Since the inception of the internet, cyber-crimes, hacks, and other attacks have been made on the websites of national governments and big businesses.  The dawn of social media helped to introduce new methods and actors to the cyber-attack world.  It introduced a whole new population of users to be exploited by the programming skills of a ne'er-do-wells and the tap of a key or the twitch of a mouse.

            The list of scams is incredible.  People, sometimes willingly, give out their personal information to someone they thought was a trusted source. Then finding out their credit card information has been stolen, their bank accounts have been drained, they've received something they didn't purchase, or their information  has been sold to hundreds of name and address companies who legally sell it (at a very good price).  It's sold to any company or group looking to snag new contacts or sell their political candidate to you.

            What we thought was a national headache became a global one.  Then it started hitting close to home, through our own emails and phony online advertising.

            Recently it has affected Bucks County emergency services' systems and now the Pennsylvania Courts' system.

            While there is currently no fool-proof way to eliminate all threats, here are some suggestions to help:

            Read the "Terms of Service" for anything you sign up for and see what the service will do with your information (are they selling or sharing it?);

            Be on the lookout for suspicious links, attachments, and downloads.  Malware and ransomware can be embedded in links, attachments, and downloads. Make sure a link is authentic before clicking on it.  Avoid clicking links embedded in suspicious emails by running it through a security check first;

            Always use strong and long passwords that are difficult to hack. Use unique passwords, meaning a different one for each account. Passwords should be at least eight characters in length and contain numbers, special characters, and capitalized letters.  Store them in a safe place.  No, the Cloud is not 100% safe and neither is writing them down and leaving them by your computer;

            Multi-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security. If a service you are using or signing up for offers multi-factor authentication, use it;

            Use secure internet communications that use "HTTPS" if you will access or provide any personal information. Don't use sites with invalid certificates; and

            Make sure your anti-virus software is up to date and updates are installed regularly.

            It seems like we are evolving into a world where somebody wants to steal from everybody, every day and the internet has made easy-pickings out of normal people.

            Do what you can to protect your personal information from cyber thieves and hacks.