Nowadays with everything being digitized, from private information being stored online to your family pictures, it's important to have Cyber Saftey, defined as: "measures promoting the safe use of the internet, especially against viruses, fraud, and other attacks." If you're not careful, hackers may take your information, files like said family pictures, or lock you out of your own accounts, which is why having Cyber Saftey is important.

Phishing is the process where a scammer will "fish" for sensitive information out of an unsuspecting individual via text, email, or phone call posing as a legitimate business, or institution. Such information will be used to commit identify theft or to gain access to accounts for monetary gain. Phishing attacks can ruin people's lives and can end in massive financial loss which is why learning how to avoid getting phished is an important piece of knowledge.

A great way to avoid getting phished is to use common sense. Sometimes scammers will give lucrative offers which sound too good to be true and use the "limited time" tactic to induce a sense of urgency so those getting phished won't think twice about what they are doing. Another common tactic is the use of links disguised as something it really isn't or 'look-a-like' URL's like bankofanerica.com where it replaces m with an n which can be looked over by accident. Generally a rule of thumb is to avoid unusual or unknown senders, and if you decide to take a look at what they send, be aware and don't click on anything until you are sure it is safe.

The chart above dissects a picture of a potential phishing email. You can use these thought processes and apply them to other means of possible phishing like texts or phone calls.

If you suspect you've been phished, make sure you immiediately change your account credentials and if possible turn on 2 step verification. If it is an email or social media account, make sure you warn others that you are not in control of your account. If your computer has strange pop-ups, slowed down, and unknown programs launching and shutting down, you may have a virus and should get it removed as soon as possible.

Spyware is a type of malware that allows hackers to secretly see activity and data on the device it is downloaded on. This information could be data sold to marketers or data that the hacker may want to use to steal accounts, credit cards, and commit identity theft. In a general sense it's the collection of data without the user/consumer's consent.

There are different types of spyware to be wary for. There's Trojans which upon entering your computer looks for sensitive info and sends it to a third-party , Keyloggers records every single key you press and hackers can sift through the recorded key strokes and find login information, and System monitors which record everything that happens on a device including keystrokes, emails, programs used, and calls made.

A common way for spyware to be uploaded to a device is via malicious websites. Usually these websites are distributed via links through emails, texts, web browser pop-ups, or malicious ads. Usually though, most spyware infections come from malicious websites which usually can be easily avoided using simple cyber safety; if you do cannot trust the link or the sender, do not click!

The video above lists a few ways to get rid of and prevent viruses from getting on your computer. One is deleting temp files where spyware (and other viruses) can be hiding in. Another is to download an anti-virus software to do periodic scans to look for viruses such as kapersky or Mcafee. These steps are repeatable to ensure that you are safe.