How to be internet safe

A few days back I got a link from my brother of a well-known shopping website. It was selling mobile phones for just 1000 bucks (which were originally worth around 30000-40000 bucks) on prior payment. After some research, I found out that the link was fake. This is just one scam I came across but according to a 2017 report, India lost over 18 billion US dollars owing to cybercrimes. Furthermore, India is reported to have the third-highest online bullying rate, after China and Singapore, among the 25 countries as surveyed by Microsoft Corporation. Don't you think that taking safety measures would be much better than finding about internet fraud the hard way. So here are some quick ways to avoid the hustle.

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1. Revealing personal records

Fraudsters are always on the lookout for your personal information. Avoid giving away your personal detail on a call, website, or any social media platform. However, if needed hand out filtered the information to potential employers only. Never auto-save your card details on shopping websites. Instead, you can take a screenshot of it, hide it, and refer to it whenever in need.

2. Reusing passwords

Do not use the same passwords for all websites. Also, avert the option of reusing your main e- mail password. Stay clear of phishing e-mails which tend to extract your passwords or bank details from just a click.

3. Oversharing on social media

Oversharing might lead to cyberbullying so ensure that you do not share too much of yourself.

Revealing your personal issues online will make you vulnerable to bullies so it's better to talk it out with your friends than post your problems on your timeline. If you come across any comments or posts which denigrate the people you should report or block it instantly.

4. Public Wi-Fi

You can install VPN apps which will protect you from the risks of using public Wi-Fi. Whenever

we use a public network it heightens the possibility of our sensitive data to be stolen.Turning on the VPN will protect your data.

5. Identify weak links

Usually, kids are the weakest links so you can make them aware of the risks. If you come across anyone new to social media or online shopping let them know about the do's and

don'ts.

These are a few ways that will keep you and your family at bay from the cybercrime. Most apps have a feature called 2FA i.e. two-factor authentication which you can use for your email, Instagram, or Facebook accounts. Always keep updating your apps and its privacy and security settings. So keep surfing and be safe.