WELLINGTON, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand Minister for Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media Kris Faafoi is encouraging everyone to take a few easy steps to protect themselves online this Cyber Smart Week, or cyber security awareness week that runs from Oct. 8-12.
It is organized by New Zealand's Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT NZ) which is collaborating with more than 70 public and private sector partners to help keep Kiwis safe online.
The latest statistics from CERT NZ show that everyday New Zealanders lost almost 10 million NZ dollars (6.4 million U.S. dollars) to cyber-attacks in the last year, Faafoi said in a statement on Monday.
"We live in an increasingly digital world, where everything and everyone is connected. Our relationships, our jobs, our finances, everything is online," said Faafoi.
The CERT NZ is encouraging all New Zealanders to do a few simple things to protect themselves online, like making sure they use unique passwords, setting up two-factor authentication, making sure apps are up-to-date, and checking on privacy settings.