Cybersecurity Resources

State Agency Cyber Incident Reporting

Washington state agencies should call 360-407-8800 to report cybersecurity incidents.

If you are a Washington state resident, please go to the Washington State Office of the Attorney General website, which has links and information for victims of internet crime.

Security tips

Cyber threats are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Preventing them requires everyone to be aware and on guard.

To help individuals and small businesses protect themselves online WaTech's Office of Cybersecurity has compiled some trusted resources that can be used to improve your online security.

For Individuals

Here are four things you can do:

• Implement multi-factor authentication on your accounts and make it 99% less likely you'll get hacked.
• Update your software. In fact, turn on automatic updates.
• Think before you click. More than 90% of successful cyber-attacks start with a phishing email.
• Use strong passwords, and ideally a password manager to generate and store unique passwords.

Additional advice:

• Phishing: Bad actors will often take advantage of increased worldwide tensions, such as the conflict in Ukraine, to launch phishing campaigns that aim to disrupt organizations. Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself ... (Read more)
• Charity Scams: Scammers try to take advantage of world events by setting up fake charities that look and sound like real ones in order to steal your money. Here are some tips from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission on ways to make sure the charity you're working with is legitimate ... (Read More)
• Disinformation: Foreign content aimed at influencing public opinion is designed to look like real news. It is important to look for a diversity of credible sources. You should be able to trust that the author's ideas are their own, are unbiased, and are backed up by sound, fact-based evidence. Here are some best practices from the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) that can help you identify quality content and avoid being duped.

For Small Business

Small businesses might not consider themselves targets for cyberattacks. However, they do have valuable information that cybercriminals want, including employee and customer records, bank account information, access to the business's finances and access to larger networks ... (Read more)

Also see cyber hygiene tips