Are you Cyber Secured?

Information and communication technology has become an integral part of our day-to-day life. It has just transformed the way we communicate, make friends, share updates, play games, and do shopping on so on. The technology has impacted most aspects of our day-to-day life.

Our new generation is getting exposed to cyber space at a very young age more than never before. In fact with smart phones access to social networking, online games, e-commerce, online learning, etc. has increased significantly. The cyber space connects us virtually with millions of online users from across the globe. With this increasing use of cyber space, cyber crimes are also increasing rapidly.

Especially the young generation are highly vulnerable as they are exposed to cyber space with limited understanding of cyber threats and safeguards. Children are in the experimental age group. They like to experiment, learn new things and use new technologies. While experimenting is a good way to learn, it is equally important that proper guidance is provided to children so that they can protect themselves from adverse impact of cyber technology.

Why is cybersecurity a concern?

Today interest, computers, smart phones and other communication technology devices have become an integral part of our life. Imagine, how much time we spend each day on these smart devices. We have made internet communication mediums like Google, E-mails, WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc., part and parcel of our everyday activities. But most of us are unaware of cyber safety and security essentials to safeguard ourselves. What ever information or personal details which are shared on internet stay online forever as it is extremely difficult to delete the information completely.

More so than ever, cyber attacks are becoming more complex and sophisticated and are increasingly targeted on stealing the personal information such as phone number, address, photographs, bank account details etc. The personal information can be used by cyber criminals against you in different ways like creating your fake profiles, and cyber bullying. Given the widespread use of online services and added that each and every thing rapidly moving online, there are more threats and an ever increasing need to understand and be safe online.

Some of the common ways used by cyber criminals are:

Email spoofing, Malicious File Applications, Social Engineering, Cyber Bullying, Identify Theft, Job Frauds, Banking Frauds and much more..

With this introductory note, I would like to highlight that I would be writing an article every week as part of a series, I shall be discussing different types of cyber threats, how do the cyber criminals exploit the vulnerabilities, and as a common man and tech savvy user what should you be aware of and how should you ensure to be secure online and not get exposed to the outer world as a prey for the hackers.

If there is any specific topic you would want me to discuss or have any questions, please do indicate in the comments section and feel free to write to me.