Not everyone is knowledgeable when it comes to online safety,
and that is totally ok. Being able to keep all your information private and
fight off any type of malicious activity should be a priority for any new or
old user. Today we will talk about ways to keep your information safe and how
to block others from even attempting to invade your personal space.
Social Media & Who To Trust
A large
majority of the population uses some sort of social media application in today’s
society. This can be a good thing and a bad thing depending on the type of information you give out. Too many
users tend to share too
much with the public and can easily have a total stranger creeping on your
page. Try to read over anything you are about to post and make sure you are not
going overboard with personal information, we don’t have to tell the public our
current location.
Did you know most social media sites use a GPS location setting
that can tag your exact location with a picture or text post? This can be a
dangerous tool; users can now track your every move and even see what banks you
might hit, or worse yet, where you actually live.
Unsolicited Emails
You
should be wary of any email sent to you by unknown
senders. There are a lot of emails claiming to be from legit
corporations attempting to collect information for whatever reason. A good
amount of scams pretend to be government officials sending an email to grasp
the attention of the user quicker.
Email phishing can be a just as bad when it comes to fooling
users. What this does is take email names that look identical to the official
counterpart and attempt to fool the user into thinking they are being contacted
by an official company. Ways to protect your email are not limited to:
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Turning on spam filters
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Staying away from attached files
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Never reply to unsolicited emails
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Never give out personal information
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Having your firewall turned on
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Having your antivirus turned on and up to date
Creating
Strong Passwords
Anything
that has your name or personal information should be well protected and secure
when floating in cyber space. By creating a strong and complex password, what
you are potentially doing is sealing your information into a strongbox that a
normal thief can’t get into. If you are like me and have trouble creating
complex passwords, or even remembering them, you can always use password
generators that are available on your phone. There are many secure and legit
password generators on the market such as LastPass.
Public
Wi-Fi Use
Did you
know when using an unsecured public Wi-Fi network you could possibly have your
information striped from your computer? This is due to the connection not being
encrypted and having so many users on at the same time on the same line.
The best
way to stay protected when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks is by having
yourself a VPNor virtual private network to
scramble vital information into unreadable bits so nobody can ever look at
them. A VPN will encrypt your connection, giving you anonymity and security.
The more security you add into the bunch the better protected your computer
will be when connecting to such networks.
Avoiding
Promotions And Free Rewards
Have you ever won a free car or house from browsing through food
recipes online? Chances are you have and never gotten anything in return for
your information. Don’t be fooled by these types of promotions. These are just
there to take information from the user. These can record your IP, name, and
home address, and you never know what they can do with it. This type of scam is
easily avoidable, as long as you don’t fall into temptation.
Antivirus
Software
Protect
yourself even further by having a strong antivirus program; you have many to choose from in today’s
market. What these can do for you is help stop human intrusions and malicious
bugs picked up from unsecured sites. Nothing can really get into your computer
without you being notified of the action. The biggest advantage can be how they
are always being updated to help fight the most current type of viruses that
could potentially hold your computer hostage.
Proper
Disposal of Devices
How can your offline life affect your online life? Not disposing
properly of valuable information can really cause you problems in the long run.
Take the time to look at all those old cell phones and hard drives you have
lying around the house. If you forget how to wipe them, you can always take a
look online for a guide on that specific piece of hardware. You don’t want a
HDD with contact information, or even pictures of your family, falling into the
wrong hands.
Take this information and keep yourself safe when surfing the
web. It can be an awesome experience until someone decides to attack your
information and steal your identity.
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