On
the occasion of Internet Day celebrated around the world on May 17, we
want to share with you a series of "10 tips for safe Internet
browsing" and thus avoid being victims of viruses, fraud,
hackers, malware and other threats of the Internet. net.
The
Internet has been and is a constant advance that came to change our lives ...
but just as it has its infinity of advantages, it also has a dark and risky
part which can be greatly reduced if we follow the recommendations and advice
of our friend Sebastián Bortnik - Analyst of Security for ESET
Latin America in its "Decalogue of security in cyberspace."
Avoid
suspicious links : one of the most used means of directing victims to
malicious sites is hyperlinks or links. Avoiding clicking on them prevents
access to web pages that have threats capable of infecting the user. The
links can be present in an email, a chat window or a message on a social
network: the key is to analyze if they are offered in a suspicious situation
(an invitation to see a photo in a language other than one's own, for example
), come from an unknown sender, or refer to an unreliable website.
Ø Do not access disreputable websites : through Social Engineering
techniques, many websites tend to promote themselves with data that can attract
the attention of the user - such as discounts on the purchase of products (or
even free offers), scoops or exclusive materials of current news, multimedia
material, etc. For safe browsing, it is recommended that the user be aware
of these messages and avoid accessing web pages with these characteristics.
Ø Update the operating system and applications: the user must keep up to date with
the latest security patches not only the operating system, but also the
software installed on the system in order to prevent the spread of threats
through vulnerabilities in the system.
Ø Download applications from official websites: many sites pretend to offer popular
programs that are altered, modified or supplanted by versions that contain some
type of malware and download the malicious code the moment the user installs it
on the system. Therefore, it is recommended that when downloading
applications always do so from the official web pages.
Ø Use security technologies: Antivirus Software, firewall and
antispam solutions represent the most important applications for
protecting your computer against the main threats that spread over the
Internet. Using these technologies reduces risk and exposure to threats.
Ø Avoid entering personal information in
dubious forms: when
the user is faced with a web form that contains fields with sensitive
information (for example, username and password), it is advisable to verify the
legitimacy of the site. A good strategy is to verify the domain and the
use of the HTTPS protocol to guarantee the confidentiality of the
information. In this way, phishing attacks that try to obtain sensitive
information through the simulation of a trusted entity can be prevented.
Ø Be careful with the results returned
by web search engines :
through Black Hat SEO techniques , attackers often position
their websites among the first places in search engine results, especially in
cases of searches for keywords that are widely used by the audience, such as
current affairs, quirky news, or popular topics (such as sports and
sex). Before any of these searches, the user must be attentive to the
results and verify which websites are being linked to.
Ø Accept only known contacts: both in instant messaging clients and
in social networks, it is recommended to accept and interact only with known
contacts. In this way, access to the profiles created by the attackers to
communicate with the victims and expose them to various threats such as
malware, phishing, Cyberbullying or others, is avoided.
Ø Prevent the execution of suspicious files: The spread of malware is usually
through executable files. It is advisable to avoid running files unless
the security of the file is known and its provenance is reliable (whether it
comes from a contact on instant messaging, an email, or a website). When
files are downloaded from P2P networks, it is suggested to analyze them prior
to their execution with a security solution.
Ø Use strong passwords: many services on the Internet are
protected with a password, in order to protect the privacy of the
information. If this password were simple or common (widely used among
users) an attacker could guess it and therefore access it as if it were the
real user. For this reason, it is recommended to use strong passwords,
with different types of characters and a length of at least 8 characters.
As
always, good practices serve to increase the level of protection and are the
best accompaniment to security technologies. While the latter are in
charge of preventing the probability of some type of incident, the user's
education will ensure that they are less exposed to existing threats, something
that surely any reader will want in their daily use of the Internet.
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