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How to protect yourself online - An Inside Out guide

Chris Jackson | 12:00 UK time, Monday, 6 February 2012

Laptop computer

On tonight's show (91Èȱ¬ One, Monday, 6 February 2012, 19:30 GMT) we reveal just how lax we are in protecting our information online and just how easy it can be for people to tap into our private details.

Have you been hacked? Why not share your experience by adding your comment to this blog.

So what can you do to protect yourself?

We have set up a special web resource at bbc.co.uk/sharetakecare which is particularly useful for parents who are concerned about their children's online activities.

Meanwhile internet security expert Ian de Wessington who appeared in our film has come up with his own top tips that he thinks we should all adopt.

1) Be aware of scams

Keep up to date on the latest online scams and frauds. Read the news section on and stay up to date with what is happening.

2) Protect your computer

Keep your anti-virus software up to date and your firewall active. These are the first line of protection on your personal PC. If you walk away from your computer always log out so that a password has to be entered before anyone can use the machine.

3) Be safe while shopping

Be careful when you're on sites you've never used before. When on the checkout page, look for the lock symbol or some other trusted security indication, such as the prefix "https," that the page is encrypted or scrambled. Use a credit card instead of a debit card as there is no online protection cover with a debit card.

4) Secure your home wireless network

Read the instructions that came with your wireless router and learn how to change the default username and password. If your security key is WEP change it for a better option such as WPA or WPA2 (). Turn your wireless router off at night, if it isn't turned on nobody can break into it.

5) Protect yourself

Short, simple passwords may be easier to remember, but they're also easier for hackers to crack. Use passwords with at least 10 characters and include combinations of letters, numbers and symbols. Don't ever use real words or common phrases. Change passwords regularly.

6) Be sensible

Cyber crime continues to accelerate by common mistakes people make when online, such as responding to spam or phishing scams or downloading attachments from people or sites they don't know. Use common sense and caution; never post personal information online; and be careful about clicking on links or prompts to download software.

7) Don't be nosey

A favourite hacker trick at the moment is to leave contaminated flash drives in bars, coffee shops and other social places. If you find one of these NEVER plug it into your computer.

8) Just in case

We all try to be sensible and safe, but just in case the worst happens make sure you have backed up your data to an external device such as a hard drive, DVD or Flash drive.

ALSO TONIGHT:

We chase the elusive Northern Lights. I've some top tips to help you improve your chances of spotting them.

We also catch up with out job seekers and two more of them are back in work.

In case you were wondering we filmed this week's links in Keswick on a gloriously clear winter's day.

Comments

  • Comment number 1.

    Good article, with some good points that users of the internet need to keep in mind. I would just like to point out a couple more ways that people can secure themselfs whislt surfing the net.

    Firstly people think that using a password that us a english word and replacing or numbers and special characters for example Pa33w0rd is full proof, its not. Hackers are evolving and this is slowly becoming an "unsafe" way to make a password. A password needs to be random for example, take a sentence like Next Week Im Going To France - take the first letter of each word NWIGTF now add in some numbers Nw1G2f, then some special characters Nw1G2f/! - this is pretty random and chances are slim its in a password dictionary somewhere....

    Secondly, Anti-Virus software is just not enough to protect you whilst surfing the internet - you need software that encrypts browsing as you go about checking your bank, facebook etc. For example I use (not sure about linking, so sorry) this along with my anti-virus ( give me the full piece of mind from virus and hackers trying to view what i am doing online. It protects me from Identity Theft and attacks like MiTM (

  • Comment number 2.

    My identity was stolen. Someone pretending to be me applied online to the American pay-day loan company, QuickQuid. They borrowed £400 (US $630) in my name at 5,200% APR interest. Then QuickQuid wrote to me demanding repayment. For more details watch the video on my YouTube channel of my 91Èȱ¬ interview: (6 minutes).

    Fortunately, I won my case against QuickQuid, eventually, but the apparent ease with which someone fraudulently pretended to be me caused both horror and distress.

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