NDResponse

05/26/2026

Wondering if you can have your Memorial Day campfire or use your gas grill? With changing conditions and wind, it is important that everyone learns before they burn this holiday weekend. Most burn restrictions are tied to the fire danger map, which is updated daily; keep up to date at https://NDResponse.gov/burn

Our favorite fire prevention bear Smokey Bear has great tips and tricks to help keep your holiday from going up in flames. Learn more at https://smokeybear.com 🔥

05/22/2026

Not-so-fun fact: Cybercriminals often don’t have to hack you—they just watch what you share online. 👀📱

This week, we’re breaking down each letter of North Dakota’s Stay Cyber SMART acronym with simple ways to better protect yourself online. Today, we’re talking about T—Take care with personal information.

Personal information is anything that can identify you—your birth date, address, school history, pet names, phone number, banking information, and more. While sharing parts of your life online can feel harmless, even small details can give scammers and identity thieves what they need.

Cybercriminals can piece together publicly available information to:
💳 Open fraudulent credit cards or loans.
🎯 Create highly convincing phishing scams.
🔑 Guess security question answers or passwords.
🏠 Learn when you’re away from home.

A little caution goes a long way. The less personal information you share online, the harder it is for bad actors to use it against you. 🔐

Stay aware. Stay safe. And as always—

S – Set strong, unique passwords.
M – Make multifactor authentication a habit.
A – Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.
R – Regularly update software and devices.
T – Take care with personal information.

05/21/2026

Let’s talk software updates. Annoying sometimes? Yes. Important? Absolutely!

This week, we’re breaking down each letter of North Dakota’s Stay Cyber SMART acronym with simple ways to better protect yourself online. Today, we’re talking about R—Regularly update software and devices.

Those update notifications aren’t just there to move buttons around and test your patience. 😉 Software updates play a huge role in fixing security flaws, patching vulnerabilities, and keeping your devices running safely and smoothly.

Here are a few easy ways to stay protected:

⚙️ Turn on automatic updates whenever possible. Most devices can update themselves overnight while you sleep.
📅 Prefer manual updates? Set a reminder so they don’t get forgotten.
📱 Update ALL your devices—not just your computer and phone. Smart TVs, gaming systems, security cameras, routers, and even smart thermostats need updates too.

Cybercriminals love outdated software because it’s often the easiest way in. Keeping devices updated is one of the simplest ways to protect yourself, your information, and your home network. 🔐

Stay aware. Stay safe. And as always—

S – Set strong, unique passwords.
M – Make multifactor authentication a habit.
A – Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.
R – Regularly update software and devices.
T – Take care with personal information.

05/20/2026

One click can change everything.

This week, we’re breaking down each letter of North Dakota’s Stay Cyber SMART acronym with simple ways to better protect yourself online. Next, we’re looking at A—Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.

Cybercriminals often use urgency and fear to get you to click before thinking. Taking a few extra seconds to pause can make all the difference.

🔎 Slow down when messages feel urgent.
🔗 Hover over links before clicking.
📞 Verify requests through a trusted source.
💸 Always confirm money-related requests directly.
🔐 Never send passwords or sensitive information by email or text.

If something feels suspicious, trust your instincts and report it. When in doubt, don’t click! 😉

Stay aware. Stay safe. And as always—

S – Set strong, unique passwords.
M – Make multifactor authentication a habit.
A – Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.
R – Regularly update software and devices.
T – Take care with personal information.

05/20/2026

Safety ☝

05/20/2026

True or false? Multifactor authentication is a simple extra layer of protection that can stop the vast majority of cyberattacks.

True!

This week, we’re breaking down each letter of North Dakota’s Stay Cyber SMART acronym—one day at a time—with simple ways to better protect yourself online. Today’s focus is on M—multifactor authentication, or MFA for short.

Instead of only entering a password (which can be guessed, stolen, or phished), MFA requires you to confirm your identity another way—such as with a PIN, authentication app, fingerprint, or facial scan.

Moral of the story: Use MFA and you’ll be quite A-OK. 😉

Stay aware. Stay safe. And as always— 🔐

S – Set strong, unique passwords.
M – Make multifactor authentication a habit.
A – Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.
R – Regularly update software and devices.
T – Take care with personal information.

05/19/2026

Did you know? Hackers can test millions of password combinations in seconds. That means reused or weak passwords can put multiple accounts at risk fast.
This week, we’re breaking down each letter of North Dakota’s Stay Cyber SMART acronym—one day at a time—with simple ways to better protect yourself online.
Today’s focus: S – Set strong, unique passwords

A few quick ways to level up your password security:
✅ Use at least 15 characters.
✅ Combine uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols.
✅ Avoid personal info or common patterns.
✅ Use a unique passphrase for each account.

One strong password, one BIG difference.
Stay aware. Stay safe. And as always— 🔐
S – Set strong, unique passwords.
M – Make multifactor authentication a habit.
A – Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.
R – Regularly update software and devices.
T – Take care with personal information.

05/18/2026

“We know that foreign actors can and do enact cyber-attacks on the United States—targeting critical infrastructure in particular,” said Darin Hanson, Director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management for North Dakota.
Recent cyber incidents, including attempted disruptions to education systems and critical infrastructure, serve as important reminders that digital threats continue to evolve.
This week, we’re breaking down each letter of North Dakota’s Stay Cyber SMART acronym—one day at a time—with simple ways to better protect yourself online.
S – Set strong, unique passwords.
M – Make multifactor authentication a habit.
A – Avoid risky links, attachments, and senders.
R – Regularly update software and devices.
T – Take care with personal information.

05/14/2026

05/13/2026

Another Red Flag Warning today and a fire weather watch issued for tomorrow as well.

Today we're experiencing southeasterly winds of 20-30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph, relative humidity as low as 15%. Any fires that start today will spread rapidly and become hard to control.

Call 911 right away if you see smoke in these conditions.

IF you can burn today be sure to stay with your pile until completely extinguished and cooled, as piles can and do reignite days later in high winds. You can learn what burning restrictions your local officials have put in place at ndresponse.gov/burn