Nowadays, 60% of the world’s population surfs the Web on a daily basis. The online world hides pitfalls that you need to watch out for, so here are 7 tips that will allow you to reduce the risks of falling victim to online scams and hacker attacks.
1. Two-factor authentication
The first step in securing your social profiles, besides choosing a strong password, is definitely two-factor authentication. In this case when you log in from an unrecognized device there will need to be a second pass to log in. Whether it is a message on your number or through the use of predefined apps, you will be asked for a code that attests to who you are. In this way you can prevent someone from intruding into your socials.
2. Protect your privacy when browsing
All sites, apps, and services collect information about you. You can’t help but use a VPN service, which stands for “Virtual Private Network.” VPNs hide your original IP address by performing encryption of your online traffic.
3. Avoid suspicious sites and downloads
Downloading files from suspicious sites is the easiest and most direct way to find your computer infected with malware or viruses. The first sites to avoid are those that offer free downloads of usually copyrighted material.
4. Beware of phishing
Phishing is among the most prevalent cyber threats. This is because they work. Every year the victims of phishing are countless and continue to increase.
Avoid text messages or e-mails that alert you to situations that need to be resolved by entering your personal information, perhaps data related to your bank account. Pay attention to the sender of the message, the quality of the text, and the various addresses involved!
5. Watch out for public networks
Public wireless networks are not secure. They are accessible without passwords or other security measures, and anyone can log on and exploit infrastructure vulnerabilities to steal your information.
- “Man-in-the-Middle“: if your wireless network security is insufficient, hackers could intercept your connection and spy on your Internet activity. So, in case your network connection is not encrypted, your login credentials to various accounts could be traced, even your credit card information if you make a purchase while connected.
- Fake Wi-Fi: Hackers can create a fake Wi-Fi signal through your computer, misleadingly renaming it so that it can look like the public wireless in the room you are in. By connecting you to these networks, hackers can intercept all your data, or direct you to fake sites via dummy DNS. To avoid these situations make sure the network you are connecting to is legitimate and avoid using sites and services with important information.
6. Use an antivirus
Always usean antivirus that protects you from cyber attacks and viruses, and be sure to always update it to the latest version to ensure maximum performance. Antiviruses recognize threats through a database of “definitions,” meaning that if a file matches an entry in the database, it is recognized as a virus and blocked. In the case of a new virus that is not in the database, heuristic detection analyzes the behavior of the code, and if it is found to be malicious, the antivirus can block it, even though it cannot find the definition in its database.
7. Back up your data
If you want to make sure the data on your computer is safe, make backup copies. Losing one’s most important documents, images and files is really easy. That’s why you should always back up the things you care most about by uploading them to the cloud with services such as Dropbox or Google Drive, or to external hard drives.
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