With the daily increase in cybercrime, cybercrime is now more real and closer than it used to be in the past and you should be alert to avoid falling victims to online criminals.
In this article, I am going to be sharing 5 tips on how to stay safe online, both on the internet and when using mobile apps.
I hope you learn something new!
Photo by Sergey Zolkin on Unsplash
Beware of Malware:
What is malware? A Malware is a catch-all term for any type of malicious software designed to harm or exploit any programmable device, service, or network. It contains a program that breaks into your device security and collects data from your phone without you knowing. Cybercriminals typically use it to extract data that they can leverage over victims for financial gain. Important things like your email, bank details, and all those things that are vulnerable can easily be taken.
Stop clicking on random ads and links on the internet, they might contain malware. My advice is rather than click on those links directly. Go to your browser and type the link yourself, if it’s a referral scheme, ask for the referral code and fill it in yourself. Do not expose your devices to avoidable malware because of laziness or impatience. Do not download from these sites too, you can easily download malware that way too.
Beware of websites that are not secure:
How do you know an insecure site? Look out for the URL, which is the "something.com" that is on the address bar of the browser. Http:// shows that the site is not secure while Https:// shows it is secure, the “s” there means secure, you might see a padlock beside the URL sometimes.
If the URL shows that the website is not secure, don’t fill in any confidential information there, information like your bank details and credit card details. Doing that is the same as giving a random person your card details and pin. My honest advice is to be very careful about giving out such details on the internet except you are paying for a product or service, if not, avoid it.
Beware of Free Public Wi-Fi:
I know you like free things (I like free things too ) No one wants to burn through their cellular data when wireless hot spots are available but the thing is, free Wi-Fi networks are usually unsecured and most times using such Wi-Fi exposes your device to the owners of that Wi-Fi, that means they can see what you do and even extract information from you if they what. Scary right but true.
This doesn't mean you should stop using free Wi-fi...I still use it. But use it consciously. So next time you are rushing to connect to free Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi anywhere, have this in mind and be careful. To be safe, use free Wi-Fi sparingly on your device. And never use it to access confidential or personal services, like banking or credit card information whenever you use it.
Read your app access requirement before agreeing:
Whenever you try to install an app for the first time, You would be asked to allow the app to have access to some of the features it needs to function e.g your phone's microphone or camera. It is important to read them carefully before allowing some of those permissions. Now some of these apps need these permissions to function properly but beware of those apps that ask for more than necessary. You don’t know the times the app runs in the background and uses them. For example, a calendar app that requires permission to your camera, what for? They can send personal—and potentially corporate—data to a remote server, where it is mined by advertisers, and sometimes, by cybercriminals. Don’t just stay safe physically, stay safe online as well.
Turn off your location when you are not using it:
The location setting tracks where your mobile device is, for instance, you need your location turned on to use Google maps and some other apps and features like findmydevice, which helps you track your phone when it is stolen. But aside from these things, websites you visit and apps you use can actually track your location and this is not safe sometimes. Now you don’t know who is monitoring you online, someone might actually be tracking you and planning to attack you, so please stay safe and turn off your location when you don’t need them and keep your devices safe too, so you won’t need to track them if they get lost.
I hope you learned a thing or two.
Please share other online safety tips you know in the comment section below.
Till I come your way again, Adios!