Junk e-mail can be nuisances. To avoid having them lying around in your inbox folder, here are some stuff you can do to prevent them.

Do not give your e-mail addresses away. Always be cautious of whom you entrust with them. Signing up for newsletters online can attract junk e-mails.

What you can do is to look for a “Privacy Policy” when signing up for something. Read through and check if they do keep your information safe. Just to be sure, you can always create a special e-mail account which you can use for signing up to services.

Avoid forwarding mass e-mails because your e-mail address can also be potentially sent to other people you might not even know – including spammers.

Check your e-mail provider’s anti-spam services. They have junk e-mail blockers that can be used for uour account. They can detect potential junk messages and filter them so that they automatically go to a Junk folder.

Have you received an anonymous e-mail that you wish to trace? Here’s
how a layman can do it:

Go to your e-mail account and open the particular e-mail that you wish to trace.

The next thing you’ll need to do is to view the header of the email. Doing this can vary depending on the e-mail program or provider that you are using. Some headers can be seen by clicking the top of the e-mail, while some can be viewed by looking for it under “options.”

Once you’ve found the header, look for the IP address of the sender. This can be found under the “Received From” or the “Message ID” of the e-mail. This is important because this is what you will need for the next step. Copy this information by highlighting the IP Address and right clicking your mouse. Choose “copy.”

Open a web browser and go to an IP address lookup site.  Simply right click on the form in the page and click “paste.” Press enter. It will automatically trace the IP address. You may also choose the e-mail tracing service wherein you can simply paste the header in the site’s form and press enter. Again, the site will search out the information for you.

Hackers are geniuses when it comes to breaking into security systems of people’s computers to get very private information, and they do this in a number of different ways. One of which is by tracing the IP address of a user. So just to be safe, here are tips on how to protect yourself from a hacker.

Always keep copies of your files. Make sure that you always keep a back-up of your folders and files, preferably in an external hard drive where no hacker can actually reach.

Another precaution is to have a good firewall installed in your computer. A firewall can protect your system from worms, viruses, and spywares that can infect your computer.

Check the security settings of your browser and email. Make sure that they are in their morst stringent settings. Don’t forget to remove cookies which can trace your online activity.

Always update your anti virus software, and your firewall too. There are new viruses and worms and other threats that are being released by fiends everyday. Developers of security software programs make sure that they add features that would respond to these added threats.

Scan attachments and make sure that you download files with caution.

Always disconnect your computer from the internet and turn off your computer when not in use.

The Internet can be a dangerous place for children as much as the real world. Here are some tips on how to safeguard our children from the dangers the lurk in cyberspace.

Educate yourself about the Internet and the common activities children and teenagers engage when they are online. Because how can you teach your children about Internet safety if you are also ignorant of the how’s and why’s of the Internet.

Make your children aware of the inappropriate materials that can be found on the Internet such as pornography, violence, and hate sites. Discuss these with your children and together make clear guidelines regarding the use of the Internet. Having a discussion would make it collaborative, making sure that your children do understand what the issue is about.

Explicitly warn your children about giving out personal information, sending of personal photographs, and of course, agreeing to meet in person with anyone they meet on the Internet. If anyone sends an e-mail or IM them with messages that contain strange, offensive, and threatening content and language, then they need to inform you immediately.

Inquire with your service provider regarding parental controls which can block access to Web pages, chat rooms, and other sites that are not suitable to children. You may also buy a blocking software for your computer for added security.

Monitor your children’s online activities. Do not let them keep a computer in their room. Have them use a computer in the study or family room.

There is no excuse for rudeness, even if you are socializing online. Here are some netiquette that you should find useful if you don’t want to get kicked out of chat rooms or forums.

Keep in mind your audience. Are you in a forum or chat room where there are impressionable children or teenagers? Keep your vocabulary staid, instead of colorful, unless you’re talking with people you know personally.  Moderate your tone and the content. Try not to use all caps. It’s the same as shouting in real life.

If you have a more general audience, then try not to use a lot of acronyms. Not everyone understands them. You can miss proper capitalization but try to type in full sentences instead of short phrases. People tend to be lenient when it comes to grammar and punctuation but still, if you can do use the language properly, a lot people who are reading your posts or chats would appreciate it.

Be polite and mind the rules of the chat room and the forums. Moderators usually send warnings to misfits but repeat offenders eventually get kicked out, and you wouldn’t want that, do you?

Blogging is basically journaling. The only difference is that instead of using pen and paper, you get to use technology. If you wish to reach a wider audience, then blogging is the more ideal medium for expressing your thoughts. If you are at a loss on what to do here are some basic information you need to know for setting up your own blog:

A blog can be anything and everything about the sun. Check out other blogs and you’ll find out different sorts on different topics. However, it need not be complicated. You can create a blog about your pets, or your hobby, or a special interest. The easiest is to of course, create a blog all about yourself. Make entries on whatever topic you wish and you can post pictures to it too. A blog can be a perfect way to keep family and friends updated with what is going on in your life.

Set up your blog. Search for free blog providers in a search engine. Choose one that would suit your needs. Make sure that it is simple and user-friendly too. You can always transfer to another blog provider once you’ve known all the ropes. If you are still unsure, you can ask someone to set it up for you and don’t forget to ask for instructions on the basics.

Now, you can start blogging! The key here is to post frequently and consistently. You don’t have to do it everyday. However, if you decide to post once a week, make sure that you do it every week. Choose a specific day to blog (such as every Wednesday). Make your blog known by sending the web address of your blog to family and friends.

Later on, you might even make money through ads. But that’s for another topic.

Everyone is vulnerable when they go online. With the right kind of technology and the know-how, anyone can just pry into your very private and personal data. So how do you protect yourself from these nosy beings?

Protect your passwords. Start from th very beginning. Choose passwords that will be difficult to guess. Never use anything so obvious as your name, or the street where you live, or the city where you were born, and most especially your birthday. Use a combination of numbers and letters. Many sites have case sensitive forms so try to create a password with one or two letters capitalized.

Change your passwords regularly too. You can do this every three months if you wish. You can play with your recent password, just mix it up a bit and you’ll do fine. Memorize your password and don’t leave a file in your computer with your passwords in it.

Encrypt your files and emails if you can. There are different programs available online which you can download to protect your most important data and emails. Try Freecrypt. Just research first before you download a program, especially if it’s free. You don’t want to have your computer infected with spyware or viruses.

Install a spyware and antivirus software into your computer. Again, make sure that you are installing something you can trust. Avast and Spybot Search and Destroy are okay. These programs can prevent and eliminate those nasty spyware. Install a firewall too (like Zone Alarm). These will give you more protection.

Delete temporary Internet files and cookies when you finish your work on your computer. Disconnect from the Internet and shut down your computer and don’t leave it idle.  make regular backups or copies of your data.

Internet-based work is very popular nowadays. Because of technology, it is no longer difficult to just work in your office at home. If you decide to go the online route as a career move, here are some tips on how to make sure you grow in your chosen profession:

Keep yourself up-to-date on the latest skills of the trade. Take time to train yourself on a particular software you might need to use for work. You can do online training, or you can read books in your spare time. You can also enroll yourself for formal training in a nearby learning institution.

Make your presence known in the World Wide Web. Register in freelance sites and regularly monitor  the forum threads. You can even create your own website or work blog. If you can afford it, arrange for your business to appear on online advertisements. But more importantly, keep an updated portfolio of your work. So in case potential clients ask for samples of your work, you can readily them them your masterpieces.

Don’t forget that there is life outside the internet. Some work contacts can be found through friends, former colleagues, etc. Arrange your time so you don’t neglect meeting “real people.”  Have a card printed which you can bring with you just in case an opportunity to present your business suddenly arrives.

Take care of your gear. Upgrade your system or buy new hardware. Keep the number of a technician in case of emergencies. Your gear is your main factory, without it, you’ll have major glitches. You wouldn’t want your system to crash especially if you have deadlines to meet.

We hear or read about them and even laugh at the poor victims. But there will always be a point when are guards are down and we become susceptible to getting scammed. Still, it would be wise to keep the following precautions in mind:

Times are tough and getting money is probably harder now than ever. However, be skeptical of quick profit offers and promises of inside information. No matter how small the amount they are asking for you, it is still money that you should be well spending elsewhere.

Be suspicious of companies who pressure you to make quick investment decisions. Legit companies will respect your decision and will even be very gracious in answering all your questions. Those who take the “threatening” (if you don’t invest now, you’ll miss your chance) route are just looking to make big bucks at your expense.

Avoid offshore opportunities. Tracing your money outside the country can be difficult and if lost, will be very impossible to recover. Stick with what you know.

Before investing or sending off money, investigate. See if they’re registered with the SEC. You can also go to investment chat rooms, bulletin boards, and fora. Read threads about scams. You can also ask around if anyone has heard of the company that has been eyeing you as an investor.

The cool thing about language is that it is constantly evolving and in the advent of technology, more interesting “words” have come up. If you are a little clueless about all the LOLs and the BRBs you see (or hear) nowadays, here is a little guide to help you a bit:

LOL: Laughing Out Loud. Obviously, when somebody says something funny and you audibly laugh. One of it’s variation is ROFL, which means Rolling On the Floor Laughing.

BRB: Be Right Back. When somebody has to go away for a bit (like a short trip to the bathroom).

AFK: Away From Keyboard. Just like BRB, it means the person is currently elsewhere and will not be available for immediate response for a while. This is usually put as a “status” in instant messenger clients.

TTYL: Talk To You Later. Used when the other person will have to do something else and will have to continue the conversation later.

BTW: By The Way. As it is used – a signal for a change of topic.

IMHO: In My Humble Opinion. Just a little show of politeness especially when conversing or debating with multiple people.

IDK: I Don’t Know. Which means exactly as is.

ASL: Age Sex Location. Usually used when chatting and you’ve started a conversation with someone you meet for the first time.

IRL: In Real Life. Switching to what happens outside cyberspace.

STFU. Shut the F*** Up. You use this if your head starts to ache with all these net speak.