Online Safety and Security 101: The First Step in Protecting Yourself in the Digital World

 What is Online Safety? 

As more people get inducted into the world wide web daily, their safety becomes important. 

Online safety refers to the practices and policies that reduces the physical, and psychological hurt that a person may face on the internet. 

It is a virtual world and just like the real world it is replete with the same or even more problems. 

In the real physical world, a person may become a victim of bullying, rape, or robbery. One may think such could never happen in the digital world, but the sad truth is that it occurs every time. People are bullied on the internet. Sex crimes and blackmail have become frequent. Digital identities and properties are stolen. And with the rise of electronic finance, it becomes a hunting ground for hackers with evil intent to plunder the honest wealth of others. 

The internet is a vast world, and while a good thing, it introduces a great risk to its users. 

Digital safety and security is therefore important for netizens regardless of their age.

In this day and age even children use the internet, and the elderly as well. It is free for all, but if care is not taken people become vulnerable to its vices. 

The importance of Cyber safety

We have to keep our information safe and also be conscious of personal safety while using the internet. 

Our personal information such as names, date of birth, spouses, family, job, income, etc are usually kept private. If anyone has unauthorised access to it, it could lead to identity and property theft, stalking, blackmail, etc. For these reasons, we endeavour to keep our information protected from others as they are private and personal. 

Digital risks on the internet 

Some common threats in the digital world related to our information are:

Phishing

This is when fraudsters disguise themselves as trustworthy and legitimate sources and businesses in order to steal personal information from unsuspecting users. For example, a fake website "gmail.net" tries to trick users to enter their actual gmail address and password. A victim who does not know that this is a fake website, enters his/her correct details and the hackers get access to their personal property. Such tricks are used to steal such information as emails, passwords, credit card information, and the likes. And it is not only websites, people get fake emails requesting for such information. 

It is important to verify sources first and ensure you are dealing with the right company or website before releasing private information. 

Malware

Another way cyber criminals steal information is by hiding unwanted malicious software in emails, files and applications that users download. Unknown to the users, the malicious software finds and transmits personal information to the fraudsters. A user may download an application from an unknown or unofficial source. Hidden in this app is a software that searches for credit card info and whenever the user is connected to the internet, this stolen info is transmitted in the background. The user is not cognizant of this. 

Obscene Content 

Users browsing the internet can come across websites or content that are offensive to them. Sometimes these materials pop up as users navigate the internet. Pornographic materials, images or videos of physical hurt to people are unwanted by some and such people would prefer not to have such, but are forced to view such content. This threatens the safety, freedom and innocence of users of the internet. 

Digital Predation 

This is the act of seducing minors, children less than the legal age of consent, into a sexual relationship. Usually the predators lure these victims via online social forums to engage in inappropriate sexual relationships with them

Online Grooming

Children are still young and their minds pliable to conform to certain beliefs and whatever people in authority tell them. Cyber criminals often take advantage of these innocence in children. 

A stranger targets a child through the internet, and befriends this child, gradually gaining the trust of their victim. Soon the child, trusting the criminal, is willing to do anything that person requires from them. This is a form of Child Abuse. The groomer can then request for sexual images and videos, or ask their victims to run illegal errands for them, such as drug trafficking, and several other crimes. This is one of the worse damages that can be done to an innocent child with a limited understanding of the way the world works. They are trained to fit whatever end the groomer has in mind. 

Cyber stalking 

Remember the bullies in schools and workplaces, well they've moved digital. With the way the internet allows people to hide behind any identity they wish, some people have taken to stalking and gathering information about others to harass them, defame or steal other people's identity. One of the ways they do this is by monitoring their victims on social media, instant messaging, etc, and using this gathered information against their victims. 

Cyber Bullying 

This is similar to and often used interchangeably with cyber stalking. 

A cyber bully uses electronic means of communication to harass, intimidate and abuse their victims. False information can be made against the victim and published on various websites to defame the victim. This can cause psychological trauma to the abused. In order to get these falsehood removed, sometimes the victim is made to pay huge amounts, and such removals are only temporary. 

Many people have fallen into the throes of cyber bullying, with several contemplating suicide. 

Cyber bullying is a major threat against the youths, but anyone can be cyber bullied, even whole companies have been intimidated by this threat. 

Sextortion 

A stranger targets a victim, using a false identity to attract the victim into a relationship like a predator, and soon asks for sexual images or videos of the person. The unsuspecting victim, thinking they have fallen in love, readily provides such materials and sends it to the sextortionist who stores the materials for malicious purposes. This criminal soon threatens the victim that the images and videos would be published abroad the internet except they provide more images/videos, or money or anything as they would demand. The victim is paralysed by terror and hurries to do as instructed. The psychological effects of sextortion is so great, probably because of it's having to do with something so personal as our sexuality. Many victims have resolved to suicide over this. 

In summary, 

The internet connects us to each other, but in a garden, there are flowers and there are weeds. Using such practices as phishing, spyware, cyber bullying, secretion, predation, grooming, malicious users prey on unsuspecting victims. Knowing what threats are out there is a first step in protecting ourselves. Cyber crime is real and we must protect ourselves as best we can from those who would misuse such a wonderful tool as the internet. 

Let me hear your thoughts in the comments! 

Till my next post, stay Enlaitened!