Six ways to protect yourself from online crime

Six ways to protect yourself from online frauds and scams

By George Brown

1. Don't fall for that e-mail with "Special Offer"

There is no Nigerian prince willing to share his fortune with you. You have not really won a "special prize." More than likely, someone is trying to get at your bank account to steal all money in it.
Yet, every year, thousands of computer users fall victim to one of these scams, usually because of their own greed. In the Nigerian scam also known as a 419 Scam, so named for the section of the Nigerian penal code intended to prohibit it, a prince or a bank official, or businessman claims to have millions of dollars stashed away somewhere and needs your help to get it out of the country.

All he needs from you is a little money to grease the wheels of government. Then a little more money. Then a little more. In one case, a retiree in Florida gave up $80,000 and mortgaged his home twice to help his Nigerian "benefactor."

2. Go fishing but not "Phishing"

Phishing schemes usually arrive as an e-mail request from an apparently legitimate organization seeking more information from you.

Recent examples include messages from eBay, PayPal and CitiBank requesting that you confirm your account information. To do so, you need only click on a link in the message, and you're taken to a Web page where you can input passwords, account numbers, Social Security numbers, etc.

Despite an apparently valid Web address, the site to which you're submitting information is probably gathering your data to use or sell for less than legitimate purposes.

Most legitimate institutions will never ask for information in an e-mail message. Instead, you may be requested to update something after logging in to your online account. When in doubt, pick up the phone to verify the request.

3. Keep personal information personal

Protect your Social Security number, your driver's license number and other identifying data. If your financial institution insists on using your Social Security number as a log-in, send them letters urging that they consider changing this practice.

And, if you must, only enter such information when you're on a so-called "secure" Web site. That means the data you send is encrypted so hackers can't intercept it easily. In Internet Explorer, you'll know you're on a secure site by the tiny little padlock that appears at the lower right corner of your browser's window.

4. Keep your PC Protected

You will not lock your doors and then leave the windows wide open as you left for a vacation. In the same way, secure your PC as you would secure your home. Keep your virus detection software up to date. Install a firewall. Don't use software that compromises your PC by installing adware or spyware.

5. Keep the following in mind

If you're like millions of Americans, you'll be surfing for sales on the Internet this holiday season, but two online scams could wreak havoc on your holidays. Chances are least some part of your holiday shopping will happen not in the mall, but online. Web shopping is exploding in popularity and is expected to be up another 50 percent this year. But all that surfing and shopping can open you up to trouble if you are not careful. The latest scams are called Pharming or Phishing. In Pharming, a virus is planted in your computer. It simply sits and waits until you enter the Web address of a real shopping site. When you enter the address, the virus takes you instead to a fake version of the site you were intending to visit. Then when you enter in your credit card or other billing information, the scammers get it and can either use it to buy things or use it to steal your identity. In Phishing, you get an e-mail and there is a link in it that appears to be legitimate. It is not legitimate, and you may be asked to enter your billing information. This often happens after you shop at a legitimate site. The Phishing attack will then follow, disguised as a confirmation.

So how do you protect yourself? Experts say:
1. Never enter information into a pop-up style window.

2. Check and make sure the site is "secure". If it is, you will see a small lock icon on usually in the lower right corner of your browser.

3. Don't forget to update security firewall and virus software.

Remember that these attacks can also happen by phone. Credit card companies will often call you if they see unusual patterns of use on your credit cards.

Always verify who is calling you and remember that legitimate calls will only ask about specific transactions and will not try to get your entire account number. Usually they will only ask to confirm a portion of the number the last four digits.

6. Be careful when bidding

Online auction fraud tops the cybercrime charts. The crimes: Sellers take someone's money but never ship the product. Or, sellers take money but ship a different, broken or substandard product.

You can protect yourself with common sense. On eBay, be sure to check a seller's feedback rating and feedback comments. Someone with a low score or a lot of negative comments might be someone to steer clear of.

Also: Read the fine print. There are a lot of folks willing to sell you an item for a dirt-cheap price only to gouge you on the shipping. And make sure you're actually buying the item, not "information" about how to get the item for "almost free."
When in doubt, or when purchasing a big-ticket item, consider using an escrow service for the transaction. You send your payment to the escrow and the seller ships the item to you. You get a short period to make certain the item is what you expected. When you approve, the seller gets his or her money.