Online Security: How to Prevent Scams, Fraud, and Theft

With changes in technology and software upgrades, there is an increase in the number of online scammers, fraudsters, and theft, which everybody should be aware of. Some do affect people in business, while the other affects their clients and anyone else who uses the internet.

There are unique ways in which you can prevent such things from happening. Some means are within the internet, while others need legal processes, maybe to recover what is stolen.

In this article, we will discuss some of the online security measures you can take to prevent such occurrences.

1. Keep your Financial Data Separate

It always gets recommended to carry out your financial needs and other business information on a separate computer other than the general use. You can set a single tablet or a laptop that you can entirely use to carry out financial processes and have others for carrying out general online duties to avoid scammers and phishing sites from accessing your accounts or financial data.

The computer, which will be for business needs, should have extra security and only get logged in when necessary. When there is damage or time to have it serviced or sold, ensure the computer hard drives

are formatted, and everything else gets erased. This process will ensure financial data and statements are not leaked to other sources, thus preventing theft and scammers from reaching your business data.

2. Conduct a GDPR Assessment

How well do you trust your security systems in your company or business? Of course, you can’t be so sure of them.

To ensure that they are up to the task and that every provision is working well, you need to conduct a General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) assessment.

According to https://fidusinfosec.com/penetration-testing/gdpr-assessment/, security experts, this assessment will look deeply at your security provisions, show you where everything is okay and alert you in areas that need improvement.

In doing so, you are in a state to strengthen weak areas, and you can improve the general security of your company or business data, thus minimizing online theft and frauds.

A GDPR Assessment is essential, especially now, when hackers are coming up with new ways of acquiring data from unsuspecting individuals and businesses.

A GDPR assessment also ensures your business is compliant with law regulations governing online security.

3. Have Secret Passwords

To an individual or any business venture, passwords to accounts, and different financial logins are usually secret. Maintain that. If you are using a shared computer, never leave your financial accounts logged.

Always logout and make sure only one trusted person has all the logins.

For better performance and improved security, be changing passwords occasionally to ensure they don’t get into the wrong hands.

Have strong passwords that combine numbers, alphabetical letters, and characters to ensure they aren’t easy to cram or guess.

In terms of network, be changing your network address and keep your SSID encrypted to ensure everything is secure. Do not leave any chances open for these fraudsters.

4. Always Block Phishing Emails

One technique that fraudsters use to access your bank account is sending you a clickbait in your email, which, when you click, captures most of your financial details.

When you receive such emails tempting you to change your password or login details, you should ignore, block, and delete them.

These are usually fraudsters who want to install malware to your device to capture your bank and other financial details.

Ensure all types of email addresses get configured so that these suspicious emails get into the spam folder or get blocked before getting into your mailbox.

By doing so, you will be keeping off malicious activities into your online accounts, and you will be preventing your business from fraudsters.

5. Have your Computer Protected

You can do all of the above and still have your information accessed by fraudsters through other online phishing methods.

How do you protect such from happening? While cyber-attack is on the rise, you can easily control it by having a reliable antivirus protecting your computer.

This antivirus should always get updated and, if possible, ensure it’s of the latest version. A good antivirus will protect your computer against malware and will block any virus from accessing your files.

It will also prevent installing suspicious software into your computer, spying what you do with your accounts.

The above tips will help you prevent theft, scammers, and fraudsters from accessing your online accounts. Always ensure you get updated tips once in a while since these scammers are still up in their game.

You can also get assistance from experts who will help you in getting better and advanced ways of protecting your financial accounts.