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Гарантия конфиденциальности"],"People before profits":["Люди важнее прибыли"],"Security through transparency":["Безопасность, основанная на прозрачности"],"The best Proton Mail ${ BLACK_FRIDAY } deals":["${ BLACK_FRIDAY }: лучшие предложения Proton Mail"],"The world’s only community- supported email service":["Единственный в мире сервис электронной почты с поддержкой сообщества"]},"specialoffer:limited":{"${ hours } hour":["${ hours } час","${ hours } часа","${ hours } часов","${ hours } часа"],"${ hoursLeft }, ${ minutesLeft } and ${ secondsLeft } left":["Осталось ${ hoursLeft }, ${ minutesLeft } и ${ secondsLeft }"],"${ minutes } minute":["${ minutes } минута","${ minutes } минуты","${ minutes } минут","${ minutes } минуты"],"${ seconds } second":["${ seconds } секунда","${ seconds } секунды","${ seconds } секунд","${ seconds } секунды"],"Limited time offer":["Ограниченное по времени предложение"]},"specialoffer:listitem":{"Create multiple addresses":["Создавайте несколько адресов"],"Hide-my-email aliases":["Создавайте алиасы hide-my-email"],"Quickly unsubscribe from newsletters":["С легкостью отменяйте подписку на рассылки"],"Use your own domain name":["Используйте собственное доменное имя"]},"specialoffer:logos":{"As featured in":["О нас в СМИ"]},"specialoffer:metadescription":{"Get an encrypted email that protects your privacy":["Электронная почта, защищающая вашу конфиденциальность"]},"specialoffer:metatitle":{"Proton Mail Black Friday Sale - Up to 40% off":["Черная пятница в Proton Mail: скидки до 40 %"]},"specialoffer:newmetadescription":{"Get up to 40% off Proton Mail subscriptions this Black Friday. Find great deals on our secure end-to-end encrypted email plans.":["Получите Proton Mail со скидкой до 40 %. Не пропустите выгодные предложения на планы безопасной электронной почты, зашифрованной сквозным шифрованием, в честь «черной пятницы»."]},"specialoffer:newmetatitle":{"Proton Mail Black Friday sale | Up to 40% off secure email":["«Черная пятница» в Proton Mail | Скидки до 40 %"]},"specialoffer:note":{"* Billed at ${ TOTAL_SUM } for the first year":["* ${ TOTAL_SUM } за первый год."],"*Billed at ${ TOTAL_SUM } for the first 2 years":["* ${ TOTAL_SUM } за первые два года."],"30-day money-back guarantee":["Гарантия возврата средств в течение 30 дней"],"Billed at ${ TOTAL_SUM } for the first 2 years":["${ TOTAL_SUM } за первые 2 года"],"Billed at ${ TOTAL_SUM } for the first year":["${ TOTAL_SUM } за первый год"],"You save ${ SAVE_SUM }":["Вы экономите ${ SAVE_SUM }."]},"specialoffer:off":{"${ DISCOUNT } off":["–${ DISCOUNT }"],"${ PERCENT_OFF } off":["–${ PERCENT_OFF }"]},"specialoffer:testimonial":{"I love my ProtonMail":["Обожаю ProtonMail!"],"My favorite email service":["Мой любимый сервис электронной почты"],"Thanks Proton for keeping us all safe in the complicated internet universe.":["Спасибо Proton за защиту в запутанном интернет-пространстве."],"You get what you pay for. In the case of big tech, if you pay nothing, you get used. I quit using Gmail and switched to @ProtonMail":["Полностью оправданное вложение денег. Бигтех-компании используют тебя, если ты им не платишь. Поэтому я перешла с Gmail на @ProtonMail."]},"specialoffer:time":{"Days":["дн."],"Hours":["ч."],"Min":["мин."]},"specialoffer:title":{"And much more":["И это еще не всё"],"Make your inbox yours":["Настройка на свой вкус"],"Safe from trackers":["Защита от трекеров"],"Stay organized":["Всё по полочкам"],"Black Friday email deals":["Безопасная почта для покупок в «черную пятницу»"],"Don’t just take our word for it":["Отзывы наших клиентов"],"Our story":["Наша история"],"Transfer your data from Google in one click":["Перенесите данные из Gmail в одно нажатие"]},"specialoffer:tooltip":{"Access blocked content and browse privately. Includes ${ TOTAL_SERVERS }+ servers in ${ TOTAL_COUNTRIES }+ countries, connect up to 10 devices, access worldwide streaming services, malware and ad-blocker, and more.":["Сохраняйте конфиденциальность в Интернете и получайте доступ к заблокированному контенту. Включает ${ TOTAL_SERVERS } серверов более чем в ${ TOTAL_COUNTRIES } странах с возможностью подключения на 10 устройствах, доступ к стриминговым платформам со всего мира, блокировщик рекламы, функцию защиты от вредоносных программ и другие преимущества."],"Easily share your calendar with your family, friends or colleagues, and view external calendars.":["Предоставляйте доступ к календарю родственникам, друзьям и коллегам, а также просматривайте календари других сервисов"],"Includes support for 1 custom email domain, 10 email addresses, 10 hide-my-email aliases, calendar sharing, and more.":["Включает поддержку 1 пользовательского домена, 10 адресов электронной почты, 10 алиасов hide-my-email, совместный доступ к календарю и другие преимущества."],"Includes support for 3 custom email domains, 15 email addresses, unlimited hide-my-email aliases, calendar sharing, and more.":["Включает поддержку трех пользовательских доменов, 15 адресов электронной почты, неограниченного числа алиасов hide-my-email, совместный доступ к календарю и другие преимущества."],"Manage up to 25 calendars, mobile apps, secured with end-to-end encryption, 1-click calendar import from Google, and more.":["До 25 календарей, мобильные приложения, сквозное шифрование, удобный перенос данных из Google Календаря и другие преимущества"]},"Status Banner":{"At the moment we are experiencing issues with the Proton VPN service":["При использовании сервиса Proton VPN могут возникать проблемы"],"Learn more":["Подробнее"]},"Status banner":{"Learn more":["Подробнее"],"Please note that at the moment we are experiencing issues with the ${ issues[0] } service.":["Сейчас при использовании сервиса ${ issues[0] } могут возникать проблемы."],"We are experiencing issues with one or more services at the moment.":["При использовании одного или нескольких сервисов могут возникать проблемы."]},"suggestions":{"Suggestions":["Предложения"]},"Support":{"Sub category":["Подкатегория","Подкатегории","Подкатегорий","Подкатегорий"]},"Support article":{"${ readingTime } min":["${ readingTime } мин.","${ readingTime } мин.","${ readingTime } мин.","${ readingTime } мин."],"Category":["Категория","Категории","Категорий","Категорий"],"Didn’t find what you were looking for?":["Не нашли желаемый контент?"],"General contact":["Общие контакты"],"Get help":["Получить помощь"],"Legal contact":["Контакты юридического отдела"],"Media contact":["Контакты для прессы"],"Partnerships contact":["Контакты по вопросам партнерства"],"Reading":["Чтение"]},"Support categories":{"Browse Proton product support":["Смотреть ресурсы по поддержке продуктов Proton"]},"Support category":{"There is no article in this category yet.":["В этой категории еще нет статей."]},"Support troubleshooting":{"--- Select ---":["— Выбрать —"],"App version":["Версия приложения"],"Browser":["Браузер"],"Check if this helps":["Возможно, нужный ответ найдется здесь"],"Choose a category for your question":["Выберите категорию запроса"],"Choose a product":["Выберите продукт"],"Did this solve your issue ?":["Удалось ли нам решить вашу проблему?"],"Faster assistance is just a few clicks away — please make your selections":["Выберите подходящие варианты. Всего пара нажатий — и вы на шаг ближе к решению проблемы."],"No, contact support":["Нет, связаться со службой поддержки"],"Proton account":["Аккаунт Proton"],"Proton Bridge":["Proton Bridge"],"Proton Calendar":["Proton Calendar"],"Proton Drive":["Proton Drive"],"Proton for Business":["Proton for Business"],"Proton Mail":["Proton Mail"],"Proton Pass":["Proton Pass"],"Proton VPN":["Proton VPN"],"Thank you for your feedback":["Спасибо за отзыв!"],"Troubleshooting":["Устранение неполадок"],"What can we help with ?":["Чем мы можем вам помочь?"],"Yes":["Да"]},"support_modal_search_query":{"Search query":["Поисковый запрос"]},"support_search_button":{"Search":["Найти"]},"support_search_i_am_looking_for":{"I'm looking for":["Я ищу"]},"SupportForm":{"For a faster resolution, please report the issue from the Bridge app: Help > Report a problem.":["Чтобы быстро устранить проблему в приложении Bridge, выберите «Справка» > «Сообщить о проблеме»."],"Information":["Информация"]},"SupportForm:option":{"Account Security":["Безопасность аккаунта"],"Contacts":["Контакты"],"Custom email domain":["Пользовательский домен адреса электронной почты"],"Email delivery and Spam":["Доставка электронных писем и спам"],"Encryption":["Шифрование"],"Login and password":["Имя пользователя и пароль"],"Merge aliases and accounts":["Объединение псевдонимов и аккаунтов"],"Migrate to Proton":["Переход на Proton"],"Notifications":["Уведомления"],"Other":["Другое"],"Plans and billing":["Тарифы и оплата"],"Proton for Business":["Proton for Business"],"Sign up":["Регистрация"],"Storage":["Хранилище"],"Users, addresses, and identities":["Пользователи, адреса и личные данные"]},"SupportForm:optionIntro":{"Select a topic":["Выберите тему"]},"swiss_baseed_feature":{"Swiss based":["В Швейцарии"]},"Testimonial":{"Awards":["Награды"],"Customers":["Клиенты"],"Featured":["Что о нас говорят"],"Go to testimonial source":["Перейти к источнику отзыва"],"Reviews":["Отзывы"],"Videos":["видео."]},"Text":{"Find the plan that's right for you":["Найдите подходящий план"],"If you need help, check out our ${ supportLink }.":["Если вам нужна помощь, перейдите в ${ supportLink }."],"The page you’re looking for might have been removed, or it could be an\nold link.":["Возможно, страница удалена\nили у вас устаревшая ссылка."]},"Title":{"On this page":["На этой странице"],"Related articles":["Статьи по теме"],"Share ${ thisPage }":["Поделиться ${ thisPage }"],"Thank you!":["Спасибо!"],"this page":["этой страницей"]},"Tooltip":{"More information":["Подробнее"]},"tooltip_calendar":{"Create up to 20 custom & shareable encrypted calendars. On top of that, add up to 5 calendars from friends, family, colleagues, and organizations.":["Есть возможность создать до 20 зашифрованных пользовательских календарей и делиться ими с другими людьми, а также добавить до 5 календарей друзей, родственников, коллег и организаций."]},"tooltip_vpn":{"Access blocked content and browse privately. Includes ${ TOTAL_SERVERS }+ servers in ${ TOTAL_COUNTRIES }+ countries, highest VPN speed, ${ TOTAL_VPN_CONNECTIONS } VPN connections, worldwide streaming services, malware and ad-blocker, and more.":["Получайте доступ к заблокированному контенту, просматривайте страницы анонимно и пользуйтесь стриминговыми сервисами со всего мира. Мы предлагаем ${ TOTAL_SERVERS } серверов более чем в ${ TOTAL_COUNTRIES } странах, высочайшую скорость VPN, ${ TOTAL_VPN_CONNECTIONS } VPN-подключений, защиту от вредоносных программ, блокировщик рекламы и многое другое."],"Access blocked content and browse privately. 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Are security questions terrible for account security? | Proton
What was your first pet’s name? In what city were you born?
We’ve all had to answer these questions to reset a long-forgotten password, but consider how that works. Much of this information is easy to find for others (or easily forgotten by you), making it a poor defense for your most valuable online accounts, personal data, and sensitive information.
Security questions are meant to help reset passwords, reopen locked accounts, and ultimately protect your digital spaces from attacks or breaches, but such safeguarding is widely considered flawed and unreliable(new window).
A massive Yahoo data breach(new window) highlighted the perils of relying on security questions to protect your accounts. The breach exposed the personal data of half a billion million users, including their names, email addresses, phone numbers, and the security questions and answers they used for account recovery.
This article will explore why security questions are actually terrible for your security and what measures you can take to better protect your most sensitive private data.
What are security questions?
When you’re locked out of an account, it’s common to face security questions to regain access or reset passwords. This gatekeeper layer of security is common and used across many platforms, from email and social media to banking and shopping websites.
Answers to questions like “What is your mother’s maiden name?” are supposed to be information only you know or a select few — in theory, the more obscure the answer, the better the security.
However, experts have begun to question the effectiveness(new window) of this security layer due to the vulnerabilities that come with requiring people to remember information that can be forgotten, changed, or discovered by potential attackers digging around on the Internet.
Why security questions are a terrible idea
There are several reasons why leaning on security questions to protect you is a bad idea. It comes down to a pair of unfortunate realities: Potential attackers are more clever than you might think, and there’s more personal information online than you realize.
Here’s a look at why security questions are the weakest link of security measures:
Discoverability: In an age where people manage multiple social media accounts across several platforms, attackers can often find answers to security questions with a little digging into your public-facing profiles. They can build a profile of you based on your posts, exploiting publicly available information to bypass security measures and gain access to your account.
Forgettability: Favorites and life details change over time, often making it difficult for you to recall information at the moment you need to. This greatly diminishes the reliability of security questions as a security tool.
“40% of English-speaking US users have failed to recall their answers to security questions, according to Google,” reported Time(new window). “When the questions are very difficult, such as asking for a person’s frequent flier number, the recall rate drops to 9%.”
Beware of oversharing on social media
By exploring your social media accounts, hackers can often obtain the information you use to reset passwords, particularly the answers to security questions. Make sure to consider anything you share that could contain the following information:
Family names
Date of birth
Location of birth
What school you attended
Pet names
Any address, current or former
Details of your routine
What’s at stake? Your data and privacy
If the answers to your security questions are ever compromised, it can lead to widespread privacy violations.
Identity theft: With access to something like your bank account, it wouldn’t take much work for an attacker to impersonate you, open new accounts, or commit fraud with your stolen identity.
Compromised accounts: If the answers to your security questions are exposed in a data breach, any account tied to the answers of those questions can be in danger, as it’s common for people to recycle the same ones over multiple accounts.
What are better alternative security measures?
Knowing the dangers that could come with traditional security questions, you might consider using more effective – and reliable – authentication methods.
Two-factor authentication (2FA), also known as two-step verification, requires two forms of identification when you log into an account. After you input a username and password, 2FA may have you enter a unique code generated by a mobile authenticator app, plug in a security key, or type in a code sent to your phone.
Here’s a look at the best forms of 2FA:
Security key: Security keys, also known as hardware keys, help prove your identity when you’re logging in to an account, app, or device. This allows you to sign in to your account using a physical key, such as a YubiKey(new window), which resembles a thumb drive. If you choose to use a 2FA key with your Proton Account, for example, you must plug in your key every time you sign in.
Time-based one-time passwords: You can use an authenticator app on your smartphone to generate six-digit passwords that regenerate every 30 seconds to keep codes fresh and make unauthorized access to your accounts difficult for potential attackers. Using TOTP can be inconvenient, however, as it involves entering a code in a short period of time.
What about SMS messages?
Text messages are considered the least secure of 2FA options, as they are vulnerable to SIM-swapping attacks. SMS is unencrypted and insecure, making it easier for hackers to intercept 2FA codes. If there are multiple 2FA methods offered, SMS should be avoided.
Best practices for online security
As cybersecurity threats become more sophisticated and common, it’s important to reassess security practices and the role security questions play in our defense against such attacks. Here are two ways you can enhance your online security right now:
Use email aliases: These let you keep your personal email addresses private. You can use a service, such as SimpleLogin by Proton, to generate distinct email addresses for your various online accounts. That way you can easily revoke an alias tied to a specific account should that account become compromised.
Put your privacy first
You can start by prosecuting your trust in security questions and using alternative tools, such as two-factor authentication and secure email services like Proton Mail to strengthen your defenses.
It’s important to use the best tools available to build a future where privacy is the default.
Безопасная электронная почта и защита вашей конфиденциальности
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