Sunday, July 13, 2008

How to Find The Common Mistakes Of Email Security


Things You’ll Need:

* AN EMAIL ACCOUNT

Step1
Email Account. Using just one email account :

A good rule for the average email user is to keep a minimum of three email accounts. Your first email account should be used exclusively for work-related conversations. Your second email account should be used for personal conversations and contacts and your third email account should be used as a general catch-all for all hazardous behavior.

That means you should always sign up for newsletters and contests only through your third email account. Similarly, if you have to post your email account online, such as for your personal blog, you should only use your third email account.

Step2
Spammed Email Account. Holding onto spammed-out accounts for too long :

It is a fact that email accounts will accumulate spam over time. This is especially true of the account you use to sign up for newsletters and that you post online.

When this happens, it is best to simply dump the email account and start with a fresh account. Unfortunately, however, many new email users get very attached to their email accounts and instead just wade through dozens of pieces of spam every day.

To avoid the problem, prepare yourself mentally ahead of time for the idea that you will have to dump your 'catch all' (third email account) account every six months.

Step3

Close Your Browser. Not closing the browser after logging out :

When you are checking your email at a library or cybercafé you not only need to log out of your email when you are done, but you also need to make sure to close the browser window completely.

Some email services display your username even after you have logged out. While the service does this for your convenience, it compromises your email security.

Step4
CyberCafe Or Library. Forgetting to delete browser cache, history and passwords :

After using a public terminal, it is important to delete the browser cache, history, and passwords. Most browsers automatically keep track of all the web pages that you have visited, and some keep track of any passwords and personal information that you enter in order to help you fill out similar forms in the future.

For those of you using Mozilla's Firefox, simply press Ctrl+Shift+Del.

Opera users need go to Tools>>Delete Private Data.

Microsoft's Internet Explorer users need to go to Tools>>Internet Options then click the 'Clear History', 'Delete Cookies', and 'Delete Files' buttons.

Step5
BCC: TO: CC: Page. Not using the Blind Carbon Copy (BCC) option :

When you put a person's email addresses in the BCC: rather than the CC: window, none of the recipients can see the addresses of the other email recipients.

New email users often rely too much on the TO: because it is the default way of sending emails. That is fine as long as you are writing to just one person or a few family members. But if you are sending mail out to a diverse group of people, confusing BCC: and CC: raises some serious privacy and security concerns. It takes just one spammer to get a hold of the email and immediately everyone on your email list gets spammed.

Step6
Reply Page. Being trigger happy with the "Reply All" button :

Sometimes the mistake isn't in deciding between CC: and BCC: but between hitting 'Reply All' instead of 'Reply'.

When you hit Reply All, your email message is sent to everyone included on the original email sender, and if you didn't intend to include them, the information can be disastrous from both a security and personal humiliation perspective.

Step7
Mail Forwarding Page. Spamming as a result of Forwarding emails :

Forwarding emails can be a great way to quickly bring someone up to speed on a subject without having to write up a summary email.

But you are not careful, forwarding emails can create a significant security threat for yourself and the earlier recipients of the email. As an email is forwarded, the recipients of the mail are automatically listed in the body of the email. As the chain keeps moving forward, more and more recipient ids are placed on the list.

It only takes a few seconds to delete all the previous recipient ids before forwarding a piece of mail, and it can avoid the terrible situation of you being the cause of all your friends or co workers getting spammed.

Step8
Email Backup Page. Failing to back up emails :

Emails are not just for idle chatting, but can also be used to make legally binding contracts, major financial decisions, and conduct professional meetings.

Just as you would keep a hard copy of other important business and personal documents, it is important that you regularly back up your email to preserve a record if your email client crashes and loses data.

Step9
Deleting Email Page. Thinking that an erased email is gone forever :

We've all sent an embarrassing or unfortunate email and sighed relief when it was finally deleted, thinking the whole episode was behind us.

Think again. Just because you delete an email message from your inbox and the sender deletes it from their 'Sent' inbox, does not mean that the email is lost forever. In fact, messages that are deleted often still exist in backup folders on remote servers for years, and can be retrieved by skilled professionals.

So start to think of what you write in an email as a permanent document. Be careful about what you put into writing, because it can come back to haunt you many years after you assumed it was gone forever.

Step10
Won The Lottery Page. Believing you won the lottery … and other scam titles :

Spammers use a wide variety of clever titles to get you to open emails which they fill with all sorts of bad things. New email users often make the mistake of opening these emails. So, let me tell you quickly :

• You have not won the Irish Lotto, the Yahoo Lottery, or any other big cash prize.
• There is no actual Nigerian King or Prince trying to send you $10 million.
• Your Bank Account Details do not need to be reconfirmed immediately.
• You do not have an unclaimed inheritance.
• You never actually sent that "Returned Mail".
• The News Headline email is not just someone informing you about the daily news.
• You have not won an iPod Nano.

Step11
Phishing Email Page. Not recognizing phishing attacks in email content :

While never opening a phishing email is the best way to secure your computer, even the most experienced email user will occasionally accidentally open up a phishing email. At this point, the key to limiting your damage is recognizing the phishing email for what it is.

Signs of phishing include:

• A logo that looks distorted or stretched.
• Email that refers to you as "Dear Customer" or "Dear User" rather than including your actual name.
• Email that warns you that an account of yours will be shut down unless you reconfirm your billing information immediately.
• Email which comes from an account similar, but different from, the one the company usually uses.
• An email threatening legal action.
• An email that claims 'Security Compromises' or 'Security Threats' and requires immediate action.

If you suspect that an email is a phishing attempt, the best defense is to never open the email in the first place. But assuming you have already opened it, do not reply or click on the link in the email. If you want to verify the message, manually type in the URL of the company into your browser instead of clicking on the embedded link.

Step12
Unsubscribe Newsletters Email Page. Unsubscribing to newsletters you never subscribed to :

A common technique used by spammers is to send out thousands of fake newsletters from organizations with an "unsubscribe" link on the bottom of the newsletter.

Email users who then enter their email into the supposed "unsubscribe" list are then sent loads of spam. So if you don't specifically remember subscribing to the newsletter, you are better off just blacklisting the email address, rather than following the link and possibly picking up a Trojan horse or unknowingly signing yourself up for yet more spam.

Step13
Friends Email Page. Trusting your friends email :

Most new internet users are very careful when it comes to emails from senders they don't recognize. But when a friend sends an email, all caution goes out the window as they just assume it is safe because they know that the sender wouldn't intend to hurt them.

The truth is, an email from a friend's ID is just as likely to contain a virus or malware as a stranger's. The reason is that most malware is circulated by people who have no idea they are sending it, because hackers are using their computer as a zombie.

It is important to maintain and keep updated email scanning and Anti-virus software, and to use it to scan ALL incoming emails.

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