SOS – Electronic Greetings Cards
Most people receive greetings cards over the winter period – many of them by e-mail. Although many of these electronic greetings cards are perfectly inoffensive, others could be genuine risks to the private data and computers of their recipients. Remember these safety tips when you get an electronic greetings card and enjoy peace of mind over the festive period.
Electronic Greetings Cards
These are sent by either by ‘traditional’ e-mail or by another messaging system, such as private messaging on forums, for example, or by websites specialising in the design and sending of electronic greetings cards.
There are several types of electronic cards:
- Greetings cards sent as attachments – these can be viewed by downloading a file attached to the message received (user interaction is required to execute the file),
- Greetings cards directly in the message – these are directly visible by opening the message (no user interaction is necessary to execute a file),
- Greetings cards on a website accessed via a link in a message – the user has to click on a link which redirects them to a website to view the card. It is possible that, in order to view the message, the user has to enter the identifiers contained in the message they received, but this is not always required, as the specific URL for the greetings card would be difficult to guess (user interaction is necessary to execute the file).
Sending Greetings Cards
If you want to send electronic greetings, there are a few rules you should follow so that you do not end up getting conned.
Site Reliability
Use reputable websites to send greetings cards. Firstly, this will give you a guarantee that your cards have been sent. Reputable websites also have strict usage rules concerning the e-mail addresses you provide. Surely, you do not want all the e-mail addresses of your friends and family members sold to spammers?
Online Payment
Firstly, if you want to subscribe to a paid service, look out for site security. As with all online payments, check that the pages are secure and that the website is reliable. Please note that most of the websites offering electronic greetings cards are free of charge (and are funded by advertising).
In case of any doubt, please read through the page: e-commerce – best practices.
>Receiving Greetings Cards
As with all e-mails, some rules should be respected when you receive virtual greetings cards. Even if someone you know sends you a greetings card with the best of intentions, the card could contain something more than good wishes.
Beware of Phishing
Some con-artists are willing to use the Christmas period to ramp up their phishing activities. You may think you have received a greetings card from a reputable website that you are subscribed to. Your guard will be down and you risk entering your username and password into a fake website.
Never trust this type of website with an important password, such as the one you use for your e-mail account, your favourite social network or your online bank account.
Do not click on any link that looks a bit strange, and do not enter your login information if you click on a link included in an e-mail. You should always preferably go to the website by typing the web address into the browser yourself before logging in.
Beware of Malicious Files
As with any e-mail attachments, do not open attached files if you do not know the person who sent them. With greetings cards, if the name of the company offering the service is given, check whether it is a legitimate website that the identity of the person who sent you the card is given and that you know this person, before opening the attachment.
Don’t forget to update your computer (operating system and applications, especially your web browser and e-mail program), so you can avoid getting trapped by opening malicious greetings cards which exploit vulnerabilities to enable criminals to gain access to your computer without your knowledge.
As well as this, to protect yourself against malicious files, install anti-virus software and anti-spyware that can scan the attachment, thereby reducing the risk of opening a malicious file.