James Gordan
Over the past decade, games have become a widespread mass activity, so many people like to spend their free time playing. One of the most exciting aspects is the way it connects generations and makes new friendships. It is important that you know how to stay safe online.
In this context, the game has a dark side. Once the event becomes popular, it attracts hackers who want to steal your data, spy on you, and compromise your devices. If you want to be safe, you must first identify the threats that the actors are pursuing and then know the right solutions.
So do yourself a favor and look at the next one:
- Phishing
While many see gambling as an escape to an alternative reality, cyber-threats such as phishing are constantly present. To give you a practical example: A hacker can create a fake login page and lure you there via the game chat or even the game forums.
To tempt you to follow their story and instructions, they can try to find a seemingly urgent reason or offer a reward in the game. Don’t give in! The sole purpose of these fraudulent forms is to collect your registration information so that you can continue to steal your account and any valuables you keep in it.
- malicious software
Have you ever been tempted to get ahead of your competitors by cheating or perhaps even hacking into the game itself? If you download hacking from a third party website, the least you can do is to be banned from your account because you are open to possible malware infection. It could be ransom money, password theft, and so on.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that seemingly innocent fashions such as tiles, cards or HUD packaging don’t exist either. If you don’t want to take any risks, only follow the approved game content.
- unauthorised transactions
Moreover, have you ever bought game currency on a third party website and paid with real money? In the MMORPG industry, these sites are known as gold exchanges. There is a clear risk that you won’t get the gold you bought, so you have to trust someone else to keep your promises. However, if you pay by credit card, you run the risk of your card details being stolen. If it turns out that you have noticed unauthorized transactions in your credit card history, you can alert the local authorities.
- Super exchange terminal
Not all men who are nice to you have the best intentions. This also applies to your online gaming friends, because you don’t know them in real life. That’s why an overly liberal approach to what you say about yourself on the internet can lead to all sorts of difficulties. For example, if you disclose your full name and physical address, this could lead people to search for you or harass you in some other way.
What can you do to be safe online?
To be sure, common sense and good reasoning will come in handy. But no matter what you do, always think of the next one:
- Never mind the 2FA. The more important the result, the more relevant it is. Basically, the 2FA mechanism does what it does: it sends you an automatically generated code every time someone tries to access your account. So, even if your data is stolen, a hacker will need access to your smartphone to connect.
- Think stronger passwords. They must contain numbers, special characters and capital letters. Never share them with anyone and keep them in a safe place. If you can’t remember them, it’s better to use a password manager instead of deliberately making them stupid to relieve your memory.
- The antivirus is your friend. If you do not track all the files that are sent to you, it is impossible to know whether or not some of them contain viruses. But the good news is that most modern antivirus scanners do it for you automatically (if they don’t, from time to time a quick scan should be more than enough to guarantee a reasonable level of security).
- Use a VPN when using public Wi-Fi and sending sensitive data. This way, no one can spy on what you send over that connection and track your network activity. As a bonus, the IP nature of the VPN also allows you to get a good discount on a video game by pretending to be from another country or region. Even if access to certain game content in a certain area is blocked, this will help you to bypass the restrictions. You can check what a VPN is in the video below:
- In the game don’t click on links that someone sends you. period. Be careful what you download. Playing a game well (without unethical shortcuts) can take a long time, but in the end you know you deserve it. You also need to stay away from malware.
Conclusion
Online games can easily be lost and forget your surroundings, but never lose your vigilance. That’s what’ll keep you safe.
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Simon Leonard