Personal Internet Security Measures
The Internet is a dangerous place! One reason the Internet is so dangerous is that you can't see thieves and bad characters lurking in dark alleys, so you tend to think they are not out there. On the contrary, dishonest people are all over the Internet, even if you can't see them. Fortunately, there are personal internet security measures all of us can take to protect ourselves.
Identity Theft
Perhaps the most obvious Internet theft most people are aware of is identity theft. By gaining access to your eBay or PayPal passwords, or even your email name and password, thieves can use your identity to buy merchandise and vacations for themselves.
One common personal internet security breach that thieves use on eBay is to use your personal information to list items for sale under your eBay ID. They offer laptop computers, automobile GPS units, or other valuable, desirable items for rock-bottom prices. Buyers are understandably lured into bidding, or even into making a "buy it now" transaction for this amazing price. The "seller" collects a cash payment or a Paypal deposit and doesn't ship the merchandise ? because there never was a laptop or GPS unit in the first place. The disgruntled buyer contacts you, the innocent party, expecting to get a refund, and you will find yourself in the middle of a huge dispute, locking up your eBay account, your PayPal account, and possibly freezing funds in the bank account that is connected with these accounts. By this time, you will wish you had learned more about personal internet security measures before you opened all these accounts.
Social Networking
When it comes to social networking, the best personal internet security device you can use is your common sense. Social networking is just a fancy term for what usd to be called "con games." The "con" in con games stands for "confidence." Here, the bad actor exploits your personal information by establishing a confidential relationship with you. The thief might pretend to be a friend of yours, or a friend of a friend, or your online bank. Thieves also masquerade as eBay or PayPal officials, sending you an email that urges you to click a link to verify your account, or threatening to close your account if you do not click a link. Once you click the link, you log in to a fake site using your real name and password, and voila, the thieves have the information they were after.
Remember, good, old-fashioned vigilance can be a personal internet security device. Be suspicious of suspicious emails. Forward them to the sites that purport to have sent them and ask the sender to verify that they are authentic. Or just delete them and see what happens ? usually nothing! When you log in to password protected sites, do not leave your keyboard without logging out first. Never leave a secure site on an unattended machine at your workplace, at an Internet caf?, at a public library or on another machine that is accessible by others.
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