14 DAY TRIAL // The web can be as dangerous as anything in the real world, yet most people treat online security lightly. In the interest of keeping accounts safe, Google has a few tips an pointers on online security. While most are common sense or have been repeatedly stressed by security experts, it's safe to say that most people still don't apply them.
"Like many people, you probably store a lot of important information in your Google Account. I personally check my Gmail account every day (sometimes several times a day) and rely on having access to my mail and contacts wherever I go," Google says.
"Unfortunately, a Google Account is also valuable in the eyes of spammers and other people looking to do harm. It’s not so much about your specific account, but rather the fact that your friends and family see your Google Account as trustworthy," Google explains why your account is valuable to those up to no good.
There are quite a few steps to ensure that your online accounts stay safe, but probably the most important thing you can do is never re-use the same password for two or more accounts.
While it's easy to just remember one set of credentials for all the websites you use, it's also easier for an attacker to compromise a third-party site, which may not have the level of security Google does, and then use the passwords it gathers there to log into Google or other important accounts.
Of course, remembering tens of passwords for different sites is not a viable option either, so Google recommends that you use different passwords for the most important sites, your email accounts, online banking, e-commerce sites and so on.
Also important is to change your password at the first sign of trouble. If you have any suspicion that your account may have been compromised, don't waste any time. Even if it turns out to be nothing, it's better to be safe than sorry.
Of course, doing all of this and then handing out your account details to wrongdoers willingly kind of defeats the whole point, so it's very important to never reveal your password and username to anyone even if they appear to be from a legitimate source.
The Gmail team has created some practical steps which should help you keep your computer clean and your accounts safe. These steps don't apply only to Gmail so you should check them out regardless if you use Gmail or not. You can read more about it here and view the checklist here.