subject: Top 5 Security Threats For Active Online Social Networking Users [print this page] When you log on any social media website there are potential threats that can damage your system and steal important data. You need to be vigilant against these threats and be aware of the ways by which you can prevent these malicious actions. Let us learn about the top 5 security threats that active online social networking users face.
Virus and malware threats -Viruses that enter your system can wreak havoc. Often the most vicious attack that a user encounters is while surfing social websites. This is where they run the risk of malware entering their system. Once this enters the PC, the user faces a lot of issues ranging from slow PC performance to software issues and error messages. If these go unattended then it can even lead to a system crash.
Phishing attacks - It has always been the trend that the most popular websites are prone to become the target of hackers. The reason is simple. People often divulge their personal information even to strangers who they meet via the web without knowing their real identity. This becomes a threat to their own security when the information shared is misused for the purpose of committing crimes or tampering with financial information. A simple way to avoid this mess is by not answering e-mails or chat messages that come from unknown or suspicious sources. Even if these are coming from a known source you still need to be careful.
Scam emails - Often it happens that a user may get an email that claims to have come from the administrator of a website. This kind of emails, trick the user into believing that the password has been automatically reset due to some technical difficulties. Now you are asked to open the attachment to get the new password. This is a potential threat to your system as this attachment is designed to steal your password. The hacker will get to know the details of your account and tamper with the information. The easiest way to recognize these are the numerous sentence constructions, grammatical errors that are there in the content. In order to prevent your computer from getting infected, avoid responding to these scam emails. One more thing to remember is that a social networking website may send you an email for resetting the password but will never do so without prior intimation.
Selective Sharing of information - While chatting with a friend or a random acquaintance you often share personal information. This information can be misused by anyone. Divulging information to a random stranger is a potential threat to your own security. You should avoid sharing information to people randomly as this is the only way by which you can be secure. What kind of information you are sharing and with whom is extremely important and you need to be very specific about choosing people when it comes to information sharing.
Privacy settings - You need to be aware of security and privacy settings once you access a social network website. Websites like Facebook, Orkut comes powered with various security measures. If you are not aware of them, you need to read their online manual for the required security settings and opt for ways by which you can protect your online privacy. You will find an entire step by step tutorial for setting up these privacy related filters.
Security should have multi-levels and multi-layers so that it provides complete protection. After realizing the potential threats prevailing on social networking website the next step is to secure you data and PC from hackers. To know more about securing your PC and protecting your privacy online you need to get in touch with a premium computer support provider that offers online tech support.
by: Semeli Karen McPherson
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