The main ways in which personal information is stolen is by scammers and fraudsters using either phishing techniques or by using Spyware to monitor the targets internet activity.

Phishing scams are everywhere on the internet today; some of the main scams are from fake emails claiming to be from your bank account requesting that you log onto their website and enter some personal information. If you ever get an email like that never comply. You’re bank will never send you emails and ask for personal details so promptly so never fall for these scams even if the email does look legitimate. If emails that seem dodgy are sent to you it is advised you do not open them, block the sender and delete them.

Anti virus and spyware are also good programs to use to keep personal information from being stolen, by allowing a virus or spyware to enter your computer your system will be vunerable. Some current viruses that are around today can easily place programs on your computer without you noticing; these programs can record all the key presses you make and can easily obtain bank account numbers and other sensitive information.

The best way to fight against viruses and spyware is to download anti virus and spyware programs. Another way in which personal information can be kept secure is by having an up to date web browser. Web browsers such as Firefox and Internet Explorer are constantly updating their software with best internet security update patches so it is vital you keep up to date as often as possible to block website threats etc.

The secure padlock symbol is also a good way to determine if your credentials are safe. When you proceed to checkout on all trustworthy websites you will see a small yellow padlock icon at the bottom or the top of your web browser, this will show that the page is secure and your details are less likely to be stolen.

Whether you are running a business or have a computer in your home, backing up your data is imperative. In fact, personal files hold more value to most of us than business files. Think of how you would feel if you suddenly lost all of your precious family photos, or your history of emails. In this day and age, many people take their computers for granted, and don’t give a second thought to just how much of their lives exist on their hard drives.

For most people, backing up their computer data is considered such a chore that they keep putting on the back burner. It’s one of those tasks that they know they should be doing, but never seem to get around to, until it’s too late. Recent studies have shown that even businesses have trouble with this task, as low as 25% of businesses back up their data on a regular basis.

No matter how careful you may think you are, there are many reasons that your data may be lost. An unexpected power surge caused by a storm, a virus slipping its way through your defenses while your kids are checking their emails or simply an unexplainable hard drive malfunction could all result in the complete obliteration of your files. While some companies provide recovery services for damaged hard drives, they can be tremendously expensive and do not always succeed. It’s important to have the best internet security software.

Backing up doesn’t have to be difficult, and it doesn’t have to be expensive either. There are plenty of free options available out there that will be more than sufficient for the average user. The best backup software should give you the option of scheduling your backups on a regular basis. With the cost of external hard drives being so low, you should be able to plug one into your desktop or laptop, set up a regular backup routine, and never have to worry about it again. While your computer is idle, you will be secure in the knowledge that all your precious memories and important documents are being copied at a predefined time every day.

Furthermore, you are not just dealing a single library of information. In fact, the Internet contains more than the information capacity of all existing libraries in the world combined! That is how large the capacity of the Internet is in terms of holding information on various subjects of interest.

Because of the wide availability of the Internet, it is not just considered to be the information superhighway alone, but it is now one of the best business opportunities to start with. There are many jobless individuals who found themselves earning more than the salary of corporate executives. The Internet is flooded with hundreds of ways to earn hundreds, if not thousands of dollars every month. There you have Internet marketing, affiliate marketing, online advertising, online shopping, online auctions, and others. In fact, there are traditional business ventures that switched to Internet-based business, thus increasing their revenues by several percent more.

It is great to do business with the Internet. However, along with the growth of Internet-based businesses as well as the number of websites offering different online-based services come the growth of online threats and various disruptions that can bring Internet-based businesses to a halt. Strong viruses and self-destructing programs are circulating around the Internet, which is not beneficial for individuals and groups who rely on the Internet for their research and business activities.

Fortunately, there are online companies that provide security for Internet users, such as online-based entrepreneurs to protect their computer investment against the risk and danger of unwanted intrusions by hackers and virus programmers. One of which is the Bellsouth Premium Internet Security, which offers services that eliminates the risk and danger of online threats and unwanted disruptions such as the following:

• Free technical support;
• Round the clock (24/7) Internet security and real-time alerts for any unwanted intrusion;
• Automatic software updates;
• Detailed security statistics and event logs; and
• Convenient billing for services acquired from Bellsouth.

One of their Internet security packages that is popular to Bellsouth clients is the Premium Internet Security Suite that includes the following high-profile services:

• The Bellsouth Anti-Spyware Program, which detects and eliminates a wide range of Spyware and other unnecessary tracking software;
• The Bellsouth Anti-Virus Software, which clears and protects your computer against worms, viruses, and harmful elements that may contaminate your computer system; and
• The Bellsouth Firewall Software, which shield your computer system from unauthorized access.

Getting Bellsouth-provided Internet security services will ensure that your Internet-based business is protected against different threats that may harm your computer system, causing your online business to slow down or even shut down its operation. The money that you will spend for these Internet security services is nothing compared to hundreds or possibly thousands of dollars wasted because of these online threats affecting your computer system. With Bellsouth Internet security services, you are assured of a well-rounded business as well as research activities.

“We suspect an unauthorized transaction on your account. To ensure that your account is not compromised, please click the link below and confirm your identity.”

“During our regular verification of accounts, we couldn’t verify your information. Please click here to update and verify your information.”

Have you received email with a similar message? It’s a scam called “phishing” — and it involves Internet fraudsters who send spam or pop-up messages to lure personal information (credit card numbers, bank account information, Social Security number, passwords, or other sensitive information) from unsuspecting victims. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, phishers send an email or pop-up message that claims to be from a business or organization that you may deal with — for example, an Internet service provider (ISP), bank, online payment service, or even a government agency. The message may ask you to “update,” “validate,” or “confirm” your account information. Some phishing emails threaten a dire consequence if you don’t respond. The messages direct you to a website that looks just like a legitimate organization’s site. But it isn’t. It’s a bogus site whose sole purpose is to trick you into divulging your personal information so the operators can steal your identity and run up bills or commit crimes in your name.

The FTC suggests these tips for the best internet security to help you avoid getting hooked by a phishing scam and protect your identity.

• If you get an email or pop-up message that asks for personal or financial information, do not reply. And don’t click on the link in the message, either. Legitimate companies don’t ask for this information via email. If you are concerned about your account, contact the
organization mentioned in the email using a telephone number you know to be genuine, or open a new Internet browser session and type in the company’s correct Web address yourself. In any case, don’t cut and paste the link from the message into your Internet browser — phishers can make links look like they go to one place, but that actually send you to a different
site.

• Area codes can mislead. Some scammers send an email that appears to be from a legitimate business and ask you to call a phone number to update your account or access a “refund.” Because they use Voice Over Internet Protocol technology, the area code you call does not reflect where the scammers really are. If you need to reach an organization you do business with, call the number on your financial statements or on the back of your credit card. In any
case, delete random emails that ask you to confirm or divulge your financial information.

• Use anti-virus and anti-spyware software, as well as a firewall, and update them all regularly. Some phishing emails contain software that can harm your computer or track your activities on the Internet without your knowledge. Anti-virus software and a firewall can protect you from inadvertently accepting such unwanted files. Anti-virus software scans incoming communications for troublesome files. Look for antivirus software that recognizes current viruses as well as older ones; that can effectively reverse the damage; and that updates automatically. A firewall helps make you invisible on the Internet and blocks all communications from unauthorized sources. It’s especially important to run a firewall if you have a broadband
connection. Operating systems (like Windows or Linux) or browsers (like Internet Explorer or Netscape) also may offer free software “patches” to close holes in the system that hackers or phishers could exploit.

• Don’t email personal or financial information. Email is not a secure method of transmitting personal information. If you initiate a transaction and want to provide your personal or financial information through an organization’s website, look for indicators that the site is
secure, like a lock icon on the browser’s status bar or a URL for a website that begins “https:” (the “s” stands for “secure”). Unfortunately, no indicator is foolproof; some phishers have
forged security icons.

• Review credit card and bank account statements as soon as you receive them to check for unauthorized charges. If your statement is late by more than a couple of days, call your credit card company or bank to confirm your billing address and account balances.

• Be cautious about opening any attachment or downloading any files from emails you receive, regardless of who sent them. These files can contain viruses or other software that can weaken your computer’s security.

• Forward spam that is phishing for information to spam@uce.gov and to the company, bank, or organization impersonated in the phishing email. Most organizations have information on their websites about where to report problems.

• If you believe you’ve been scammed, file your complaint at ftc.gov, and then visit the FTC’s Identity Theft website at www.consumer.gov/idtheft. Victims of phishing can become
victims of identity theft. While you can’t entirely control whether you will become a victim of identity theft, you can take some steps to minimize your risk. If an identity thief is opening credit accounts in your name, these new accounts are likely to show up on your credit report.

* Don’t use an obvious e-mail address, such as JaneDoe@isp.com. Instead use numbers or other digits, such as Jane4oe6@isp.com.

* Use one e-mail address for close friends and family and another for everyone else. Free addresses are available from Yahoo! and Hotmail. You can also get a disposable forwarding address from www.spammotel.com. If an address attracts too much spam, get rid of it and establish a new one.

* Don’t post your e-mail address on a public web page. Spammers use software that harvests text addresses. Substitute “janedoe at isp.com” for “janedoe@isp.com.” Or display your address as a graphic image, not text.

* Don’t enter your address on a website before you check its privacy policy.

* Uncheck any check boxes. These often grant the site or its partners permission to contact you.

* Don’t click on an e-mail’s “unsubscribe” link unless you trust the sender. This action tells the sender you’re there.

* Never forward chain letters, petitions or virus warnings. All could be a spammer’s trick to collect addresses.

* Disable your e-mail “preview pane.” This stops spam from reporting to its sender that you’ve received it.

* Choose an Internet Service Provider (ISP) that filters e-mail. If you get lots of spam, your ISP may not be filtering effectively.

* Use spam-blocking software. Web browser software often includes free filtering options. You can also purchase special software that will accomplish this task.

* Report spam. Alert your ISP that spam is slipping through its filters. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also wants to know about “unsolicited commercial e-mail.” Forward spam to uce@ftc.gov.

Be Suspicious of Mass E-mails

Many mass e-mails contain false alarms, misleading requests for donations or fictitious offers of money and free goods. You can check the validity of almost any mass e-mail at www.Snopes.com. Don’t forward an e-mail unless you’re sure that it contains accurate information. Not only do such e-mails confuse recipients, they are often used to collect e-mail addresses for spammers.

Just what is Intelligent Explorer? For your safety, you really need to know

There seems to be a program out there that looks like a normal Internet Explorer upgrade, but if you look carefully, you will see that it’s a different program all together. If you are in the middle of something important you might just click the OK button without realizing that the program is really called Intelligent Explorer.

You will have more troubles than you would want to deal with in one life. It appears that Intelligent Explorer allows other software to be downloaded to your machine and this is where the problem occurs. What is even more remarkable is that by downloading Intelligent Explorer, their license grants them the right to install software add-ins on your computer at their will.

Take a look at what the software license for Intelligent Explore says (go to http://www.ieplugin.com/terms.html to read it all):

“You grant to us the right, exercisable by us until you uninstall the Software or this agreement is otherwise terminated, to provide to you the Service of downloading and causing to be displayed advertising material on your computer, through ‘pop-up’ or other display while you use your browser. You acknowledge and agree that installation of the Software may automatically modify toolbars and other settings of your browser. By installing the Software you agree to such modifications.”

If you are wondering how a company can go ahead and do something like this, the company IBC Inc. is incorporated in Belize. That should explain how a company would get away with this behavior.

Intelligent Explorer is a plug-in, which can create a new home page, as well as start up and endless loop of pop-ups. You can remove the view bar, but then starting up Internet Explorer will cause it to reappear.

What can you do to fix this if you fall victim to it? Buy a copy of a program called XoftSpy and follow the steps to remove the Intelligent Explorer. There are also other programs that will also do the job like spybot, NoAdware, Spyware Eliminator, Pal Spyware Remover, and Spyware C.O.P.

I do have to say that I’ve not had to purchase any of these programs since I’m very careful with what is downloaded into my computers and laptops.

Unfortunately, there are so many different types of security programs that we can download on to our computers. How do we know which program to use? Each one of them are good in their own way, but to know which one you need is up to you.

One of the oldest security programs that most know about is Norton security program. I’ve used it and I think it works just great. If you’re using this program, you’re pretty much in good hands.
What about McAfee Security Program? Well, I started using this program about two years ago when I bought a laptop and it was installed on it already. I found it to be just as good as Norton in protecting the computer from the outside world. What I found different was the fact that it’s security center was a lot easier to navigate through. Overall the two programs are just as good as the other.

If you want to know which program to use to protect your computer, I would say that any one of the two that I spoke about is good to go with, but there are some others out there that will work just as well. It’s a matter of personal preference in regards of which one will give you the best internet security. The reason I talked about Norton and McAfee is because they are the leaders when it comes to protecting your personal computer or laptop.