1. There are withdrawals from your checking account that you did not make

2. You access your credit report and there are accounts you did not open

3. You are receiving phone calls from debt collection agencies

4. The IRS has rejected your tax return

5. A business you frequent has notified you that they have experienced a data breach

6. You start receiving medical bills for procedures or doctor visits you did not have

7. You are unusually denied for a loan or credit card

8. Your checkbook or credit card go missing

9. You get a new credit card in the mail

10. Bills stop arriving in the mail

In an effort to keep your identity secure, be sure to do the following:

• Check your credit report on a regular basis
• Get identity theft protection to help monitor your credit
• Report any unusual activity on your bank or credit card statement
• Always protect your Social Security Number. Do not print it on your checks and never give it to an unknown source.
• Any paperwork with personal details should be shredded prior to disposing of it.

Below are 10 simple and easy things you can do today to start safeguarding your personal information

Change your passwords if necessary

Slow down

Do not answer calls from unknown numbers

Only shop on secure websites

Be wary of how you pay

Monitor your credit

Do not sync sensitive information to the cloud

Make sure your wireless network is secure

Do not answer chain email

Watch your children's online activity

Below are 10 things to do when you find out you have been a victim of identity theft.

1. Close out any credit or debit cards

2. Put a credit freeze or fraud alert on your credit reports

3. Contact the FTC

4. File a police report

5. Provide creditors with a copy of your ID theft report

6. Dispute fraudulent accounts on your credit report

7. Change all account passwords

8. Apply for a new driver’s license

9. Call your utility and telephone company

10. Call the Social Security fraud hotline

What the researchers elected to do was light that haystack on fire, figuratively, at least.


In one instance the researchers found a breach – but the point of compromise was spread across 10 batches of data. It had a large impact on clients but it wasn’t entirely clear where the breach took place. All that could be deduced, based on the data, was that a large number of Canadians were affected.

Eventually, after digging into the data, Smyth’s team saw transactions from a restaurant and a digital store, and observed an overlap between candidate transactions and the group, which confirmed a positive point of compromise.

One of the biggest challenges, as is to be expected, is interpreting all of the data.

"You can't assume there’s only one breach, you have to be careful with the thresholds you use but you can still make inferences," Smyth said.

Smyth and Clare Gollnick, Terbium’s CTO, said the process is a still a proof of concept but that it could be automated in time, to potentially identify victims in as little as 30 minutes.

The research is a bit like paleontology in the sense they’re going back, after fraud has happened, to identify accounts and systemic risk but could be adapted to help identify victims before fraudulent transactions have been made.


“Data is valuable and defense is necessary,” Smyth said, “using this approach it’s possible to prevent some sort of loss down the road.

A DEFINITION OF EMAIL SECURITY
Email security describes various techniques for keeping sensitive information in email communication and accounts secure against unauthorized access, loss, or compromise. Email is a popular medium for the spread of malware, spam, and phishing attacks, using deceptive messages to entice recipients to divulge sensitive information, open attachments or click on hyperlinks that install malware on the victim’s device. Email is also a common entry vector for attackers looking to gain a foothold in an enterprise network and breach valuable company data.

Email security is necessary for both individual and business email accounts, and there are multiple measures organizations should take to enhance email security.

THE NEED FOR EMAIL SECURITY
Due the popularity of email as an attack vector, it is critical that enterprises and individuals take measures to secure their email accounts against common attacks as well as attempts at unauthorized access to accounts or communications.

Malware sent via email messages can be quite destructive. Phishing emails sent to employees often contain malware in attachments designed to look like legitimate documents or include hyperlinks that lead to websites that serve malware. Opening an email attachment or clicking on a link in an email can be all that it takes for accounts or devices to become compromised.

Phishing emails can also be used to trick recipients into sharing sensitive information, often by posing as a legitimate business or trusted contacts. Phishing attacks against businesses often target departments that handle sensitive personal or financial information, such as accounts payable or human resources. In addition to impersonating known vendors or company executives, attackers will try to instill a sense of urgency in phishing emails to increase their chances of success. Phishing emails aimed at stealing information typically will ask recipients to confirm their login information, passwords, social security number, bank account numbers, and even credit card information. Some even link to counterfeit websites that look exactly like that of a reputable vendor or business partner to trick victims into entering account or financial information.

ENTERPRISE EMAIL SECURITY BEST PRACTICES
There are multiple ways to secure email accounts, and for enterprises, it’s a two-pronged approach encompassing employee education and comprehensive security protocols. Best practices for email security include:

Engage employees in ongoing security education around email security risks and how to avoid falling victim to phishing attacks over email.
Require employees to use strong passwords and mandate password changes periodically.
Utilize email encryption to protect both email content and attachments.
Implement security best practices for BYOD if your company allows employees to access corporate email on personal devices.
Ensure that webmail applications are able to secure logins and use encryption.
Implement scanners and other tools to scan messages and block emails containing malware or other malicious files before they reach your end users.
Implement a data protection solution to identify sensitive data and prevent it from being lost via email.

END USER EMAIL SECURITY BEST PRACTICES
There are also some important best practices that end users should follow to ensure secure email usage. Arming your employees with the know-how to avoid risky behaviors can make a substantial impact on your company’s ability to reduce risks associated with email. Email security best practices for end users/employees include:

• Never open attachments or click on links in email messages from unknown senders.
• Change passwords often and use best practices for creating strong passwords.
• Never share passwords with anyone, including co-workers.
• Try to send as little sensitive information as possible via email, and send sensitive information only to recipients who require it.
• Use spam filters and anti-virus software.
• When working remotely or on a personal device, use VPN software to access corporate email.
• Avoid accessing company email from public wi-fi connections.

By educating employees on email security and implementing the proper measures to protect email, enterprises can mitigate many of the risks that come with email usage and prevent sensitive data loss or malware infections via email.

Every now and then, there comes a new report regarding a fresh online security hack being unveiled and while the online world is trying to  move towards complete digitization, the fact that when it comes to optimum online security, there is a long way ahead of us is also true. Moreover, online transactions is one area on which mostly all cyber attacks are focused and while, we as consumers, have made online transactions popular as they make our lives much easier with the diversified options it offers, it is also true that everything in life comes with a risk and with online transactions, it’s bigger than we think.

The online economy is nothing but billions of dollars being exchanged almost every single day, moreover, online transactions/shopping has resulted in lower prices, unmatched ease of buying as well as incredibly diverse choices for consumers. Being confident due to the millions of transactions taking place, many of us regularly shop and bank online with any second thought. From ordering pizzas to literally buying a house and from transferring money to booking tickets online, these online transactions are the need of the hour which is also looking to practically eliminate the worry of standing in a queue or waiting, to say the least.

However, as unfortunate as it might sound, online fraud and identity theft sort of come complimentary with the popularity and ease of online transactions, thanks to clever cyber thieves as well as sloppy consumers with precarious Internet shopping habits.

When it comes to ‘how to secure your online transactions’, while there is no guarantee that you will always be safe from a cyber threat including viruses, hackers, malware and other scams, it’s more of a habitual change that you need. On that note, here we are listing six tips that you can follow to secure your online transactions.

Tips for you and you should follow them well

1. Choose your password wisely: While choosing a password, strictly follow the given instructions by banks, mutual funds, etc for choosing the same while making an online transaction (keep it complex and change it regularly). Also using anniversaries or names and a date of birth, of people who are close to you is strictly discouraged since all this could easily be guessed. Moreover, neither share a password with an outsider nor communicate it via social media.

2. Avoid phishing emails: Always Be careful about emails asking about your personal/confidential financial information. The government, SEBI, RBI or even any other regulated entities never ask for password or card numbers.

3. Beware of public Wi-Fi: Never ever resort to making an online transaction from a cyber cafe or through a public Wi-Fi or a shared system. Always prefer your home computer and also install adequate firewalls and anti-virus software. It’s also a good habit to keep your computers/laptops updated with new security patches and operating systems, always.

4. Secure Socket Layer (SSL): Always check for Secure Socket Layer (SSL) or https security on the login page of any particular bank’s website. Here, the ‘s’ after the ‘http’ indicates that a particular site is secure. Similarly, look for identity verified-signs as well as SSL security of an online shopping portal in order to protect your debit/credit card number along with your personal information. Also, check for the padlock icon in the browser window.

5. Autocomplete: Always disable Autocomplete/Password storage in your browser since they have a tendency to keep caches of sites you visit, and on prompting, could offer to save passwords for you. However, if you opt for this, you will have to enter all the passwords and URLs every time to come online, but the inconvenience is worth it as your data will be safe in case of a data theft attempt or if your system gets stolen.

6. Web browser privacy mode: This is said to be the best tool in order to keep your online transactions safe, moreover, every new browser comes with this feature. This option sets up a separate browser window that deletes all the data on the moment a particular browser window is closed while clearing caches as well as keeping your private data out of public domain.


Stay vigilant, stay safe!!
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1. Customer submits the payment information to the merchant. For example customer completes the payment form on the merchant website and submits the information.
2. The merchant submits the payment information to the online payment gateway.
3. The online payment gateway submits the payment to the payment processor.
4. The payment processor authorizes the payment and responds to the payment gateway
5. The payment gateway responds back to the merchant
6. The merchant responds back to the customer showing if the online payment was successful or not and taking the appropriate action.

1. Credit or debit card numbers
2. Passwords
3. Bank account numbers
4. Your full name
5. Driving licence numbers
6. Postal address
7. Email addresses