Google launches free cyber security Advanced Protection Program for journalists, human rights activist and officers. How to enroll?

As part of its Advanced Protection Program (APP), Google will give away more than 10,000 security keys to journalists, activists and political dissidents, as well as offer its advice to protect against cyberattacks sponsored by nation states. The technology firm signed an alliance with various non-profit organizations in order to distribute these devices.

Titan security keys provide an additional layer of security for a fully protected login process, preventing various variants of malicious activity and strengthening the protection of your users’ personal data.

One of Google’s most important allies in this campaign is the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), which operates as an observer of election days around the world, mainly in emerging democracies.

Google also signed an ongoing collaboration with Defending Digital Campaigns, a non-profit organization that helps defend political parties and election campaigns against cyberattacks, especially those focused on the distribution of disinformation and hate messages for electoral purposes and elections in totalitarian regimes.

In addition to the distribution of Titan devices, Google will collaborate with various divisions of the United Nations to bring cybersecurity workshops to women activists, journalists and entrepreneurs in countries deemed potentially hostile to certain groups of women: “We are excited to work with these leading organizations to protect high-risk groups and learn more about the needs of our users,” points out the company’s message.

About the APP program, cybersecurity experts point out that this is an effort beyond the mechanisms integrated into Google’s platforms in order to provide a complete security environment. Although in theory any user can enroll in APP, Google specifies in terms that this program was specifically designed to help users and organizations at risk of cyberattack, including election officials, activists, politicians and even some entrepreneurs.

Finally, cybersecurity experts believe that this initiative could inspire other technology companies to show a similar interest in improving the security of people of interest, since we are in a context in which cyberattacks against users through legitimate platforms is on the rise.

To learn more about information security risks, malware variants, vulnerabilities and information technologies, feel free to access the International Institute of Cyber Security (IICS) websites.