WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT PHISHING? Look out for: 1. Typos and bad grammar, JDLR: spelling mistakes and logos that just do not look right; 2. URLs (web addresses) that are not connected to the service: an email from Netflix should have a redirect link to the Netflix service. When in doubt, just navigate to the website yourself, rather than using the link in an email; 3. Unsolicited attachments: sometimes phishing emails come with an attachment to get you to download malware. Open all unsolicited attachments in a cloud drive such as Google drive to avoid downloading it to your device; 4. Social pressure: Attackers do not want you to think about it too much, so they will send urgent-sounding emails to get you to click immediately. ADDITIONAL ONLINE SECURITY MEASURES 1. While using encrypted platforms to communicate and browse the internet secures these activities, there is still some vulnerability as the Internet Service Providers (ISP) as well as the websites that you visit can still view and store your personal data. The companies that own the websites you visit can store metadata (data about data) about you. To enhance security from these companies and ISPs, one can use the following methods: 3. • Using privacy respecting browsers: your browser is your portal to the internet. A secure browser that protects privacy is a critical tool for staying safe online. Many browsers today are being used as data collection tools for advertising companies using privacy-abusing business models. Selecting the best secure browser all comes down to identifying the best fit for your unique needs. Since this is a personal decision with subjective criteria, a list is provided below of currently well rated private and secure browsers, along with links to further investigate features: A SURVIVAL TOOLKIT FOR JOURNALISTS 2. 4. • Brave https://brave.com/privacy-features/ Mozilla FireFox https://restoreprivacy.com/firefox-privacy/ Tor Browser https://www.torproject.org/projects/ torbrowser.html.en Ungoogled Chromium https://github.com/Eloston/ungoogledchromium Add-ons to reduce ad content tracking: These are small applications that can be installed on your web browser. They help to prevent malware, block, and erase your activity and trackers that may be installed on browsers when one visits a website. Trackers and cookies use personal information to tailor advertisements based on your online activity. Recommended add-ons: • • • PrivacyBadger (https://privacybadger.org/) DisconnectMe (https://www.disconnect.me/) uBlockOrigin (https://ublockorigin.com/) Page 21