Phishing is when an individual or a group of people pose as a legitimate institution and try to get private information from a target that’s unaware of the scam. This includes social security numbers, passwords, addresses, credit card details, etc. Phishing can result in identity theft which is also mentioned on this page. There are many different ways that you can notice phishing. One example is receiving emails from people or companies you’ve never heard about that send different attachments and hyperlinks that can steal your information. Phishing is also very common when you receive an unordinary email from someone you know who’s asking for a strange favor. You can double check the message by checking if the email matches the sender’s actual email address. Another example is when you receive messages or ads on your device that claim that “you’ve won a free iPhone!” or “you just won an $100 gift card!” These are fake almost all the time, and you can prevent phishing by not clicking on these ads or any links that go with them. Here are different ways that you can prevent phishing from happening to you. You can use spam blockers in order to prevent anyone you don't know contacting you. Make sure that you don't give any personal information to shifty websites that could steal that information. You can also change settings for your browser that alerts you when you've encountered a fraudulent website. Here are different ways that you can prevent phishing from happening to you: Phishing Link
|
|
|
Identity theft is defined as when someone uses another person's personal identifying information such as their name, identification number, or credit card number without permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. In the 21 century with our advanced technology, personal information can be stolen digitally. There are many different ways to notice identity theft. Common signs of digital identity theft include: unknown charges or purchases made to your accounts, the inability to access certain accounts, bank accounts with unknown withdrawals, or receiving emails requesting login information. If you notice these things then make a list of all your financial institutions where you do business, such as banks, credit card companies, phone/internet companies, and store accounts. Report to those companies that you are the victim of identity theft and ask each company to place a fraud alert on your account(s) and consider filing a police report if necessary. If you have experienced identity theft, you know how serious it can be or could have possibly become. Here are some effective ways to prevent digital identity theft recommended by USA GOV. You should not share personal information with anyone (such as your birthdate, bank account, SSN), use the security features available to you on your mobile phone, regularly updating and checking on firewall settings, creating complex account passwords, and reviewing bank statements regularly. Also, looking into investing in identity theft protection services might be a wise decision if you are able. Hopefully you learned something about identity theft that you didn’t know before! Here are some other helpful resources: More on Identity Theft!| Fight Identity Theft!| Identity Theft Facts
|
|