Spring is an exciting time full of celebration and excitement. Some of you may be excited about the NCAA March Madness tournament, while others are looking forward to Easter, and many of you are thrilled that spring is at our doorstep. Unfortunately, with all this excitement comes breathless warnings of things to look out for and security weaknesses to be wary of. (Security wonks can be such killjoys sometimes!)
I was looking at a news item earlier about online dangers and scams to be aware of during March Madness, and I couldn’t help but be perplexed. Who would do these things they were warning about?! So, as sort of a joke, I started searching for security recommendations for Easter. OMG, who knew that easter eggs in legitimate video games could be backdoors or filled with viruses?! (They probably aren’t, unless someone really, really screwed up.)
In the spirit of the season of renewal and joy, here are a few tongue-in-cheek recommendations:
I don’t imagine most people are going to sketchy Chinese websites or poorly maintained private blogs to view things that are so incredibly prevalent on the Internet. But just in case you’re tempted, I’m going to remind you: Go directly to that popular website to view videos, and you’ll be a whole lot safer.
Again, skip the poorly maintained or sketchy sites. There are plenty to choose from. You’ll thank me later.
Hopefully you’ll have recently updated your browser plugins lately anyway, so you can laugh knowingly when you see some weird popup in questionably-grammatical English warning you that your computer will be filled with viruses if you don’t click to update your system right away.
If you’re running an iDevice, the odds are better of getting a scam app than a truly malicious app, but it’s really better to be safe than sorry. If there are, like, three reviews and they seem oddly ecstatic about the benefits of installing this app, keep on searching. Better to find something that has more reviews that are written by people who appear to be more mentally balanced.
Ya know what? Forget it. Just bring enough cash to cover your bets on game day instead. Financial transactions on unsecured Wi-Fi is just a bad idea.
Really, you’re in no greater danger in spring than any other time of the year when there’s something exciting or newsworthy going on. No matter what day it is, good advice is good advice. There are always going to be bad actors poisoning search results, compromising websites, and just generally trying to get up in your business to yank your data. You need to be smart about protecting yourself every day, not just on special occasions.
tulip photo credit: Ennor via photopin cc
dunk photo credit: Tennessee Journalist via photopin cc
bunny photo credit: Madeleine_ via photopin cc
whip photo credit: AldoZL via photopin cc
