Garrett SaundryThe Internet is an integral part of our society, and continues to be a great research tool that can be accessible anywhere around the world. Since the internet is accessible to anyone, it presents potential risks that “hackers” can exploit.
Here are a few internet safety tips directly from our customer support team member, Sean Lavasani about how to keep yourself secure online.
THINK ABOUT YOUR PASSWORD:
Use a safe password that doesn’t have an “easy or simple” ring to it, example; jsmith1234, this will be easily guessed by people trying to ”hack” accounts. Your Username and Password should be difficult enough to not be easily guessed, but also have something that will make it easy for you to remember. So don’t choose ”Webnames1243” Choose ”W36NaAA35”. Can you see how I spelled out ”Webnames” but with numbers and letters? If you’re having trouble remembering your passwords, you can use password managers to keep track of them online. A safe and secure site for this application is dashlane.com. Otherwise, you can also keep track of your passwords by setting up a spreadsheet on your personal computer.
UP TO DATE CONTACT INFORMATION:
One thing we often see is that people seem to forget to have all their contact information up to date. Last thing we would want is someone getting a hold of an old email account that you no longer use. Since malicious people don’t keep up with your daily changes they will have a hard time knowing that you have a new email address but it will be easy for them to ‘fish out” info from an old one that you’re no longer using but left active.
KEEP YOUR DETAILS PRIVATE:
Try not to give out your information to your colleagues, friends, web designers or if you’re leaving the company. Webnames.ca has protocols in place to help your transit out of an account and give authority to a new user or give limited access to another user in place.
BE ALERT WHEN CONNECTED TO WI-FI HOTSPOTS:
Always use caution when you are connecting to any Wi-Fi access point. Make sure the Wi-Fi you are trying to connect to is from a valid source, if not I strongly suggest not to connect to random Wi-Fi networks. Wi-Fi hotpots like coffee shops, libraries, and universities are all easily accessible for hackers to gain entry to your accounts. I urge consumers to be widely cautious before using any non-secure wireless networks before sending personal information, as other users on the same network are able to see what is being sent.
AVOID MISLEADING LINKS:
We’ve all experienced receiving misleading links whether it is from your “friends” hacked email account or on your social network feeds. Misleading links can harm your computer as soon as you click on the URL, as hackers generally put false statements to intrigue the customer and get them to click on the link. As soon as you click, a virus could potentially be downloaded to your computer, removing all anti-virus software, which then makes your computer defenseless to all virus attacks. Unfortunately there are no solutions this time to protect you from misleading links. Pay attention before you click!
The internet is at its highest peak when it comes to security threats and challenges, thus leaving us with no option but to be overly cautious and only hope we’re not victims of an internet scam. The plain truth is that any computer connected to the internet is prone to hackers and viruses, thus applying these safety tips would be beneficial to not only you, but people that are connected around you.
If you want to learn more, give our customer support team a call. We are always here to help at 1-866-221-7878.