Tis the season to be jolly: Don’t let hackers ruin holidays

By Linda Lambiotte, ASC Public AffairsDecember 17, 2021

Tis the season to be jolly: Don’t let hackers ruin holidays
Your best defense against online hacking is awareness. Stay informed and promptly take action when you notice something is not right. (Illustration by Linda Lambiotte, ASC Public Affairs) (Photo Credit: Linda Lambiotte, ASC Public Affairs) VIEW ORIGINAL

ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, Ill. – While it’s supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, the holiday season can turn into a hunting ground for hackers, scammers, and identity thieves, becoming THEIR favorite time of the year.

Why is that?

While many of us still prefer the traditional in-person shopping experience, many others have switched heavily to online purchases in the past few years, even more since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic early last year.

This has caused a significant increase in our population’s record of online activities, also referred to as digital footprint.

“When we make online purchases, we leave a trail of personal information such as our home address, date of birth, credit card information, spending habits, and even our personal preferences,” said Dr. Kathy Linderman, chief information officer for the U.S. Army Sustainment Command G6 (Information Management).

While online shopping is practical, fast, and often easier, we do tend to share a lot of sensitive information that could expose us to personal and financial risks.

“Some shopping websites will place ‘cookies’ on each visitor’s computer to track online activity and provide information to the cookie owner,” Linderman said. “All of this information is often used to target us with advertisements for other products or services we might like.”

However, such information can also be used for more nefarious purposes, such as obtaining credit cards or opening credit accounts in our names, using our credit card numbers for purchases, or stealing money directly from our bank accounts, she said.

As millions of Americans will be online looking for the best deals, so will online thieves.

Here are a few tips to help keep you safe:

0 Check your devices and make sure they are updated with the latest security

software.

0 Only shop on websites that have an IP address starting in “https” – your data is not secure on the ones that only have “http”. Also, stick with authorized retailers and whenever possible use their app that you can easily download on the Android or Apple play stores.

0 Use strong passwords for all of your accounts; make them a combination of letters, numbers, and special characters. It is a good practice to enable multi-factor authentication, to make sure it is really you who is trying to make a purchase. Do not use the same password on multiple sites.

0 Be careful clicking on links sent to your personal email that advertise exclusive deals in order to avoid phishing scams.

0 Monitor all of your statements and report suspicious/unauthorized activity immediately.

0 Pay with a credit card instead of a debit card whenever possible – credit card companies offer better fraud protection. Consider using virtual credit card numbers, which can be issued instantly and revoked after each use.

Linderman said that the use of credit cards is more encouraged than debit cards because, while you may be able to dispute illegitimate charges on either one, debit cards could allow a thief to drain your bank account in the meantime.

Linderman discussed the importance of being aware of our own digital footprint.

“When we use the internet, we leave a trail of data that is long-lasting,” she said. “Others can use our digital footprint to gather a plethora of information about who we are, our interests, our personal preferences, and our associations.

“The information can then be used by a future employer, a business looking for customers, or an identity thief. The key is to remember that any information you choose to share online, or just information about your online activity, may be there for years,” she added.

It is important to always take our time to verify the purchases we are making are legit – scammers are counting on us to make mistakes in order to perform malicious acts.

Linderman said that it can be tricky to spot a scam.

The official-looking messages that scammers send out can trick people into thinking they are legit. Often the sender shows as your personal bank or commonly used vendors such as Amazon or PayPal. These messages may request that you click on a link to update your personal information, sometimes telling you that your account has been or will be locked or deleted if you don’t respond immediately.

“In an old scam that has recently resurfaced, a thief will send a text message claiming to be someone you know, telling you that they have an emergency,” said Linderman, “only to ask you to help them by purchasing gift cards and providing them with your credit card information.”

Sometimes you can spot a scam by a misspelled word or bad grammar, or find a suspicious web address by hovering over the link if using a computer, or expanding the sender’s email address to view it fully.

The best way to avoid being a victim is to verify everything.

“Never click on a link in an unsolicited email or text, or respond to a text from an unfamiliar number,” Linderman said. “Instead, call the bank, vendor, or other solicitor using a known number to find out if the request is legitimate.”

You can also verify the account is not locked or suspended by manually typing the known web address into your browser (e.g., Amazon.com) and logging in, she said.

In the end, your best defense against online hacking is awareness. Stay informed and promptly take action when you notice something is not right.