Opinions-Advice-Work At Home Ideas & Some Totally Free Stuff

Totally Free Stuff-Protecting Yourself Online

The internet has opened up a whole new world in terms of research, banking, and purchasing items and of course, finding rebates and free stuff to try.  The downside to this convenience is the potential threat to your personal information.  Just because the internet is a vast, faceless entity does not mean that you can easily maintain your anonymity.  However, by keeping up with a few smart computer tips, you can still find that free stuff to your heart’s content and still protect your personal information.

Personal Information is Sacred

One of the first things you want to do, especially if you have a cable, DSL and/or WiFi internet connection to your home is ensure that you have the appropriate software to block any outside sources from “stealing” your connection.  By not protecting yourself in this way, this allows anyone to hijack your personal information quite easily.

When you must enter personal information such as account numbers, social security numbers, addresses and more, always check the owner of the website through WHOIS to determine legitimacy and read their privacy policy to ensure that your information is protected.  In addition, any time you have to enter sensitive information, check the internet address bar for the “https” portion as this indicates special encryption by the company to protect your information from hackers.

Never enter personal information into popup windows or answer emails that threaten to close an account or are asking you to update information.  This is known as phishing and is a way for criminals to steal your information.  A company you deal with will either call you or send a letter in the mail should there be a legitimate problem.

Protect your Computer from Viruses and Spyware

On your quest for free stuff, be sure to protect your computer from pop-up ads, adware, spyware and viruses that could be lying in wait for you to visit a certain website.  While many websites that offer free things may be perfectly legitimate, they still may have ads and pop-ups that can slow down your computer and waste valuable resources.  At the worst, you may happen upon a website with spyware embedded in certain hyperlinks just waiting for you to click on.

Most computers these days come with standard firewalls to protect outside intruders and may even come with virus and spyware software.  If so, take advantage of these things and be sure to always check for software updates to that you have the most up to date protection for your computer.  If you don’t have the cash to purchase software to protect your computer, there are some great free software programs you can download.  Your best bet is to visit a few technical forums to get a good idea of the programs that are highly regarded and tested in advance.

The bottom line when searching out those free online goodies is using common sense.  Hold your personal information close to the vest until you are absolutely sure of a website’s legitimacy.  In addition, protect your computer with firewall, virus and spyware software so that it will continue to serve you well for several years to come.

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