Info@wiperts.com
3 Steps to Protect Your Personal Information
Personal information is the most valuable information. Every person has something they need to keep private. The reason why social media companies make money is because of big data. Users who share everything are the biggest cash cows for Facebook, Twitter, and other data-based companies. In exchange for using their free services, they sell everything possible to advertising firms and business partners. Your personal information is their paycheck. Protect yourself with these three steps.
- Limit Facebook
Facebook convinced its users to share everything they could. All it took was a few slick advertising campaigns and on-screen prompts for people to share things that would have never seen the light of day. With Facebook’s billions of dollars, it was easy for them to hire beautiful actors to look happy sharing personal information.
Of course these actors would look happy, they’re being paid big bucks to pretend like they’re sharing personal information – it’s not even real information at that – these advertising campaigns are made up of actors sharing fictional information. The fake Facebook posts shown in the ad go on to receive CGI-animated likes. Facebook’s advertisements are a work of fiction. At the end of the day however, real people are sharing real information because of these advertising campaigns. Public posts almost always wind up on Google to be exploited.
If your public posts are on Google and other search indexes, consider using a service like Wiperts to clean up your internet footprints. No one needs to see your embarrassing party photos aside from your friends. Don’t give your coworkers and/or boss any reason to view you differently because of things you shared years ago. It’s fine to have a few things online that show your good side, but sharing everything carries a huge risk. Don’t let your home address, non-public phone number, or anything that is meant to be private be available online for everyone to see. Wiperts can help keep your search results on Google looking clean and professional.
Even if you like Facebook and find its services useful, consider limiting your past posts’ privacy to friends only. This way, you don’t have to go through your entire wall hunting down public posts one by one. If you have thousands and thousands of friends, this might not be as helpful, but it’s better than having your life story readily accessible by Google.
- Run a credit check
Did you know that the three major credit agencies in America all report different things? When you run your free yearly credit report, make sure to get all reports you can (though you might want to skip Equifax due to recent revelations). Your credit report is directly tied to your financial health. Major institutions like banks rely on credit reports to determine how trustworthy you are. If you need a loan to buy a car, house, or business, then your credit score needs to be in the upper 700s. If your credit score has taken a hit recently, check your credit report carefully for fraudulent activity. Any fraud most likely indicates that your information was stolen via the internet.
When your private information is available online, identity theft fraudsters are bound to collect it using information bots, data brokers, or websites that make revenue by displaying your info next to a bunch of ads. Freezing your credit after discovering fraud will protect your personal information from being further abused but there’s more to be done. During this freeze, you should use a service like Wiperts to remove your personal info from the internet. Even if you successfully clear your credit report of fraudulent activity, your information will still be out there online – ready to be exploited once again. Wiperts will prevent this from happening by removing your private information from the internet.
Credit checks are a surefire way to know if your identity has been stolen. Credit agencies are bound to dutifully report how your credit is being used. To access lines of credit, you need to provide personal information. Criminals armed with your personal information can also access your lines of credit. Even in 2018 this happens all the time. Companies care about making sales. If the information checks out, then they’re okay to close the deal. The victims of identity fraud are left holding the bag. Companies go after the victim instead of the actual criminal because victims earn money whereas criminals steal money. Protect yourself by using Wiperts. The less information available online about you will help prevent your credit from being abused.
- Avoid fake websites
Websites that offer luxuries and money in exchange for your name, address, phone number, and email address are scams. The moment you start typing in information, your data is being collected. For example, every letter you type into Google is transmitted to Google in real-time – this is how autofill works – without even pressing enter, your search query was being analyzed by Google. Sophisticated fake websites employ the same technology. Your information is stolen as you type. You don’t have to hit submit. Criminal enterprises online have grown increasingly efficient at stealing personal information.
The technology deployed by large corporations tends to trickle down to criminals. Every criminal has a smartphone. It’s impossible to live in modern society without a smartphone. You’d be naïve to think that criminals wouldn’t be curious about how to use technology for personal gain.
Instead of digging through your trash, breaking into your home, or stealing your wallet, all they have to do is use a fake website to collect information about you. With that information, they can steal thousands and thousand while sitting comfortably at home. Criminals tend to stay together and steal together. When a criminal gets hold of your private info, they’re likely to share it at a price. This is why you need to remove as much as you can from the internet that you don’t need up there. Fake websites sell and share your information, sometimes privately, sometimes publicly. There’s no reason for you to wait, consult Wiperts right now and see if your privacy is at risk.
