How to prevent getting hacked

In my previous post I told you how people get hacked. That was just a very brief description and listed only a few methods. But I mentioned only those through which many of my contacts have lost their accounts. So now in this post I am going to tell you simple precautions and steps you can take to prevent your account from getting hacked.

1- Always disregard Spam mails

If you get an email and you know you have not subscribed for it or you have not signed up for any offers mentioned in the email, then don’t click on any links. If you keep getting unwanted mails from a website or group then look for some unsubscribe information in the mails if there’s no such info then block the email address.

2- Never give out your login details

Often when some one sends out a mail just to get people’s login details then there is bound to be an outside link in it. And when you click on the link you’ll be taken to a look-alike webiste (example replica of hotmail login page). NEVER submit your login details at any of such sites.

3- Keep your eyes open

When ever you are on a site you don’t visit regularly then always make a note of its url on the address bar. It’s going to serve two purposes. For one you’ll remember the address if you need to visit again and second if a website is posing to be another site (like posing to be just like a hotmail login page) then the url would definitely be different and you’ll know you are on a fake site.

4- Never click on links blindly

Some times the entire address of the link is not visible and only a text is shown with embedded address. If you hover or point your mouse pointer on it then the webaddress will shown be either as a balloon or at the bottom of your browser.

5- Never download attachments from unknown addresses

If you’ve been sent an email with some attachment in it then always double check the email address from where it is sent and also the type of attachment (look for the extension of the attachment like attachment.exe, here exe is the extension). As a general rule do not download attachments if you are not expecting an email with one.

6- Always scan shared files

If some one has sent you a file through instant messaging program then always scan it before opening or executing it. Also do not accept files from unknown contacts

7- Don’t click on suspicious links

If  in a conversation window you are sent some web-link then first confirm with the sender whether he has sent any such link or not because many adwares and spywares append themselves to popular chatting platforms and then whenever a new conversation window is opened they send out links automatically.

8- Download only from trusted websites

Usually I download all the programs I use from either the program’s official website or from downloads.com and you are advised to do the same thats is always use sites which are known to host no adware or spyware like

www.downloads.com

www.majorgeeks.com

www.tucows.com

9- Scan PC regularly

Always have an antivirus program installed on your computer. Do periodic scan of your computer to eliminate any malicious programs that mighthave gained access to your system and keep your antivirus program up-to-date!

10- Precaution is better than cure.

There is no denying that internet is a great source of entertainment but you always have to be very careful of what you do and where you go always stay alert and you’ll do fine.

Tags: adware, antivirus program, fast, faster, spyware, windows, xp