Safety First!!!
In the constant changing digital world, it is vital to be as safe as possible when navigating and using online spaces. In particular, one of the most common ways your digital safety can be compromised is through email. Common threats that you can run into via email include phishing, viruses, and spam.
Here are some tips to keep yourself safe:
- Protect your email address
- The more you expose and share your email address online, the more prone you are to digital attacks.
- Do not reply to "spam emails"
- Replying to spam emails will only increase your chance of interacting with something that is unsafe from the sender and may even leave you vulnerable to viruses or other unwanted media.
- Do not interact with links or files from "spam emails"
- Similar to the previous bullet point, interacting with unsolicited emails can increase your risks of viruses and unwanted media.
- Limit your information you share
- Emails are usually connected to our social media and other websites that we constantly interact with. Limiting the information you share on those sites will also keep you safe. Click on the "Netiquette" tab on this site to learn more about social networking.
- Have multiple email addresses
- Using specific email addresses for specific purposes not only keeps your information limited to where you want to keep it, but it can also keep the information you are receving much more organized.
Email is not the only concept of digital safety, but it is one of the main ways you can prevent unwanted interactions and attacks from online threats. Keeping your email and personal information safe is the first and easiest way to prevent many major issues and personal security breaches from happening.
Sources: