With the Christmas season nearly upon us, there’s a good chance that you’ll be going away for at least a couple of days. And whether its visiting friends and family nearby, or heading off on holiday to another country, you’ll probably still be connected to the internet in some way.
To help make sure that the end of your 2011 is happy and secure here are five simple online holiday safety tips from TalkTalk and F-Secure, the security experts behind our Super Safe Boost.
1. ‘Tis the season to change your passwords
Now is the time change the passwords of you most important accounts, especially if you haven’t yet in 2011. F-Secure’s Chief Research Officer Mikko Hypponen says, “Focus your password efforts to services that actually matter to you. Lousy passwords are not a sin on a site you don’t really care about.” Here’s a system from F-Secure which can help you to create and remember strong passwords.
2. Plan ahead but don’t post ahead
Wait till you get home to post the details of your travels on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. If you do want to let a group of people know where you’re going, consider email, and if you must use Facebook, make sure you’ve got your privacy settings sorted. The general rule is, “Don’t tell anyone online that you’re going out of town who wouldn’t in real life.” The best time to share your photos and memories with your online social circles is after you’ve got back.
3. Take the geo-tagging data off your images
Every few months there is a major news story about how thousands of people are sharing their location unintentionally via the pictures that they take on their mobile devices. Here’s how to turn off geo-tagging on your phone.
4. Shop smart and monitor your credit cards
Make sure you’re on a secure “https” site when you make any online financial transaction. Only buy from companies that you trust and search on their sites rather through search engines, if possible. If you’re paying with a card online, use the same card for all your transactions and keep an eye on the account at least weekly for anything suspicious.
5. Make sure your protection is up to date
Despite most of us being aware of some of the risks associated with the internet, there’s a surprising number of people who don’t have proper security set up. To help, TalkTalk recently launched HomeSafe, a free network level security service, which alerts you if they are about to visit a website that’s infected with malware. We’re the only UK ISP to offer network level security and because its built into the broadband network itself, HomeSafe protects every computer and device that’s using the home internet connection. In addition to HomeSafe, our Super Safe Boost – which is powered by F-Secure – provides protection against security threats while shopping, banking or using social media sites, viruses and will remove existing infections, whether you are connected in the home or out and about.
For lots more safety tips and advice visit www.talktalk.co.uk/security
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