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Online security is a trending topic in many online columns these days. This is due to the nefarious attempts of hackers to cause havoc in the lives of ordinary people. However, the users themselves are to blame in a great part for this because people have little or no awareness about the threats to their online security, let alone about solutions to them.
The numerous cases of online identity theft and exposure circulating in the news columns and blogs continue to raise their voices, but people are still not doing enough.
Protecting Online Security
Use Antivirus/Anti-Malware
The first line of defence was and still is your antivirus. Ensuring that you have the latest version of a good antivirus is an important step in being secure while browsing the internet.
Since the developers frequently release updates pertaining to new malware and viruses, keeping your antivirus or antimalware up to date is a really important step in being secure online.
Password Strength
Password strength is a basic requirement for online security. Using strong passwords automatically makes it difficult for any malicious user to gain access to your accounts and the information within.
VPN
Eavesdroppers and identity trackers use your IP address to find your location and thereby your identity. So it is always a safe bet to hide your IP from such snoopers. Using a VPN can does so without requiring you to do any of the technical stuff.
VPNs connect you to the internet using one of their servers which acts as a mediator and all the traffic between your system and the internet is encrypted in this connection. This means nobody can monitor your internet activity and nobody can find your location or identity since your true IP address will be hidden.
The IP address visible to trackers will be that of VPN server through which you are connected to the internet. Since VPN providers do not maintain activity logs, they provide a fool-proof strategy to protect your online security.
Shop at Secure Sites
The easiest way for identity thieves to gain access to your sensitive information and/or steal your identity is to eavesdrop on an online connection on shopping websites. Attackers eavesdrop on the connection and exploit vulnerabilities in it to pretend to be the system you wish to interact with. You are tricked into providing your bank details and your details are recorded by the masquerading agent.
Therefore, you should always make sure that you shop at secure websites. Secure websites have an “https” in the URL. The ‘s’ means that a secure protocol is being used for the connection, which means all the information you share on the website is encrypted properly and that attackers cannot breach it easily.
Conclusion
The need to protect online security is quite evident as the number of online attacks has been increasing quite steadily and alarmingly. The tools that are at the disposal of hackers these days do not make the job of evading them any easier, but being aware is the first step in protecting your online security, and we hope this article helped you out with that.
