Worry about online safety, but worry about right things

I know smart people who believe world-famous hackers are waiting with bated breath for them to order a book from Amazon.

These folks think a simple online transaction will open the door to bad guys who will wipe out their bank account and steal all the family photos from their computer’s hard disk.

There’s substance behind fears of online crime. But too many people are worrying about the wrong things. Honest. Let’s try to separate the realistic fears from the hysteria.

Online transactions with legitimate retailers are safer than many of the other ways you deal with finances and security.

But here really are unique and important dangers online. Ignoring them could result in your retirement home being a cardboard box. Worrying is good. Like I said, you’ve just been worrying about the wrong things.

Feel free to worry yourself sick over:

Phisher sites: You know the term and how it works by now. An email arrives, maybe from a well-known bank, maybe a retailer. You’re told you need to fix a problem in your account. The email contains a link to what is portrayed as the company’s website. You click on it, and everything looks fine. But if you fill in the requested information — often including Social Security numbers, passwords and bank account numbers — the con artists will be richer and you will be poorer. The message is clear — don’t respond to any emails like this. If it seems legitimate, use the telephone to check it out.

Con games: All the old con games have moved online. So whether it is selling real estate that is 10 feet underwater or offering drugs for sexual enhancement, it’s just new words to an old song. But there is a powerful difference. People tend to give added credence to stuff they read online. So even truly ridiculous offers — hey, I’m an African prince and need your help smuggling $63 million out of the country — actually get enough responses to keep the crooks in business. If the offer seems too good to be true, it is.

Beware of zombies: That’s the hacker term for a computer — it could be yours — that can be secretly controlled from a distance. Computer criminals use viruses and spyware to plant stealthy programs in your computer that create a hidden back door for them. Once inside, the crooks can use your computer to send out spam, including pornographic stuff.

Or, the back door can be used to place a keyboard logger on your machine. That logger will capture every keystroke you type and send it to them, including all your credit card numbers and passwords. The fix? Install a good firewall, an anti-virus program and anti-adware/spyware software. Without that, you’re a prime candidate for a real horror show: The Night of the Zombies.

You are your worst enemy: If your passwords are easy to remember, you’re doing something wrong. Use passwords that contain both letters and numbers. Don’t use any word found in a dictionary. Nor should you use the names of your kids, your birthday, your Social Security number or the name of a favorite aunt. A password that looks like complete nonsense is the only one that makes sense.

OK. That’s it. You won’t be completely safe if you follow these tips, but your computer will be many times safer than the mailbox in front of your home.