Millions of people fall
victim to identity thieves each year, with financial losses amounting to
billions of dollars. For this reason, the security of your sensitive personal
information isn't something you should take lightly.
Now one of the first
steps you should take to protect your data is to invest in an identity theft
protection system. However, doing so can only go so far as to keep your
identity safe if you have little idea about what you're dealing with.
With that in mind, let's
take a look at some of the most widespread data security threats that -
unfortunately - still manages to ensnare many people the world over: spamming
and phishing.
What Spamming and
Phishing Are
At one point or another,
you've probably received 'junk mail' in your postbox or on your doormat, right?
Well, "spam" is its electronic equivalent. At best, it can be
incredibly annoying. But at worst, it can be very dangerous to your personal
information, particularly if it is part of what's called a 'phishing scam'.
The first thing you
should know about spam emails is that they're sent out by cyber-criminals or
spammers with the intention to:
·
Obtain bank account
numbers, social security numbers, credit card numbers, passwords, and many more
·
Unknowingly access the
recipients' computers to spread some malicious code that can steal or corrupt
data
·
Make money from
recipients who actually get tricked into responding to the message (yes, there
are those who do get tricked because some emails look very legitimate)
Now aside from having an
identity fraud detection system in place to secure your data, there are other
tips that you'll find useful for protecting yourself against phishing and spam
email.
Tips for Steering Clear
of Data Security Breaches
·
Set up at least two
different emails, one for private use and the other for public.
·
Make up address names
that would be difficult to guess. This is since spammers use combinations of
obvious numbers, words, and names to build recipient lists that they could send
emails to.
·
Do not publish your
email addresses anywhere on the Internet, especially on online resources that
are readily available to the public (e.g. social networking sites).
·
If there's a need to
publish them electronically, you can "mask" them so spammers won't be
able to pick up on the names. For example, rather than
'Chandler.Bing@gmail.com', publish it as Chandler-dot-Bing-at-gmail-dot-com
instead.
·
You should never reply
to any spam since spammers verify log and receipt of your responses. When you
get tracked, the spam messages will just keep coming.
·
Be wary of messages that
ask you to 'unsubscribe' to something that you have no idea of (you probably
never even subscribed in the first place). Spammer use fake 'unsubscribe'
correspondences to trick you into confirming that your email address in in
indeed active. Simply put, never click 'unsubscribe' links coming from emails
whose sources are unknown.
·
Ensure that you
download, install, and use the most updated version of your browser since it
comes with the latest security patches.
·
Take advantage of
anti-spam filters that often come with your email client (e.g. Yahoomail,
Gmail, Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird).
·
For added protection,
install an Internet security solution that proactively scans emails for any
security threats. There are also those with advanced anti-spam functionalities.
Now in the event you do
receive spammy emails, do not access any links or download any of their
attachments; delete them outright instead. If you do get such messages
regularly, you should consider changing your email address to avoid the risk of
security breaches.
Protect yourself from
the growing threat of identity theft with ID Smarter advanced identitytheft protection and identity fraud detection services.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Noah_A_Mocorro
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7889747
No comments:
Post a Comment