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Stay Safe on the Internet: 5 Tips for avoiding online threats

How do you stay safe on the internet? It’s a question that’s crossed most people’s minds at one point or another, whether it’s out of curiosity or concern over potential threats to their personal information or bank accounts. Luckily, the internet isn’t all bad news; in fact, most people use it regularly without ever having an issue with privacy or identity theft. If you’re concerned about your online safety and want to learn how to stay safe on the internet, consider these five tips to keep yourself protected from hackers and phishing scams.

By Aritra DuttaPublished 3 years ago 4 min read
Image Credit- Pexels

1) Keep your apps up-to-date

The first way to stay safe is to have all of your software up-to-date. Keeping your apps updated helps you get security patches, bug fixes, and other enhancements that can make a huge difference in protecting your devices from malicious software. Staying up-to-date also ensures that you have new features when they're released. Sometimes developers change how their app works or what information it collects and if you don't update, you may be left with an outdated version that could put your personal information at risk.

It's important to understand that being connected to Wi-Fi doesn't always mean that you are connected securely. Hackers often use public networks to steal people's private information. For this reason, it's best not to do anything sensitive over public Wi-Fi such as banking or shopping. To stay safe while browsing the internet, you should only connect through a VPN (a virtual private network). Lastly, check who has access to your account by reviewing your privacy settings regularly.

Also, at the same time, it becomes important that you dont visit adult sites while being on public wifi because they are the prime target of hackers. See here how to block adult sites on android and PCs.

2) Use unique passwords for different accounts

It is a good idea to have different passwords for different accounts that you use so you don't forget any of them. You can make them hard to remember by mixing up numbers, letters, and symbols. Another way to stay safe is to avoid clicking links in emails, clicking on attachments in emails without scanning them first, or visiting suspicious sites. It's also important to turn off your computer when not using it. Stay safe from viruses by installing antivirus software on your device, updating that software regularly, and not opening emails from unknown senders.

When making payments online be sure to always use secure websites with https:// at the beginning of their address. Finally, if you want extra protection while browsing the internet using Tor Browser which will help anonymize your web browsing experience so others can't track what you're doing online

3) Use two-factor authentication

The simplest and most common way to stay safe on the internet is to use two-factor authentication. In this type of security measure, you need something in addition to your password to log in. Often this will be a code sent through text message or an app that generates unique codes. This makes it very difficult for someone else who finds out your password to also get into your account, as they don't have this second factor with them.

They are more secure because they require two pieces of information instead of just one. If you're using a public computer, make sure you log out when you're done so no one can access your account if the computer was left unlocked.

Sometimes sites which claim to give you an Instagram profile picture of someone for free need you to log in. Dont fall for that trap it might give you the picture but under the hood might be a phishing link to get your credentials and use them for malicious purposes. Instead, follow this approach to view full-size Instagram profile pictures.

4) Use strong security questions

There are many ways to stay safe on the internet. One is to have strong security questions, like what is your favourite sport? You may also want to consider two-factor authentication, which requires you to input a password and a code sent by email or text message.

You may also want to use an ad blocker as some ads host malware that can infect your computer when clicked. Finally, be sure not to click any links in unsolicited emails or texts and use discretion when talking about personal information online. All of these tips will help keep you safe while surfing the web.

5) Install anti-virus software

A few ways of staying safe on the internet is to use anti-virus software such as McAfee. All browsers have plugins like this preinstalled, but you can download it if you are using an alternate browser.

You can also make sure your operating system is updated with new updates to minimize vulnerabilities or uninstall apps and programs that you don't need. It's important to stay safe on the internet because there are many people who will want to do harm to you if they find out personal information about you.

Last words about Staying Safe on the Internet

There are many ways to stay safe on your computer, but the above are five basic tips to get you started. Staying safe is important not only because of identity theft and phishing scams, but also because hackers have been found to spy on people via webcams, take over wireless connections in coffee shops, and send pornographic pop-up ads.

In conclusion, staying safe while browsing online has never been more important. Keep these tips in mind and make a conscious effort to put them into practice!

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