Seven Tips to Avoid Online Fraud and More

Online Fraud – Every year, millions of consumers are dead of cybercrime. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, in 2015, consumers lost more than $1 billion due to web-based scams. So in recognition of June’s Internet Safety Month, here are seven tips to help consumers protect themselves against online fraud.

“The Internet has become one of the greatest popular tools for committing online fraud, and criminals are becoming more sophisticated with their hacking techniques,” said Kathy Koestner, vice president of information security.

“Therefore, it is essential that consumers only use secure and reliable wireless networks when conducting financial transactions and understand that fraudsters can use any personal information shared to commit online fraud.”

1. Keep your computers and mobile plans up to date. The latest security software, web browser, and working system are your best defences against viruses, malware, and other online threats. Enable automatic updates to receive the latest patches as they become available.

2. Set strong passwords. A solid password is at least eight characters long and includes a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters.

3. Beware of phishing scams. Phishing cons use fake emails and websites to fake users into divulging their private accounts or login information. Don’t click on links or open attachments or pop-ups from sources you don’t know.

4. Keep personal information private. Hackers can use social media profiles to discover your passwords and answer those security questions in password reset tools. Lock your privacy settings and avoid posting information like birthdays, addresses, mother’s maiden name, etc. Beware of connection requests from people you don’t know.

5. Secure your Internet connection. Always protect your wireless home network with a password. In addition, when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks, be careful about what information you send there.

6. Shop safely. Earlier shopping online, make sure the website uses secure technology. For example, when you’re at the checkout screen, check that the web address starts with HTTP. Also, check if a small closed padlock symbol appears on the page.

7. Read the privacy policies of the site. Although long and complex, the privacy policies tell you how the site protects the personal information it collects. Consider doing business elsewhere if you don’t see or appreciate a site’s privacy policy.

How to protect yourself from Internet scams?

Internet users can protect themselves from being caught on a phishing line by staying alert to the standard Internet online fraud types. It is essential to never send money to anyone you know on the Internet, never share personal or financial information with people who are not legitimate or trustworthy, and never click on hypertext links or attachments in emails or instant messages. Once attacked, Internet users should report fraudulent online activity and phishing emails to the authorities.

Credit card fraud can also prevent by closely monitoring bank accounts, setting up notifications about credit card activity, signing up for credit monitoring, and using consumer protection services. If users are victims of credit card fraud, they should report it to the relevant legal authorities and credit bureaus.

How Can Fortinet Help?

Fortinet protects users and organizations from Internet fraud with solutions that help stop attack vectors like ransomware and phishing.

Fortinet FortiMail offers powerful anti-spam and anti-malware, advanced techniques. Such as content disassembly and reconstruction, phishing detection, outbreak protection, and sandbox analysis. In addition, its web filtering solution enhances the web filtering capabilities of FortiGate Next-Generation Firewalls (NGFW). Also by classifying billions of websites into broader categories that users can allow or block.

Also Read: How to Safely Access the Dark and Deep Web? And it’s Guides.