for all of the benefits which the internet has brought with it, we should all be aware that it has also become a hotbed of criminal activity. Things are gradually changing in this regard with stricter laws coming into play to protect individuals and businesses but we are living in a world where it has never been easier than before to hack someone’s phone, computer or tablet. What is worse is that in order to do this criminals do not need to be very sophisticated and there are a great many ways in which someone can steal your personal data. In order to protect yourself better we got the lowdown from CEO of Secure Channels Richard Blech, to find out what you should be wary of.
Phishing
Phishing is a very simplistic form of online crime and it is something which many people have fallen for over the years, perhaps you have seen it before. In a nutshell you will receive an email which appears as though it is from an official company, a bank or another trusted institution. At the bottom of this email there will be an attachment and when you open it you end up giving access to someone to see your computer which will give them free reign to see all of your personal data.
Online Scams
Online scams are very similar to phishing scams and they usually require a little more input from you. A prime example would be that you receive an email which appears as though it is from Paypal, perhaps about updating your account for security reasons – the irony!- once you click through the link on the email it will ask you to sign pin to your PayPal account only what you are actually signing into is a mirror of the PayPal website, and the scammer is in-between making a note of your username and password.
Virus
You really need to be careful when you are downloading items from the internet as very often they can be loaded with a virus that could give people access to your computer, or sometimes they have viruses which damage your computer, just for the sake of it. These are often referred to as Trojan Horses and they enter your computer under the guise of one thing when indeed they are something far more malicious.
Pop Ups
Pop ups may seem harmless and pesky at their worst, but they can actually be utilize to steal your personal information. Pop ups are pretty smart and they try to make them appear on somewhere that you will accidentally click, click on the wrong place however and you could be making your computer and your personal information extremely vulnerable.
In order to avoid all of this you should be thinking about installing ant-virus software on your computer and also educating yourself on the types of scams that people come up with online.