How to avoid being scammed by Phishing Techniques

What is Phishing?

Phishing is the act of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details (and sometimes, indirectly, money) by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. Below are just a very few Techniques to avoid Phishing Scams.

1. Don't reveal your birth date to someone you barely know. They may already have guessed the year and month you were born by reading the stats in your profile. Most dating sites indicate your astrological sign and your age. The only part of your birthday missing is the day. Once a scammer has your birth date it can be used to gain access to website account areas.

2. Never reveal words that are part of your email reset questions, i.e., "What is your favorite pets name". Replace the answer with something else that makes sense to you. It's common for a scammer or hacker to ask about your pets name in photos.

3. Never use the same email account, that is associated with your financial institutions, to communicate with someone you met online. Create a special email to be used exclusively for chatting with people online. Never use the same passwords or other information used to create the email account as your primary email. If this email becomes hacked, the damage is restricted to anything tied to that email account.

4. Avoid sites that they directed you to that you are not familiar with or never heard of. Google the site first to check if it is a Phishing Site.

5. Trust your instinct. If someone is asking questions that seem to be odd, unusual, or suspicious simply avoid the question.