Orkut is one of the popular social networking sites these days. Most of us will have an account on orkut. But only opening an account is not enough, you must ensure that the information you have shared on your account is safe. Now-a-days, it has become very important to be wary of security threats like fake websites or emails, and misleading messages and links. These things may lead you to a virtual trap resulting in the hacking of your account.
In the last few days, hacking of orkut account has increased. So, orkut team is making an extra effort towards this direction so that we can have the safe and secure orkut experience. But, we should also take some precautions to keep our account secure. Here are some important safety tips and signals to keep in mind while browsing the web.
Ignore phishing and hoaxes
Hoaxes are false and alarming messages that attempt to persuade you to forward them to others. Whereas, phishing is an attempt to steal personal information through fake emails or websites. Here are some common signs of phishing and hoaxes, which will help you know that which type of messages should be deleted immediately to avoid the trap:
1. Messages about security or sensitive issues which ask you to forward to friends.
2. Sites that try to look like orkut but are not at our official address (www.orkut.com/ or www.google.com/).
3. External sites that request your orkut or Google account password for any reason.
4. Messages about amazing (or terrible) changes to orkut or your account if you do (or don’t do) something.
You should always remember that all orkut announcements are posted on the official blog, so if it’s not there, it’s likely not true.
One common thing which you all should do is change your password if you notice any strange activity on your account.
Get a safe lock
It is very important to have a strong password. You might have noticed that when you create your password then, there is an option of ‘Password strength’. You should ensure that your password strength is above average. Check out some tips on how to create a strong password, and remember to change it periodically, especially for important accounts whenever you suspect one of them may have been at risk.
Say no to codes and scripts
It is one of the most popular methods of stealing your account information. Usually they promise some miraculous outcome if you run their code or click a link to automatically run a script, but most of the time the code will actually do something else that could be harmful. So, don’t ever click or enter any code/script in your browser’s address bar when signed into orkut or other services.
Keep your browser and anti-virus updated to browse safely
Keeping your browser updated is must because it will load the websites much faster, and you will be safer because the more recent versions contain the latest security updates. Also, your anti-virus should be updated. If any virus is found on your computer, get rid of it first, and then remember to change all your passwords, as they could have already been stolen.
Close the door when leaving
And last but not the least. Always click the sign-out link on the top of the page when you are done using orkut, especially if you are on a shared computer or using a friend’s computer.
Keeping all this instructions in mind, you can avoid many threats and have a secure web experience.
