Feb 13 2009
Safety tips for using online recruitment portals - keep your data safe!
In January internet users worldwide were rattled by the reports of the major hacking of personal data from Monster.com recruitment website. It is not the first time unfortunately for this recruitment agency. Monster was also in the news in August 2007, when the confidential information of about 1.3 million job seekers was stolen. Diverse methods of scamming and stealing data emerge every day - the only real way to combat it is to educate users on how to identify Phishing, and what precautions to take when using website’s that require personal information.
According to recent news reports, hackers stole the personal data of 4.5 million job seekers from Monster.co.uk, an online recruitment website in the UK. The stolen data includes telephone numbers, email addresses, user names, passwords and some basic demographic data. This in the wrong hands can of course cause much havoc and identity theft - therefore it’s important to note the following:
- Unique passwords for all sensitive sites!
About 4 in 10 folks use the same password to access multiple websites. This means that criminals could use the Monster.co.uk data, for example, to obtain more sensitive information in order to access email and online bank accounts. “Active internet users should have unique passwords for all sensitive sites,” warns Jay Heiser, Research Vice President of Gartner Inc, a leading information technology research and advisory company, in the UK.
- What is Phishing and how to avoid it?
Please see the following article on Phishing published on Employersjobs.com
- Never assume a site is safe - always be cautious!
Making a decision about the relative safety of an online-service is a very difficult thing to do, for both consumers and businesses. You have no way of knowing how safe a site is, so don’t put anything on it that would harm you if it were stolen (such as the same password you use for your bank).
- Is there any way that an internet user can identify whether a website is safe to use?
As we’ve mentioned a decision about the safety of a website is an involved and often near impossible for the layman internet user to determine. So make an effort to use only reputable online sources and websites. Don’t go throwing around your data for any Tom, Dick and Harry website online - rather trust the major brand players.
If ever uncertain about your data or activities on Employersjobs.com please contact: help@employersjobs.com
