How to prevent your own iCloud naked photo fiasco

Everyone has heard by now that somewhere in the dark recesses of the Internet (or at least 4chan), there is a trove of naked celebrity photos procured by a hacker from Apple's iCloud server. People are still theorizing as to how exactly it was done, but Apple has mobilized and says it fixed the problem exploited by the hacker that allowed access to iCloud, and the FBI is now investigating. But that probably doesn't make Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton, or any of the other celebrities involved feel any better.

In light of the news, tech journalist Marc Saltzman tweeted out some straightforward advice for keeping yourself safe:

We break down how to implement each of his suggestions:

Two-step authentication

This method is being employed by several major companies, including Google and Microsoft, to keep data safe. By turning on two-factor authentication, a person accessing your account would need to have your password as well as your mobile device or your recovery key in order to get in. Whenever you enter your password, a text will be sent to your mobile device, which you then enter in when prompted to wherever you're trying to login with your Apple ID.

To set this up on iOS devices, go to My Apple ID on the Apple website, click "Manage your Apple ID," click "Password and Security," then under "Two-Step Verification" click "Get Started." You'll be prompted through several instructions on how to set this up.

Changing your password every three months

It's a simple fix that, while frustrating at times, will help prevent people from gaining access to your data. You should also aim for a secure password that is difficult to guess but easy for you to remember. If you need some help, I've gone into detail before on how to create a secure password.

Don't upload private files

This is certainly the most obvious solution to the problem: If your files aren't saved on a computer outside of your control, as it would be with iCloud, Dropbox, or any other cloud-based storage system, then you can't have your pictures stolen.

If you're really keen on taking scandelous photos for a significant other, this might be the time to put the phone away and pull out the digital camera. Unless you've got a camera that has WiFi and will automatically post to Facebook (yikes!), your pictures will be stored safely on your memory card, away from digital prying eyes (but don't send them over email. That kind of defeats your whole secure approach).

[ Related: Possible tablet thieves send photos of themselves to former owner ]

Of course, if you're unaware that your phone is helpfully uploading photos to a cloud service without your knowledge, that's an entirely separate problem. If you're an iPhone or iPad user, you may need to check your iCloud settings and see if you're uploading only the content you want to.

If you want to disable iCloud altogether so your photos are only stored on your phone, you can follow some straightforward steps outlined by Business Insider to switch iCloud off altogether:

First, two cautions: Be sure all the photos you want to keep are saved on your computer, not just in the Photo Stream via iCloud. And if you aren't careful editing your iCloud settings, you do run the risk of deleting all your contacts. We don't want that to happen, so here's what to do:

1. Turn iCloud off on your phone. Apple has instructions for how to do this, but it boils down to going to Settings > iCloud and then switching off all the apps you don't want backing up via iCloud, and turning off Photos, too.

2. Delete the photos in your Photo Stream. All photos taken with the iPhone are saved to the Camera Album, and to another folder called Photo Stream, which is the photos that will be backed up to iCloud. Delete them from this.

3. Turn off iCloud via the iCloud.com website. If you go into your account and the settings menu on Apple's site, you can select which kind of media is and isn't saved to the cloud.

4. Turn off iCloud on your Mac computer. Yeah, I know, we're still turning stuff off. Go to System Preferences > iCloud (under Internet & Wireless), sign in to iCloud, then turn off any media you don't want stored on iCloud.

5. Delete any photos in iPhoto you don't want other people to see. With iCloud turned off everywhere else, you probably won't run into any problems, but iPhoto is easily accessible by anyone else who shares your computer, and chances are you'd rather be safe than sorry.

(Photo via BGR News)

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