Five tips to stay on the safe side of the net

Several studies have found a direct correlation between Internet usage and depression, anxiety and stress.

Negative news stories, the social media onslaught, the fears of becoming vulnerable to attack – these absolutely influence a person’s state of mind and well-being.

Stephen Osler, co-founder and business development director at Nclose said you should focus on ensuring that your approaches to Internet safety and security were aligned to best practice, but this year it should also focus on taking positive steps away from the infodemic and the negativity for a healthier and happier relationship with the Internet.

Osler offered the following tips for Internet safety:

• Burnout increased by 33 per cent in 2020. People were tired, disconnected and disinterested. To avoid falling into this trap again in 2021, take time away from technology. Go outside, limit your device usage, cut back on technology and remember what it was like to be disconnected instead.

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• Focus on the positive. If you receive an instant message or unverified social media message that makes you feel angry or afraid, it’s very likely that it was engineered to do just that. Your best decision may be to simply delete it, and move on.
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The same applies to the news, use reliable news outlets, avoid risky URLs that can not only infect your devices but your well-being, and limit your news viewing to set times per day.

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• The same principle applies to fraud, phishing and similar scams. If you receive an email, SMS, call or social media message that sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If it comes from a source such as an instant messaging platform, don’t trust it. If it offers you a massive discount if you share your information, check the source and the URL first.

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• Invest into putting security tools on your desktop and keep them updated. It’s easy to forget to update your browser or your security system because you’re busy, but those five minutes could protect you from five months of fixing a hack or ID theft.

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• Look for happiness on the Internet. It’s as easy to find the good news as it is to find the bad news.

For example, did you know that as a direct result of the pandemic, animal shelters are emptier than ever before?

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