Safe internet habits: practice safe searching

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Several studies have documented how dangerous internet searches can be.  Naturally the list of the most dangerous search terms changes a bit every year, but there are certain search terms that always make the list and some put you at a greater risk than others.  We will discuss which one those are along with learning some steps you can take to protect yourself and reduce your risk of stumbling on to a malicious website or downloading malicious software.

We all know the internet can be a dangerous place, but a lot of us don't really think about the dangers when searching for information, reading stories that friends post, searching answers for our computer problems, etc.  I'm guilty of this as well, and have to remind myself that one wrong click could have serious consequences.  Searching for the following search topics have proven to be risky.  Risky in the fact they can often lead to malicious websites, malicious files, etc.  Use caution when searching for the following items online (in no particular order):

  • Popular actors/actresses/musicians
  • Work from home opportunities
  • Music lyrics
  • Screensavers
  • Game cheats
  • News/information on current events (i.e. a recent natural disaster, social unrest, etc.)
  • Popular trends
  • Free stuff (i.e. ringtones, music, e-cards, movies, etc.)
  • Pirated software (free versions of software you usually pay for such as Microsoft Office, video games, photo editing software, etc.)

Besides performing internet searches on the topics above, you should also avoid click bait.  Click bait is not only used to generate revenue through advertisements, but can be an easy way to entice people to visit malicious websites due to their "too good to be true" headlines.  

I'm not trying to make you afraid to use the internet, but help make you aware of the dangers.  Now that we have established the dangers, let's discuss a few steps to help you navigate through the mine field of maliciousness while cruising the internet.  

The best habit you can practice is to stick to well-known websites/sources.   Whether it is click bait or searching the internet, it is best to avoid visiting unknown websites.  One of the easiest way for attackers to spread malware is through flashy headlines such as a "too good to be true" news stories or advertisements/coupons on websites, social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), in emails, etc..  If you see a coupon that seems to be too good to be true, such as buy 1 pair of shoes and get 3 free from your favorite retailer, especially if you know they never offer such deals, go to the retailer's website directly and find the coupon that way.  If you see a headline or news story posted on Facebook you would like to read, go to your favorite search engine and search for the headline.  Look for the first website link your familiar with.  If you don't see a familiar website, I would personally avoid reading the story.  If it is legitimate, it will appear on well-known sites in a day or two, so check back.

If you are researching something and are unable to find the information on a well-known website, visit virustotal to see if the website you have found the information on has been reported as malicious (search VirusTotal before clicking the link from the internet search).  If you aren't familiar with virustotal, read my post "VirusTotal: a valuable and free tool at your service" to learn more or click the "virustotal" category in the heading at the top of the page.

The same habit should be used for downloading software.  Try to always download software from well-known websites/sources and I would avoid downloading pirated or bootleg copies of paid software.  Attackers will often hide malware in pirated or free versions of paid software such as Microsoft Office or Adobe Photoshop.  There are usually legitimate freeware versions of most software you can use to reduce your malware risk.  For example, use Gimp or Pixlr instead of Adobe Photoshop.  Look at LibreOffice as a free, open source, alternative to Microsoft Office.  I would also recommend running your downloads through virustotal.  As I stated above, if you aren't familiar with virustotal, read my story "VirusTotal: a valuable and free tool at your service" to learn more or click the "virustotal" category in the heading at the top of the page.

For more safe internet habit information, read our story titled: "Spelling of a website is extremely important!"