Did you know that cybersecurity attacks are evolving and are capable of causing twice the harm? Well, now you do. Statistics show that more than 62% of businesses were victims of phishing and social engineering attacks. Furthermore, 4.1 billion records were exposed online in the start of the year 2019.
With that out of the way, there’s a high probability that you are at risk too. These aren’t all the techniques that you should be aware about. Cybersecurity is a vast field and so are these attacks. The normal Internet isn’t protected at all which is why you should take responsibility of keeping yourself secure online.
How to keep your online presence safe should be your next question. Well, we’ve quite the solution available for you. Not only is it easy to understand, it’s also achievable by any individual without breaking the bank.
It is essential to know what techniques are there that can provide you the relevant security and privacy. We’ve gone through the hassle of testing out different products that will definitely improve your browsing experience and keep you safe online.
Importance of online security
It is the most asked question of them all. Do I really need online security? Well, to be honest, you do need online security for safe and anonymous presence online. You might hear some people say oh I am in a herd of millions of users why will be the only targeted one?
There are many attacks that when executed affect more than a single system. For instance, the Ransomware attack if launched properly, can be used to disrupt millions of computers at the same time.
This has already happened before, so if you’re thinking that just because you’re in a herd of more than million Internet users you do not face such threats, then you’re wrong.
Furthermore, there are other threats that exist on the Internet. It’s just not malware or hackers who really want to get a hold of your data, government is also notorious in this case. All these threats should be enough to convince you that you indeed need online protection.
Let’s go through the online privacy threats then we’ll go through the solutions available to protect ourselves from them.
1) Malware
Malware, also known as malicious software is a piece of code that can replicate, delete, steal and or encrypt your data once it’s in the memory. It can monitor computer activity without any authorization from the user which makes it a nuisance.
Trojans and viruses are a type of malware capable of wreaking havoc on the victim’s computers. There have been previous cases where the malware encrypted every file currently on the computer and in return asked for money to revert the changes back to normal.
Use an Antivirus
An Antivirus is a piece of dedicated software developed specifically to counter such threats on the Internet. The antivirus software uses signature detection methods to identify files as malware. You do not have to worry about the Antivirus turning old since it uses neural networks to continue and evolve when new threats show up.
There are different types of malware that an antivirus takes care of. Some of them include the following:
- Ransomware
- Spyware
- Trojans
- Adware
All of them are equally responsible to ruin your Internet experience in their own manner. Not only that some antiviruses comes with browser extensions that can help you from visiting insecure websites. It’s all in all a good solution if you’re looking to keep your computer safe from threats that can ruin your data.
2) Phishing
Phishing is the process of illegally gaining access to a users’ log-in credentials by tricking the user into believing that he’s logging in on the real website. To put that in layman’s terms, the hacker makes a ditto-copy of an already established brand, it can be a bank or any social media website. There’s no difference b/w the either two as if they’re a clone.
Which indeed they are. Except of one small change, the data that you enter on the website is not sent to the official server of the relevant company. Instead, it is sent towards the direction of the hacker. The credentials are then harvested to use on the Internet or in some-cases sold online.
Upgrading browser security
Phishing is the most successful attacks to ever exist online. It is important to learn how to counter against them. Recommended way would be to upgrade to a browser that is currently more secure and comes up with privacy extensions. Specifically, the HTTPs Everywhere extension.
Though things have changed drastically, phishing websites can easily have HTTPs available for their domain. Which is why it is important to have a strong presence of mind on the Internet. Hackers usually use the email medium to send in the links to major population. The whole thing can be mitigated by using your brain and not click on random links give away your credentials.
Always look at the domain-name before entering your log-in credentials. Cross-check it with the official website. If it does exist you’re good to go, if not you’re being baited, leave right away!
3) CryptoJacking
Here’s one of the online threat that have recently surfaced. There are not many people who are aware of what it is and how it works. Cryptojacking is the process of stealing a chunk of processing power to mine cryptocurrency.
The process usually starts when a JavaScript exploit is executed in the browser. It usually happens on insecure websites. Sometimes, it can be in the form of an email. If you don’t have the relevant countermeasures in place your resources will be in use by someone else.
Browser security extension
To counter the following threat you have the choice of either switching to a secure browser or integrate your browser with secure browser extensions. Having a secure browser will not only keep your online presence anonymous but also come packaged with built-in security features.
However, it can be hassle for most people which is why you should consider installing security extensions for your browsers. These extensions can easily detect and stop the malicious scripts from executing in the first place keeping you safe online!
4) Man In The Middle Attack
Unlike many other attacks, this isn’t a common one. It isn’t a sophisticated attack to execute either. MITM attack uses a gateway to route data away from the designated site to the hacker’s website or server.
There are two ways by which this attack can be executed. One requires the use of a public network the other requires a malicious software routing the traffic towards the hacker. Either way there’s a high possibility of you losing your credentials through the attack.
Use anonymous browsers
There are a lot of anonymous browsers available on the Internet. The browsers that can keep your online identity safe and hidden are called anonymous browsers. Tor is one of the most popular anonymous browser in the market.
The browser routes your Internet connection through different servers located globally. In this way it is hard to pin-down your accurate location. However, it’s not encrypted so the traffic can still be intercepted by third-party organizations or individuals.
5) Mass Surveillance
Mass surveillance is one of the major threats to have ever existed on the Internet. In simple words, Organizations such as the intelligence services of different countries are gathering information by spying on a widely populated area.
It takes in every bit of information you share on the Internet and through your phone offline. Tons and Tons of data is gathered everyday, to apparently prevent terrorist attacks. In my opinion, it’s just a breach of privacy and we should know how to get rid of it.
Use a VPN
There’s no stressing enough, how much a VPN can help in securing your online presence. There are countless features that a VPN offers that makes it the best all-in-one solution for all the problems stated above.
Apart from high-end encryption, it provides maximum online privacy. Algorithms encrypt the traffic and send it to the VPN’s DNS server. As a result, it keeps it safe and secure. If you’re looking for an all-in-one security solution, VPN should be your choice.
Conclusion
Nobody is a hundred percent secure from online threats these days. If you think you’re secure, it just means that you’re just waiting for a disaster to happen. Furthermore, It is important to keep track of all the new and existing threats on the Internet.
As a result, You’ll be able to counter these threats quite easily. Aforementioned solutions can easily be implemented and are easy to setup. However, if you want my opinion, I’d go for a powerful antivirus paired with a VPN. Antivirus to provide my computer, VPN to protect my online privacy.