Smartphone applications that are free can only afford to be free because of either in-app purchases or brokering your personal information.

In other words, if the application is free, it is because you are the product the app sells.

How they collect and share your personal data can pose significant security and privacy risks, especially if these apps are installed and being used on mobile devices that are also accessing Emily Carr’s data.

By not protecting yourself online, you may be vulnerable to:

• Identity theft
• Privacy concerns
• Data leakage
• Information sharing

How can you protect yourself? Here are some quick tips:

• Review the settings: disable tracking and cookies.
• Research the app: do a quick search to see if there are any concerns about it.
• Review the permissions: remember that your security is more important than access to all the app features.
• Read: go through the terms and conditions.

Are you using social media apps on your ECU device?

If possible, please use a separate device for university business and personal social media applications. If you cannot separate the use, do not access highly sensitive data from the device that you have installed non-university social media apps on.

Please visit our Cybersecurity section for more details and step-by-step instructions on how to keep your data safe.