How protective are you of your delicate private information?
Let’s face it. In a world where everyone and everything is online (including shopping, medical care, and many fields of work), we can get lazy with our information.
We put our social security numbers and credit card information on websites without a second thought. Our full names are circulating around every site that we shop on. Our photos are free for the world to see.
Are you using secure websites for these things, or are you making serious mistakes with your private information?
There are plenty of fraudulent, scammy, or just insecure websites out there that can trick even the savviest web user. We want to help you avoid disaster.
Keep reading to learn how to identify a legitimate and secure website, as well as how to identify illegitimate or insecure websites.
What Does It Mean for a Website to be Secure?
So what does website security mean anyway?
A secure website is one that protects the information of its users and visitors. These websites are usually verified and they’re safe to use.
When you put private information onto a website, you want to know that it’s not going to be stolen by third parties (though the website may share some information with third parties on its own; always read user agreements).
It’s especially important to check for a website’s security when you’re entering payment information. Third-party systems like Paypal are more popular than ever now that people are more aware of what can happen when they misidentify a website as secure when it’s really insecure or even fraudulent.
What Are Identification Markers for Secure Websites?
So how can you know that the website that you’re on is secure? You don’t want to risk someone stealing your information, and regardless of whether or not the insecurity is intentional or malicious, you have to be careful.
There are a few ways that you can identify a secure website. The first is simple: there’s a small lock icon where the URL is. Depending on the browser, it might be on the left or the right. The lock should be closed. If you see this, you know that the website has protections in place.
You can also check for a trust seal. A trust seal is a marker of verification that lets the user know that this website has been looked over. The trust seal should say something like “verified” or “secure”.
Now, it’s easy to make a fake seal by stealing an image from another website or creating one in Photoshop. When you click a legitimate seal, it should take you to a verification page.
Most secure websites have linked privacy policies that anyone can look at. The privacy policy tells the user about their rights and about how their data will be used, protected, and distributed. Many countries require privacy policies on all websites. You should always check the privacy policy to make sure that you agree with its terms.
You can also look for the “s” in “HTTPS” in website URLs. We’re used to seeing “HTTP”, but the “s” is an indicator that the website has been encrypted. Encryption protects your private information.
Remember, even on secure websites you should always be careful with your private information and have strong passwords. You can test password strength to make sure you’re as safe as possible.
How Can You Identify Insecure Websites?
Not all websites are secure. Even legitimate websites have security lapses. Sometimes they’re unavoidable to the average person, but other times they’re obvious.
One of the most obvious ways that you can identify an insecure website is through an alert by your web browser. Many browsers and browser extensions won’t let you access a page that they deem to be insecure. Some will allow it, but you have to click a series of links that warn you of the potential consequences.
You should also take a look at the previous signs. Does the URL not contain an “s” after “HTTP?” Is there no sign of a privacy policy? Does a verification symbol not include a link, or does the link lead somewhere suspicious? Before you click anything, make sure to check the URL to ensure you’re not going somewhere dangerous.
It’s possible that the creator hasn’t updated their privacy settings so they’re no longer protected. It’s their job to re-encrypt everything so users are safe.
What About Fraudulent Websites?
Many insecure websites are fraudulent. They’re run by scammers who are out to get your money or information so they can share it with malicious third parties.
While the previous methods are good for identifying fraudulent methods as well, there are a few other things that you can look for.
If the website contains frequent misspellings, there’s a good chance that it’s run by scammers. Scammers intentionally use poor spelling so that the people who are fooled by the websites may be more gullible.
These websites may have URLs that are suspiciously close to legitimate URLs. This is intended to trick people who aren’t paying attention. They may also use symbols or logos of popular companies.
You may experience annoying popups on the site. While many sites have some form of popups (often to ask you to sign up for a newsletter), these popups will advertise prizes or claim that your information was already stolen. Don’t fall for these; they’re signs of malware.
These pages also don’t often have contact information. This means that when you have problems with insecurity, fraud, or malware, there’s nowhere for you to go. Check the contact page and verify the contact information if you’re unsure.
Is Your Information Secure?
Don’t fall victim to insecure websites. Website security is the responsibility of the owner of the website, and you don’t want to put your information anywhere where someone can steal it.
Secure websites are easy to identify once you know the signs. Stick with them and use our website security tips and you’ll have no problems browsing the web.
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