Easy tips for internet security from online hacking

1. Overview

The Internet is an extremely useful part of our everyday world. However, it is also becoming increasingly dangerous. In the past, the only way that you could find the amount of information that you needed would have been through reading, and although reading is still very much involved in knowledge learning, the Internet makes looking things up very much easier than it ever was. People make purchases online as well and the market is huge. With companies from all over the world, how can you be sure that you are safe? It’s a huge opening up of a potential “can of worms” although if you know how, you can stay safe. Internet speeds have also increase from 128 Kbps to an amazing 1 Gbps over the past twenty years and that’s frightening with fiber offering speeds such that streaming TV programs has become something that people take for granted. What this also means though is that it’s easier for you to be cheated if hackers get hold of your information.

Information passes at speeds that are frightening. Life may seem like its giving people exactly what they need. However, safe Internet is not always viable, especially when left in the hands of inexperienced users who don’t know enough to keep themselves safe. While switching on a computer may seem easy enough, what it does when it connects to the Internet is become part of a global village of networks which spread all over the world. In fact, every Internet user has an IP (Internet Protocol) or an address that connects to the server. This is the identity of your connection and sets you apart from other users.

There are an estimated 120 billion people in the world using the Internet and although you may consider yourself safe in the comfort of your home, don’t be lulled into that kind of security. Hackers may be aware of what you are doing and use your data to get access to very personal information such as log-ins and bank account details. The trouble is that many users are helping them by not being vigilant enough.

It’s important that each computer has built in security and that websites which are used for any payments should be secure websites so that users have a better idea of their security when using these sites. However, with as little information as your password, what’s to stop a hacker accessing accounts where your credit card details are already registered? Sites such as Amazon have made it extremely easy for you to purchase things with just one click, but hackers who have your password can do the same thing.

You need to think of browser security and security of every bit of data that you use on the Internet. It may sound like it’s fairly straightforward if you have a decent virus checker, but it’s a little more complex than that. The last thing that you need to think about just before the holidays or at any time of year is whether your information is being used. Your credit cards and log-ins codes should be safe, but unless you take action, you cannot be confident that they are. People have even had identities stolen on the Internet, making it a very dangerous place indeed.

2. Internet Security and History

Whether you are an individual or have a company that uses the Internet, it’s important that you protect your financial details at all times. The security of an Internet connection is secured by servers and network hardware. If this is not secure, there is the possibility that companies could go bankrupt and that information which is confidential data could get into the wrong hands. Even the military connects to the Internet, so you can see that any breach of security would be more harmful than one could possibly imagine.

The first thoughts of Internet Security predate the Internet, when people actually thought of what could potentially happen if data sharing every came into being. McAfee came up with a solution as far back as 1987 though Virus Scan has of course been updated many times since the original programs were released.

At this time, all computers sold in shops include virus protection as standard although what shops will not take responsibility for is those users who do not extend their virus protection once the free trial period has run out. The thing that confuses a lot of Internet users is what is the difference between paid and free anti-virus protection? Before you can answer that, you need to know what you need to be protected from.

Your Internet security depends upon several things and it’s vital to take account of all of these. For example, while a virus may come onto your computer through malware, you may also leave yourself open to a clever virus by downloading files, which have hidden, content that you are not expecting. Let’s go through some of the things that users need to protect themselves from and these include:

· Malware and viruses

· Spam and Phishing

· Digital footprints

· Insecure Wi-Fi connections

· Hacking and key logging

These all sound a little frightening and you have every right to be frightened and should protect yourself from each of these elements. Before we explain how to do this, let’s go through an explanation of what each of these involve.

2.1. Malware and Viruses

These are programs written with the intent to intrude on your privacy and destroy information or even get information. These get onto your computer by some obscure means in some cases. You may simply be browsing a website which automatically sends malware to your computer, or you may download something relatively innocent and find that malware is included in the package. That’s why you need protection on your computer at all times, as this really does make you vulnerable to attack.

2.2. Spam and Phishing & Hacking

You have probably heard the word “spam” and will be familiar with it in your email box. Spam is uninvited email but be very careful. Spam acts in a way that may put your accounts in danger. It may not be from whom you think it is from and that makes Internet users very vulnerable. For instance, emails from PayPal arrive asking you to click on a link and confirm your details, but they may not actually be from PayPal. The information that you subsequently give may be on a site which looks very much like PayPal, but indeed it may not be. These kinds of emails have been used for a lot of major companies as hackers get more and more ideas of where they can get user information.

Phishing is a little bit like it sounds, in that hackers go on a fishing trip for information. They may be checking to see if someone uses their email. They may also be telling you that you passwords have

been changed and sending you to a page where you can fill in details to put this right. We have explained how to tell the difference and how to avoid leaving yourself open to this kind of fraud later.

2.3. Digital Footprints

Although all of these phrases may be phrases that you have heard, you may not realize the implication of them and what they actually do in the way of harm. If you can imagine someone looking over your shoulder and watching every password, every credit card detail or every email address that you use, as well as seeing which sites you use, then this is pretty much what digital footprint is and you may not even know that you are leaving these behind you.

2.4. Insecure Wi-Fi Connection

With so many people using hot spots and Internet cafes all over the world, what are the chances that these places have secured connections? What about if someone sits at the computer you used five minutes ago to access your emails? What information could they get hold of which could be harmful to you? You need to be aware of what that insecurity means to you.

When using the Internet in a public area, make sure of what virus protection they offer as this is important and also whether VPN connections are available as these may help you to hide your digital footprint, provided that you sign off when you have finished. Ask in a cafe what protection is available for you. It only takes a moment to ask, which may save you having your accounts hacked into by the next person who sits at that computer.

It’s vital for all Internet users to know how to keep themselves safe on the Internet and future chapters should help you do just that. Your security matters and protecting your family and loved ones is equally important. Explain to children the importance of keeping themselves safe.

3. Deleting Cookies and Internet History

It’s a good idea to get into the habit of deleting your Internet history. If you get into this habit, what you are doing is making sure that those who use the computer after you will have no idea what sites you have been visiting. Remember to log out of all sites where you have been logged into personal information before you perform this task. There are several ways to do this depending upon which browser is being used. I have used examples of popular browsers below, so that you have all the information that you need.

3.1. Using Google Chrome

Look at the top of the page to where it says “Tools” and access the tools menu. This gives you access to “options” and what you need here is to look “Under the hood.” You will find that there is a privacy section and you should select the “show cookies” option. A new window should show all of your browsing history and pressing “remove all” will clear up everything that you did on that computer.

3.2. Using Firefox

The process is pretty similar as you have a “tools” option located in the menu bar. Once again, go into the Options area and access the Privacy tab. In Firefox, it’s actually easier to achieve. Simply tick the box that says cookies should be accepted from sites. That way, the cookies will disappear. You may wonder about someone enabling the cookies after you have finished with the computer, but this will only enable them from then onward, so your information is safe.

3.3. Using Safari

Safari is easy to use and in the menu, you simply need to access preferences. When this window shows, press where it says Privacy. From here you can set your preference to block cookies. There’s one complex suggestion that you get and that’s whether you want to select parties and advertisers always or never. Simply press “Remove Cookies” and the computer will do the rest for you. Then click on done and you will know that your computer is safe.

3.4. Internet Explorer

Many public computers will use Internet Explorer, and it’s easy to get rid of your browsing history and cookies using this browser. Press on tools at the top and then click onto the tab that is labelled “Security.” From here, you will be able to delete all temporary files, including your browsing history, passwords etc. Tick the boxes that you want to delete and delete history. It will ask you if you are sure, and you should follow through and stick with the computer until you are satisfied that all files have been deleted. To double check open a fresh browser and press the Control key on the keyboard which is labeled Ctrl and then the letter H at the same time. This will show up the history and there should be nothing there.

3.5. Using Opera

You can set up your tools in Opera to delete all of your cookies and temporary files at the end of each browsing session, by clicking onto the tools section and using the preferences area of the browser tools.

Whether you are working at home or in a strange environment, it’s worthwhile getting into the habit of getting rid of this information. If you are at home and want to bookmark some pages before they disappear, you can do this very easily. Make sure you have saved the sites that you want for future reference, but always make sure that you have logged out. For example, if Amazon is one of your favorites, the last thing you want to find is that your five year old managed to buy up the games department by clicking and getting all your credit card information which automatically comes up when logged in.

4. Use of Anti-virus Software

As you can probably guess, the best is total security, but you may not need it. If your Internet supplier offers protection as part of your package, you may only need the Premium anti virus software to supplement the anti virus software that your Internet supplier gives you. Total security is what usually comes with a computer when you buy it, and you will be reminded to update when the free trial has run out. The following are recommended although your supplier may provide you with a different package. These are the most well known ones:

· McAfee

· Norton

· K7

· Bit Defender

· Kespersky

Each program has their own quirks. For example, if you are a gamer, you may find that Norton will actively slow your computer down which is irritating when you are trying to kill aliens while McAfee seems to run better for gamers. There are free software packages available that also allow you to go into stealth mode, but be aware that these may need to be complemented by other programs to make up for any shortfall.

· Avast

· AVG

Both are well known and do update their information frequently, though the more comprehensive packages are more likely to catch those bad files being downloaded onto your computer. However, if you use a less comprehensive virus checker, there are several programs that can help you. One is K9 and it is a rather amusing program. If you try to download something and it thinks that there is something harmful in it, it will prompt you with a dog bark so you get the choice of whether you continue or not. It’s a great program if you are prone to downloading software as much of the free software comes with hidden malware. This program helps you to keep your computer safe.

Another program that is useful to help to clean up malware is Ccleaner. It’s a very good tool to have because it does all the work for you. Simply ask it to clean your computer of things that it believes to be superfluous and it does a marvelous job at keeping things clean. It’s also got a very neat area for start up. If you are experiencing an annoyingly slow boot up when you turn the computer on, you can disable some of the programs that load at start up.

5. Using a VPN and other Internet Tools

For those who do not know what a VPN is, it’s a very good firewall kind of program that gives you a different address from your real one. That means that even if someone is able to locate your IP address, they don’t know where you are. They can only guess. Whether you are aware of it or not, some websites check to see which country you are in because they target their site toward certain geographical areas. Thus, if you have a VPN connection and choose an appropriate area, the Internet becomes more accessible to you.

A VPN is a private network, and companies will often use these backed up by their own servers. That means that the company business is private and cannot be snooped upon. From a business perspective that’s very important as if customer information was to leak, this could pose a security threat to that company.

For the individual, it’s a safe environment in which to work, provided that you take the same precautions as you would with any other website connection, having virus protection in place. Once you turn off the VPN, you go back to your normal IP address, but others who do not have permissions cannot get onto the VPN and that’s great from a security point of view.

Using a VPN for banking and for other secure purchases online is helpful because it stops people being able to follow your traces. VPN has been used for a variety of purposes, not all of them honest, but it does give you access to programs that you would normally use in your country when you are away from home and that’s a great benefit.

5.1. Other Internet tools

AdAware is a good program that you can download from the Internet, which makes you aware when you have programs, which have been loaded, onto your computer without you actually realizing it. This means that you can eliminate them.

5.2. Spybot

Some of the most harmful program additions are spy programs attached to things that you download. These will get onto your computer, regardless of your anti virus software and Spybot, run once a week, will get rid of them. This is a great program to use and you don’t have to have a lot of technical knowledge to use it. If you are always downloading programs or visiting odd websites, then this is a great addition to have on your computer.

5.3. Pop Up Blockers

Although many browsers have additional tools such as pop up blockers, some don’t. If you find that you are plagued by pop ups, then investing in one of these is a good idea. If you use CT.net to search for a pop up blocker, many are free and run quietly in the background stopping you from being invaded by unwanted pop-ups. One thing to remember is that when you are on sites where you need the pop up, you need to press the control key on your keyboard, which will dis-activate it temporarily.

5.4. Setting your browser settings

If you have children using the Internet, you can set up your browser to high security so that the children cannot access items that are unsuitable. Windows has a great web page with full instructions here to help you keep your family safe while on the Internet.

Parents should be aware that children will be curious and will explore things that they think they can get away with. There is a section on child safety in a future chapter, because on social networking sites, they really need to know what’s acceptable and what information may put them in danger. Children are particularly trusting and that makes them very vulnerable indeed.

6. Social Networking Sites

There was a posting on Facebook last week that really made readers think. It went viral because of the importance of the message it sent. Yet, people add strangers to their networks every single day. Why? It goes back to the old school-day thing of wanting to appear popular and having lots of “friends.” The problem is that these people are strangers. Yet everyday people post things that allow others to know about their activities and movements. Look at these and there is an obvious flaw in the logic.

“I am in hospital all week and had no one to look after the dogs. Had to put them in a doggie hotel.”

This tells potential thieves that the house is empty. This is just the kind of message that they want to see, especially if you filled out your profile in such a way that they can figure out exactly where you live. Even with the village name, it wouldn’t take them long to find out which house is yours. It’s a very worrying thing that people who you believe that you have come to trust may be just the people who will cheat you or will do you harm.

On social networking sites, it’s important to give out as little personal information as you can. For example, do you really want strangers to know which restaurant you are in at what time? Do you want them to know that you are out at work? As far as children are concerned, they should be told that they should only befriend those people that they know offline because there are some pretty bad people out there pretending to be something that they are not, in order to attract young people. A pep talk on things such as this would be in order when children start to use the Internet.

While a child may just want all of his friends to see his pictures, he must be shown how to make his group of friends private so that others cannot see those pictures. Did you know that a child on a skateboard might be a perfect invitation to a pedophile? It may have buildings in the background that are recognizable. It may show the time of day. What that tells the pedophile is that you are playing in that vicinity at a set time, making you a target.

6.1. From a work point of view

If you think that your Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networking site comments are private, think again. Unless you set your account up correctly, a future employer could find that your activity on these websites shows that you are unsuitable as a potential hire. That means that the fun you have on the Internet isn’t as funny any more.

Be careful when you interact with others. Even pen pal sites have been known venues for people to be ripped off. The beautiful blonde who wants to marry you is so perfect that you think yourself a very lucky guy. Wait until she asks you for the fare to come to America to see you. It’s unlikely that she will ever arrive, even though the two of you seem to be hitting it off. Believe it, people out there are out to take you for everything you have. Don’t allow this kind of thing to happen.

7. Email Accounts

There are so many different kinds of email account these days, but each kind has its vulnerabilities. For example, if someone gains access to your email account, they may also be able to gain access to the following:

· PayPal Account

· EBay account

· Your account at Amazon

· Your account on any online store

It’s very unlikely that a thief could gain access to bank details since banks are not in the habit of sending personal information by email. You may be asking how they would have access. With access to your email account, all they have to do is access the sites mentioned and press forgot password.

This reminder from the site allows them to reset the password. Once this is done, you may be totally unaware of it, but someone could be buying a lot of things using your account. The safeguard that you have is that you may be able to get access to information that indicates where the goods went, but most thieves are clever and will have wiped out the address from your address book by the time you find that the money has been taken out of your account.

7.1. Phishing expeditions

Mass emails may be sent out to thousands of potential email addresses. Never respond to one because you are in effect telling the sender that, yes, that email account is used currently. Another rule that’s very important especially when getting emails from PayPal, eBay or other companies that you have dealings with is never to click the links in the email. These links may take you to websites not even associated with PayPal or eBay but which look very similar. If you have a doubt, access PayPal or eBay direct from your search page, log in and see what emails you have in your message box. If you don’t have any, delete the email you received and thank your lucky stars you have the good sense to do so.

Clicking on links in phishing emails is really bad form. They may lead to all kinds of circumstances. This is the way that viruses can be spread. If you do not know the sender, do not click the links. Even if you do know the sender, do not click them if they make no sense to your conversations. There are websites that give full information about scams and it’s always a good idea to read up on these. The latest Phishing tactics are to telephone you at home and tell you that you have a serious virus on your computer. The people who telephone purport to be from Microsoft and although you may think yourself important enough for Microsoft to care about, think sensibly. These people want you to give them access to your computer and will talk you through the process. If you do get calls such as this, simply put down the phone.

7.2. Your information

When you set up your email account, you probably didn’t think that you would be corresponding with strangers. Most people don’t. They open an email to correspond with family and friends. Although you have a space in which to put a signature and it’s nice to sign off your emails in a nice way, remember not to include your address or your telephone number in this signature. You wouldn’t give it to strangers. The offer that’s too good to be true:

· Want to slim without even trying?

· Want to get a free iPhone?

· Want to earn a fortune online?

Step lightly. Reading the small print is worth more than simply taking free samples for granted as being “free” as sometimes they are not as free as they appear to be. The email senders are depending upon your vanity and your vulnerability.

8. Downloads and Online Fun

Although you probably hear the word “download” every day and think of this as a normal activity on websites, be very careful. What a download means is that you are allowing a program to run on your computer. Although it may be a program that you really want to try, be careful during the installation period. The manufacturer may not have asked you for money, but if it’s a free program, chances are that there are catches. When the installation program asks if you want all of the add-ons, be sure to tick boxes to say that you don’t want them, or un-tick boxes as appropriate.

The problem is that many of these are Trojan Horses and bring things onto your computer that you don’t particularly want, need or desire. If you have taken my previous advice about installing K9, you will be told to look out when you try to install anything that could be potentially harmful. Even on games websites, read the small print before you download anything.

9. Protecting your data

In a dishonest age, use memory sticks or portable hard drives to keep all of your data stored, so that

it’s not on your computer. Then if a laptop gets stolen, the thief does not have access to this

information. This is very important indeed but it also means that key loggers and people who are

watching your activity are unable to use the data because it’s not actually stored on the computer.

10. Conclusion

It’s extremely important that you do keep yourself safe. Your passwords, for example, should be updated regularly and should consist of small letters, large letters and numbers in a combination that isn’t easy to remember. Don’t use the same passwords for all of the websites that you access as this makes it very easy for thieves to get into every account that you log into just by knowing that one password. It’s a pretty scary place out there and if you take all the actions shown in this eBook you can keep yourself safe from harm. Make sure your home computer connectivity is set to a private network.

When using a router, this will be the manufacturer’s setting, so you don’t need to worry about it too much. That means you have to give a pass code to people who want to use that network. If anyone can gain access to your network or connect to the Internet through your router without asking you for this information, then your router settings may not be as secure as you imagine them to be. Check with your Internet service supplier and ensure that they are secured. The Internet isn’t completely bad. There are so many opportunities out there for people to enjoy. This articles is written for those readers who really want to make their Internet experience as hassle free and safe as possible. If you follow the guidelines, you really cannot go that far wrong and you can continue to keep safe while working on your computer. Do update your virus protection. Do make sure that you don’t speak to strangers or give information that gives you any risk of security in email. Be safe, be aware and enjoy what the Internet was intended for.