PROTECTING YOUR PRIVACY ON
THE INTERNET
Internet Privacy
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The amount of information, if you haven’t already noticed, that is available on the Internet is simply unbelievable. The things you can find out about are really quite impressive. Any subject, there is a website, from information used in business or education to pleasure activities including travel or entertainment. You can even make purchases, do your banking online and even find old friends.
It is a great resource of information, practically everything at your finger tips, but do you really want everything at your finger tips? Here at PARALEGALXPRESS™ we recommend that you keep the following tips in mind to reduce the amount of your own personal information being made accessible over the Internet.
PASSWORDS
Only select passwords which are different from
ones you use in real life. Your ATM cards, banking information,
etc., anything that requires a personal code outside of the
Internet, do not use on the Internet!
Make Passwords non-words. This means create
passwords which cannot be found in the dictionary. By adding
numbers to a word makes it harder to be discovered.
Don’t ever give out your
password!!!!! This one
is rather obvious.
Change your passwords
often. Many programs
give you an option at specific intervals to do this, it is
recommended that you take advantage of this opportunity.
Do not send personal data over unsecured e-mail
accounts. Unless you know that the e-mail system you and your
recipient are using are considered secure communication (such as
bank transactions), do not put credit card numbers, social security
or home phone numbers or any other personal data on the message.
Remember that many people have access to your
e-mail account. There is always a possibility that someone other
than the intended recipient, may be reading your e-mail (again
unless the system is secure).
When you receive "spam" (junk mail
that came unsolicited), do not respond to their advertisements.
It’s best to just delete it.
If you receive something that you weren’t
expecting or if it looks strange, delete it. Chances are it won’t
be missed.
JUST STAY ALERT
Before sending credit card information over the
Internet, make sure the website is reputable. If it has a phone
number or you heard of the company, then it is probably okay. But
stay alert.
Watch your
cookies. These are little bits of
data that your computer stores which reflect the websites you have
visited in the past. People who collect your cookies can use them
to find out your interests and track your travels through the web.
Many computers give you an option to turn them off or warn you
when they are being collected.
Whenever using the Internet, always try to keep these tips in mind. It is up to you to decide what information is out there about you, you should have the control of what personal data you want revealed and who should have access to it.