Seniors at a high risk for identity theft and fraud, and are even seem by scammers as “easy targets.” Part of this is due to their information being easily hacked. To protect themselves, it is important for seniors to protect their passwords with these tips.
Making a long and involved password can ensure that your account will not get hacked. Simple passwords, such as the name of a loved one or favorite sports team can be easily found, and your account can become compromised. Making a long password with a combination of letter, numbers, and special characters can counteract this. From Senior Planet:
Passwords may seem like an annoyance blocking you from what you want to do online, but of course they help keep your personal information safe from hackers who are up to no good. Think of a strong online password as a burglar-proof, fire-proof, triple-locked safe for your personal documents. It may be unlikely that you’ll be burglarized; but you’d rather be safe than sorry.
So, although you might be tempted to go with an easy-to-remember password like “12345” or even the word “password,” it’s a good idea to come up with something that’s harder to remember. Simple passwords like “12345” aren’t only simple for you – they’re also the easiest ones for someone to guess.
One method for creating a strong password:
- Start with something that is memorable to you: a phrase, a date or a hobby. For demonstration purposes, I’m going to use the phrase “Cooking is fun.”
- Next, I’m going to do the following:
- Replace each “a” with @
- Replace each “s” with $
- Replace each space with %
- Replace ‘o’ with 0 (the number zero)
- Replace each “i” with !
- “Cooking is fun” becomes C00k!ng%!s%fun
However, long and involved passwords can be hard to remember. Although it may be “old school,” a piece of paper and a pen may be the best way to keep your passwords safe. Filing the piece of paper away with all other “important papers” that are easily accessible is a good option. It’s highly unlikely someone will break in and find the passwords sheet of paper without it being known.
Other Online Safety Tips:
Online scams can happen to a lot of seniors without the proper understanding of what to look for when navigating the web. With these simple tips, you and your loved ones can stay safe and secure.
Paying Safely Online
Many online scams target seniors via how they ask them to pay for different products or charities, etc. An easy rule is that any online payment process that asks for unreasonable fees is most likely a scam. Any charity, government organization, or other legitimate entity will not request these kinds of fees.
Be Weary of Oversharing
Oversharing personal information on social media can lead to scammers to misuse what they find for their own personal gain. Also, advertising your absence while you’re on vacation or away from home for extended periods of time can invite criminal activity in your home.
Proactive Web Safety
It’s important to stay up-to-date on current scams running across the web, which can be done with an easy weekly online search. Another tip is to maintain skepticism for online free trials or to-good-to-be-true email offers. Most likely these offers really are too good to be true!
Kids & Grandkids for Help
Your younger relatives can be a great resource if you have any questions when it comes to social media! They have grown up with this technology and generally spend a lot of time on it, so if you get stuck, they may be the best resource to ask for help!
Privacy
It is important to make your accounts private so only the people you choose can see the content you’re posting. If it is not, someone you may not intend to may see a post from you that you wish they hadn’t, and it keeps your information safe from scammers as well.
Weekly Scam Alerts
Ripoff Report is a worldwide consumer reporting Web site and publication, by consumers, for consumers, to file and document complaints about companies or individuals. While we encourage and even require authors to only file truthful reports, Ripoff Report does not guarantee that all reports are authentic or accurate. Be an educated consumer.
For more social media safety tips, visit https://bluestarseniortech.com/health-aging/senior-social-media-tips/
