The OPSEC Podcast

COVERT Protocol Action #9: Harden your Home Network

Strengthen your home network so that your router and connected devices are resilient against attacks, unauthorised access, and privacy invasions. This includes upgrading to more secure firmware, encrypting local and internet traffic, and creating network-level protections that block unwanted connections while allowing only legitimate ones. A hardened home network reduces the risk of compromise for all devices connected to it. Steps to Harden Your Home Network: 1. Upgrade your router firmware or hardware: Replace or upgrade your existing router with one that supports secure, up-to-date, customizable firmware such as OpenWRT, which provides advanced security features, more frequent updates, and strong configuration options compared to many stock router firmwares. 2. Enforce strong Wi-Fi encryption: On your router (especially one running OpenWRT), enable current security standards such as WPA3 or at least WPA2 for wireless networks. Older unsecured modes greatly increase vulnerability to eavesdropping. 3. Set strong administrative credentials: Change the default router admin password to a unique, strong passphrase and disable remote administration over the internet. Default credentials are easily discovered and exploited. 4. Configure network-level VPN: Install and configure a VPN connection at the router level so that all traffic leaving your home network is encrypted and protected from eavesdroppers on public networks and your ISP. Router-level VPN ensures devices that don’t natively support VPN software still benefit from encrypted internet traffic. 5. Segment your network: Create separate network segments or VLANs for trusted devices, guests, and IoT devices so that a compromise in one segment (e.g., insecure IoT) does not easily spread to other critical devices. Recommended tools: OpenWRT routers - GL.iNet Flint 3 (GL-BE9300) - Tri-band Wi-Fi 7 Home Router GL.iNet Slate 7 (GL-BE3600) - Dual-band Wi-Fi 7 Travel Router ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

COVERT Protocol Action #8: Audit and Clean Your Online Exposure

Systematically reduce your publicly visible personal information by identifying where your data appears online (search engines, data brokers, people-search sites) and using services to request removal or opt-out, so third parties and automated systems can’t easily collect, sell, or expose your PII. This step helps protect against spam, identity theft, unsolicited marketing, and malicious activity such as doxxing. Steps to scrubbing your online footprint: 1. Scan for exposure: Search major search engines (e.g., Google) for your name, email, phone number, and other PII to see what’s publicly visible. Note where your data appears. 2. Use a removal service: Sign up for a data removal service to automate opt-out requests to data brokers and people-search sites that hold or publish your personal information. 3. Submit opt-out requests: Depending on the service, you may need to confirm the data to remove or authorize the provider to act on your behalf. 4. Verify removal: After the service processes requests, check periodically (every few months) to confirm your data has been removed or suppressed, and resubmit if necessary. 5. Monitor ongoing exposure: Some services continually monitor your footprint and renew removal requests as new records appear. 6. Repeat periodically: Online exposure evolves over time; schedule regular scrubs to maintain a minimised digital footprint. Recommended tools: Pentester.com: primarily a vulnerability and digital footprint scanner that helps discover compromised credentials or exposed data, and can be used to identify where your personal information might be leaking online. DeleteMe a long-established privacy service that contacts data brokers and people-search sites on your behalf to remove your personal information; it covers hundreds of brokers with ongoing updates. Incogni: a comprehensive personal information removal service that scans numerous data broker sites and submits removal requests, often including coverage of many niche or lesser-known sources. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

COVERT Protocol Action #7: Harden your Devices

Harden your Devices: strengthen the security and privacy of your phones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers by reducing their attack surface, protecting stored data, and blocking common threats. This includes encrypting data at rest, securing network traffic, tightening web browsing, and using malware protection. Hardened devices are much safer if lost, stolen, or actively targeted. Steps to Harden Your Devices: 1. Enable full disk encryption (FDE): Turn on encryption for your device’s storage so that data is unreadable without your passcode, even if the device is lost or stolen. Most modern OSes allow this (e.g., BitLocker on Windows, FileVault on macOS). 2. Use a VPN connection: Install and configure a reputable Virtual Private Network (VPN) on each device. This encrypts your network traffic when you are on untrusted Wi-Fi or public networks, making it harder for attackers to intercept your communications. 3. Harden your browser: Choose a browser that respects privacy, or harden Firefox yourself. Enforce HTTPS for secure connections.Install privacy/security extensions (e.g., script blockers, ad blockers) to reduce tracking and malicious content. Regularly clear cookies and site data. This reduces exposure to trackers and exploitation. 4. Harden you device: Keep software updated. Install antivirus/anti-malware software. Remove unnecessary software. Use least-privilege accounts. Review privacy/security settings. Back up your data Recommended tools: Privacy Browsers: Brave, LibreWolf, DuckDuckGo Private Browser Browser Extensions: NoScript, uBlock Origin, Firefox Multi Account Containers VPN Service: Proton, Mulvad, NordVPN Antivirus Software: Bitdefender, Avira, Malwarebytes ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

COVERT Protocol Action #6: Audit Your Children Social Media Accounts

Throughout the latest episode, we have discussed operational security in professional settings. Today, we are bringing Gabriel Fanelli, director of training at Grey Dynamics and a former United States SIGINT operator with a Bronze Star commendation, to talk about something more than hardening your devices and obfuscating your networks:  Family Security First of all, you are not your kids' best friends; you are their protector and last line of defence against all the threat actors lurking in the dark corners of the Internet. Having said that, here is what you will learn in the episode. 1. The Types of Threats Present in Video Games and Online Forums 2. How To Explain Family Security Procedures to Your Spouse 3. How to Talk To Your Kids About Grooming and Extortion 4. Social Media Rules to Have Around the House 5. Maintaining Your Kid's Security While He Plays Online Games 6. Followers Vetting Processes and Second Device Auditing  Your children and your family's security and privacy are your responsibility. They don't have the ability or capability to do it themselves, and you already know what's out there. Harden Up.  #Opsec #Security #Family #Home #Veteran ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

COVERT Protocol Action #5: Audit Your Social Media Accounts

Audit your social-media exposure, review all your public or private social-media accounts and online profiles; check what personal information (photos, posts, bio data, connections) is visible; then remove, reduce, or restrict exposure of anything risky or unnecessary. Steps to audit your social media exposure: 1. Make a full list of every social-media profile or public/social online account you’ve ever created (active or dormant). Include mainstream platforms and smaller/less-used ones. 2. Visit each account and carefully examine what can be seen publicly: profile pictures, bio information (name, location, birthdate, contact info), past posts, comments, photos, tags, friend lists. 3. Adjust privacy and visibility settings on each account so that only trusted contacts (friends/followers) can see sensitive content. Delete, lock down or hide: personal details, contact info, location data, old posts. 4. Remove or deactivate any accounts you no longer use, or that you don’t want publicly visible. Dormant accounts may still leak personal data. 5. Scan for “people-search” or public-record sites listing you (or old usernames/email) check what information about you is exposed outside social media. 6. Periodically repeat the audit (every 3–6 months) privacy settings and platform defaults can change; content from connections (tags, shares) or old posts may re-expose you. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.