Phishing is just another computer security vulnerability that carries big risks. Theft of money and identity is big on the Internet and of the biggest ways that thieves and scammers get this information is via phishing websites.

What is Phishing?

Phishing is basically the use of a fake website that is the exact design of a real site used to get you to log in with your personal information. Good examples of typical phishing sites are IRS, banks and Paypal duplicate sites. The login info is then used to steal your identity or money.

Phishing Venues

The most common way that computer users fall prey to phishing sites is via email. An email is sent to the computer user under false pretenses, with a link to the fake site. Usually it comes in the form of an alert of some sort, like “Your online banking needs to be verified” or “your Paypal account has been limited, please login to fix errors.” The user then uses the link to go to the fake site and the login info, such as username and password is recorded giving the scammer all they need to access your accounts.

How to Prevent Phishing

The best way to prevent this type of fraud and theft is to always type the url’s of all your bank, Paypal, and other identity sensitive sites directly into your browser, and never follow a link from an email or from anywhere else.

If you do get an email that is legitimate, then then going directly to the site instead of an email link can ensure that your information is not at risk and still take care of any problem.

For bank alert emails, which are rampant for phishing scams, the best case is to actually call your bank if you are concerned that the email maybe real.

Paypal has tons of fraud like this associated with their site and their policy is to never contact you and ask you for personal information via email.

IRS has the same policy since a rash of phishing emails have been sent to unsuspecting victims claiming that they need the taxpayers personal info in order to issue a stimulus payment. They never send those so they are always frauds.

Firefox Browser Settings and Protection to Alert for Phishing Sites

If you use Firefox browser, which is the best browser for computer security, as Internet Explorer has so many problems and vulnerabilities, then you can set up security protection for phishing alerts.

Go to Tools from your Browser Toolbar

Click Options

Click Security Tab

Select:
Tell Me If The Site I’m Visiting is a Suspected Forgery

This is a great security option as Firefox will actually block access and let you know if the site your are visiting is a suspected forgery.

Time consuming and annoying, spam is something we all want to be rid of. Viruses and malware that phish for personal data threaten our computers from the content of unsolicited mails. Spam filters and blockers are the solution to the problem and although they may not eliminate unwanted emails 100%, you will still get rid of about 90%. And since paid tools are often too expensive to afford, a much more popular alternative is the download of free spam blockers from Internet sites. You can choose integrated, standalone and online tools to assist you with the filtering and blockage of spam.

Integrated software is the most popular model of free spam blockers. Once the software is installed on the PC, you need to create new settings in the email application so that the messages can be divided into legitimate or illegitimate. This category includes a very large number of free spam blockers, and all you have to do is check the Internet and read reviews in order to make sure that the tool you download for free will not be some form of malware. There are cases with so-called spam blockers that invade the computer and modify all sorts of functions exposing the PC to unauthorized access.

The free spam blockers should be compatible with the computer operating platform and the email provider. Some softwares work only with Yahoo! and Gmail, while others match Outlook Express and Outlook alone. An alternative to an integrated program is the standalone anti-spam tool that enables the message previewing on the server before allowing the mail download into your computer. A major flaw here is that some free spam blockers become operatioal only when you access mail by opening it, and not before. Test the program before installing it so as to make sure that the filtering and blocking of spam is automatic.

As for online best free spam blockers, these are tools available for personal and business use, with the mention that corporations are normally interested in this kind of protection. Anti-spam programs conducted online delete the unwanted messages in the junk mail without the interference of the PC operator. There are lower chances of finding online free spam blockers, since most of them require monthly fees for filtering emails.

Just a quick post today about computer security as it relates to passwords. For most of us who spend even a little bit of time online we surely have lots of websites we visit regularly and so it’s likely that we have login information for them especially shopping sites like Amazon, eBay and others.

Choosing Passwords

It is very important to choose passwords wisely. While it is easier to choose simple ones that we can remember this practice makes it to easy for online predators to hack your information and make your security and identity more vulnerable.

Typically people choose passwords that include their kids names, birthdays or simple one word passwords and this is a mistake.

Example of a Great Password:

^&gh#$#AFHA454^#$%&#$dfha#@

See the deep combination of characters, capital and small letters and numbers is the best way to protect your online accounts and personal data, and decrypting those is much harder than a password like, Joey.

It is also a good idea to vary your password from site to site. Many times people want it to be easy to remember and so they will use the same one, but this can make you more vulnerable in the long run.

Read on to learn how to make remembering passwords easy.

Remember Passwords Easily

If you are using Firefox (or the dreaded Internet Explorer) the browser can remember your passwords for you, and then each time you visit a particular site the browse will automatically insert your user name and password eliminating the need to type it in each time.

If you go that route, which is fine, then make sure to set a Master Password in Firefox, which means that every time you open your browse you have to type in one main password which will activate Firefox to automatically add your login on different websites.

This provides an added layer of protection and also if anyone should be on your computer, they will not be able to access all your passwords. This is especially important for laptops, which can get stolen, and then your identity and all your login info is open to the thief, but with the master they will be locked out.

Firefox will automatically send a little pop up screen at the top of the web page whenever you enter a new user name and password and ask you if you want it to remember it for you. You can choose on a case by case basis.

How-To Set Master Password in Firefox

Click on Tools

Click Options

Click Security Tab

Click on Set Master Password

It’s a well known fact that computer security is an important issue. When a system connects to the Internet it is exposed to thousands of malicious Malware, viruses, spyware, hackers, and other nasty infections and other risks that can ruin a system, cost you money for repairs and lose data that is stored on the computer.

Beyond the obvious, there are some really hands-on things that you can do to protect yourself from Malware and virus attacks and always ensure the utmost security for your computer system.

1. Proper Virus Protection – Always have the best anti virus software installed and running on your system. Our best pick of a virus and spyware software combo is PC Tools.

2. Real Time Virus Protection – Make sure that real time protection is part of the virus software you use to avoid being infected by drive-by infections that can happen just by visiting a website. Learn more about Real Time Virus Protection.

3. Secure Browser – If you are using Internet Explorer as your web browser, think again. It is full of security risks and Firefox is a much better choice.

4. Firefox Security Selections – If you are using Firefox make sure to set up Security Options properly.

1. Go to Tools then Options
2. Then select the Security Tab
3. Click on the following options in that window to select them:

• Warn Me When Sites Try to Install Add Ons
• Tell Me if the Site I am Visiting is a Suspected Attack Site
• Tell Me if the Site I am Visiting is a Suspected Forgery
• Also make sure to select a master password, so when you have Firefox saving your passwords for you they will be more secure.

5. Firewall – You can use the firewall that comes with Windows operating systems, or you can download a free firewall for extra protection that can also be customized. Firewalls prevent hacking attacks on your system, learn more at this post: 3 Free Best Computer Firewalls.

6. Admin Protection – In Windows you can create different users, such as guests. This is helpful to avoid being logged in as administrator, which makes vital areas of your computer more accessible. If you create yourself a a guest account and work and surf the net from that user profile, your system will be more secure.

7. Beware of Shareware – Shareware is usually some free software or program that can be downloaded for free use. These can be risky because often times they can carry viruses and other malware, like spyware. Be sure to know what you are downloading and where its from.

8. Stay Away from P2P Sites – One of the easiest ways to get nasty viruses, and especially Trojans is person 2 person (P2P) file sharing sites.

These sites are free-for-all downloads usually used for free music file downloads. Some main ones include, Limewire, Bearshare and Morpheus.

You create a free account on these sites, download the software (which is often full of Spyware/Adware) and you get access to millions of other peoples computer files through what is called the Gnutella Network. You search for particular files, like MP3 music  and then download them from other people’s computers.

First, this is a sure fire way to get the Feds to knock on your door, due to copyright infringment, since downloading free mp3 music is illegal. Second, you are basically exposing your system to thousands of other computers and whatever viruses and malware they may have. Very risky!

9. Never Open Unknown Email Attachments – Viruses are often sent through email in the form of attachments. You should never open files that come from sources that you don’t trust or know. Yahoo and MSN Hot Mail are usually pretty good at scanning for viruses in email but they do miss stuff, so the best thing to do if you get an email with an attachment from someone you don’t know, hit DELETE!!

10. Phishing Emails – This computer security threat is more geared toward identity theft and stealing your personal information and money.

Thousands of emails are sent on a daily basis with subject lines such as: Your Bank Account May Have Been Accessed without Authorization, or the IRS Needs Your Information to Send you a Stimulus Check.

The email will then include a link to the site which will ask you to enter your personal login info, social security numbers, account numbers and other personal info. The link will take you to a phishing site, and not the real site, thought the design will be a duplicate. Many people fall for this and get robbed or have their identity stolen. NEVER follow the link, if you are unsure if the email is real, then type in the web address of the site in question manually and then go to your account, or call the institution.

Banks rarely send such alerts, they will contact you by phone, and the IRS never asks for personal information via email, neither does Paypal, which these thieves often use to scam people.

11. Always Back Up Your Files – Finally, you always want to have a back up of all the data, files and folders on your system. You can do back ups in several ways, you can burn them onto CD or tape drives but a great solution that eliminates the hassle of that is to use an online data backup service. They are very cheap, and the best one is Mozy Online Backup, where you can get 5GB free of backup storage and unlimited backup for under $5 a month!