Protect Yourself From Online Fraud In 2016

A New Year is the ideal time to make changes and ensure that you are in good condition for the challenges that will come your way in the weeks and months that lie ahead. We all have different things in life that we look to take care of and some people will have more pressing challenges and tasks than others. It is important that you think about what is important to you and if you have any weaknesses or failings in this area, you should be looking for ways to ensure that you improve your life.

For many people, security is an important issue, especially if you are the sort of person that spends a lot of time online. The emergence of the internet has given a lot of people new opportunities in life but there have also been a lot of new dangers that people have to contend with. This is why it makes sense to make a few resolutions regarding how safe you are online and what you do to protect yourself. The following steps will be of great benefit when it comes to staying safe online in 2016.

You should be unique

Everyone is unique and it may be of benefit to ensure that all of your passwords are unique. It is far too easy to come up with one password and then stick with that password for everything that you do. This means that you only need to remember one password for all of your online emails and banking, which sounds like a positive thing for most people.

However, if you only need to remember one password, a hacker or criminal will only need to know one password and then they will gain access to all of your accounts. If you have a number of different accounts, varying your passwords across these accounts will provide you with the best chance of staying safe.

You should change your password

While you may think that coming up with a unique password is the sensible approach, you shouldn’t feel as though setting it once is enough. You need to update your passwords on a regular basis and this is something that you should do for all of your accounts. It may seem like more trouble than it is worth but by maintaining the same password for a lengthy period of time, you are actually placing yourself at risk.

Get assistance

Remembering a lot of different passwords can be difficult but help is available. There are software packages and solutions on offer that will help you to set up a difficult password for every account that you use. Some of the sites that you should be looking out for include KeePass and Password Word Depot, as these will provide you will a variety of passwords for all of your key accounts.

Don’t choose an obvious option

If you have a child, a pet or a favourite football team, don’t make the password related to them. This is a sure-fire way of allowing people to guess your password. If you are on social media a lot and your password can be easily ascertained by looking at your hobbies, interests and past-times, it is time to change your password to something a little less obvious.

You need to ensure your computer is safe

Changing your passwords on a regular basis is a good step to ensuring you stay safe but you will also want to make sure that your PC is safe and doesn’t give much away to hackers or intruders. There is a great deal to be said for updating your anti-virus software and making sure that your computer is not at risk. When you do this, you’ll find that you minimise the chances of being hacked into.

You should look to keep your passwords to yourself, so make sure you tell no one what your passwords. You also want to be creative, so make sure you mix and match with upper and lower case. There is also a lot to be said for avoiding real words, so add your own personal spin on things. Hopefully you will not be a victim of fraud but if you are, knowing where to turn to for support and guidance will be of considerable benefit.

Andrew Reilly is a freelance writer with a focus on news stories and consumer interest articles. He has been writing professionally for 9 years but has been writing for as long as he can care to remember. When Andrew isn’t sat behind a laptop or researching a story, he will be found watching a gig or a game of football.