Watch for Identity Theft

Perhaps the most familiar Internet theft most people are aware of is identity theft. By gaining access to your eBay or PayPal passwords, or even your email name and password, thieves can use your identity to buy merchandise and vacations for themselves.

One common personal internet breach that thieves use on eBay is to use your personal information to list items for sale under your eBay ID. They offer laptop computers, automobile GPS units, or other valuable, desirable items for rock-bottom prices. Buyers are understandably lured into bidding, or even into making a "buy it now" transaction for this amazing price. The "seller" collects a cash payment or a PayPal deposit and doesn't ship the merchandise. There never was a laptop or GPS unit in the first place! The disgruntled buyer contacts you, the innocent party, expecting to get a refund, and you will find yourself in the middle of a huge dispute, locking up your eBay account, your PayPal account, and possibly freezing funds in the bank account that is connected with these accounts. When all is said and done, you will wish you had learned more about personal internet measures before you opened all these accounts.

Social Networking, The Scam

It may sound trivial, but when it comes to social networking, the best personal internet device you can use is your common sense. For those of you who do not know, social networking is just a fancy term for what used to be called "con games." The "con" in con games stands for "confidence." Here, the bad actor exploits your personal information by establishing a confidential relationship with you. The thief might pretend to be a friend of yours, or a friend of a friend, or your online bank. Thieves also masquerade as eBay or PayPal officials, sending you an email that urges you to click a link to verify your account, or threatening to close your account if you do not click a link. Once you click the link, you log in to a fake site using your real name and password, and guess what?! The thieves have the information they were after in the first place.

Remember, good old vigilance can also be a personal internet device. Be very cautious of suspicious emails. Forward them back to the sites that supposedly sent them and ask the sender to verify that they are authentic. Better yet, just delete them and see what happens (usually nothing!) When you log into password protected web sites or personal files, do not leave your keyboard without first logging out. Never leave a secure site open on an unattended computer at your workplace, at home when others are around, at an Internet café, at a public library or on another machine anywhere that is accessible by others. Your diligence will pay off in the long run, even if you don’t see it.