60 most important and useful tips for cyber security related awareness

Tips for cyber security

1. Always check the website of the Government organisations for details about the job openings in a Government department. 

2.To avoid matrimonial fraud, share the information about the prospective match with your family. Your family should be aware of the information shared, if any, by you with the prospective match found on matrimonial website.

3.Always keep a note of where you’ve applied for the job. Do not respond to any generic emails from an unknown source/company, as it could be a scam.

4. Conduct an end-to-end background check of the prospective match to avoid matrimonial frauds. Try to contact at workplace with family, friends, relatives, neighbors or associates of a prospective match to know more about him/ her.

5.Always check the company’s website if you have found a job opportunity on another website to check the authenticity of the job and know more about the profile. Very often companies put their manpower requirements on their official website under the ‘careers’ section.

6.Create and use new e-mail id for registering on matrimonial websites. Preferably, use e-mail as a source of communication and do not share your personal data such as; photo, phone number, residential address, etc. on matrimonial websites.

7.Prior to registering on job search portal, check the privacy policy of the website to know the type of information collected from the user and how it will be processed by the website.

8.Prior to registering on a matrimonial website, check authenticity and reviews of the website. Consult your friends and family to know about reliability of website. If possible, try to speak to people who might have found their life partners through online matrimonial platforms.

9.Always search and apply for jobs posted on authentic job portals or newspapers. It is advisable not to apply for jobs posted on search engine and social media advertisements, labelled sponsored links or results.10.Always verify and install authentic e-wallet apps directly from the app store on your smart phone. Do not install e-wallet apps via links shared over email, SMS or social media.

11.Do not save your card or bank account details in your e-wallet as it increases the risk of theft or fraudulent transactions in case of a security breach.

12. Never provide details or copy of PAN Card,Aadhaar,Voter Card,Driving License, Address Proof etc. to unknown person/ organization. Such personal documents may enable fraudsters to apply for a duplicate SIM cards in your name without your knowledge and use it for illegal activities.

13.Always ignore an advertisement claiming to earn money with little/ no work or on small investment with no risk. It could be a scam and you may end up losing money.

14.Always review transaction alert received on your registered mobile number and reconcile with the amount of your purchase.

15. Whenever you receive a credit/ debit card from the bank, make sure that it is not damaged and it is sealed properly. In-case, there are any signs of tampering with the package, please notify your bank immediately.


16.Always check “https” appears in the website’s address bar before making an online transaction. The “s” stands for “secure” and indicates that the communication with the webpage is encrypted.

17.Always be sure about the correct web address of the bank website and look for the “lock” icon on the browser’s status bar while visiting bank’s website or conducting any online transaction.

18.Avoid using third-party extensions, plug-ins or add-ons for your web browser as it may secretly track your activity and steal your personal details.

19.Always type the information in online forms and not use the auto-fill option on  web-browser to fill online forms as these forms may store your personal information such as card number, CVV number, bank account number etc.

20.This will avoid leakage of your personal information and protect you from being victim of cyber crime. Mobile device feature “restore factory settings”  helps in safely erasing data from a smart phone.

21.Before selling your old electronic gadget, ensure that all the device data is erased securely and you have signed out from all the app such as e-mail, social media, bank, e-wallets etc.


22.Enable international transaction option on your credit card only when you are travelling abroad. Always ensure to disable international transaction option on your card upon return to your country.

23. Register your personal phone number and e-mail with your bank and subscribe to notifications. These notifications will alert you quickly of any transaction and the unsuccessful login attempts of your net-banking account.

Take extra precaution while typing your password/PIN so that no one sees it. Cover the key-pad with your other hand while you type your PIN to avoid the number being picked up by someone monitoring CCTV. 

24.Always ensure that credit or debit card swipes at point of sale are done in your presence to avoid cloning/ unauthorized copying of your card information. Do not allow the sales person to take your card away to swipe for the transaction.

25.Don’t click on the links provided in suspicious emails even if they look genuine as this may lead you to malicious websites and this may be an attempt to defraud your hard earned money.

26.Keep your bank’s customer care number handy so that you can report any suspicious or unauthorized transactions on your account immediately.

27.Login and view your bank account activity regularly to make sure that there are no unapproved transactions. Report discrepancies if any, to your bank immediately.

28.Always use virtual keyboard to access net banking facility; and log off from banking portal/website after completion of online transaction. Also ensure to delete browsing history from web browser(Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox etc.) after completion of online banking activity.

29. Do not share your Net Banking password, One Time Password (OTP), ATM or phone banking PIN, CVV number etc. to any person even, if he is claiming to be employee or representative of bank and report such instances to your bank.30.Do not put your events calendar on your social media accounts, as it could be misused.

31.Use strong and unique passwords for all your accounts. Inculcate habit to change your passwords frequently.

32.Ensure that your computer and mobile devices have updated antivirus software and always keep it turned on.33. Do not respond to private messages sent by an unknown person on social media platform.

34. If you are victim of cyber stalking, consult your parents, friends or relatives and file complaint against the cyber stalker on National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal/ Police. Also save all communications with the stalker as evidence.

35.Always make two separate e-mail accounts. One for communicating with people you trust and for your financial transactions. Use separate e-mail account for registering on social networking sites. This will protect your primary account from online stalkers.

36. Be careful while accepting friend request from strangers on social media. Do not forget to reset passwords for all your accounts while discontinuing a relationship.

37. Ensure your personal information, photos and videos are accessible only to your trusted ones. Select privacy settings on social media, accordingly.

38.Be careful to upload your photos on social media which show your location or places you frequent visit as cyber stalker may keep tab on your daily life.

39. Be careful to share your personal details such as address, phone number, date of birth etc. on social media. This would make it easier for a stalker to access your personal details and use it to harass you.

40.Avoid downloading email attachments or clicking on suspicious links received in emails from unknown or untrusted sources.

41.Many mobile apps ask for many permissions to access data and functions regardless of the necessity for functioning of the app. Identify nature of app, assess the necessity of permissions asked while installing app and avoid giving unwanted permissions.

42.Allowing apps to access various features of your electronic gadgets /Mobile phone may lead to security risks and expose your personal information for misuse. Be careful of the associated risks while granting access permissions.

43.Remember that things on the internet are rarely free. “Free” Screensavers etc., generally contain malware. So be aware of such online free offers.

44. If your work requires you to communicate passwords, such as while sending password for an encrypted file sent as an attachment through email, it must be communicated through a different channel such as over a phone call or SMS.

45. Do not download any type of files/software from any source without ascertaining its credibility.

46. Remove files or data you no longer need to prevent unauthorized access to such data. Merely deleting sensitive material is not sufficient, as it does not actually remove the data from your system. File shredder software should be used to delete sensitive files on computers.

47.Always lock your computer before leaving workplace to prevent unauthorized access. A user can lock computer by pressing‘ctrl +alt+del’ and choosing ‘lock this computer’ or “window button+ L”.

48.Remove unnecessary programs or services from computer which are not required for day to day operation.

49.Use non-administrator account privileges for login to the computer and avoid accessing with administrator privileges for day-to-day usage.

50. If you store or download any personal information on computers in cyber café, make sure you delete permanently all the documents after you are done with your work. You may press Shift and Delete button together to make it difficult to recover deleted files.

51.Do not respond to any message assuring credit of money into your bank account with request to share personal details. It may be an attempt to defraud you.

52. Always be careful when clicking on links or downloading. If it is unexpected or suspicious for any reason, don’t click on it.

53. Enable a password-protected screen saver with a timeout period of 5 minutes or less to ensure that computers that were left unsecured will be protected.

54.  Do not share or forward unverified posts/ news on social media forums. These may contain fake news which may mislead people. 

55.Regularly check for software update on your mobile device whenever prompted. This empowers your mobile software to achieve optimization and equips it to face the latest cyber security threats.

56.Never  share malicious or infected USB thumb drives with anyone. Scan all the USB drives with anti-virus each time before exploring.

57.Be cautions while browsing through a public Wi-Fi and avoid logging in to personal & professional accounts like e-mail, banking transactions on these networks.

58.Be extra cautious like opening a downloaded file with extensions like ‘.exe’, ‘.vbs’ and ‘.scr’; Enable the ‘Show file extensions’ options in the Windows settings on your computer to identify these.

59.Do you know cyber bullying is a common cyber threat for children? Teachers and parents should regularly discuss about cyber threats with children and encourage them to inform in case they are a victim. 

60.Software hosted on third party domains might be a pirated version or infected with malware. Use only authentic vendor websites while downloading software.

61.Secure all the wireless access points with a strong password. Hackers usually scan for open access points, a method called as wardriving, to anonymize.

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