Common Myths about Online Security Safety
Many people believe that installing antivirus software is sufficient to provide complete protection for their computers. However, before you consider that your computer is safe from hackers, let us find out some of the common myths about online security safety.
Installing Free Antivirus Software is Sufficient:
Antivirus software is a popularly known requirement for Internet security of a computer. However, it is a myth that just installing any antivirus software is enough to provide complete protection against dangerous hackers. Installing antivirus software from a trusted source is just the beginning of it. Periodic update of antivirus is important for protection against latest virus definitions. Download and install the latest antivirus updates once in a month to ensure complete protection against latest threats.
All Browsers are same:
It is a common misconception that all browsers are equally vulnerable to attacks. Unfortunately, Internet Explorer provides an easy way for malware attack as compared to Google Chrome or Firefox. Both the later browsers use Google malware detection alert and reflect a warning whenever they come across any suspicious site. However, IE does not show any such warnings.
Watching online movies is safe:
Most people believe that listening to online music or watching online movies is safe. You should be watching movies from sites that are reliable and have good reputation. Infact, the better way is to download the movies or music from reliable source and then view it in your system. Usually the videos and movies shared at online are encoded with xvid so you must have xvid codecs in your media player to be able to view the movie.
Free applications shared on internet are safe:
It is also a myth that all applications shared freely on internet are safe. Many hackers embed hacking codes in the applications and people use them unaware of the facts. You must be using and downloading applications from reliable websites and must read the reviews and ratings of the applications. However, Open Source applications are usually safe and if you need an application then look for it in the open source sites. Open Source applications are developed by dedicated developers and communities like openoffice.org, sourceforge.org etc and you can confidently use open source software.
Hacker will not Attack My Computer:
General home users believe that there is no such precious data in their computer that somebody might be interested in stealing it. However, the truth is that a laptop that is used simply for some editing work can also lead to stolen information. If you use your computer just for checking e-mails, then hackers can attack your computer by sending phishing e-mails and it might lead to theft of your important banking accounts and passwords.
Several scripts are available that allow hackers to find out the security holes in a computer. Once the hackers find them they use it for their benefit. Therefore, to provide best protection to your PC, use the latest antivirus program from a trusted source. Also, avoid websites that look suspicious and use browser like Firefox to ensure safety while browsing.