Ask the Expert: Third in a Series
Nobody wants a computer virus. Even fewer want to lose information to criminals. Yet, it can be all too easy in today’s world to make a costly mistake. Several professors offered tips on how to avoid cyber scams.
“The most important thing is that, try to be aware of what’s happening because this [is] not something that you can simply ignore,” said Liyu Zhang, a professor in the Computer Science department. “It is related to every single aspect of your life, especially nowadays. Most people throw so much information in their device. You just cannot not afford to ignore anything about your security.”
Zhang said a fake website that mimics a common one can trick people into entering their username and password. This will give hackers access to the account, and through the account, they can potentially gain access to more information.
A more sophisticated method would be tricking a user into installing a program that will then monitor for personal information.
“The thing is, they don’t [always] succeed … within a certain probability,” Zhang said. “Let’s say 20% [or] 50%, but that would be good enough for them.”
Mahmoud Quweider, a professor in the Informatics and Engineering Systems department, said the most famous scam is phishing. In phishing, a hacker will attempt to trick a user by sending them an email posing as somebody else. From there, a hacker might trick them into entering a false website or downloading malware.
Quweider also said that hackers can use Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to attack users. This can be achieved by giving Wi-Fi a false name to trick users into using the incorrect signal.
Asked why people fall for scams, Quweider replied that “trust is usually the biggest factor.”
“A lot of times, we do not question,” he said. “If somebody right now picks up the phone and tells me, ‘I am John Doe from IT,’ a lot of people, they would accept that answer, but you should always … check those answers. … Most proper channels, they will not ask for your user[name] and password.”
However, if one gets scammed, their first priority should be to change their passwords. Even if there is no scam, individuals should change their passwords on a regular basis. Another action a student should take when they fall victim to a scam is to contact an administrator to help them deal with it.
Asked his thoughts on computers, Danny Lopez, an accounting junior, said “the majority of college students … seem to understand” basic computer functions.
“There are some that are slower to catch on, because there is a lot of advanced functions that computers are capable of, and most of us are just capable of the ones that are helpful to us,” Lopez said.
