Safe Web Surfing
Patches for Microsoft Products
Our engineers continually evaluate our practices and policies to keep your Nebula systems as safe as possible. Updates for Nebula-supported Microsoft products, such as Office and Internet Explorer, are distributed on a regular basis. Your system is ensured of getting these updates if you log out but leave on every day.
Safe Surfing Practices
You can minimize the possibility of your system getting infected by practicing 'safe surfing':
- Don't load non-essential programs off the Internet, especially things like toolbars or search bars, screensavers, or audio or video programs. These programs frequently install additional, malicious software ("malware") that causes problems and often requires a rebuild to remove effectively.
- Don't click on anything in a pop-up, except the X in the upper right corner that closes it. Clicking on the "No, thank you" button often triggers an unwanted installation.
- Don't click on unsolicited links received in email, instant messages, Web forums, or chat rooms, as it might install malware.
What is "phishing"?
There have been great improvements in security in the world, but the greatest danger remains the same as it's been for decades: an inside job. "Social engineering" and "phishing" are both descriptions for nefarious efforts to attack from the inside, by convincing you to give up personal information to a supposedly-trusted source.
You might want to put the US-CERT site in your Favorites. This site describes and offers advice about common security issues for non-technical computer users. The link on Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks is particularly useful, given the floods of emails pretending to be from banks and on-line accounts.
- Never respond to unsolicited emails asking for your personal information. Links in unsolicited emails may look legitimate, but they can take you to perfect copies of real sites which will capture and misuse your personal information.
- If you ever have questions about your account, it's best to either phone them directly, or type their web page yourself into your browser, so you know you are going to the authentic site.
