Cybercrime is a concern for all of us in 2019. If you use the Internet, then you have to worry about it. Most people assume that cyber-crime is only about being hacked or getting your financial information stolen. But it’s actually way more complicated than that. Cybercrime is a growing concern because the criminals behind it continue to innovate and create even more sophisticated threats.
In fact, it can be quite daunting when you find out about all the different types of scams and cyber threats that exist. But this is not an excuse to bury your head in the sand and stay away from the Internet. Luckily, there’s something you can do about this situation.
The first thing would be to empower yourself with knowledge of how cybercrime works. This way you can recognize it from afar and take the right precautions against it.
Unfortunately, there’s no way to really prevent cybercrime but you can protect yourself from it.
You must protect against cybercrime if you’re going to use the Internet. The following are our top 10 tips on how to protect yourself against a wide range of online scams and threats.
1. Install a Quality Antivirus Software
It’s imperative now more than ever to use a good quality antivirus software. These offer real-time protection from harmful malware such as viruses and ransomware. All while protecting your online data and private financial information.
2. Update Your Software Often
Another way to protect against cybercrime is to update your security software and operating system. One of the many ways that cybercriminals exploit your system is by poking into the flaws present in your operating system and software. So the best way to do things is to constantly update your software.
3. Manage Social Media Settings
Try to refrain from sharing personal details and private data online because oversharing can open you up to cybercriminals. For example, if you reveal details like your high school name or the name of your first pet, then people can easily guess your passwords and two-step authentication answers.
4. Use Only Strong Passwords
Always use different passwords for different websites, and make sure they’re impossible to guess. For a strong password, make sure to use a combination of letters, character symbols, and numbers. You can also use a password manager app to further protect your passwords.
5. Improve Your Home Network
Another way to protect against cybercrime is to use a Virtual Private Network or VPN. VPNs are great because they automatically encrypt your data so cyber criminals won’t be able to see the content of the messages you send online or its origin. We highly recommend using a VPN like IPVanish whenever you log into a public Wi-Fi network such as at a hotel, airport, café, and even your local library.
6. Read News About Major Security Breaches
Keeping up to date with what cybercriminals are up to is a great way to protect against cybercrime. Check out which aspects of your data they’ve mined and if you see any breaches, change your passwords immediately.
7. Protect Against Identity Theft
Identity theft happens when someone steals your identity in order to catfish other people online or to commit fraud. It’s fairly easy for cybercriminals to steal private user data but VPNs are helpful in this regard as well.
8. Teach Your Children About the Internet
Kids nowadays are growing up in the age of technology so it’s important to teach them about how to protect against cybercrime. This includes knowing what to do when facing online bullying, stalking or online harassment.
9. Check on Your Kids’ Online Activity
Protect your kids against threats such as identity theft by teaching them about cybercrime and its many dangers. It’s easy for kids to get targeted through sharing things like credit card information or another social security number. Teach your kids how to react when their online security and privacy has been breached and teach them about all the obstacles they might face while trying to protect against cybercrime.
10. Keep in Mind That Identity Theft Can Happen Anywhere
Protect against cybercrime by using a VPN whenever you connect to the Internet, especially if you plan to use the Wi-Fi connection at your hotel or at a restaurant. You should probably also refrain from constantly posting data on social media about where you are because that could make you a target.
Another way to protect yourself against cybercrime is to use Defencebyte Privacy Shield software. This software can help in saving your personal data, like account passwords, and private bank details, so we definitely recommend to give it a try.
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