Stop Identity Theft - Stop Being a Victim of Online Identity Theft!
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| Stop Identity Theft |
Stop Identity Theft. The Internet is a very
useful tool for people. It helps us
communicate with our loved ones who are at the other side of the nation or
overseas. It helps us find a lot of
information regarding something.
It allows us to listen to radio stations from
all over the world, or even watch movies.
It also helps us purchase things without ever having to leave our homes.
The Internet is also a very useful tool for
identity thieves. Many have fallen prey
to numerous baits left by identity thieves and lost their identities.
Stop Identity Theft. As we know, knowledge is
the best weapon against this. Know how
to stop being a victim of online identity theft, and follow some simple tips
that we will give you:
1) Use
secure servers
When surfing the Internet, make sure you are
on a secure or encrypted server. That
way, when a hacker or ID thief tries to find you and your computer’s location,
they cannot locate you as your ISP and URL are encrypted, or coded as
unreadable characters, by your server.
Secure servers will filter fraud websites and spam mails before you can
access them.
2) Stop
Identity Theft. Don’t reply to spoofed e–mails.
Spoofed mails are e–mails sent to you by
certain e–mail accounts, asking for your details, or telling you to reply to
their e–mail to do something like verify the details of your credit card
account, online account, etc.
These e–mail accounts pose as banks, credit
card companies, retailing websites like eBay, PayPal etc., and send you emails
telling you to give them your information to get or verify something.
NEVER REPLY TO SPOOF E–MAILS! Banks, credit card companies, and other
companies never ask their client to send their details over the Internet just
for verification or claiming a prize or confirming your entry into a raffle
draw you have never joined.
3)
Don’t open files sent by unknown sources
If someone you have never known sends you a
file over the Internet, usually through an instant messenger, or as an
attachment in an e–mail, DO NOT OPEN IT!
The
file may contain viruses and spying software that will steal your personal
information that is in your computer.
Besides, opening the file may cause serious damage to your computer!
4)
Properly log into your sensitive accounts
Always log on to your sensitive accounts by
opening a new browser and typing the actual URL directly into the address
bar. This will help you verify if the
URL of the sender of an email is really the website it claims to be.
5) Use
disposable e-mail accounts
Whenever you want to join a newsgroup,
subscribe to mailing lists, or make online purchases, always use a disposable,
free email account.
That way, you can always delete that account
if you suspect ID theft. Always keep
your business account for business and personal communications.
6)
Disguise your online ID
Never use domain names and identities that
will give out who you are. For example,
if you are Brian Gadzuric, do not use brgadzuric@mail.com or briangadz as your
email address and username respectively, especially when dealing with people
you do not know.
7) Use
leveled and strong passwords
Always have different passwords for your
accounts. A password should be different
for your personal account, business account, and disposable account.
Never use sequential passwords like
password1, password2, password3 etc. that will easily allow others to access
your accounts.
Make sure your passwords will be very
difficult to guess. Use a combo of
letters, numbers, and characters that only you can remember. Never write down a copy of your
password. If you must, make sure you
keep it in a safe place.
8)
Regularly change passwords
Always change your passwords after a short
period, let us say, one month. Regularly
changing passwords makes if very difficult to access your accounts. It also helps stimulate your memory and
creative side.
9) Use
credit cards for online purchases
Credit cards are more secure than debit cards
due to the security system being used by credit card companies. Besides, disputing fraudulent chargers is
easier than recovering funds already spent.
Also, use ONLY ONE CREDIT CARD for online purchases.
10)
Always check a company’s privacy policy
Whenever you are going to transact business with
a company, make sure to check its privacy policy.
Also, make sure to click the logos of the
consumer groups posted on their website to make sure that the safety
authentication is authentic. Make sure
you also know the real online consumer welfare groups before transacting with
companies.
11)
Always use a secure site when submitting data
Make sure the URL of the site has http://identitytheft-inportant.blogspot.com, or has a padlock icon at the address bar before submitting
sensitive data.
12)
Security Software for your PC
Always make sure that you get the latest
security patches for your operating system and internet browser.
Also, update your virus databases, and
install advertisement and pop–up blockers that will disallow pop–ups from
certain websites from appearing on your screen.
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