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12/20/2010 7:29 AM 

Apparently, someone is out to get me.

Last week, I received an email from Walgreen’s, letting me know that hackers may have accessed my email address through their site.

Last week, McDonald’s admitted that customer emails, phone numbers, birthdays, and more may have been compromised.

Last week, a group called Gnosis published a list of encrypted user passwords from the Gawker family of sites, including Gizmodo and Lifehacker.

So, now what?

As a faithful drugstore shopper, eater of cheeseburgers, and Lifehacker devotee, I am now left with a choice. Do I abandon them for CVS and Burger King? Do I forego online blogs for the safety of an ink-and-paper magazine? Do I slam the door on my bunker and wait for the online apocalypse?

Maybe…

Or maybe I could be a little bit smarter with my password choices.

(For some terrible password options—and a good laugh—go here: http://tinyurl.com/3x4amd7).

And maybe I could be more selective about the user accounts that I open. I love lots of companies, but maybe I do not need an online account—and separate password—for every one.

And maybe I could relax. Hackers are a fact of life—but some smarts and know-how will go a long way towards protecting my online identity.

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