Safer Internet Day is another important day that reminds us to be cautious while engaging with people we don’t already know online. Scammers use all kinds of tactics to lure us to click that email or banner or SMS to launch their cyber-attack and cost us either our data or money or both. This Safer Internet Day, here are some simple tips that can help you stay safe online every day.
- Be aware before you share. Every little bit you give away about yourself makes it easier for a scammer to charm you, threaten you, or entice you into an online relationship you didn’t ask for in the first place.
- If in doubt, don’t give it out. If it feels like a scam, back yourself and assume that it is.
- No reply is a often good reply. Never feel compelled to reply out of politeness or completeness. It’s easier to stay out of a wheedler’s clutches if you don’t open the door for a reply-to-your-reply that might entice you into an ongoing conversation.
- Listen to friends and family. Don’t spurn the advice of people who already know you, especially when money is involved. Whether it’s a romance scammer who falsely claims to love you, or a newfound “business associate” who has fraudulently pitched you a “job” in their “company”.
