I mean, it is mostly solid advice, e.g. asking AI to cite sources (and checking them!) and asking about the assumptions it's making.
And on the subject of automating things or making things more efficient, I'd extend that to a general reminder that just because things are the way the are, doesn't mean they have to be that way.
Which sounds obvious, but it's so easy to get used to a situation in your life that you don't like, but it's not so horrendous that you're motivated to do something about it. And then it just becomes background and you forget that there's the possibility of a better reality.
Speaking from many personal experiences here...
It used to be enough to say you could use Word, send an email, and “do a spreadsheet.” That is not computer literacy anymore. The bar has moved.
Over the last few months I have been working on this idea of a 2026 computer‑literacy bar while thinking about hiring and talent in an AI‑powered workplace. It is not “coming soon.” It is here today. Employers expect core skills to shift fast and most jobs already require digital capability (see the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs).
Years ago I was telling people Power BI skills would become the new Excel. This shift is like that, only bigger. AI and modern tooling are changing how people write, analyse, and decide, and the time savings show up quickly in the flow of daily work.
This applies to everyone. I mean the stay‑at‑home parent, the high‑rate lawyer, the accountant, the programmer, and the health worker. Most jobs now require at least medium digital skills and the share of low‑digital jobs keeps shrinking.
Being computer literate in 2026 means you can keep yourself secure, use AI as a partner, and work confidently across platforms. You do not need to be a programmer. You do need to understand how today’s tools think, talk, and connect.
This is a practical guide to getting there.
Computer literacy is not about being a “tech person.” It is about control over your time, your money, your reputation, and your opportunities. If you care about those, you care about this.
Being computer literate gives you back control. It keeps your digital life safe, makes your day more efficient, and opens doors professionally. Your email, bank accounts, photos, and messages all live behind a sign-in page, and with passkeys and phishing-resistant MFA, one careless click no longer turns into an identity theft nightmare. You win back hours each week by using AI and modern app features that take the boring, repetitive work off your hands, leaving more space for the tasks that actually need your attention. And at work, where every role now has a digital layer, it is the people who can read a chart, automate a small workflow, and steer AI with confidence who others rely on and who move ahead fastest.
It also protects you from the things that quietly erode trust and time online. Strong security and a healthy dose of digital scepticism help prevent account takeovers that can lock you out of email, banking, or social profiles. Clearer habits with AI reduce costly mistakes that come from accepting confident-sounding but wrong answers. And a broader awareness of how platforms change protects you from sudden “rule shifts” that can make familiar tools vanish overnight. In short, literacy turns uncertainty into confidence.
Computer literacy in 2026 is insurance for your identity, acceleration for your work, and a filter for the information firehose. Learn a few modern habits and you will feel it immediately.
Passwords are easy to steal. Even two‑factor codes can be tricked out of you with fake sign‑in pages. Phishing‑resistant sign‑in uses a cryptographic check between your device and the service, so there is nothing useful to type into a fake form.
Verizon’s 2025 Data Breach Investigations Report lists stolen credentials and social engineering among the top breach causes (Verizon, 2025 DBIR). That is why moving beyond passwords matters.
The strongest option for most people is a passkey or a FIDO2 hardware key.
These prove your identity with a cryptographic challenge that can only be completed by your real device.
They cannot be intercepted by fake websites, reused, or guessed.
If you want the primer:
👉 What are passkeys and how do they work?
Turn on a passkey for your main account
Use the official guides:
Add a hardware security key for critical accounts
A FIDO2 or WebAuthn‑compatible key (for example a YubiKey or Google Titan key) gives you a physical device that must be present to sign in.
It is ideal for banking, email, and admin roles.
Unlike phone codes, it cannot be phished or SIM‑swapped.
Choose the right MFA methods
| Method | Recommended? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Passkeys / FIDO2 hardware keys | ✅ Best | Fully phishing‑resistant, cryptographic, no shared secret. |
| Authenticator app codes (TOTP) (Microsoft Authenticator, Google Authenticator, 1Password, Authy) | ✅ Good | Strong codes generated on device; still phishable if you type them into a fake page. |
| Push approvals (Microsoft or Okta push) | ✅ Good, with care | Convenient, but tap‑fatigue can cause accidental approvals. Only approve if you just attempted to sign in. |
| Email codes | ⚠️ Weak | Email can itself be compromised. Use only as a recovery method. |
| SMS / text codes | ❌ Avoid where possible | Vulnerable to SIM‑swap and phishing interception. |
| Security questions | ❌ Never use | Easy to guess or scrape from public data. |
Review account recovery and backup codes
Store recovery keys and backup codes securely in a password manager.
If SMS is listed as a fallback, remove it and add app‑based or hardware methods instead.
Use an independent password manager
Password managers create unique credentials and can also store your passkeys.
They keep you independent of one vendor’s ecosystem and make recovery simpler.
Open, trusted options: Bitwarden and 1Password.
Also see my earlier posts on Consolidation and Consolidation Again. Centralised logins magnify the impact of weak MFA.
AI is not a search engine or an autopilot. It is a partner for thinking and drafting. In ChatGPT, GPT‑5 automatically chooses between Chat (quick conversation) and Thinking (deeper reasoning). Treat every confident output as a draft that still needs sources and edits. I like to think of a conversation with ChatGPT like having a three way conversation with you, the AI, and future you. You are saying a thing, the AI is responding, and future you is discerning. And the circle just continues round and around until you are happy with the output. NEVER rush with AI output.
When you need the web, use Search. When you need a documented report with citations, use Deep Research. When you need to process data or check maths, use Data Analysis (This is not a separate mode; it activates when you upload a file or ask for calculation, graphs, or inspection.) The clearer you state your intent, the better these tools work.
When you really care, don’t be afraid to use those Deep Research credits. And if you do pay for Pro then make use of Pro frequently, get your moneys worth! It may take a while, but the juice is worth the squeeze.
| Practice | Do | Do not | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Define the task | Give goal, audience, constraints, examples | Use a one‑line “do this” prompt | Clear intent gives better structure and fewer rewrites. |
| Pick the right tool | Use Search for web answers, Deep Research for multi‑source write‑ups, Data Analysis for maths/files, GPT‑5 Thinking for complex reasoning | Expect plain Chat to handle everything | Each is built for a different job. Data Analysis executes code; Deep Research adds citations. |
| Citations | Require citations when facts matter and open them | Copy text with unverified “citations” | Verification closes the loop. |
| Critique | Challenge the draft. Ask for alternatives and counterexamples | Copy and paste the first output | Refining through dialogue improves quality. |
| Maths and data | Upload data or use Data Analysis so the maths executes visibly | Trust plain chat for arithmetic or joins | Chat alone can be confidently wrong. Data Analysis shows the steps. |
| Thinking models | Let GPT‑5 Thinking tackle reasoning‑heavy questions | Rush everything through Chat | Thinking spends more time reasoning and planning. |
| Privacy | Avoid pasting secrets. Use Temporary Chats or manage Data Controls | Treat chat like a private notepad | You control history and training. Use the settings. |
| Upgrade when it matters | Use Plus or Pro for access to GPT‑5 and research tools | Assume the free tier is identical | Paid tiers unlock higher limits, reasoning, and citations. |
Tell ChatGPT to remember things about you and your preferences. This helps you get consistent tone of voice and responses that match your style.
How to use it:
This turns ChatGPT from a generic tool into a personalised personal assistant.
Used with intent, AI saves time and improves clarity. Used blindly, it can be confidently wrong.
Power users get repeatable results by knowing what their tools can do and by automating small, boring steps. You do not need to know everything. You need to know how to ask and how to reuse.
Small automations compound. One saved minute a day is almost a full day a year.
You do not need to be a data scientist, but you should be able to look at a chart and know what it measures, what might be missing, and how confident you should be. If you cannot say where the number came from, you should not trust it.
If you cannot explain the metric, denominator, period, and freshness, you should not act on it.
Start cynical. Assume every WhatsApp forward, TikTok clip, or Instagram reel is fake until you can prove it. That mindset keeps you safer. Digital responsibility is about privacy hygiene and source scepticism, which are two of the most protective habits online.
Run your privacy check-ups.
Tighten sharing defaults.
On your phone, turn off location unless essential. Review app permissions for contacts, photos, camera, and microphone. Don’t blindly accept all those permission pop-ups from the apps, actually consider: do I want this company having access to this thing? Perhaps you don’t want that company who provide a package tracking app to also be able to read all your email?
Most sites now show a cookie notice the first time you visit. The right choice on those banners is almost always Reject. Accepting “all cookies” lets the site and its partners track your behaviour across the web, build advertising profiles, and often share that data with brokers you have never heard of. Rejecting optional cookies means the site still works but limits how much of your activity can be stitched together between sites. The only cookies you truly need are the essential ones that keep you signed in or remember your settings.
Verify before you share media.
Healthy scepticism prevents you from spreading fakes and leaking private data.
Good computer literacy is not blind trust. It is healthy scepticism backed by a simple method. Anyone can publish or generate convincing text and images. You should check who is talking, what evidence they have, how others cover it, and whether the AI might be confidently wrong.
Anyone can generate convincing content. Your edge is sound judgement.
Do not file this away as “something to look into later.”
Open your laptop or phone now and do these four things:
Turn on a passkey.
Choose your platform and follow the official steps:
Google · Apple · Microsoft
Use an AI tool for something real.
Write a message, analyse a sheet, or plan a note with help from AI.
Try ChatGPT, Copilot in Word, or Gemini in Docs. Treat it like a conversation, not a command.
Learn one new trick in an app you already use.
In Excel, ask Copilot to explain a formula or create a quick chart. In Google Sheets, ask Gemini to find a pattern in your data.
Practise healthy cynicism on social media.
Pick one post from your Facebook or X feed that sounds dramatic or surprising. Assume it is false until proven true.
Do those four things today and you will already be operating at the 2026 computer-literate level.
Digital skills demand and disruption
AI productivity and work patterns
Account security and passkeys
This is not a complete list of everything it takes to be computer-literate in 2026.
It is the gap between being comfortable in 2024 and being confident in 2026, with the skills most people should refine now.