This applies to the UK as well as the US, however recent surveys which showed that people in the UK were prepared to give up their password for chocolate. Anyway, the rules are:
- If it seems to be too good to be true, it probably is
- You have not :
- won the lottery
- failed a bank security test
- had someone try to hack your account and you need to re-enter them
- had bad feedback on a site you have never heard of, or without your full name in the e-mail
- Got someone at a bank in another country wanting to give you some money
- If the mail is not sent to you and only you, then it is very, very, very unlikely to be real
- If the phishing scanner says it is a bad site, trust it unless you know that the address is the address bar is real, and then still don't enter personal information
- Even if they don't want your mail, handing over your personal details is telling them what they need to know in the real world.
- If you are asked to disable your system security, don't!
Web scams trick one in five US surfers - vnunet.com
Nearly one in five US adult surfers has been a victim of at least one internet scam, according a recent survey commissioned by Microsoft.
Some 81 per cent of these victims admitted that they did something to compromise their own security, such as opening an e-mail message that appeared to be from a legitimate person or company.
Security experts at Microsoft said that the biggest threats facing consumers online this year are criminals posing as trusted third parties to extract personal information.
"Microsoft has witnessed a shift in criminal behaviour in the past year," said Adrienne Hall, senior director of communications and marketing at Microsoft.
"The internet has changed the way we live, but many of the experiences that make the internet so valuable in our daily lives also require us to share information about ourselves that can present certain risks."
Despite increasing media exposure and user education about identity theft and online fraud, many people are still not getting the message.
"Most surprising was the fact that more than half of those surveyed admitted that they had little or no knowledge of current online threats and scams. Unfortunately, this is why people continue to fall victim to these crimes," added Hall.
The survey also found that men claim to be more informed about online fraud. Around 47 per cent of men indicated that they are 'knowledgeable' or 'very knowledgeable' about online scams, compared with only 36 per cent of women.
However, it seems that men are more likely than women to be victims of online crime. Some 69 per cent of women claimed that they had never been a victim of an internet scam, compared with 63 per cent of men.
Hall explained that, although strong and simple-to-use security tools are important, user education is paramount in helping to prevent online fraudsters from successfully launching these scams.
"As our survey illustrated, people need to be constantly updated to the threats that exist and how to avoid them," she said.
"Security threats are an industry-wide issue, and it is important that the industry works together to stay ahead of criminals and help inform and protect customers."
ttfn
David
Technorati Tags:
Security,
Phishing
Posted
Wed, Aug 29 2007 12:52 AM
by
David Overton