Top Ten Ways to Shockproof Your Use of Social Media
1. Ben Woelk Policy and Awareness Analyst Rochester Institute of Technology 585.475.4122 [email_address] Ten Ways to Shockproof Your Use of Social Media
6. Avert Labs Malware Research Retrieved July 24, 2009 from: http://www.avertlabs.com/research/blog/index.php/2009/07/22/malware-is-their-businessand-business-is-good /
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Editor's Notes
If your operating system is not running with critical security patches, you may be blocked from the RIT network until your system is updated. Turn on automatic updating for Windows and Mac OS operating systems. Security.rit.edu provides information on configuring automatic updates. Check regularly for updates on software and applications that don’t have an automatic update feature.
Targets hundreds or thousands of people using botnets to send e-mail and instant messages that direct people to download malicious attachments or visit spoofed websites. Often appear to come from PayPal, banks, or other financial institutions. The comments/message board sections on social networking websites has become a very popular attack vector for spam, phishing, and malware. If you receive something suspicious, report it to infosec@rit.edu or the ITS HelpDesk.
Per the MarkMonitor Brandjacking Index for Spring 2009: Phish attacks targeting social networks have grown 241 percent from Q1 2008 to Q1 2009 and have grown 1,500-fold since we first started tracking the category in 2007.
DO: Use privacy settings (visit security.rit.edu for more information) DON’T use these sites to: Post personal information (contact info, class schedule, residence, etc.). A talented hacker can see this, even if you’ve restricted your privacy settings! Post potentially embarrassing or compromising photos. It’s hard to deny you’ve done something when you post a photo of it. Be aware of what photos you’re being “tagged” in—don’t hesitate to ask others to remove photographs of you from their pages. Publicize which events you’ll be attending Your friends might not be the only ones looking!
RIT – No, RIT does not log your every move online; however, Public Safety and other the Center for Student Conduct do receive reports of online postings where there may be evidence of conduct violations. These postings may become part of investigative reports.
Despite the name, this is not your space! This is public space which you do not own. Many students think that only their friends and peers look at their profiles. Even if you delete your profile your information is likely to stay on the web: Browser caching Server backups Search results (even content from “private” profiles may be revealed through searches)