Gmail is one of the most popular and user-friendly web based email on the Internet, and therefore the safety of your account is of paramount importance. Thus, it is necessary that you need to become security conscious and keep yourself away from the vicious eyes of the hackers. Since Gmail account allows you to gain access to many of the other resources like Google Adsense, Analytics, Orkut, Buzz, YouTube, Facebook, and much more, hacking your Gmail account can also damage all of these accounts. Earlier we provided tips for securing your WordPress blog and securing your Wireless Network.
This is best to follow the saying “Precaution is better than resentment and cure”, so let us learn some of the best 7 security tips to protect your account.
1. Keep the “always use https” option on
Since Google understands that using https improves the security of your accounts, keeping this ON is always better especially when you are accessing your Google account via a public network and thereby preventing others and hackers from eavesdropping into your account. It is possible to enable this option on by going to Settings > General > 5th Row and enable Always use https. This will help you to protect your identity safe and secure on a public network.
2. Check your IP login session information regularly
Always keep track of your Gmail account activity by going to the bottom of the Gmail account page and check the “Last account activity”, which will show the details of the activity of when you accessed your account lastly. Even if hackers access your account after you, you will get to know, for only you know that your account has been hacked. This “details” also shows the other following information about how and when the account was accessed, like whether this is from the kind of the browser or mobile, etc. Including the IP address. So noting down the IP address when you are in doubt is a good practice.
3. Choosing a unique security question
It is possible that a person who has a very good knowledge about you and your background information can easily find a way into your account using the secret answer to your security question for decoding the password. You will never get to know that they have accessed your password, using your password recovery secret question. So it is always good to keep them hard and not so easy to remember. In addition, it is good to reset the security questions and other password recovery options and recovery email address occasionally but regularly.
4. Back up Your Emails
If you are using Gmail as your primary account, it is a best practice to back up your account or emails as this may contain some important emails. Somehow, if your account gets compromised, it is always best to keep a copy of your emails elsewhere, as the hacker might delete all these important emails. So link your Gmail account with an email client and defeat the hacker or to a secondary email address.
5. Use unique passwords for each online service
When you are using a number of services that requires a password, use different password and do not lazily use the same password. This is because, for once the hacker gets into one of your accounts, say your Gmail account, then you are posing yourself at the risk of being hacked by the hacker of all of your other services also much easily and quickly than you could take a prevention measure at that instance.
6. Use keyscrambler to protect yourself from keyloggers
Keyloggers are sneaky little programs that can slip past the security software of your computer and is like a Trojan virus, hacks into your account by allowing the hacker to get all the information that you type back to the person who sent you this virus. The best way to protect your Gmail account from these Keyloggers is by using Key Scramblers, which is necessary to use software, and works awesomely simple.
7. Use Strong Passwords
The best you can do if you are reluctant or do not know how to use a password manager, is to check the strength of your password, and is always wise to use a unique password using a small tool from Microsoft strength checking tool and every time you change your password. This is much better than the password strength checking tool by Google.
Comments are appreciated!!
USEFUL : Tips For Creating Secure & Strong Passwords
This article is written by Praveen Sivaraman. He is associated with a hosting company which has a very good web hosting reviews.