How to check if a Web site is safe

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How to check if a Web site is safe

Have you been phished? Whether you use a Mac, Windows, or Linux, iOS or Android, there's a real strong chance that somebody has sent you an email or text message in an attempt to get at your personal information. Data means money, and you're a big ol' dollar sign to the bad guys.

The best recommendation I can offer is to browse smart. That means you ought to always double-check the URL of your banking site, social networking site, and e-mail site before you log in. Most browsers, including Firefox, Chrome, and Internet Explorer, now include a color-change on the left side of the location bar to indicate that the site has been verified as legitimate. It's always a good idea to type in the URL by hand, and to never follow links from an e-mail. Also, checking for HTTPS instead of the less-secure HTTP is a good idea, although HTTPS isn't foolproof.

But what about that link to some ostensibly hilarious video your best friend just posted to Twitter? There are several services you can use to verify a link. Google Safe Browsing, at google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site=, is a good place to start. If you type in that UTL, you can then enter in a site name or an IP address to find out if it has hosted malware in the past 90 days.

Another similar service is hpHosts at hosts-file.net... [Read more]

Seth Rosenblatt 26 Aug, 2011

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Source: http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39-20098098-285/how-to-check-if-a-web-site-is-safe/?part=test-cnet&subj=software&tag=title
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