Are You Smarter Than a Cyber Scammer?
Cybercrime is more rampant today than before as cybercriminals invent notorious ways of robbing personal data and using it to extort money from people. However, regardless of the increasing complexity of phishing and hacking methods, there are numerous steps you can implement to ensure you are more intelligent than a cyber scammer.
Steps for Staying Ahead of a Cyber Scammer
1. Secure your internet network with a VPN
A virtual private network (VPN) generates protection while using public wifi. A VPN guarantees online privacy and secrecy by masking Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, making your online activities virtually untraceable. Thus, VPNs encrypt all internet traffic by establishing a private network from an internet connection open to the public. Hence, your personal data remains safe at all times you are online.
Surfing or performing transactions on public wifi makes you vulnerable to cyber scammers since you are divulging your personal information plus surfing habits. You should endeavor to remain smarter than a cyber scammer by ensuring that you have installed a VPN in your surfing devices to prevent yourself from getting scammed.
2. Avoid utilizing public wi-fi
As the name suggests, public wifi is open to everyone, and they are found in public places such as hotels, airports, learning institutions, and hospitals. It can be very tempting to utilize public wifi when out running errands. However, you must realize that using public wifi puts us in harm’s way, more so if your devices are unsecured.
You do not require any password to gain access to unencrypted public wifi, making it easy for hackers to have access and steal your private information, including passwords, credit card data, and additional financial information. Moreover, hackers can spread malware to any unprotected device connected to an open network. Hence, to remain smarter than a cyber scammer, keep off from using public wifi. But if you must, ensure your device has a VPN.
3. Installing anti-virus software and ensuring it is up-to-date
Anti-virus software safeguards from malware and cyber-attacks. It remains the most innovative way to stay safe from cyber scammers. Hence, ensure that all your browsing devices, including smartphones, laptops, and desktops, have an up-to-date anti-virus.
Anti-virus software provides the first form of protection by spotting threats and barring unapproved users from accessing your devices. Hence, ensure that you perform regular updates to your anti-virus software to eliminate exposure to attacks.
4. Create strong passwords
Perhaps passwords are the most common protective way from cyber scammers. However, the strength of your password counts when it comes to evading online scams. Your password must be unique by ensuring it is long enough (8-15 characters) and has a combination of letters, numbers, symbols, and uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet.
Ensure you have different passwords for your multiple online accounts. Using the same password for all your online accounts increases the chances of getting scammed.
5. Avoid clicking on suspicious links
The use of suspicious links to steal personal data and install malicious software on people’s devices is called phishing. It is more common today, and many people have fallen victim. The suspicious emails often seem to be from a genuine source and depict some element of urgency, driving an unsuspecting user to click on them.
The links often take you to a phony website that requires you to enter personal data. A time you may be required to download an attachment, which could contain malware. Hence, it would help to remain vigilant to avoid clicking on suspicious links. Trust your guts, and if you are wary of an email, avoid clicking on or opening it.
6. Be mindful of what you post online
Social media sites have become a critical target for cybercriminals to source personal information to scam the very unsuspecting. Social media, which has become the most common communication and socializing site, always documents personal data such as age, email address, professional titles, location, etc. Scammers are busy looking for the most vulnerable.
Hence, ensure that you think twice before posting anything about yourself online. Additionally, you can protect yourself by blocking entry by any unfamiliar person and constructing solid and inimitable passwords.
7. Install a firewall
A firewall effectively blocks connections to fake sites and prevents your devices from virus attacks. It protects by securing your mobile devices and computers through checking and filtration of inbound and outbound network traffic depending on security policies that have been put in place. Hence, to stay smarter than a cyber scammer, you can install a firewall on your surfing devices.
Conclusion
Cyber-attacks have become rampant in today’s world. However, there are various security steps that you can take to ensure that you remain ahead of a cyber-attacker. You can develop strong, unique passwords, avoid using public wifi, install a firewall, avoid clicking on suspicious links, use VPNs, and be mindful of what you display on your social media pages.
