What Is Phishing And How To Prevent Getting Hacked?
The problem with phishing is that most of the people are unaware of the whole issue of phishing. Web users, who are already in threat from various elements like virus, spyware etc, are facing a larger threat than any of them, but what is phishing? And how can it harm you? These are the questions, which will be answered in the next few lines.
Phishing
Phishing is an online scam, where people associated with it pose as legitimate website or links and ask for the details of the user, like the personal, contact and financial details. Then they fraudulently access your accounts with the information provided by you, and leave you bankrupt. The problem is so overwhelmingly huge that it costs US government about one billion dollars every year.
How Does the Phishing Scam Work?
Most of the time, a phishing scam starts off with the victim receiving an email to his or her email account. Apparently, these mails look legitimate and from a trusted source. The most common types include emails from bank, financial companies like brokerage or even from credit card companies. These emails claim that your account is going to face some serious impending problem, like delay in payments or account closure, and demands attention from your side. They also provide the solution to the same like changing the account details, like username, password etc to get rid of the problem.
Once you provide them with your account details, the financial account of yours is now vulnerable to them, as they are the ones who can hack and operate it easily. Most of the time, it is observed that they usually utilize the account information to get loan grants and credits from the bank, leaving a huge financial problem for you.
How to Prevent Phishing?
Once you have fallen in to the trap of some phishing scam, it may take years to get rid of it. It is always said that prevention is better than cure and this applies to phishing scams too. One of the easiest ways to avoid phishing attacks is to have your anti-virus updates regularly. Also, make sure that you are installing an anti-virus, which has got email scanner and link scanners, which detects the safety of a link before you click over them.
A good spam control program can also provide protection from phishing. The most difficult part is to detect fake websites and mails from the real ones, as the scammers do not keep any single stones unturned to make them look like real ones.
Getting all the security settings of your browser turned “On” will also help you to prevent yourself from falling in some phishing scam. Browse safe and be away from the dangers of phishing.
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Steps To Prevent Getting Hacked
Here are a few steps and pointers that will help and guide the users to prevent their systems from being hacked:
Antivirus Solutions
There is no running away from this. There are still quite a few people, who feel the need to install antivirus solutions on their system. Many of them also fail to update their antivirus software’s regularly, which makes them outdated and less effective. In order to prevent your system from being hacked it is absolutely crucial to have a good antivirus solution.
Importance of Firewalls
Firewalls also play a crucial role in protecting your system from being hacked. It acts as a barrier and keeps the threats out of the network. This will prevent the influx of Trojans, malware and other forms of threats. Hence, it is important for all the users to implement a strong firewall that work effectively to prevent possibly any such threats.
Clear Your Browser Periodically
This is another effective step that enhances security levels in your system. Hackers often target the users through their surfing habits. While Cookies do not pose any threat to your PC, they give an idea about your surfing habits. Hence, erase your cookies from time to time to avoid detection.
A lot of users also have the tendency to store passwords on the websites and they frequent to initiate quick log ins. This could possibly be a little dangerous, especially if the user uses the same password for many accounts. Hence, erase browser history along with site passwords on a more periodic basis.
Creating Backups
Always create backups of important data that you have on your system. Sometimes, virus attacks can lead to loss of crucial data that was important for the user.
Scan Attachments
Be wary when you receive attachments through e-mail from unknown sources. While today’s major email providers comes with scan protection, it still pays to be cautious when it comes to receiving mails from unknown sources.
Always scan the mail before opening, as it is one of the easiest methods through which your system can get infected. Also, take care to ensure you do not send unsafe links or attachments to your friends and colleagues.
Keep OS Updated
Updating the OS on a regular basis is also very helpful towards preventing security threats on the system. In case you are looking for updates in Windows, you can look for them online.
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The Nitty-Gritty Of Being An Ethical Hacker
Ethical hacking is a fairly old profession. As a matter of fact, the U.S government employed hackers to penetrate its computer security systems in the 1970s. Since then, ethical hackers have played an integral role in maintaining the computer security systems of many organizations.
Benefits of Ethical Hacking:
- Protection from anti-terrorism: With advancements in technology, terrorism has assumed a more sophisticated angle. Ethical hackers sniff out terrorism threats by identifying any loopholes in the country’s security systems.
- Adequate security preparations: Hackers also enable the country to ready itself for any security breaches. They help the security authorities to seal potential security pitfalls by forewarning them.
- Improve computer systems: Companies that employ the services of ethical hackers can insulate themselves from unscrupulous hackers. This is possible when these professionals unearth any tricks that malicious hackers can use to infiltrate the systems.
How to Become an Ethical Hacker?
Those who want to become ethical hackers must fulfill certain conditions. These requirements include:
- Gain formal training: As is the case with most careers, ethical hacking requires formal training. The would-be ethical hackers must have an experience in Information Technology (IT).
- Gain A+ certification: As part of their formal training, hackers must gain their A+ certifications. This will enable them to acquire a technical support position while preparing to scale the ladders of their experience.
- Acquire additional certification: The next step after gaining the A+ certification is the acquisition of a CCNA or Network+ certification. It is a mandatory requirement for would-be hackers to gain an administrative role.
- Earn security certifications: Earning a CISSP, TISCA or Security+ certification is important for elevation to the post of an information security officer. At this stage, prospective ethical hackers will gain access to the necessary materials for penetration testing.
- Acquire a CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker) certificate: The CEH certificate opens the way for prospective hackers to market themselves. They can acquire this certification from the EC-Council (International Council of Electronic Commerce Consultants).
- Possess adequate knowledge of related fields: Potential ethical hackers must also familiarize themselves with other fields. For example, they can engage in activities like programming, database management and analysis of Linux/Unix commands.
- Equip oneself with soft skills: Ethical hacking requires possession of soft skills besides its technical aspect. They include good communication skills, dedication, astute work ethics and problem-solving skills.
It is important to remember that ethical hacking is a challenging task. This is due to the temptations of crossing over to the dark side. As such, ethical hackers can turn on their employers by breaching the security system or infecting it with harmful elements. All ethical hackers must live by the name of the profession. This involves staying legal always.
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Essential Attributes Of An Ethical Hacker
The term Hacker can be defined as a person who is inclined towards learning more about the computer systems and trace out ways to stretch their capabilities as compared to most of the users who learn just the necessary amount. Now with a boom in the usage of Internet, computer security has become a major concern for governments and businesses. Hence the process of noticing intruder threats on the web and to stop them from getting access to classified documents, ethical hacking is carried out.
The hackers that take on hacking for an ethical purpose are known as ethical hackers. Ethical Hackers possess a wide array of skills. But one of the major essentialities of an ethical hacker is that he/she should be completely trustworthy. During their frequent checks of client systems, the ethical hacker may find classified information which if publicized may result in huge financial losses for the client. More sensitive the information, stronger measures should be taken to ensure that the security of systems must be employed by the very same ethical hacker only.
Ethical hackers have exceptionally strong programing and computer networking skills backed by the experience of several years. They also possess tact in installing and maintaining systems that use popular operating systems. These skills are harnessed with in-depth knowledge of the hardware and software provided by networking hardware vendors. A perfect understanding of the security systems that are already in place is essential in order to carry out vulnerable testing and conceptualizing the report for a client after the test.
Moreover the basic attributes of an ethical hacker is that he/she will definitely have more patience and drive than most people. The kind of work regimes that an ethical hacker goes through demands a lot of time and persistence. This quality in character is essential as criminal hackers are known to be extremely vigilant and patient, carrying out monitoring activities for months together. A general evaluation of a security system in place itself may require more than a few days of tedious work. Last but not the least; an ethical hacker should have the knowledge of almost all the tools that criminal hackers use to access classified information and must also be able to trace out methods to stop them.
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Tips To Protect Your Email Account From Hackers
Accessing someone’s email account without her or his permission is technically termed as email hacking. Email hacking is a crime and is categorized under cyber crime. With the impending boon of internet the cases of cyber crime are also increasing rapidly. The hackers use the technology in wrong way and hack the email accounts of others.
The hackers can hack the email account and may harm you in many ways. They can send objectionable content to anyone from your email id; they can access your social networking website and harm your public image. The hackers can even hack your passwords and transact from your bank account.
The common mistake that people often do is to keep the same password for their various accounts. This help the hackers access all their accounts.
The hackers use various methods to hack your password so as to access your mail account or to get your personal information. They can also steal your property, access the copyright data or withdraw the money from your online bank account. Though there are various security points developed by the programmers to avoid the hacking but the hackers are smart enough to drill the security and crack the hidden passwords.
Fortunately we have the computer security option which may avoid your email hacking. Below are a few good and effective tips to save your email from the hackers:
- Be attentive while logging in to your email account: Before you login in any website check whether the URL is authenticated or not. Hackers usually create the fake login pages to steal your passwords.
- Do not use mail account at public place: Unless it is very urgent avoid using the email account in public places or a public computer. You never know the person sitting next to you might be looking at your password to steal it. The public computers are not safe to open your email account. The computer owner might have some spyware installed in his machine to store your passwords.
- Always have secondary email account: While creating an email account the server always prompt to give a secondary email id which often people ignore. This secondary email account is useful to login from the public computers. When you are on the go, forward all the important mails from your original account to the secondary email account. Your main email account would remain uncompromised even if hackers crack your password.
Take online classes: Consider taking courses to prevent the spread of illegal hacking with an online criminal justice degree.
- Do check the IP in regular intervals of the last login: Gmail offers this amazing feature using which you can check the IPL of your login. Gmail shows the last login IP on left corner of your inbox. In case you find the IP suspicious change your password immediately.
- Check for bad filters: Email services provide the custom filters, keep checking the filters and if you find any unknown sender be alert.
- Avoid clicking the suspicious links: The hackers usually send the suspicious links hidden behind some attractive text. If you click these links you are actually handling your computer to the hackers. The hacking link could also be hidden in any kind of image. If you have got such links or any special downloadable links from your friends, confirm it before downloading it to your computer system.
- Set a strong password: However the email services show the vulnerability of your password but sometimes the password shown strong by them might not actually be strong. To be very secure, select an alphanumeric password. Use special characters to make your passwords extra strong.
In a nutshell you need to be careful and watchful if you do not want the hackers to crack your password. It is always advised to use the email services requiring https:// to connect.
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Fundamental Ways To Keep Your Data Safe
The web has changed how we perceive security these days. We store our most important files and details on our computers – tax details, bank statements, passwords, credit card details, social media, etc. Hackers are out for your details, which enables them to make easy money on the black market, or even by direct thefts from your accounts. There are a few fundamental ways you can upgrade the security architecture of your computers to prevent them from being hacked.
Use a Firewall
Preventing malevolent access to your machine in the first place is one of the best security practices. A firewall will protect your computers from unauthorized access and intruders. It is a piece of software or hardware that acts as a mediator between your computer and the network. It allows for certain types of data and connections to be made.
Most viruses and malware need Internet access to work. They contact their owners with information stolen from your computer. By using a firewall, you can disable access to the web for such software. This keeps them from “calling home”, which keeps your computer safe.
Your computer may also come under attack from hackers using specialized tools to access files on your computer. Firewalls can stop such access. There are lots of software firewalls available; you may also opt to use a hardware firewall, such as a router, to protect the computers in your home or office.
Scan For Viruses and Spyware
Millions of viruses are out there, waiting to infect your computers and steal data or, worse yet, make them unusable. You can ensure the protection of your computers by installing a virus scanner. A real-time scanner will notice viruses the moment they strike your computers, and sometimes even before they hit your drives.
As mentioned above, millions of viruses are out there, with thousands of new ones released every day. It is important to keep your antivirus definitions updated. Almost all scanners these days have automatic updates, so you do not have to worry.
You should also have a spyware scanner as part of your security architecture. Spyware are similar to viruses, though their purpose is somewhat different. They “spy” on you, violating your privacy while you surf the web. They can record your key strokes, add “features” to your system, and steal your login information, among other things.
Use Strong Passwords
Most online accounts are hacked because their owners have passwords that are easy to deduce. Don't be a victim. Use and maintain strong passwords that are difficult to figure out. A strong password features a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. You can also use a random phrase as a password. They are extremely difficult to crack or figure out, so you should be safe.
Also, do not share your passwords with anyone, not even your significant other. Do not write them down either. Finally, change your passwords regularly. Even if your passwords get compromised, your accounts will not, because you will have changed them already.
Following the above steps will insure your computers against any hacking attempts. Firewalls protect your computers from unauthorized access; spyware and antivirus scanners from malware and harmful software; and maintaining strong passwords will make your accounts much more difficult to hack into.
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Windows Password Myth - Tips To Secure Your Password
With the virtual world threatening to envelope the real world in terms of impact and the host of activities that happens online, security assumes paramount importance. Creating and using passwords is an integral part of this security. With the goal of helping the users create better, easy-to-remember and tough-to-crack passwords, we go on a myth-busting spree. Here are 9 myths laid bare before you.
1. 14 characters form the optimal password Length: LanManagers (LMs) used two separate 7-character hashes for passwords which made them very susceptible to brute-force attacks. For instance, a 10 character password could be cracked by easily by breaking it into a 7-character and a 3-character has which could be processed simultaneously by the hacker.Today, things have changed - a lot at that. Windows 2000 onwards, it is possible to store passwords that are up to 127 characters long. Actually, when a password is more than 15 characters long, Windows stores a constant, AAD3B435B51404EEAAD3B435B51404EE, as the LM hash, which is equivalent to a null password. It then becomes almost impossible to crack the password. So, go on and get longer and stronger passwords.
2. Passwords give an insight into your personality: It is often construed that obsessive people who lack imagination would generate a password with their lover's name. So also, an unimaginative, career-obsessed person would choose a work-related password, an extra-logical and humorless person would choose a numerical password, a fantasist would use own name or words like 'sexy' and 'stud' and so on. This better not be true for, if it is, it will only make the hackers work that easier because any intelligent hacker starts by working on related terms.
3. It is best to use passwords created by Random Password Generators:Random password generators create very complex passwords. These are very tough for the maker to remember. For instance, try remembering '4rfgo*ql9p'. On the other hand, as far as cracking the password is concerned, it is as easy or tough as any other password of similar length. For instance, '4race*car4' is equivalent to '4rfgo*ql9p' for a hacker but is much easier to remember for the user. Complexity may be useful in a classroom, but in the real world password length is much better than complexity for security.
4. Any password can eventually be cracked: Theoretically this is true. Practically, it is definitely not - unless the Federal Government loans the hacker their impressive computing powers! Unless it is something vital like a nuclear installation, hackers will usually give up after a few minutes of effort. There is no need to get paranoid about no password being secure for the 'eventually' can take a lifetime!
5. Use ALT+ 'number' for the strongest possible password: For those that are unaware, here is something interesting. Holding down the 'ALT' key and typing any character's ASCII value on the numeric keypad creates a hitherto unavailable character. For example, the sequence ALT-020 creates 'ú'. But again, this is difficult for the creator to remember and it also involves holding down the 'ALT' key which hints anyone watching nearby.It is also more time-consuming. Better would be to increase the password by the same number of keystrokes! One trick that can however be used is ALT+ 0160 which creates a 'non-breaking' space which can fool a hacker.
6. Passwords cannot have spaces: Another absolute misnomer! Maybe it arose from the different forms which advise you not to leave any blank space between characters. From Windows 2000 onwards, 'space' is a legit character. Since space is used between words, it automatically encourages users to create a complex password with multiple words that is also easy to remember.
7. It is safer to store passwords in software utilities rather than writing it down: What guarantee is there that the software utility itself will not be cracked open? It would then be like locking all the rooms of a home and handing over the master key to the thief. Writing it down on paper is better because it would require the 'thief' to be physically present at the place where the paper is stored.Where it is critical, it would be a good practice to note the password on paper and store the same in a safe or locker.
8. Passwords must be changed regularly (once a month): This is one of the most irritating and self-defeating myths. Constant changing of passwords forces one to come up with passwords that are easy to remember. Multiple passwords can lead to the creation of a new password which is much weaker than the original.It would be advisable to have good password-creation measures and advice in place rather than the compulsory and regular changing of passwords.
9. Using Passfilt.dll is the best way to enforce strong passwords: Though it is a component to enforce 'complex' passwords, Passfilt.dll is likely to bug and irritate users who find their passwords getting rejected. Again, it would be a better idea to enthuse users into making longer passwords rather than complex ones.
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Read This So You Don't Get Hacked
Computer usage, and more specifically the internet, has become an integral part of our daily lives. We use it to connect to others, discover new information, handle monetary transactions, keep up to date on the latest media, and so much more. It is also no surprise that because we are so entwined with this technology that those who have less than noble actions are using this worldwide connection to perform dishonest acts.Hacking, spamming, and phishing are all ways in which people find their way into uncovering personal information about other people. By creating their own spyware, they grant themselves permission to access other people’s information. Thankfully, there are ways you can prevent your information from falling into the hands of the hackers.
Choose Your Password Carefully
Passwords are typically our number one choice of a defense tactic, which is why hackers try so hard to crack them. Unfortunately, people end up being less than creative when it comes to selecting theirs. When selecting your password, try not to use your name or the names of anyone close to you. Those are easiest for someone to guess. Also, don’t choose numbers or letters that form a predictable pattern. “QWERTY” and “1QAZ2WSX” are easy to guess. Instead, select a combination of numbers and letters (alternate capital and lowercase) so it becomes harder to guess. Frequently changing your password also enhances your safety.
Update Your Protection System
Keeping your firewall up to date is the first line of defense against letting in Trojan viruses, worms, spyware, and malaware. By constantly ensuring this protection is in place, you are taking precautions to ensure your computer is not compromised in any way. Another way to make sure your computer stays safe: clean out your cookies. While cookies themselves are not harmful, they do keep a record of your most visited sited and can store passwords and other identifying information on them.
If It Looks Suspicious – It Is
If someone posts something on your Facebook that seems out of character for them, don’t open it. Same goes for e-mails and other forms of communication. Also, be mindful of when and where a site asks for a change in your password or to write in your credit card number. If it seems suspicious and doesn’t sit well with you, chances are your gut is right. More than likely it’s someone fishing for your personal information.If you’re careful and cautious, you will find yourself protected and safe. If not, you’ll have a lot of explaining to do as to why your e-mail sent out an advertisement for male enhancement pills – or worse. Just follow your gut and be smart and you can prevent being hacked.
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