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June Was National Internet Safety Month

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The Internet is an indispensable tool that citizens, corporations and governments all over the world have come to rely on. There are tremendous benefits to the World Wide Web including: having the information highway at your fingertips, being able to find and purchase products and services from anywhere, working from home, connecting with distant friends and family and saving time by conducting various transactions right from your couch.

The problem of course, is that all these conveniences have led to gaping security holes that allow criminals from all over the world to compromise your computer and various accounts which of course leads to identity theft and financial loss.  Even scarier is when criminal predators use the Internet to exploit children in various ways.

What this means is that all of us need to increase our security intelligence by understanding what to look out for and what systems need to be put in place so we can reap the benefits of the Internet safely and securely.

Since June is Internet Safety Month, it’s a good time to review essentials that all of us should be aware of every day.

Protect your personal information. Don’t give out personal data unless it is a trusted source requesting it and a secure site accepting it.

Look for httpS in the address bar when you are shopping online or on a site where you are entering personal information.

Update your browser with the latest version and use the highest security settings.

Update all your devices’ operating systems whenever a new version or critical security patch is available.

Beware of requests coming in via email asking you to update personal information. It’s best to go directly to sites instead of clicking on links in emails, or text messages.

Teach your children the “rules of the road” for the Internet and make sure they understand what is and isn’t acceptable online.

Think before you post online. It’s always good to use this rule of thumb—everything you post online is public and available forever—even if you use the highest security and privacy settings.

Keep your devices updated with the latest version of antivirus, anti-spyware and anti-phishing and make sure to have a 2-way firewall.

And remember, if something sounds too good to be true—it usually is, so don’t fall for the scam.

We can all do our part to stay safe and be better digital citizens by staying educated on the latest threats and scams.

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Expert to McAfee. Watch him discussing information he found on used electronic devices YouTube. (Disclosures)

Keeping Kids Safe Online

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It is no surprise that cybercriminals are taking advantage of the Internet and the people who use it. The Internet is like a bad neighborhood with bad guys around every corner. Any parent with an ounce of sensibility should recognize that when your child is on the wild wild web, they are at the same risk as they would be walking through the red light district in any big city.

I’m not saying this because I want to instill fear and panic, I’m bringing this up because sex offenders, pedophiles, criminal hackers and identity thieves treat the online world as if it was the physical world and use the anonymity of the web and the easiness of approach to seduce your children into doing things they wouldn’t normally do.

The Secret Online Lives of Teens, a survey conducted by McAfee, reveals that tweens and teens are relatively clueless about online privacy. The study sheds light on this generation’s tendency to use the Internet in ways that translate to danger in the real world.

There always has, is, and will be a predatory element out there. Generally, most people don’t want to think about that or even admit that it’s true. Instead of acknowledging the risks, most people completely discount this reality, telling themselves, “It can’t happen to me or my kids.”

The good news is you can do something about it. As soon as a family member becomes active online, it’s time to educate them—no matter what age they are—about cyber safety.

  • Set up the computer in a high-traffic family area and limit the number of hours your children spend on it.
  • Be sure you have computer security software with parental controls.
  • Decide exactly what is okay and what is not okay with regard to the kinds of web sites that are appropriate to visit
  • Use only appropriate monitored chat rooms
  • Never log in with user names that reveal true identity or that are provocative
  • Never reveal your passwords
  • Never reveal phone numbers or addresses
  • Never post information that reveals your identity
  • Never post inappropriate photos or ones that may reveal your identity (for example: city or school names on shirts)
  • Never share any information with strangers met online
  • Never meet face-to-face with strangers met online
  • Never open attachments from strangers

Once you have established the rules, make a poster listing them, and put it next to the computer.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to ADT Home Security Source discussing Home Security and Identity Theft on TBS Movie and a Makeover. Disclosures.

Phishing Scam: Using the U.S. General Commander in Iraq as Phish Food

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Fishing of course is the sport of tossing a tasty wormy baited hook connected to a fishing line and patiently waiting for a fish to take the bait.

Phishing is the sport of tossing a wormy baited tasty lie connected to a wormy human and the degenerate patiently waits for a naïve victim to take the bait.

A phisher can send thousands of phish emails a day and eventually someone will get hooked.

Phishing is a $9 billion business. Unlike the ongoing depleting of the ocean’s fisheries, there are PLENTY of people out there to phish. Many of them today are from developing nations like India and China who are just getting a broadband connection to the internet and are considered fresh meat to the bad guy.

The New York Times reports “if you get an Internet appeal from Gen. Ray Odierno, the senior American commander in Iraq, asking you to pay lots of money to get your son or daughter out of combat duty, don’t believe it. And certainly don’t send the $200,000. General Odierno acknowledged that he is but one more victim of a social networking scheme offering a big — but fake — benefit, if you send big amounts of real money.”

“I’ve had several scam artists on Facebook use my Facebook page and then go out asking people for all kinds of money: ‘If you pay $200,000, your son can get sent home early,’” General Odierno said at a Pentagon news conference.

Criminals may seek out military families and target them one by one or send a blast to thousands at a time and use a ruse that pulls at the heart strings of unsuspecting families who simply want their loved-one back home.

The General posted a large warning on his social networking site. “I have this big thing on my Facebook that says, “If anybody asks you for money in my name, don’t believe it,” he said. “But it’s a problem.”

Frankly, I don’t like the idea of an American General having a Facebook page. It weird’s me out. Hopefully the high commander isn’t uploading pictures of himself doing shots of tequila while driving a tank.

My guess is there is someone out there who has the money and is probably acutely unaware of this type of scam, then is probably capable of getting hooked.  But more than likely nobody will cough up $200,000. But the scammers know to start high and they will go low. They will take a $1000.00 when it comes down to it. But they also know that people won’t argue with a General and nobody will “discount” the value of their loved-ones life. So overall it’s a pretty good scam. Just don’t take the bait.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to ADT Home Security Source discussing Facebook scams on CNN. Disclosures.