Today, everything that we do as part of our daily life is intrinsically connected to the Internet. Tasks and communications related to our job, entertainment, travel, banking and even socializing have all gone digital in one way or other, making us spend a lot of time online on a daily basis.
With the ever increasing case of being online, we are now forced to face the reality of getting exposed to the darker sides of Internet. Here we are sharing you some quick facts that can help you in being prudent while being online and taking evasive actions against the most common dangers of the cyber world.
Always be aware of your actions
Whatever you do online, always be aware of your actions. Try to develop a defensive mindset that will make you situational aware and prompt you to be on the lookout for online threats.
An example of this mindset is to be always wary of seemingly simple and innocuous things like hyperlinks and attachments in your E-mail. With the exceptionally sophisticated methods that the modern day cyber criminals utilize to harvest your personal and financial details, and the depth to which they go to create genuine looking fake emails, it is always prudent to be on the lookout while handling daily emails.
Malicious URL’s and attachments can spoil your day with severe personal and financial damages. Always make it a habit to double check links shared through emails before clicking them and ensure that the email attachments are properly scanned using a reputable anti-virus software before downloading and executing them.
Always be wary of clickbait content, – seemingly safe content shared on the Internet with the purpose of attracting a visitor’s attention and encouraging him to click on a link – which is increasingly used these days to take Internet users to malicious websites that spread threats like Malware, Viruses, Ransomware and Trojans. Such clickbait content are usually found on social media networks and chat platforms. Scam videos with titles crafted to arouse your curiosity is one of the major type of clickbait content that is shared online these days to lure unsuspicious users into visiting malicious websites. So the next time you see a link to a video shared on your social media platform or chat window with curious titles, it is prudent to avoid them.
When you are sharing any sensitive information regarding you with a website, then make sure that you are using the secure https:// version of the website. You can check the address bar of your browser programs to ensure this and it will allow you to communicate with a website using an additional layer of safety. And also make it a habit not to share any sensitive information while you are using a public digital device or while you are on a public WiFi connection.
Always keep your digital devices up-to-date
Cyber criminals use weaknesses found in outdated and non-updated software platforms to compromise your digital device and to snoop on you. You can effectively take countermeasures against this threat by always keeping your browser software and operating system software updated and patched. You should also keep the apps found on your smart devices that gets connected to the Internet updated to their latest versions.
Always ensure that the anti-malware and anti-virus software that is installed on your device is regularly updated and the virus and threat signatures are updated on a daily basis. This will make sure that the computing environment that you use to connect to Internet remains safe and risk free. If you are having a smart device at your home, which connects to the Internet, then make sure that the hardware of that device is updated with the latest firmware release.
Always be aware of your privacy and be wary of strangers
Your online privacy is of paramount importance. Always make it a habit to keep your personal information private and always be careful while sharing such details on any online platforms. Any piece of seemingly small piece of information can be used by cyber criminals into impersonating your identity, so extreme care should be used while sharing them on online platforms.
Like in real life, in the cyber world too, it is sensible to be on your guard against online users who are strangers to you. Never reveal anything about you to online strangers and never trust the websites and information that they share with you. One of the most common mistakes that unsuspecting online visitors make and find themselves compromised is trusting software programs shared by strangers. Never allow strangers to trick you into installing unknown software programs on your computer or make you divulge personal details about you to them.
Being safe while shopping online
Online commerce is one of the most convenient methods of doing shopping these days, as it gives you the comfort of your home or office while making the purchases. The process of E-shopping along with digital payments makes you avoid the hassles of commuting to a physical shopping mall or store for meeting your daily purchase requirements. The following things will make the entire online shopping process safe and stress free for you.
1. Always do online shopping transactions with reputable websites. Since online shopping will make you share some sensitive piece of personal and financial information with the e-commerce website of your choice, it is always prudent to do a bit of research about the online brand before committing to transactions with them. You can avoid any online shopping mishaps by finding information about the online brand on review websites and finding what other customers are saying about the brand.
2. Always make sure that the e-commerce website with which you are doing the transaction is offering secure services like https before sharing any sensitive information.
3. Always use secure and separate passwords for each of the e-commerce websites you use. Also make sure that you are completely logged off from the e-commerce website after shopping session as an added layer of protection.
4. Never do e-commerce transactions from public WiFi networks and from public devices.
Follow these steps and share them with your entire family to make your family’s digital life more safe and secure.
