As Cloudflare proves, even the most security-focused websites aren’t always free from information breaches. That’s why it’s so important to have additional security on your devices. Use DFNDR’s Full Virus Scan to ensure that all malware threats are removed from your phone. It will scan your files, programs, and SD card to locate and remove malware. Click here to scan your device for security threats:

What happened with Cloudfare?

This focus on Internet security was part of the reason it was such a surprise when, in early 2017, Cloudflare had a serious security bug in its software. This bug released data like passwords, cookies, and authentication tokens from its websites. Users’ personal information is usually encrypted or obscured, but the bug caused this data to be revealed in plain text. In the worst-case scenario, anyone who saw the error could have collected the personal information from these users.

Perhaps the biggest issue with the data leak was that the leak may have happened nearly five months before it was reported to Cloudflare. However, the biggest leak happened over six days when one out of every 3,300,000 requests to Cloudflare caused data to be exposed. When this happened, hackers could access the data on demand through the cached files on search engines.

Users found a wide variety of data that had been released from Cloudflare, including data website messages, hotel bookings, chatroom messages, and passwords, among other information. Cloudflare leaked data in around 0.00003% of its requests. This is, of course, a small number, but the significance of the data, and the number of users who employ Cloudflare, make it important.

What Caused the Leak?

The virus that caused the problem infected a part of the system Cloudflare uses to improve website performance. Three Cloudflare features were not integrated well with this program, causing the data to be released.

How Did Cloudfare Solve This Problem?

Cloudflare had difficulty finding a solution to the data leak. The data that had been released was automatically cached by search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo, and the company had to go to each one of these companies individually to ask them to clear the data.

How To Securely Store Your Data

Strong Passwords
The old way of creating passwords was to use a random combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. Now, however, even that advice has changed. To really protect yourself, create a password that features at least three sets of completely unrelated words, like “tree,” “roll,” and “blue.” Use symbols, letters, and numbers between these words. It is said that hackers have a harder time with this approach. Whatever you do, do not use the same password in multiple places.

Read More: Google’s Onscreen Security Notifications for Android

Use Protective Software
Whether you are on a mobile phone or your laptop, you need to make sure you have antivirus protection in place. Malware and viruses are on the rise when it comes to cell phones. With so much personal data stored in one place, the only way to help keep it safe is to make it as hard as possible for thieves to get in unnoticed. Install PSafe Total on your Android device and PSafe Total Windows on your computer. It’s a great way to keep your gadgets safe and secure.

Really Delete Your Files
When you’ve deleted a file, you need to make sure it is actually gone. It’s an important way of making sure that your data is secure. But, deleting a file is only half the battle. It may remove the reference to the file in the file system table, but the file still lives on in the disk — and could be recovered. To prevent that from happening, you must overwrite it with other information, rendering it unreadable. There are free tools and programs that can help with that task.

Password Protection
Have you enabled password protection on your Android phone? If you have not set up a lockscreen, do it now. Your data will not be securely stored on your cell phone without it. Add in lock screen protection by heading to your “Settings” menu. You can also add a second password to important apps with PSafe Total’s Vault feature.