(NC)—With so many new words used regarding online security, what does it all mean? To help you navigate the lingo, MasterCard Canada has defined some of the terms that are more commonly used when it comes to the security of online transactions.
Online phishing (aka spoofing or brand spoofing)
The term phishing is derived from the word fishing, because online scammers use e-mail lures to fish for personal information such as passwords and financial data from the sea of online users. Another common name for phishing is brand spoofing, since online scammers will often create e-mails and web sites that look like they come from known organizations, such as banks, government or merchants.
These fake e-mails and web sites are created to look like the real thing and will usually encourage you to update or confirm your personal information via a response to the e-mail or by clicking on a URL. Popular information requests include credit card numbers, banking information, social insurance numbers and account user names and passwords.
Never, ever click on hyperlinks or provide personal information in response to unsolicited communication.
Computer security
Computer security refers to security programs such as, firewalls, anti-virus software installed on your computer. It's important to have anti-virus software, spyware filters, e-mail filters and firewall programs on your computer, and to update them on a weekly basis. Many of these programs can be set for automatic updates on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
Regular, weekly scans (which can also be set to run automatically) on your computer are also a must, as any security issues can be caught and dealt with early. It is important to remember these scans can only run when your computer is turned on.
Defensive computing
A good defensive computing measure is to have different passwords for different accounts. If you only use one online password for all your accounts and it becomes compromised, it can mean all your accounts can become compromised.
SSL and TSL
SSL refers to Secure Socket Layer and is the predecessor to TLS, Transport Layer Security. SSL/TLS refers to the security encryption of online communication. You are most likely to encounter this when you are entering personal information online such as a credit card number. The presence of SSL/TSL is symbolized by a closed lock at the bottom of your Internet browser.
No card present
You're in possession of your card and somebody has made purchases using the card number only, which can be done through mail orders, phone orders, or Internet transactions. You may not know these purchases have taken place until you receive an account statement showing purchases not made by you.
Fortunately, in Canada cardholders can dispute charges if the goods or services were misrepresented or never delivered. MasterCard cardholders are also protected by Zero Liability, meaning you are not responsible for fraudulent purchases made on your account. For more information about Zero Liability, visit: www.mastercard.ca.
Source: www.newscanada.com
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