Companies often seem like they’re monolithic titans that can’t be touched.

Underneath all the branding, though, they’re made up of people.

People who can make mistakes, overlook something, or even get lazy.

However, these were likely neglected because it was assumed that more elaborate measures would keep them safe.

But that’s no excuse for making it easy on them.

Encrypting those spreadsheetsor using proper password management softwarecould have at least slowed down the intruders.

In Sony’s case, evenencrypting those specific filescould have helped.

For most regular users, ouronline security checklistcan help get you started.

We also have a guide for the minimum things you should do toprotect your Android phone.

They may not all keep out North Korea or whoever, but they at least raise the bar.

And whenour company was hackedback in 2010, we weren’t a beacon of security strength.

The commenter account leaks would’ve been bad enough.

However, excerpts frominternal chat logsalso made their way out.

Arguably, these were the more embarrassing part of the attack.

Whether it’s right or not doesn’t matter when the damage is done.

That doesn’t mean you could’t ever speak your mind.

Just be aware that you may have to own up to it someday.

As Target learned the hard way, though, it’s not always a virtual firewall that gets breached.

They installed malware the little box that you swipe your card in.

Data was stolen right where it was collected.

What does this mean for you?

This is a handy way to avoid keeping track of yet more passwords.

For those who don’t recall, Bit.ly is a URL shortener.

It allowed users to connect their social media accounts so it could post for you.

This meant that even though neither Facebook or Twitter were hacked, people’s accounts were still semi-vulnerable.

Similarly, you should be careful of which companies you entrust your accounts to.

Don’t just ask “Would I let this company post to my timeline for me?”

Ask “Do I trust this company not to get hacked?”

How did they do it?

In fact, most of us get bored reading that phrase.

Instead, we fallback on the comfortable notion that “They’re experts.

They can handle it.”

And in many cases, that’s true!

However, nothing is foolproof.

Even people who work in information security for a living can be hacked.

Neither case is true.

There’s always someone smarter out there.

Be aware of your vulnerabilities.Patch the holes.Backup your data.

The longer you wait, though, the worse it gets.

Just ask Monster.com, who waitedseveral days after discovering a hack to disclose it.

Now, this is obviously problematic for a variety of reasons.

Monster’s customers were none too pleased that their accounts were vulnerable without their knowledge.

This wasn’t just an issue of Monster’s reputation getting damaged.

Users were in active danger because the accounts weren’t closed down immediately.

Of course, companies that get hacked and news outlets like us can only do so much.

If you discover a vulnerability in your accounts or devices, don’t hesitate.

Take action immediately to fix the problem.

Photos bymarc falardeau,notoriousxl,Billie Ward, andChad Cooper.