Protect Yourself Online: A Review on Internet Safety

The Internet is a global network of interconnected computers that communicate with each other using standardized protocols. It allows for the exchange of data and information, enabling activities such as browsing websites, sending emails, and accessing various online services. While the Internet offers numerous resources and opportunities for communication and learning, it also presents risks that can be harmful to people.

Ever since the outbreak of the pandemic COVID-19, the world has slowly evolved into a digital world. Because of the need to quarantine, the entire world shifted to remote working, greatly escalating the use of technology across the globe. Unfortunately, this also allowed hackers and cybercriminals to take advantage of people’s lack of knowledge of the internet. The number of cybercrimes spiked, resulting in financial damages, shared personal information, and compromised devices. Practicing internet safety is essential to ensure that you can protect yourself and your personal information. Recognizing common online threats is the first step in protecting yourself. A few common threats include phishing attacks, DDoS attacks, and malware threats.

Phishing is a type of online scam where attackers attempt to trick individuals into providing personal information, such as passwords, credit card numbers, and social security numbers. Phishing is usually done through emails, messages, or fake websites that request sensitive and personal information. These fake communications appear to be from legitimate sources such as banks or well-known companies, deceiving victims. The messages from these phishing emails and texts often create a sense of urgency, pushing recipients to click on malicious hyperlinks and downloading harmful applications. When clicking on these, it may download malware.

Malware, also short for malicious software, is software that is designed to infect computers and prevent them from functioning as intended. Malware encompasses a multitude of cyberattacks including viruses, spywares, trojan horses, ransomware, and more. These harmful programs can steal data, disrupt operations, and grant unauthorized access to systems. Viruses attach to documents or files to execute malicious code and can spread uncontrollably from host to host. They are designed to disrupt operation by damaging a system’s core functionality and deleting files. As a result, they cause significant data loss and operational damage. Spyware runs secretly on the victim’s computer and sends sensitive information back to the remote hacker. It is often done to steal financial and personal information. Trojan horses disguise themselves as legitimate and trustworthy software. Once the victim downloads the “trusted software,” the trojan horse can gain access to sensitive data. Trojan horses are commonly used to create openings in security systems to allow other malware to enter the device. Ransomware targets sensitive information to use to exchange for a financial payout. Once attackers gain access to personal data, they encrypt the information so that the victim cannot access it. For the encryption key, the attackers demand a ransom (mostly likely money) in exchange. Malware is often spread through infected attachments, harmful websites, and downloads from untrusted sources.

Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks are a type of cyberattack that significantly disrupt network services. Attackers achieve this by overwhelming the target network with a flood of malicious traffic, typically generated by a network of compromised devices known as bots. This barrage of traffic can severely degrade website performance or cause complete outages. The duration of DDoS attacks can vary, lasting anywhere from a few hours to several days. Attackers often use these attacks to exploit security vulnerabilities, potentially gaining access to sensitive information.

These online threat attempts can be difficult to spot. Here are a few ways to recognize these threats. Remember to check the sender’s email to ensure that the email is from a known and reliable source. Scammers often use email addresses that look similar to legitimate ones, so double check the email of the actual organization. To ensure that an email is secure, use an

email verification tool to identify invalid email addresses. These tools are available online. Remember to also look for clues within the email content. Be mindful of the grammar and tone of the email. Suspicious messages likely contain spelling mistakes and a sense of urgency. Note that professional organizations rarely send emails with errors and write in a professional manner. Be sure to also check the date and time of the message. If the message was sent at a date or time that is outside of working hours, it should arouse suspicion. Malicious messages are often found to be “too good to be true,” causing victims to give up their personal information easily. Remember to never share your personal data if you see such a message. Don’t forget to avoid clicking on suspicious links or attachments. These links will likely download some malware that will compromise your device and steal your personal data. Many cybercriminals may link fake links to the structures of a legitimate-looking link, so be sure to hover over the links to see the real URLs before clicking on them to check if they are valid. In the case that a professional organization “potentially” sends you a message requesting for your personal information, make sure you verify with the organization first. Contact the company directly using a trusted method.

When using the Internet, implementing safety strategies is crucial. When browsing the internet, you should be cautious about the websites you visit, the links you click, and the information you share. Remember to stick to well-known and trusted sites when surfing the internet, especially when making monetary transactions. If on a site that is not secure, your credit card information could be stolen. One key feature to look out for is in the URL. Make sure the URL starts with “https” because the “s” in “https” stands for “secure.” Remember to also be cautious when downloading files or software. Only download from trusted sources and check the reviews of the product before downloading. If you are not careful, you could download some type of malware that could compromise your device.

To protect your personal information, limit the amount of personal information you share online. Oversharing can be dangerous so only share what is necessary. Important data that should never be shared include your social security, credit card numbers, location, and more. Remember to monitor your accounts for suspicious activity. By regularly checking your bank statements and credit report, you will be able to easily identify any malicious looking activity. One of the most important ways to protect personal information is through strong passwords. When creating them, they should be at least 12 characters long, using a mix of letters, numbers and symbols to make it harder to decipher. Remember to avoid common words, words related to you, or easily guessable information. For example, never use names or birthdays. Make sure to never use the same password for all accounts. Use different passwords in case one of your passwords is compromised so that the rest of your information stays secure. If you have trouble creating and remembering all your passwords, consider using a password manager which will create strong passwords for you and keep track of them safely.

It is also essential to protect your devices. Remember to keep your software up to date to maintain the security and performance of your devices. These updates often include patches for security vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit. Backing up your data is also important so that you don’t lose essential information from unexpected events such as hardware failures, cyberattacks, or accidental deletions. By backing your data to external drives or cloud services, you can quickly recover your data if anything happens. Use antivirus and firewall software to protect your devices from malicious threats. Antivirus programs detect and remove malware, preventing them from continuing to cause damage and steal data. Firewalls are barriers that block unauthorized access by monitoring incoming and outgoing traffic between your device and the internet. Don’t forget to be careful when on public Wi-Fi. These networks are often less secure than private Wi-Fi networks which makes it easier for hackers to intercept your data. Avoid accessing sensitive documents and information when using this type of Wi-Fi. Use a virtual private network (VPN) to protect your data instead by encrypting your internet connection.

Online threats pose significant dangers and can cause substantial harm. Therefore, it is crucial for individuals to understand how to defend against and prevent these malicious activities. Practicing effective internet safety tips and strategies is essential for safeguarding personal information and maintaining secure online environments. I hope you learned something new! Keep a lookout for the next post!

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References

Christensson, P. (2015 Sep. 17). Internet. TechTerms. Retrieved August 20, 2022, from https://techterms.com/definition/internet

Cisco. (n.d.). What is malware?. Cisco. Retrieved August 20, 2022, from https://www.cisco.com/site/us/en/learn/topics/security/what-is-malware.html

Cofense. (n.d.). 7 Tips for How to Spot Email Phishing. Cofense. Retrieved August 20, 2022, from https://cofense.com/knowledge-center/how-to-spot-phishing/

Microsoft. (n.d.). What is a DDoS attack?. Microsoft. Retrieved August 20, 2022, from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/security-101/what-is-a-ddos-attack

Phishing.org. (n.d.). What Is Phishing?. Phishing.org. Retrieved August 20, 2022, from https://www.phishing.org/what-is-phishing