I recently received an email from Kickstarter, stating they were alerted by law enforcement that there had been a security breach.

In their statement, Kickstarter said that there weren't any credit cards compromised, but that members should go and change their Kickstarter passwords, and update their passwords on other sites.

This breach, in addition to recent breaches at Target, Michaels Stores, and others, are creating a new sense of popular awareness in cybersecurity. Or, how safe our data is out there in cyberspace, and also leaving many of us wondering how we can really keep our information safe, or if that's just a pipe dream. But like with anything else, sometimes it's difficult to gauge how worked up we as consumers really need to get.

I am not an alarmist, but after the Target breach, I kept a closer eye on my bank account. After reading that Kickstarter email, I followed their recommendation and changed my password. Everyone reacts to things like this in their own ways, and you should react however you feel comfortable.

But it's hard to see and hear about breaches like this and wonder if it's possible to protect our data, especially when it's out of our hands. Each time we provide information to a business, institution, or government entity, we are trusting them to keep it safe. Protect that information as if it was their information. Treat it with as much care as we do.

In your own world, there are things you can do to protect your information, especially if you are a business owner. Encrypting your hard drives is a great step. This way the data stored there, even if the drive is stolen or misplaced, will be stored behind a virtual "lock and key" that will be nearly impossible to crack.

And if you're in a business where you are asking customers and other agencies to trust you with their vital information, being able to tell them that you have their data, safely encrypted, seems like a great way to build trust with them. In this day and age, where data hacking and theft may be becoming more prominent, you may even be able to use this as a way to earn more business. Set yourself apart as someone who really takes the extra step to protect your customer's information.

To learn more about encryption, what it is and how it could help you, check out our encryption page. If you have any questions or want to learn more, be sure to contact us.