Doing Transactions Online: Threat of Keyloggers

Internet identity theft victimized 2 million adult American within the current 12-month period and among them, 70% makes use of the Internet to transact business with their banks or pay bills. More than 50% say they’ve been targeted by Internet identity theft perpetrators through e-mail that usually installs malwares in the form of keyloggers in your computer.

Doing transactions online usually makes the work easier but when threats of identity theft abounds, what should be done? When you decide to go paperless and transact business and banking online, ensure that you are monitoring all your accounts at least once a week, so that any abnormal activity can be spotted at once and moves to resolve such can be done at the soonest possible time, this can help decrease the risk of identity theft.

Internet identity theft will eventually slow the growth of e-commerce and e-banking many experts predict. This is as more and more internet users realize the risks involved in paperless transactions including account hijacking, they will most probably look for other ways to transact and it will mostly be done offline. As keyloggers are getting installed in personal computers sometimes by merely by accessing or visiting a website, more and more individuals are becoming wary but  to the rest of those who still prefers to use the internet, will just have to be more aware.

Even as identity thieves become more aggressive, more Americans are becoming aware as well, and only about 5% of individuals who receive fake e-mails respond and many are used to receiving such that many don’t even bother opening them anymore.  And this is a very wise decision. Never open any email from companies, especially financial institutions likes banks and credit card,  if you didn’t send them any email in the first place, for this may not only wish to direct you to phishing website but may also download and install keyloggers in your pc to  monitor your keystrokes and gain your personal information.

One should be aware that a FIFTH of Internet identity theft victims have clicked phishing e-mails, installed keyloggers on their personal computers and gave out personal information without really being aware they are doing it. What’s more, it’s not only individuals that are targeted by this phishers, majority of big financial firms and even e-payment services like Paypal, who seem to have their a sound security intact, have also been attacked by phishers. Many have fallen prey, don’t be one of them.