Cyber Thief Tricks of the Internet Trade
How can you keep your personal information safe on the Internet? Well, there really is no way to protect your information a hundred percent. Every day Identity Thieves are coming up new avenues and new tricks to get their hands on other people’s personal information. They do not have to sneak in through the back door anymore and they do not have to club you over the head.
Being aware of as many tricks of their trade as you can be will enable you to avoid their pitfalls. You will hold the keys to a brighter Internet future. You will be able to navigate through the web sharks to gather only the information you need from the web without attracting the eye of a cyber thief or leave the Internet with any unwanted shadow tagging along and attaching itself to your computer.
Cyber crooks consider their chosen illegal profession a game. It does not matter to them that people get hurt in the process. They can be likened to a sniper. They just do what they do and have no real emotion about it. If they stop to think about anything, they could miss their mark.
There is not a lot you can do once a cyberthief gets onto your computer. You can protect your photos and personal projects with watermarks. That is a good start. WinWatermark software is easy to use and provides protective cover for your pictures before they leave your computer. The watermark and your photo are inseparable and the watermark acts like an electronic dna sample.
Following are some of the tactics of an electronic thief. Spam is e-mail that you did not request from a solicitor and you do not want. It can come in three different forms.
Pharming: Sends the user to a phony website that asks personal information. Maybe it disguises itself as a financial institute that promises a low interest rate, if you give them your birth date and social security number.
Phishing: An e-mail or a pop-up message that pretends to be your own bank or whatever and needs personal information verification. Maybe they say, “Final Notice” or “We’ve Been Trying to Reach You,” or “You’ve WON! Please verify your mailing address and bank account number to receive your cash prize.”
Scamware: This is a pop-up or e-mail notice that tells you that have downloaded malicious spyware or that your computer is infected with viruses. When you click on this e-mail or pop-up link is the moment you infect your computer with a virus. Your anti-virus software that is running behind the scenes will not send you pop-up or an e-mail alert.
Make sure how companies will use your personal information before you ever give it out, even if you have trusted that company in the past. Times change and information lists are an easy way to get extra cash. You give the company your personal information without checking the fine print or you fail to uncheck a tiny box on their website and your information might be sold to outside entities. How many credit card calls do you like to receive in a week’s time or how many loans will you be taking out in the near future?
Note that anything that has your copyrighted watermark on it stands a good chance of staying in your control. Do not be an easy target.