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A Comprehensive Guide To Personal Safety In Cyberspace

Cyberspace has become an integral part of our lives. Everything from business communication to cyberspace relates to this. Therefore, cyberspace has become a common avenue for criminal activity. Criminals attempt to obtain your information daily, employing new tricks. According to Security Magazine, there are over 2,200 attacks each day, which breaks down to nearly one cyberattack every 39 seconds. Today, we will discuss 6 key points of personal cybersecurity and its effective defense in this article.

1. Phishing Attacks

Phishing attacks are a well-known form of cyber attack. Many of us either know about this or have been a victim of this attack. Millions of phishing emails are sent every day for the purpose of hacking. As the number of phishing attacks increases daily, their patterns are changing, making them difficult to identify. However, our intelligence and vigilance can protect us from such cyber attacks.

Example of Phishing URL:

  • https://faccbook.com/profile.jar/
  • https://facebo0k.com/profile.jar/
  • https://faecbook.com/profile.jar/
  • https://mail.googlc.com/mail/u/0/
  • https://mail.google.com.example.com/mail/u/0/
  • https://youtube.com.example.com/

Do’s and Don’ts

  1. Always check the URL from the browser when browsing the internet or logging into any website.
  2. Before clicking on any link, you must check the domain name and extension.
  3. Be careful about opening emails from unknown email addresses.
  4. Be wary of emails with surprising or tempting offers.
  5. After clicking on a link, if you want to re-enter the password, you should check the domain.
  6. Avoid clicking on hyperlinks directly from emails; hover over them to check the URL.
  7. Use Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) whenever possible.
  8. Be cautious about the information you share on social media.

2. Malware Attacks

Malware poses another threat to personal data security. Millions of people’s mobile phones and computers are infected with malware every day due to various reasons. Among these, Windows computers and Android smartphones are most at risk. However, Linux and Mac operating systems, as well as iOS, are being attacked by less malware due to the low number of users and the improved security system by design. Let’s see how to protect ourselves from malware altogether.

Do’s and Don’ts

  1. Be careful when downloading any file from the Internet or email.
  2. Without downloading, try to read or view the image or any document file in the email application.
  3. Be extra careful when downloading any type of password-protected .zip/.rar file from the Internet or email.
  4. Suspicious files can be checked for malware by uploading them to a cloud antivirus website such as VirusTotal or Anyrun.
  5. Under no circumstances should you use cracked Windows or any cracked software. This software can be a major security risk and is illegal. If necessary, use the free version of those apps or consider open-source alternatives.
  6. In case of using any PC software, it must be downloaded from the official website of that software.
  7. Android users must not download or install applications from any source other than Google Play.
  8. Regularly check the permissions of the installed apps on your Android phone.

3. Password Attacks

Passwords are your primary security. Weak passwords can easily compromise this security. Attackers use various methods to obtain passwords, such as brute force (trying all possible combinations), dictionary attacks (trying common words), or leveraging stolen passwords from data breaches. Examples of weak passwords include:

  • 123456
  • Password
  • YourBirthday
  • YourName123
  • YourMobileNumber
  • StudentIdNumber
  • PetName
  • BestFriendName
  • FamillyMembersName
  • RelagiousKeywords

Do’s and Don’ts

Here are some tips on secure and strong passwords

  1. Use at least 12 characters long
  2. !, @, #, $, %, etc.). mixing different types of characters
  3. Avoid using personal information in passwords. e.g., Name, Birthday
  4. Avoid common patterns. e.g., 123456 or abcdefg
  5. Regularly change passwords
  6. Under no circumstances should the password be saved in the internet browser. If, for some reason, malware attacks your computer, it can send these saved passwords to the hacker. On the other hand, creating and remembering strong, unique passwords for different websites can be quite difficult. In that case, a password manager can be used. Some of the most popular and trusted password managers include LastPass and Bitwarden.

4. Identity Theft

Recently, incidents like theft of personal information have increased at an alarming rate compared to before. When we roam online, we disclose personal information on social media and share phone numbers, emails, and names of family and relatives. Additionally, we register our personal information, such as name, address, and mobile phone number, on various websites or e-commerce platforms. If any of these websites or e-commerce platforms get hacked for any reason, our important information may be leaked onto the internet. This information is then traded on various data bridge marketplaces, including the dark web. Cybercriminals can use such information to perform various fraudulent activities against you. To avoid such issues, attention should be paid to these aspects.

Do’s and Don’ts

  1. When using social media, personal information such as your mobile phone number, email address, and family name should not be kept open to everyone.
  2. Be extra cautious when buying products from an unknown e-commerce website. In such cases, it is better not to use your very personal mobile phone number and email address.
  3. Avoid giving personal information in the hope that an email or link will contain an offer.
  4. Be extra cautious about providing credit card information on any unknown website other than a reputable or well-known one.

5. Public WiFi Attacks

We need to use the internet outside our office or home for various purposes. In that case, we use public WiFi. However, even secure public WiFi can pose a security threat to us. Cybercriminals can steal your valuable information by taking control of public WiFi, such as a restaurant’s WiFi or a resort’s WiFi. This type of attack is called a man-in-the-middle attack in security parlance. If you are careful about the following things, you can stay safe from such network attacks.

Do’s and Don’ts

  1. Use secure and encrypted connections (HTTPS) whenever possible.
  2. Avoid automatic downloads from any website for no reason.
  3. Verify the authenticity of websites and digital certificates.
  4. Use a VPN (Virtual Private Network) for added security. In that case, Cloudflare WARP can be used.
  5. Be cautious of unexpected or unusual website behavior.

6. Social Engineering Attacks

Although a social engineering attack is not a direct cyber attack, it is one of the tools of cyber attacks. Attackers manipulate individuals into divulging sensitive information or performing actions that compromise security, often through psychological manipulation. Various fake social accounts or mobile phone numbers may try to collect your important information by impersonating a friend or a responsible person in an organization. Therefore, you should never share your personal information with any unknown number without an authentic source or mobile phone number.

Do’s and Don’ts

  1. Be cautious with sharing personal information online and offline
  2. Verify the identity of people requesting sensitive data or access
  3. Be wary of unsolicited emails, calls, or messages asking for personal information
  4. Educate yourself and others about common social engineering tactics
  5. Limit the information shared on social media platforms