Keep safe while surfing online

[img_assist|nid=8170|title=|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=100]Sometimes a fear of being scammed prevents us from visiting lots of sites. You cannot just click on some link because it may redirect you to some fraudulent website. But it is not necessary to live in a constant fear and to deprive yourself of a pleasure. Just be attentive and keep in mind the following tips!

• Beware of unsafe sites. The term 'https' should always precede any website address where you enter personal information or pay for anything online. The 's' stands for secure. If you don't see 'https,' you're not in a secure web session, and you should not enter data.

• Don’t be fooled by seeing a familiar email address in the “from” field of your in-box. This field is easily altered.

• Don’t be fooled by a sense of urgency. The phishing email may claim that your account is in jeopardy or that an unauthorised transaction has occurred – think carefully before you act, and remember that your bank will never, for any reason, ask you to send personal information via email.

• Also be careful about fake links. Always check where a link is going before you click. Move your mouse over it and look at the URL in your browser or email status bar. A fraudulent link is dangerous. If you click on one, it could direct you to a spoof website that tries to collect your personal data or install spyware on your system, enabling a hacker to monitor your actions and steal any passwords or credit card numbers you type online or cause you to download a virus that could disable your computer.

• Look out for emails that appear to be websites. Some emails will look like a website in order to get you to enter personal information. Banks never ask for personal information in an email.

• Check your statements and credit report thoroughly, this will tell you what is going on in your name. Get regular copies of your personal credit file from a credit reference agency so you can be sure you have not fallen victim to ID theft.

• Only enter your banking passwords and similar details on the correct banking pages. Enter the URL yourself (don’t ever link from an email), and be careful about entering your details before checking it is the correct site – many fake sites use very similar URLs. For example, if you were looking for www.moneybank.com, fraudsters might create spoof sites with URLs like www.money@bank.com, www.moneybanksecure.com, www.money-bank.com or www.moneybanknet.com.

• Don’t use the same passwords or PINs for all your web accounts. And don’t use family members’ names or other easy-to-crack passwords.

• Watch out for pop-up boxes in emails. These are not secure and banking sites will not use them.

• Banks will never send you attachments or software to download, so don’t click on them. Like fake links, attachments are frequently used in spoof emails and are dangerous.

• Beware of generic greetings. Many spoof emails begin with a general greeting, such as: 'Dear member.' If you do not see your first and last name, be suspicious and do not click on any links or buttons.

• Make sure you have a firewall and up-to- date antivirus software in place.

• Never, ever send bank details or other information over unencrypted email.

• Sign up whenever you are given the option whilst shopping online to Verified by Visa (www.visaeurope.com/verified) or MasterCard SecureCode (www.mastercard.co.uk/securecode).

• Keep your cards and card details safe in the real world. Most internet fraud happens because card details are stolen in the real world and used online. • Always print out your order when shopping online.

• Never give all of your security details to anyone, in person, writing, over the telephone or on the internet, whoever they claim to be. Banks will ask for selected details when you are logging in to online or telephone banking, never for all of your details.

• Scams aside, most people don’t think twice about handing out their details unsolicited by posting personal information on community sites like Facebook. Even posting seemingly harmless personal information online could be devastating. Take revealing your “porn star name” (your first pet’s name followed by your mother’s maiden name) on Facebook, for example. It seems so innocent, but that information could crack your online banking password.

Good luck!