10.2.15

3 Key Tips: Stay Safe Internet Surfing!

"The Internet is a wonderful thing, but it opens the door to many crimes, so you have to stay ahead of it." Frank Abagnale



The internet as we know it is both a blessing and a curse. Every day, we login and hope that we don't get caught in the crossfire of a malware attack. While dodging hackers, spammers, trolls, cyber-criminals and bullies like enemy bullets, we also have to make sure that those close to us are doing the same thing. Nothing is more annoying than to open a link sent to your from, purportedly, a friend or family member, only to watch your computer disintegrate. It's not funny and many of us can share horror stories of how we got caught by a Trojan worm or some sneaky little adware. The key is to be vigilant. So today, over 100 countries have come together to warn us to surf safely on the internet. Google has kindly provided us 3 Key Tips; they are quick and easy tips of what not to do on the Internet

A1. Stay safe by instituting these (see below) 12 safety tips. 12 tips for you.
1. Protect you Selfie photos and your account from hackers with 2 step verification.
2. Keep criminals and hackers out by updating your browser
3. Always make sure your account is secure by doing regular check ups on your settings
4. Always make sure to lock your Device Manager before the Cyber-thieves get to it


We cannot stress it enough that you must educate your loved ones about using the internet safely. Every so often when we login to the internet, we come across stories of cyberbullying, reverse porn, identity theft and all sorts of awful incidents that have occurred. If you wonder why, it is because some of us opened our Internet doors to a bunch of unsavory characters. If we are serious about  raising awareness on smarter and safer Internet use, we must start in our homes. Read the tips above and share them with everyone you know. Being armed with the right information on surfing safely can save a life.

A2. Share the tips with your family and friends. Celebrate Safer Internet Day w/ Loved Ones
5. Don’t engage in surprise purchases use password protection.
6. Control your searches for family friendly PG results
7. Identify your favorite Hangout sites and save them for return visits.
8. Keep  YouTube’s Safety Mode locked on your device… Permanently


More Below!

 "Sometimes, the Internet can feel like a middle-school playground populated by brats in ski masks who name-call and taunt with the fake bravery of the anonymous. But sometimes - thank goodness - it's nicer than real life." Susan Orlean



Have you stopped to think about email safety? Making sure that our private conversations and important communications don't land in the wrong hands is vital. We can feel confident when we know that our email provider is working hard to ensure our email is not exposed and that our communications are not intercepted. On the link above, provided by Google for Safer Internet Day, we can check to see if our carrier is included. I hope yours is. Stay safe and be vigilant on the internet. How do you stay safe?

A3.Find out how safe your email is: Does Your email providers support encryption? Check the Transparency Report.
9. Let your favorite browser (Chrome, Firefox) manage your 10,000 passwords
10. If you come across questionable content, flag it and let Google know
11. Learn to keep spies off your device with a PIN or other protective methods
12.  Create complex, STRONG passwords with upper case and lower case letters and symbols.


Some Food for Thought: The Internet has opened our eyes to the vast world we inhabit. Some of it is great and some of it is bad. You must be discerning and protect yourself and your loved ones. What are you doing to stay safe while surfing the Internet?  

I would love to hear from you. Please leave me a comment. Thank You!



PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: All Photographs:  At Sign, Virusblaster, via  Wikipedia
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet


67 comments:

  1. There is so much to consider and be watchful of. It's a wonderful thing, the internet, but we should never let our guards down.

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  2. The Internet can be a dangerous tool!

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  3. So very true! Great tips- thanks for sharing!

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  4. Always good to be careful how we use the internet. Good tips and reminders.

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  5. This is exactly why my kids are not allowed to use the computer yet. There are too many crazy people out there.

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    1. I agree. I don't know when I will let me kids use the computer/facebook, etc.

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  6. The internet can be a scary place. Thanks for the tips.

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  7. Thanks for the very important reminders!

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  8. Great article. I'm totally paranoid when it comes to the internet, but that's good. It means I don't take risks!

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  9. I once got a virus from the internet that was so bad, I had to do a clean install on my computer. Needless to say, I'm super careful now!

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  10. We've had to implement blocks and key loggers, it's hard to keep up with six kids and our own stuff on the computers, and while I do love the world, wide web...it is scary out there

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  11. Internet crimes are huge. Who knew it could get so bad! Great reminders here for everyone!

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  12. Also invest in a good keyboard, because $10 keyboards from eBay (from China) are potential password leaking. I don't really understand it myself.... but my husband was explaining to me I needed a new one stat lol :(

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  13. These are great tips! To stay safe, I try to monitor what I put out and never post angry ;)

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  14. These are some great tools you are sharing for us to be safe online. Thank you Eliz, I will be checking all of them later today. Bookmarking this for now :)

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  15. Great tips and suggestions. I know that I try hard to keep my info as private as possible. But being a blogger in the spotlight, it's a bit harder. When using photos, I watermark them to make it easy to spot that they are mine.

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  16. Good tips- I personally do not take photos I would be embarrassed if strangers saw. I think teens are at the most risk for accidentally sharing things that are not appropriate or accidentally allow others to show without permission.

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  17. Great tips! Thanks for sharing!

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  18. You know this is a great article of reminders - I like the way you've made it easy to do - thank you so much - I have saved this post!

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  19. Internet is a wonderful, but scary place. It is important to keep reminding people and people to be watchful of safety and privacy! Thanks for the tips!

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  20. Wonderful article! I'm very diligent about staying safe on the internet.

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  21. There are so many scary things with the internet. I have educated my kids about the dangers. These are great tips.

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  22. now a days unfortunatly internet is also dangreous. thnx for sharing these tips

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  23. There are so many precautionary measures available too... it really does make good sense to utilize them. I think we get comfortable with the familiar and forget the risks.

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  24. This is all great information. Great reminders.

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  25. The Internet can be a very dangerous place if you aren't careful. Thanks for these tips for how to protect ourselves.

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  26. Thanks so true. Having private conversations and important communications being shared with those we don't want to is scary!

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  27. This is so very true. Great place but scary at the same time. Great post.

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  28. Thanks for the tips. Now more than ever, the internet can make your life or ruin it. There are too many people out there who want to cause damage and more. Thank you for sharing.

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  29. Thanks for the internet safety tips! They are so often forgotten and they are so very important!

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  30. I think it is important to try and stay protected but in reality anything you put online can be seen by others we should all be more careful about what we put online.

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  31. Great advice! I need to be better on a lot of this

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  32. The internet is definitely not 100% safe and it is scary to think of the bad things that might happen. Great post. Thanks.

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  33. These are good tips. I have a bad habit of ignoring the update notices I get. I never want to take the time to load the most recent version.

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  34. It really is important to take steps, ensuring your identification is protected- as well as your children are while they're online. Parental oversight is very important in our household.
    Thanks for a good group of ideas!

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  35. These are some very important tips for the internet. I think that every one needs a reminder now and then.

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  36. I agree. I have always have my private accounts and third party tools to keep safe my information such as where I live. Great read!

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  37. Thanks for the reminders. I've been a victim of Malware attack and it was really hard.

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  38. Thanks for these tips. It seems that nothing is safe. I just saw today about hackers stealing millions from banks,. SOmetimes I think it's just a lost cause.

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  39. THanks for your insight so many people just assume they are safe or that their kids are sensible. Like anything being informed is a good thing

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  40. When my grandkids come over I will put my laptop up. I think that there are other things to do when they come here. Thanks for sharing.

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  41. Great tips and advice. Things we all need to do and remember. It is so easy just to let the computer be open and jump on when there is a free moment, instead of checked all the little extras to make sure we are safe from andy type of malware or hackers-- Thanks so much for the reminders.

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  42. I really love these tips they will help my family and I to keep safe & be aware while surfing the net. Thank you for sharing.

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  43. even us internet veterans can use some reminding about staying web-safe. using the device manager is a great tool. kudos!

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  44. Great tips. Thanks for sharing. You can never be to careful on the internet.

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  45. Awesome tips, and so true we think just because we are behind a keyboard we are safe sometimes we need reminding that there are people not to be trusted that will steal your stuff. Thanks so much for the tips!

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  46. Thank you for the tips. I always worried with my kids on the internet getting into things they shouldn't mostly. I think you can never be too careful though.

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  47. Thank You for sharing all these great tips and ideas on how to stay safe on the internet, I know last year I had to pay good money because someone got a hold of my information..

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  48. Great advice! So many horrible things happen everyday and you never think it will be you.

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  49. My best friend is a single mother of a sixteen year old genius..but this has provided many problems. At first i though her mom was way to strict when she first started on the internet about eight years ago. mom checked everything, every night. Then came a cell phone, an iPad (which I am still pondering the wisdom of having given it to her for christmas..but she is in grade eleven and works after school 4 nights a week and even the school posts everything on line...including the students marks. In light of all the news concerning the dangers inherent in the oversupply of technology..I have become afraid for her. I will make sure she reads your excellent article..Thank You...University was so simple back then

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  50. Thanks for sharing these tips. We need a computer built with the Parents in mind, and our kids safety too. The Internet is filled with many people, and sometimes not always the safest. Take care, everyone!

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  51. Thanks for the awesome tips I will definitely be using them to keep myself safer!!

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  52. Very interesting notes and tips.

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  53. These are great tips, will definitely be using them to beef up my internet security

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  54. Using the internet can be scary but you have given us some great ideas. Thanks.

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  55. I haven't heard of a lot of a lot of those methods of protection. Now I need to make some changes to my computer (and especially my dad's).

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  56. These are great tips that everyone should read! Thank you for sharing!

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  57. i am pretty web savvy. I take things for granted. Thanks for sharing this. Helps the less tech savvies out there.

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  58. So worried about my daughter online when she gets older. I know I am raising her right but so did my dad and I did some STUPID things online when I was younger. Never thought about anything bad happening to me. Having children is stressful. lol

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  59. every parent should be aware of this awesome post thanks for sharing!

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  60. Another way to stay safe is to pair a good ad blocker with a good virus blocker. I have Microsoft Security Essentials (free) and I use Adblock Plus (free) with Google Chrome. So I have really good virus protection, PLUS great ad blocking that could have attached viruses.

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  61. My girl is not old enough to understand the internet. This is definitely something to keep in mind when she starts playing with it!

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  62. Thank you for sharing this great information. We can never be to safe.

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  63. These are great tips! Thank you so much for sharing them!

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  64. Thanks for the great tips. thanks for the reminders for internet safety. they will come in handy with the kids.

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  65. Very good tips for staying safe while surfing the internet, thanks

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