United Neighbors Caring - October 10, 2011

From the United Neighbors Caring Newsletter Sent October 7, 2011

 These are some great safety tips that we feel compelled to share - And they'll benefit you wherever you live!***

GMAIL BREACH: EIGHT TIPS TO PROTECT YOUR E-MAIL ACCOUNT

1. Strong passwordsUse a strong password, and reset it now and then. One common trick to strengthen passwords is to use a mix of lower- and upper-case letters, and to substitute look-alike characters for certain letters in a word. If you have a beagle, your password might be b3aG13.2. Use your own bookmarksSign in to your account by typing the address for the log-in page manually, or by using a link you've saved yourself, not after linking to a login-page provided by someone else (such as a link in an e-mail you've received). This step might have thwarted the recent hacker attacks.In this case, hackers didn't actually worm their way into  a Google's database of users. Instead, the perpetrators seem to have lured people to a fake website that looked close enough to an actual log-in page for Gmail to trick users into typing in their passwords.3. Two-step verificationIf you're a Gmail user, consider a stepped-up level of security called two-step verification. When you sign up for this, you'll need both your regular password and (periodically) a code that arrives on your phone."This campaign, which appears to originate from Jinan, China, affected what seem to be the personal Gmail accounts of hundreds of users," Google says, "including, among others, senior U.S. government officials, Chinese political activists, officials in several Asian countries (predominantly South Korea), military personnel and journalists."You may not fall into the category of human-rights activist or government official, but virtually any user of online communications faces similar threats.4. Suspicious settingsWatch for suspicious signs. This includes keeping tabs on the settings in your account, as well as your contact list, trash folder, and sent mail folder. In Gmail, look within the "Mail settings" tab for forwarding and delegation settings that grant others access to your account.5. Web addressesWatch the web address when you're about to type your password. A well-protected connection should include "https" (the "s" for secure) in the web address, as well as the correct name of your mail provider (such as “Google.com”).6. Public machines and networksTry not to access your e-mail from public computers or unsecured networks. If you do so, or if you loan out your password to a colleague, consider changing your password soon after.Also, sign out of your e-mail program when you're done using it.7. Two e-mail accounts: One secured, one looseSome people may want to use one e-mail account for their most sensitive online communications, and another one for low-level needs (like supplying an e-mail address when you make a purchase online or when you sign up for a news feed).8. Security softwareKeep your computer protected using security software (Symantec's Norton products and the free program Avast! are some of the popular tools), which creates a security firewall for your activity and scans for intrusions of so-called malware.