How to Protect Privacy Online and Mitigate the Risk of Fraud

Step 1: We begin by checking the main social networks, including: 

• Conducting name-based searches on Facebook utilizing the full name of the Report Subject. 
• Investigating the presence of their relatives on the platforms and looking for “open profiles” to collect further information. 
• Analyzing all the available pictures including the “likes” and the “comments” received under the pictures of the Report Subject or the already identified close relatives’ profiles. 
• Analyzing posts, comments, and the provided personal information, including the “groups,” “places,” and “pages they like” sections. 
• Conducting the same extensive search for all the relevant social media platforms. 
• Utilizing specifically dedicated software to gather and connect further information (with particular attention to the posts the Report Subject likes on the platforms when such information would be available). 

Step 2: Next, we check the main internet search engine results, including: 

• Performing extensive name-based queries. 
• Conducting image searches utilizing the Report Subject's social media profile pictures. 
• Conducting search engine queries utilizing all other relevant identifiers (i.e., phone number, company name, close relatives’ names). 
• Conducting the searches by changing the IP address to the relevant geographical area for the specific case. 

Step 3: We conduct Reverse WHOIS searches: 

• Utilizing the Report Subject’s name and/or email 
• Utilizing the Report Subject’s family members' names and/or emails 
• Conducting WHOIS searches for all the websites connected to the Report Subjects and/or his/her relatives 

Step 4: Finally, we produce a report (sent monthly or periodically as preferred).  

• Reporting the content in a clear and exhaustive form, with comprehensive links to content representing a digital risk to the Report Subject and screenshots. 
• Providing a risk evaluation for each case, taking into consideration the overall results and their interconnection. 
• Providing tailored recommendations for resolving or mitigating the identified digital risks. 

We also help to remove unwanted content that has been identified through this service on an ad-hoc basis [1]. 

The following actions can help protect privacy online, especially when it comes to social media: 

• When registering your account, do not provide sensitive personal information (e.g., your social security number, passport number, physical address, phone number, date of birth, bank account information, or the personal information of your family members). Such sensitive personal information can easily be used for impersonation or socially engineered scams. 
• As part of your data privacy and online fraud prevention efforts, check your privacy settings (and that of your relatives), and exercise control and foresight over what you post and to whom this is available. You can find instructions on how to control privacy settings on each social media site: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, VKontakte, and Weibo. 
• Check App permissions carefully. Permissions granted to various Apps can allow them to gather information about your exact location, as well as information related to your email account (as specified in their terms and conditions). Some Apps may also gather information unrelated to the App's usage, such as accessing your personal information from messages and storing one-time passwords. 
• Close any accounts you’re not using. There is a high risk that old social media accounts will be compromised due to weak passwords used in the past or older two-factor authentication questions, such as: “Where were you born?”. 
• Delete third-party account connections: It is not necessarily wrong to have your Facebook or Twitter accounts connected to other Apps, but you should keep these connections to a minimum and remove any you are not using. For example, if you use Facebook to sign up for an App, you may grant this App read-write access to potentially sensitive information on your Facebook profile. Visit the Facebook Help Center to find out how to minimize the Facebook permissions granted to Apps. 

The following actions can help protect privacy online when browsing the internet: 

• Install a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to spoof your location and add an extra layer of security to the data you are sending and receiving, thereby allowing you to stay anonymous while surfing online. Without a VPN your IP address may reveal the city, zip code, and area corresponding to your address.  
• Take advantage of the built-in filters in search engines. Many search engines give you the option of choosing a “safer” search when using their services. For example, you can check this link to see how to use SafeSearch on Google, and the following on the safe search plug-in for Firefox. 
• Check security when shopping online. Verify security symbols and encryptions before entering any credit or identification details. Ensure the URL (the website address) seems legitimate (i.e., that the domain name hasn’t changed when proceeding to order), and that it is encrypted behind an SSL/TLS certificate. 

The following actions can help protect privacy online when using software, such as Apps: 

• Turn on automatic updates for security software. Software companies provide free updates to fix security issues and other problems related to the software in question. 
• Be sure to download content and applications only from official sources, such as official App stores. Illicit Apps or downloads may abuse your personal data. Therefore, before downloading any Apps, check out online reviews, and always be careful with providing your payment details. 

Step 1: Run a Privacy Checkup 
The first and easiest step for checking your Facebook privacy settings is to perform a Privacy Check-up. To do this, click on the question mark symbol in the top right of the Facebook page and select "Privacy Checkup". 

• Posts: In this section, you have control over your posts and who can see what (note that “Public” is usually the default sharing). 
• Profile: Here you can change the privacy settings of your email address, birthday, and other personal details, either deciding to share with your friends or to keep them private by choosing the “Only me” option.  
• Apps: This part shows you each App linked to your account and what sharing permission it has, with the option of deleting the Apps you’re not using anymore and setting the sharing permissions of the remaining ones to “Only me.” 

Step 2: Set Advanced Privacy Settings  

The next step is to check what content is being shared by your profile and with whom. Click the dropdown arrow in the top right of your Facebook page, click “Settings,” and then choose “Privacy” from the left navigation column. 

• Your activity: In this section, you can choose who can see your future posts and limit the audience for old posts on your timeline. 
• How people find/contact you: You can choose who can see your friends list and who can search for your profile by using your email address and phone number. To stop your profile from appearing in the results pages of search engines, select “No” in the dedicated section of this page (your profile can still be found through Facebook Search). 
   

Step 3: Amend Your Timeline and Tagging Settings  
This section allows you to determine who can post on your timeline, as well as your timeline visibility. Click on the down arrow in the far upper right corner to reveal a dropdown menu and select “Settings”, and then “Timeline and Tagging”. 

When you join Instagram, anyone can view your profile, photos, posts, and comments because your account is set to public by default. For a higher level of privacy, you can switch your account to private to allow only your approved followers to see your posts. 

Step 1: Click the drop-down arrow in the top right of your VK page, click “Settings,” and then choose “Privacy” from the right column. 

Step 2: Adjust your profile privacy settings. Here you can change the privacy settings of almost any information available on your VK page, such as basic information about you, your photos, groups, audio files, gifts, posts, contacts, and many others.