Module 7: The Importance of Staying Safe Online
Your identity is one of your greatest assets!
As you consider the prospects of working online, please put safety and security right at the top of your priority list.
Serious harm has happened to unsuspecting victims who were preyed upon by unscrupulous people in the online space.
In the “real” world, you can lock your valuables in a heavy-duty, metal safe with titanium locks and keys or combination codes that even you have a hard time remembering. In the “virtual” internet world, the digital personal information you share can be stolen and be used against you many times without your knowledge.
Your “valuables” include personal information like your full name, your family members’ identities, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, user logon identities and codes, passwords, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, social security and governmental ID numbers, financial data.
Identity theft is the No. 1 Crime in the US… and the fastest growing crime in the US.
Victims average about $6,400 in losses before they even knew about the theft, and 41% of those who did not have ID theft protection in place are still dealing with the issue more than two years after discovering it!
An ominous fact: Every 3 seconds, someone’s identity is stolen!
This means thousands of people, every day, are feeling the frustration of the exposure of their private information being used and abused in the hands of someone else… not just a robber in the neighborhood. A den of thieves in Nigeria!
Becoming a victim of identity theft is a frightening, frustrating experience. It can happen to anyone at any time. Every day you work to build an online business, you expose your information to fraud, theft, abuse, and irreparable damage. Please take the necessary precautions for your future online business. You’ll thank me and thank yourself if you do!
Online marketers need to implement identity protection even more carefully than the average online person. Why? Because we are engaged in practices which make us even more susceptible!
What practices? Should I stop practicing?
No, no, no! These practices are essential for marketing your business. Just beware. Be aware. I think my grandmother said this, and she never heard of the internet: “A pinch of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
4 Risky Practices Online Marketers do:
1. Online marketers visit many marketing sites.
When your begin working online, you could be looking for free advertising. In this case you’ll probably visit “Free Marketing Sites.”I’m all for free marketing, but it has inherent risks.
Some sites may be dangerous because they phish for your personal information or may infect your computer with “malware” (short for malicious software) – viruses, worms, spyware, Trojan horses, ransomware, adware, or scareware. Sound scary? They are. Look up the definitions tonight for your bedtime reading. Leave the light on.
As another old proverb says, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.” Your free advertising may not cost money, but it may cost you an inordinate amount of time. You visit many sites, many times. You receive tons of email and earn credits reading those emails or visiting those sites.
- Online marketers build trust and share personally online.
You want your prospects to be able to contact you. You give out your email, Skype, hangout, or other information so people can reach you, and trust you. You share your social media contacts with prospects so they see you’re a real person who is engaged in a real online business. All this is necessary, but unfortunately… hazardous!
- Online marketers send and receive payments on the internet.
Your transactions may be with businesses not yet verified. You buy marketing tools or send money to one of your affiliates. You might use your credit card to buy traffic to your website and this service turns out to be unreliable and steals your card info!
- Online marketers are uniquely vulnerable to fraud.
For the same reason you put yourself out there to build trust, you’re also at risk to those who would use your openness, honesty, and trust against you. Caution is needed when you purchase products from unsecure websites, unknown marketers, and unreliable sources.
Let’s talk about PASSWORDS!
One of the easiest ways to create a barrier between a successful information hacker and a failed hacker is to create passwords that discourage them from their hard-core, brute-force attacks to steal your goodies.
Good passwords can be two-edged swords, and it’s impossible to have only one password, or perfect passwords for every situation. You want passwords that are crack-proof, simple to remember, and if you forget them, simple to find. Many folks end up with dozens of passwords scattered over the internet and have a hard time recalling where each password goes.
In “5 Steps to a Good Password,” Paul Gil lists the qualities your password should have:
“The objective is to create a password with three qualities:
- Is neither a proper noun nor a word in the dictionary.
- Is complex enough that it resists repetition attacks.
- Is intuitive enough that you can still remember it.”
Finding the balance between these three can be frustrating yet quite rewarding when you have succeeded. That feeling you’ve done your best to secure your valuable identity and information is worth the peace of mind and worry-free sleep!
The best time to implement security protocols is now… when you first start to work online. To wait is to expose your efforts, resources, programs, and campaigns to risk and potentially have them undermined, compromised or destroyed.
A practical Application for protecting your Credit Card data, Passports, and Debit Cards
A way to protect your credit card, passport, and debit card data is with RFID protection sleeves. Just slip your cards and other RFID-embedded security items into one of these plastic protective sleeves or a leather RFID blocking wallet.
Why we need RFID identity theft protection sleeves?
Today, identity theft is at your doorstep – freely people access confidential info, while government expansion on the use of RIFD chips to passports, passport cards, traditional debit cards, state id cards creates more opportunity for theft. New RFID tech can scan chips from 15 feet away in a container. It’s not only necessary, but essential to protect yourself from your identity being hijacked, credit score being trashed, and worse things we’re better off not imagining.
How do RFID blocking sleeves work?
This sleeves equipped with advanced RFID SECURE Technology, a unique metal composite, engineered specifically to block 13.56 MHz or higher RFID signals and protect the valuable information stored on RFID chips from unauthorized scans and block the ability to scan the credit card number, license and passport. You should always have a protective sleeve covering them to avoid identity theft, especially in public transportation.
The good news? There are steps you can take to insure your digital identity and details are protected.
Please take the time to watch the following short, six-minute video.
Seven quick tips to help you choose your passwords
1. Your password should be at least eight letters long. Include upper and lower case letters, numbers and/or special symbols or characters mixed up in the password. And… The longer your password, the harder it is to crack ‘n‘ hack.
2. Make your password memorable by using a non-recognizable word known only to you and have meaning to you. For example, you love Mexican food and when when you serve it to guests, you say, “Mi casa, su casa.” (My home is your home.) Take the first letters of every word – MCSC – and add some meaningful words, numbers or characters like this: mcsc&tacos4me or McSc14tacos1time.
3. Never use your birthdate, anniversary, family members’ names, street names, pet names, or other high profile subject or phrase. Stay away from using any personal information for your password.
4. Be careful how many times you use the same password. If a hacker cracks one password, they may have access to numerous secure locations.
A work-around the “same” password idea is to choose the same base password, but alter is slightly for each location. If your password is “poppaloppa465” for general use, specialize it for different sites by taking the first letters of the new location and adding them to the frontend and backend of your password. For example: “Amapoppaloppa465zon” for a new account with Amazon, “Homepoppaloppa465Base” for the HomeBase DIY, or “FHRpoppaloppa465” for “Family Home Restaurant.”
5. Instead of using a word with letters and numbers, use a pass-phrase like, “momlikespb&cheese,” “bballrulesall,” or “cudchewingcow.” Add numbers or characters to increase difficulty and confuse the hackers.
6. Change your password from time to time, and make the change significant, the opposite, definitely different from your original password. Some experts strongly recommend changing them every 30-60 days and not to reuse a previous password for at least one year.
7. Make your password more secure by replacing letters with symbols and characters. (This tip comes from another article by Paul Gil: “Examples of Weak and Strong Passwords.”) For example, “ilovemypiano” can be upgraded to “!LoveMyPiano”, or even better, “ILov3MyPianO.” Of if you really want to be obscure, use !@#&$*%0!!^!! so people will run away because they think you’re swearing at them.
The following video was made a few years ago, but it still has great information and ideas to help you improve the security and digital moat around your personal information.