FBI Seattle unveils Operation Winter Shield, urges simple steps to boost personal cybersecurity

Mike Harrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle Field Office, announced "Operation Winter Shield," a nationwide cybersecurity initiative, and urged individuals to adopt simple habits to reduce their online risk.

The program condenses lessons from FBI investigations into "10 concrete, high‑impact actions," Harrington said. Asked whether those steps apply to ordinary people, Harrington said, "They absolutely do," and walked viewers through the first three measures aimed at individual users.

First, Harrington recommended enabling automatic updates on phones, computers and browsers so critical security patches install promptly. "If you do get an alert that an update is needed, do it right away," he said, noting that devices often perform updates at night and users typically experience minimal downtime.

Second, he urged people to "protect and preserve security logs" by checking the security or login history tabs in banking, email and social media accounts for unrecognized devices or activity. Harrington said knowing where to find those records makes it easier to file a report with law enforcement if needed.

Third, Harrington recommended adopting phishing‑resistant authentication: "Instead of a text message for multi‑factor authentication, use passkeys or physical security keys," he said, adding that hardware keys are harder for attackers to obtain through social‑engineering tricks. He also recommended using a password manager to create and store complex passwords and keeping a written master password secured in a safe place in case a phone is lost.

Harrington said the FBI Seattle office will release more guidance in future videos and directed viewers to fbi.gov/wintershield for the full 10‑step guide and additional resources. "Thanks for your time, and I'll return in another video soon to talk more about applying Operation Winter Shield as an individual user," he said.

The initiative frames commonly recommended cybersecurity practices—patching, monitoring account activity and moving away from SMS‑based two‑factor authentication—as steps organizations and individuals can apply to reduce exposure to cyber threats. The FBI page linked by Harrington hosts the full checklist and additional materials for users and organizations.