The Hindu Business Line : For safe surfing

While kids enjoy playing games on the PC, teenagers either work on a project or surf for hours. The homemaker is no exception. She wants to look up the latest recipe while the grandmother awaits her turn to check mail from loved ones in distant lands.

The going is smooth until something goes wrong somewhere. The error message on the screen or the slowing speed is enough to sour the fun. But why should such problems arise?

There could be problems with your system, more dangerously, there could be viruses, worms on the prowl, not to mention `phishing' attacks.

`Phishing' attacks are emerging as a new and big threat to cyber security. According to Anti-Phishing Working Group statistics, about 5 per cent of users fall prey to Phishing scams. Spam, viruses, worms and other malicious code account for global losses amounting to several billion dollars.

Is there a way out?

`Cyber crime is here to stay' asserts Captain Raghu Raman, CEO of Mahindra Security Services Group. This information security veteran, during his stint in the United Nations, was responsible for securing information flow between UN Head Quarters and Mission Control HQ in Africa.

He suggests 10steps that would help cover against 80 per cent of all causes of information security breaches. They are:

1. Install the latest antivirus software on your computer and never ever turn it (antivirus) off. Install a personal firewall and spyware checker (all are available for free). (Do a Google search using the keywords `antivirus and free'.)

2. Never download or open attachments, whose source you are not certain about. Even if the source is trusted, see if the content is relevant, if not don't open the attachment. Create another email ID, which you use exclusively for subscription to sites. That will prevent spam from coming to your main ID. Some accounts like Yahoo allow you to create topic-specific e-mail IDs that you can delink.

3. Avoid checking mail or using credit card details online in cyber cafes. It is next to impossible to be sure that it is safe. Even reputed cafés such as those in international airports and five-star hotels have known to be key-logged. As a matter of fact, open an additional debit card with a limit if you do want to transact online. In the worst case, your damages are limited.

4. Do not give away your residence or cell-phone number. Be especially careful when you are filling in contest forms, coupons, free-gift vouchers etc. More often than not, these are gimmicks to obtain your personal details. Do not believe it when they say the data will not be given to others - it most certainly will be. Do not print these numbers on your visiting card.

5. Get into the habit of destroying documentation regarding credit cards, such as receipts, bills, invoices or any documents that contain personal details.

6. If you are using broadband or working from home, ensure that your PC is hardened professionally.

7. Read about Information security breaches by subscribing to some newsletters. In the case of many breaches the only defence is knowledge. For instance, no technology could have prevented the phishing attack (wherein victims got mails seemingly from legitimate banks asking them to confirm their passwords and IDs).

8. Use two different passwords. One for mail, work and other important access and the other for routine proposes such as subscribing to sites etc. But remember to switch between them when you start doing transactions after mere browsing.

9. Create a difficult to guess password by taking the first alphabet from each word of a phrase. For instance, a password like 1at*eomc is constructed using a phrase "I am the star employee of my company."

10. Educate your children about the dangers of cyber crime. Children with their unbound curiosity and unmonitored access are the single most common victims of cyber crime, apart from enterprises. Ensure that the home PC is kept in a common place so that you can monitor what is going on.

Even while suggesting these steps, Raghu concedes to information being a reality of modern life. So don't stop going after it, just be careful.

lnr@thehindu.co.in

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