If you're using the Outlook app, tap your profile icon, then the Settings cog and scroll down to Privacy settings. You'll find a smaller set of privacy controls than on the web version.
⏱️ How long does it take? Around 10-20 minutes to fully explore and make changes.
Sign in to your Microsoft account at account.microsoft.com and open the Privacy section to access the Microsoft Privacy Dashboard.
Here, you'll find a guided Privacy Checkup, which helps you review your account's privacy and security settings. It includes checks on your recovery email address and phone number, Microsoft Authenticator details, search and browsing activity, and Windows privacy settings.
If you're short on time, you could skip the guided checkup and head straight to the full privacy dashboard, where you can review and manage settings, including location activity, search and browsing personalisation, and diagnostic data.
⏱️ How long does it take? Less than 5 minutes.
You can visit haveibeenpwned.com on your phone or computer and enter your email address to see if it has appeared in any known data breaches.
If your details appear in the results, the site will show which breaches your email address was associated with and when the incidents were reported. Appearing in a breach doesn't automatically mean your accounts have been accessed, but it's a warning sign to change affected passwords and avoid reusing the same login details elsewhere.
To strengthen affected accounts, you can then use a password manager, including Google Password Manager (see above), to check for weak, reused or compromised passwords.
For more security tips, check out our advice on how to assess whether you're at risk of being hacked.
⏱️ How long does it take? Around 5 to 10 minutes, depending on how many apps are connected to your account.
Many of us use ‘Continue with Google’ or ‘Sign in with Apple’ without thinking twice, but over time, you can end up with a surprising number of apps linked to your accounts. Some will still have access to information such as your email address, calendar, cloud storage or contacts.
Reviewing these permissions regularly can help you reduce unnecessary data sharing.
For detailed instructions, see our walkthrough on how to see which apps can access your Apple or Google account.
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