Protecting Your Online And Computer Privacy

This article deals with online and computer privacy issues as well as preventative steps that you can take to protect yourself.

While you are on the internet, your computer continuously transmits and receives data. If you have taken the necessary precautions, this should not be a problem.

If not, you could have your inbox flooded with a ton of unwanted spam messages, with some of these advertisers even calling you by name. You could also be the victim of identity theft where your personal information is used to perpetrate fraud, leaving you to sort out the mess.

So, how does this happen? Some free downloads on the internet contain advertising parasites commonly known as spyware or adware. When the application is installed, it secretly transmits various personal data over the internet, such as browsing habits, which can then be sold to third party vendors or used for statistical analysis.

Retail software packages could also contain spyware. You could also find that your browsing speed decreases considerably after the installation of an application that contains spyware.

Hackers often use software to continuously scan for open ports on your computer while you are online. If an unprotected port is detected, it will allow access to your computer and the hacker can probably do whatever he wants. Your computer could be used as a gateway to attack other computers or confidential data could be accessed.

Apart from having good anti-virus software installed, you should also have a firewall installed to prevent attacks from outside as well as preventing the transmission of personal data from your computer. An anti-virus package is not sufficient and should be accompanied by a firewall.

As for the spyware problem, you should also install a software package that removes these spyware applications. Examples are Lavasoft's Ad-aware and Spybot, which identifies spyware components and lets you decide whether you want to remove the spyware applications or not.

What about email? As most of us know, you should never open an email that looks suspicious or unfamiliar. Emails in this category are extremely dangerous, especially if they contain file attachments. Attachments could contain viruses, spyware or spy software that can be used to obtain confidential data from your computer.

The best advice is to delete these types of emails immediately, but unfortunately, curiosity sometimes takes control. The email might use only a few words like "I love you" or "your details" in the text or subject fields. No further explanation is given and it leaves you guessing. If you are uncertain or can't figure out what the message is about, then don't open the attachment.

Other steps that should be taken to increase your online and computer security include the following:

• Update your anti-virus, firewall and Ad-aware software regularly.
• Update your browser and operating system with the latest patches.
• Don't allow other people to install software on your computer.
• Never allow unauthorized access to your computer.
• Don't allow your browser to save your passwords.
• If possible, password protect files that contain confidential information.

Take the necessary steps and be vigilant about your computer and online privacy.

Recommended resources:

Evidence Terminator - You could be held accountable if questionable material is found on your computer. Use this product to erase confidential data and other evidence. Simply deleting files wont work, as sophisticated data recovery software can still retrieve the files, even years later.