Four Online Security Don'ts Every Newbie Must Know

If you're a newbie, this page is for you. That you're not a VIP or a public figure may leave you confident that what traces of your presence you allow others to see are not really that important. Well, you may want to avoid this carefree mentality in this dog-eat-dog world because the online world is rife with scam artists and hackers who are determined to make their mark by the numbers instead of merely just targeting the wealthy and the high-profile personalities. To avoid compromising your online security, observe the following don'ts whenever your surf.

1. Do not trust the Net.

Okay, you don't exactly have to be paranoid. The point is that you must be critical of the sites that you visit, the pages that you view and the information you're reading online. The most enterprising individuals can copy the most complicated-looking sites to deceive the passive and unobservant surfers. Even if the site looks legitimate enough, double check the address bar and see if the text matches the title of the homepage (which is usually the case for banks, stores, and other commercial establishments and business entities).

2. Do not open any unknown mails as well as attachments from unknown sources.

Subject lines that read “Hi,” “You won a prize,” “Someone wants to meet you,” “We found you a new job,” and “Please confirm your account” are the most common ploys to pique your curiosity. Equate the opening of suspicious mails and attachments to unleashing the evil in Pandora's box. The attachments are commonly saved using the following suffixes: .exe, . txt, .vbs and .pif, to name a few. Although some mails are obviously just spammed advertisements, other mails are more harmful, attaching viruses to files and ready to infect your computer if you give them a chance.

3. Do not click on suspicious links from pop-ups as well as the “OK” button to execute files.

Review Tip No. 1 and remember to treat all things with suspicion. Pop-ups are certainly attention-grabbing. Let your eyes feast on them for a while, but do not satiate your curiosity further by following the recommended links or actions. Do the same on pop-up screens that seek your approval to run executable files. Typically, the window that seeks for your permission to run the file appears immediately prior to your downloading of some freeware or software on the Net. If you yourself did not visit a particular site to download something, and the pop-up confirmation box appears, tell yourself something fishy is going on.

4. Do not enter sensitive information on unsecured pages.

Nothing is more suicidal than sharing personal information which many people are dying to pay for and which scamming individuals are phishing for free. Look for visual cues that the page you're about to enter information on is secure: a VeriSign identity protection seal or logo, a locked padlock symbol at the lower right corner of the screen alongside the website, as well as details of the SSL server certificate which you can view if you double-click the padlock symbol.