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While we all wish the Internet was the safest city in the world,
in reality, there are tons of trap doors. Common sense will protect
you from 99% of all threats you could come in contact with.
Here are the common sense tips:
1. Never provide any information to anyone who calls you out
of the blue-
Over the years most people consider this very basic.
2. Never provide any information to anyone who emails you out
of the blue-
It's a huge surprise to me that most people would not deem this
very basic common sense.
3. Do not click on any links or emailed to you out of the blue
unless you were expecting it-
Remember the days when people would send you a virtual ecard? Now
a days, I don't open the email and delete. I then call my friend
and say to them, "Have you run your antivirus program lately or
have you been hacked?"
4. Do not download or open any files that are emailed to you,
unless you were expecting them.
Here are some programs you must have and use regularly if you are
going to bank online:
A. Firewall-
A firewall blocks your computer and an outside computer from communicating
unless you allow it to. This stops crackers and hackers from being
able to attack you. There are many great firewalls out there. Honestly,
this software changes so often that I read reviews of them prior
to purchasing. In the past I hated McAfee, they over hauled their
software and now it's one of the best out there. So my advice is
unless on that one.
B. Antivirus-
Antivirus software basically scans your computer for threats. The
better Packages are made by Norton and McAfee. The only reason I
say they are better is because they constant update their virus
definitions.
C. Ditch Outlook Express-
Outlook Express is the most popular email client on the planet.
Guess what software virus writers target? It's great software, but
I'm not going to put myself at risk like that. I like Qualcomm's
Eudora.
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