By Chetrice Mosley-Romero

You cup the dice into your hands, shake them around (perhaps wishing them good luck), and finally roll them onto the board. Pandemonium breaks out! The dice has decided the fate of every player on the board. Whether it be Dungeons and Dragons, Yahtzee, or Monopoly, everyone is sure to have a good time when playing games with dice.

Recently, these games have been moving online and people are able to play dice games with people all over the world. However, having these games online exposes dice enthusiasts to cybercriminals looking to take their private information.

In just this past year, there were major data breaches against Roblox, Neopets, and Bandai, with Neopets exposing the data of 69 million players. There was also a data breach in 2019 where more than 200 million online gamers had their data stolen. Is there anything online dice game enthusiasts can do to protect themselves? Thankfully there are ways to mitigate the effects of data breaches on you!

In celebration this week of National Dice Day, here are some online gaming tips from the National Cybersecurity Alliance that will help you stay safe and protect your personal information, allowing you to focus on just having fun.

• Do Your Research – Mobile gaming makes up approximately 45 percent of the global games market. But just because a game is available on a trusted app store, it doesn’t mean it is a safe app to download. Before downloading any new gaming app on your device, make sure it’s a legitimate app. Check out the reviews and look it up online before downloading it.
• Think Before You Click – Cybercriminals will often try to entice gamers into clicking links or downloading malicious files by offering cheat codes, hacks, or other ways for you to gain an advantage over competitors; this is especially true if it comes from a stranger or it’s something you weren’t expecting. If the offer seems too good to be true, chances are it is.
• Protect Your Privacy – As part of your gaming profiles, the more personal information you post, the easier it may be to steal your identity or access your data. Be cautious and if a stranger asks you to share this information, say “no”. The same is true if they ask you to share a photo or turn on your webcam.
  • Avoid using geo-tagging features which can reveal your exact location. A better option is to disable this function before you start playing.
  • Playing with people you don’t know or aren’t a part of your friend group? Use a safe game name, such as Superstar55 or Catsby90. Don’t use your first or last name in your usernames and use an avatar instead of an actual photo.

It’s also a good idea, as with a lot of things you’ll want to do whenever you’re online, is to:

• Always use a secure wi-fi connection.
• Create long and strong passwords (at least 12 characters long) and if you’re a real gamer, who enjoys playing on multiple gaming platforms, consider using a password manager.
• Use two-factor or multi-factor authentication on all your gaming devices.
• Secure your payment data
• Make sure all the internet-connected devices you’re using to access online games on – including personal computers, smartphones, and tablets -- are updated with the latest security software. Setting up automatic notifications are always good and if you’re playing an app-based game on a device, make sure it is updated regularly.

Of course, as adults, anything that involves a game that can’t be played at the kitchen table or involves handing out “play money”, it’s a good bet you’re going to ask questions, right? One way to learn what it’s all about is to have your kids teach you how to play whatever games they’re playing. It’s a great way to spend some time together and, who knows, you might actually win a game or two (but, if you’re like me, probably not).

Online gaming shouldn’t feel like you’re rolling the dice with your cybersecurity, waiting to see whether or not your private information will be leaked online by hackers. By following these tips, your dice rolls for increased privacy are sure to be natural 20s, just like in Dungeons and Dragons!