Without a shadow of a doubt, criminals are some of the most opportunistic individuals on the planet. Well, someone who steals other’s people’s money would certainly want to do it with the least possible resistance. And the pandemic definitely became a most opportune time for these unscrupulous entities.
You can imagine how that sounds. When everyone has been adversely affected by the virus, INTERPOL reported an alarming rate of cybercrime. It was not only plaguing individuals but also businesses, major infrastructure, and even governments.
These online scammers are hungry for information, going as far as getting the home addresses of their targets, for instance. In France, there was a report of how people were being scammed using a retail company Darty which had no hand in it. As a result, the company had to warn people to secure personal information as much as possible, so their homes can be safe from harm.
Now, the million-dollar question is how can you possibly prevent sensitive information from leaking to these unscrupulous online thieves. Specifically, how can you ensure your home address won’t fall into the hands of these online hackers.
The good news is there are ways you can protect yourself from the insidious nature of these online hackers. Just remember, you can’t let your home become a sitting duck. Making sure you implement tried-and-tested methodologies should be spot-on. Here’s a start.
Choose Your Privacy Level
In the world we live in today, everyone seems to be okay with posting their lives on social media, and the truth is that there’s nothing wrong with it. Everyone has a level of restraint as to how personal and private they want to be on social media, and at the end of the day, it’s your choice to make. If you want to make your data undiscoverable, don’t make your Facebook account public.
So if the goal is to hide your home address from online hackers, you might have to go a bit private. Avoid posting pictures that show your neighbourhood or home address. Try as much as possible to avoid letting out personal information through photos and other things you post. Online scammers have become very advanced, and they can easily track people down with just a little information they have.
Get Your Address “Unlisted”
The truth is many forms we fill online these days include addresses as a portion to be filled. So, anyone can have access to your address if the data is unprotected. A good example is your phone service provider.
A good way to solve this is to get in touch with your service provider. There is an option to make your address and even your phone number unlisted.
This option will remove your address in your service provider’s database. With this, a random person can’t have access to that information. By doing this, you reduce the chances of online hackers getting your address.
But you might have to pay some service fee for this option. A few bucks shouldn’t be much of a hassle to avail of this option. It should be worth it in the long run. Think of it as protection from being scammed.
Next is Google
Google is another place that has access to tons of information. And even though you might have passed the first hurdle, this is one that you should deal with as well. Visit the site to unlist your home address from the directory. This way, someone won’t be able to access your address through Google.
The thing, though, is that this is just specific to Google. So if you use other online sites such as Switchboard.com, Anywho.com, Phonenumber.com, Smartpages.com, and others, you might have to do a bit more work. You might have to visit each of these pages to ensure that your address isn’t made public.
And Then Some
Well, this might seem like a hectic task, but it is sure worth it. The stress you will go through now is nothing compared to what scammed people experience, if that’s any consolation for you.
Protecting your home address is very important, as stated above, but then safeguarding it is just as important. If these scammers end up finding out where you live, how secure your home is would determine whether they can harm you or not.
This is why it is important to fortify your home, just in case these unscrupulous people find your address and you’re not around. Indeed, a secured door and windows that are tamper-proof should prevent burglars from effortlessly getting in.
There are many options in the market today, but one reliable company that has stood the test of time is safewaysecurityscreens.com.au. They’ve been in the business for a couple of decades, and that should tell you how satisfied their clientele are.
It’s all about being forewarned. When you do, you can increase your home’s protection and, in the process, be forearmed — for everyone’s safety.
