Safe and secure internet.

Internet Never Says No.

 

SCAMS! HACKS! MONEY LOST! DATA LOST! PRIVATE VIDEOS AND PICTURES LEAKED. BLACKMAILED! and much more. Do you guys have any idea how this happens?

We do. One simple click. YES! One simple click on the wrong URL or downloading an illegal app or entering the personal and bank details on insecure website. We might not notice these small things we do daily, damage is done and the price we pay is high.

 

In this article we are going to help you with the information how these clicks are harmful and simple tips to save yourself and your device from such attacks

What could possibly go wrong if I could download this app from that website. You could probably say; "This modified app let me do what normal users can't". This is where the shit hits the fan. Once you download, a backdoor (a program written mostly in JavaScript) could let the hacker or an idiot with resources to get into your device and get remote access to your files, accounts and many more which we can not think of.

Well, we do not want that, Do we? In order to browse the internet safe without being a lamb, read the below simple steps so that you can eat mutton but not become one.

1. Public WiFi Networks or unknown Networks: You probably heard about this from your friends. When you're in Metro station, bus stop or in the shopping mall, coffee shop, you get the free Wi-Fi for 45 minutes to an hour after verifying your mobile number with OTP. I'd say this is the best thing to use when you exhausted your data plan and in the need of the internet. But, you have to remember that when you get something free, there is something you should look out for. 

For instance, if you are in a grocery store and at the clearance sale, you see 50% off deals. You don't buy them at the moment, do you? You check the manufacturing date, best before and damages to make sure it is safe to buy and use.

Similarly in the public Wi-Fi scenario, someone might be on the internet looking for the data to steal and blackmail you for money or whatsoever. 

What data you might think;  They can't read the messages you send or receive, but they can get the information like email address, password, bank details or whatever you do while using that public network. To avoid this, connect the mobile to the VPN (Virtual Private Network) so that the data you are entering in your mobile is sent is encrypted over the network so, no one can not read what you are doing.

You might ask what's VPN? To put it in simple words, it hides your original IP address and encrypts every single information you send over the internet. But, most of us use the VPN to access blocked Websites. That is also a use but start using the VPN for this purpose from now.

Want to know best VPN's available to use on your mobile? We mentioned every single application to save you, at the end of this article. Now, don't rush. Before you go ahead and download, read the whole article to know more about the attacks and save yourself and your loved ones. Also, help us reach more people by sharing this post and commenting on it.

2. Passwords: Any password can be cracked in less than a week. People are becoming forgettable and using simple passwords yet same passwords on different applications and accounts. Say, password of your Instagram is cracked, they get your password and use the same password on Google, Twitter, Facebook, and many more. Imagine what they can do with that access.

Instead of feeling remorse after shitting the bed, consider using a passphrase. It's so simple and you can easily remember these. It could take at least 6 months to 10 years to crack a passphrase compared to a password? 

Here's how a passphrase is going to be: "kfc'schickensuckS" or "Pizzazdabest" or "MahInstaPassphr@s3"

See, the passphrases make sense and you can remember them unless you have amnesia. 😉

3. Websites: Instead of us telling you scam rate is going high these days in India, visit www.consumercomplaintscourt.com to read the real life scams. How they are done and the cost you're paying.

Two factors to check before you access and enter any details in the website:

1. Protocol

2. URL (Uniform Resource Locator)

1. As we know from our childhood, HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol. But they do not teach us anything about HTTPS which is similar to HTTP but more secure. Yes, S at the end of the HTTPS stands for Secure.

Never trust HTTP. This protocol is outdated and can be easily modified to get the user data. Always look for HTTPS before you enter any information even if it is Wi-Fi login page. 

2.  Always enter the website URL you know. For instance; Instagram.com, amazon.in, mail.google.com, etc.

* If you do not know the website URL, search for it, and open the page; check if the URL has any difference than you have seen before like; ww1.Instagram_com.xym or www.amazon_in.net and more. These websites are fake and do not login.

>> If you ever has any doubt about the URL before you open or login, use the website called Virus total where you can scan the files you received before you open, links before you visit and even search from there.

Wondering why the fake websites show up on the Google search? Remember this: Internet is a huge iceberg that sank the Titanic. We see that and think that's it. But there is a lot more to that iceberg under the water, we just don't see it.

It is literally impossible to Google or any organization to remove the fake links from the search engines because they are a LOT! Normally, any website uses Google's Ad-sense to get their webpage in the top 10 of the search results by adding the keywords what people search for. Don't believe? 

Go ahead and search for anything, you will see ad for the first 4 links you see. That is what happens. So, the attackers who need your information, can't use the Ad-sense as they may get caught. So they use a few tools to make their fake created the page and manipulate the SEO (Search Engine Optimization) so that the website appears in the first.

5. Apps: I have a friend who did this and see what happened to him;

Flash: Hey man! Look at this beautiful bike pic. What do you think?

H R Wells: Dope. Can you share it to me?

Flash: Yeah sure, I will share the post to your DM.

H R Wells: What?! No No, just send me the picture, I want to keep it as my wallpaper.

Flash: Dude, are you new to this? We can not download the pictures from Instagram. I will share the post and why don't you get a snapshot of it?

H R Wells: You can "super hero" but you aren't smart, are you?

Flash: What did you just say?!

H R Wells: Chill man. See, I downloaded the modified Instagram app from a website through which I can download the pictures from it and even stories, I can view the stories of my friends without showing my name on their viewed list. Cool, isn't?

Flash: Oh man! What did you do? What's wrong with you?

H R Wells: What now? Hey Cisco! What the hell is he talking about?

Cisco: You're just a doppelganger of Dr. Wells, you didn't get his brains. Let me put it to you this way;

You remember Trojan horse? Yeah, so, the actual Instagram app which is available on the play-store and app store is legit. The one which you downloaded is a Trojan app or could be worse a logic bomb. You see, when they modify the app, they change the app code to their own feasibility and you see what they show you. 

Tell me this; is your phone heating and draining your battery fast?

H R Wells: Yes, even worst my phone started to slow down recently.

Cisco: You know why? Because, you installed that damn application and you invited unknown guests to your home. More like private space in your home. What happens when there are unknown guests in your home?

H R Wells: Well, I would like to get to know to them and drink coffee.

Cisco: Awesome... NOT! You idiot, you live in the fear what they could do and you can not concentrate as you observe them quite the time. That's what happens with the phone, they use all the resources while you download the pictures or celebrate that your friend didn't see you in their story view list.

Imagine you have an unknown person in your home without your knowledge.. What could they do? What's the worst that could happen? When you answer these questions, try to imagine the same with someone who has remote connection to your mobile and has access to your Instagram account and worse; your mobile.

H R Wells: But.. But I downloaded this from the website which has HTTPS protocol.

Cisco: Wow, you used your brain for once and not in the right way, huh? The protocol will help you secure the data you enter not the data that you download.

H R Wells: I knew it! So, instead of gloating that I did this. Why don't we discuss about what we can do? Huh? Any thoughts guys?

Cisco: Classic Wells! So, you are logged into your modded app and using it right? Do the below steps:

> Uninstall the modified app from your phone and delete the apk that you have downloaded.

> Install Malware-bytes app from the playstore.

> Scan for the virus by clicking on full scan.

> Once done, if you find any trojans, malwares or unwanted files, quarantine them and delete them later.

> Reboot your phone and install the legit instagram app to change the password. Dang it! Passphrase! not password.

Cisco: Once you are done with the above steps, think if you have used the same email address or the password with any other account or social media. If you did, change the password to passphrase.

And that's how it's done.

Here are the list of the websites and applications we mentioned in the post to secure your internet browsing:

1. VPN: A lot of VPNs are available, as of now, the best and free VPNs are 

* Proton VPN, TOR, Turbo VPN, Windsheild and more.

* McAfee, Nord, Norton VPNs are paid and very powerful

2. To check if the website or the file you're downloading is legit, use:

* Virustotal.com

3. Anti-virus: Malwarebytes one of the best anti-virus available for mobile. It's logo looks like this; 

 

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Signing off;

Hulk-5m@sh ✊