Internet Research Project

Choose Strong Passwords

Protect your devices and accounts from intruders by choosing passwords that are hard to guess. Use strong passwords with at least eight characters, a combination of letters, numbers and special characters. Don't use a word that can easily be found in a dictionary or any reference to personal information, such as a birthday. Some hackers use programs that can try every word in the dictionary, and can easily find personal information such as dates of birth. Try using a phrase to help you remember your password, using the first letter of each word in the phrase. For example, HmWc@w2—How much wood could a woodchuck chuck.

Choose unique passwords for each online account you use: financial institution, social media, or email. If you have too many passwords to remember, consider using password manager software, which can help you create strong individual passwords and keep them secure. Many social media, email, and financial accounts allow the use of stronger authentication methods. These methods can include using a fingerprint, one-time codes sent to a mobile device, or other features that ensure a user is supposed to have access to the account.

Spoofing

Spoofing is when someone disguises an email address, sender name, phone number, or website URL—often just by changing one letter, symbol, or number—to convince you that you are interacting with a trusted source. For example, you might receive an email that looks like it’s from your boss, a company you’ve done business with, or even from someone in your family—but it actually isn’t.Criminals count on being able to manipulate you into believing that these spoofed communications are real, which can lead you to download malicious software, send money, or disclose personal, financial, or other sensitive information.

Phishing

Phishing schemes often use spoofing techniques to lure you in and get you to take the bait. These scams are designed to trick you into giving information to criminals that they shouldn’t have access to. In a phishing scam, you might receive an email that appears to be from a legitimate business and is asking you to update or verify your personal information by replying to the email or visiting a website. The web address might look similar to one you’ve used before. The email may be convincing enough to get you to take the action requested. But once you click on that link, you’re sent to a spoofed website that might look nearly identical to the real thing—like your bank or credit card site—and asked to enter sensitive information like passwords, credit card numbers, banking PINs, etc. These fake websites are used solely to steal your information.