Common Sense Security Suggestions

Within the world of cybersecurity, the ebb and flow between advances in protection and criminal breeches wages on. For all the progress made in online security, there are equally as many malicious countermeasures taken. Everyone, whether at home or in the office, must be alert and diligent to avoid being fooled by scammers. We have posted a variety of articles concerning how to protect yourself, check out the ZBx Blog at https://zbxtech.com/category/blog/

The following are a few additional suggestions to help keep yourself safe from a cyber intrusion.

1. Don’t Be Fooled by the Sender.
Scammers are very clever at disguising who the email is coming from. ALWAYS inspect the address that the message came from. Pay close attention to the sender’s email address and confirm the name and the email address match up to a legitimate source. Also, a long series of letters or words after “.com” suggest it was sent by a scammer.

2. Be Suspicious of Links.
Review before you click. Take the time to look at the link and be sure it is legitimate. Hover the cursor over the link to see it and confirm the address. Much like a false sender’s email address, a website link can be bogus as well. Legitimate companies offering a remedy to problems or requests to update information will direct you to their website.

3. Verify.
If you get an email from a friend or coworker with a link along with a message asking you to “check this out,” call them or send a separate email to find out if they really sent it. Be cautious of links forwarded to you from someone you know. They could unknowingly send you something malicious.

4. Parse the Credit Card Numbers.
Take caution if emails pretending to be from credit card companies cite the beginning numbers of an account. Many credit cards start with the same digits. Legitimate messages will more likely cite the last few number only.