Abu Dhabi Digital advised to maintain data privacy
Fraudsters hunt their victims electronically through “location”
The Abu Dhabi Digital Authority has warned individuals against sharing their location on social media, so as not to cause some risks, as the cybercriminal can track the user's location and activities during travel, which makes him vulnerable to theft during his absence.
It indicated that there are 32 GPS satellites orbiting the Earth, of which 24 are primary and eight are backup, and individuals use global positioning systems daily.
The authority advised individuals to maintain the privacy and security of their information, and to ensure that they read and understand the information security policies of the applications and websites they share their data with, stressing the importance of ensuring the protection of personal data by turning off the Bluetooth feature on the phone, and turning it on only when a connection to another device is needed.
She said that many smartphones give the user the option to share his phone's location, it is better to turn off this feature, as most phones have the Global Positioning System (GPS) that enables some applications to determine its location.
The authority directed a set of cyber tips for individuals to secure themselves against electronic fraud, stressing that keeping the traveler's devices safely in the hotel room, the airport and any public places, will help prevent unauthorized access, theft of devices, and the risk of data penetration.
She warned against leaving devices unlocked for a minute or two, as this will likely give hackers enough time to hack these devices, so using a strong password or PIN helps secure users' data while traveling.
And she warned against clicking on anonymous ads and links while browsing the Internet, stressing verification before clicking on any link or advertisement from the URL it is linked to, and making sure that the requested domain is correct, and this can be easily verified by hovering the cursor over the link, and looking at Address preview text, where the address should begin with HTTPS.
She cautioned that the automatic connection feature is a very useful feature in the home or workplace, but while traveling, activating this feature can automatically connect the user's devices to public or malicious networks, which may expose him to the risk of his data being compromised.
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