passwords

Today the Associated Press's Twitter account was hacked with the frightening tweet that an explosion had occurred in the White House. It didn't take long for Twitter itself and users to realize the account had been hacked, but not before the tweet caused the stock market to drop over 100 points in the minutes after the tweet was published. While your personal Twitter account may not wield as much influence, social media hackings are real and present their own sets of headaches.

Follow these four steps to protect your Twitter account from falling victim to hackers.

• Don't click on links from strangers — Unfortunately stranger danger is alive and well on the Internet in the form of weird direct messages or tweet replies that direct you to look at a picture of "OMG, is this your new tattoo?!" It's not. Don't click. If an actual Twitter friend sends a message that's a bit off, verify on another platform — SMS or email — if they meant to send the tweet. Chances are their account was hacked, or maybe they just needed to be gently told that they sort of tweet like a spammer.
• Avoid phishing attempts — When signing into Twitter, check that you're on a secure and official log-in page by looking for a URL beginning with "https://" which denotes a safe connection to input username and password.

Read on for password safety tips and how to interact with third-party apps.

We've all experienced that sinking feeling when you can't find your cell; it's more than just a communication device these days. It's a device that holds a lot of personal information, especially if you have loaded up on banking, shopping, and instant purchase apps. Don't let your cell go unprotected this Spring (or ever again) — password-protect your home screen so hackers can't access your private info if your phone is lost or stolen. Find out how below.

• For iPhone: from the home screen, select Settings > General > Passcode Lock
• For Android: from the home screen, choose Settings > Security > Screen Lock and set an alphanumeric password for your home screen
• For BlackBerry: from the home screen, select Options > Security Options > General Settings > Password > Enabled

It's Data Privacy Day, so we're here to give you 10 tips to keeping your computer safe, secure, and totally private. Nothing is worse than having your computer hacked into, your personal information stolen, or becoming a victim of fraud. We've rounded up all of our best tech advice to help keep your computer protected and free from hacker malice. If you haven't implemented these 10 tidbits yet, today is the perfect day to begin to take charge of your computer's safety.

• Avoid fraud: Be wary of emails, calls, and log-in screens that ask you to verify all of your information. Always air on the side of precaution when sharing more sensitive information like banking passwords. If a company reaches out to you (rather than you personally reaching out to them), don't give your personal information out. Redial the number or email the company using the information posted on their website.
• Set up a hack-proof password: When logging in to websites, come up with difficult and different passwords for each site, using a variety of letters, numbers, and symbols. Change it every couple of months for additional safety.
• Double-check your firewall: Most computers have a built-in firewall that protects your computer by stopping hackers and malicious software from accessing your computer via the Internet. Make sure to keep your firewall setting on, and you could even customize what websites, domains, and IP addresses you want to access from your computer.
• Forget about free public WiFi: Hackers often create fake networks, titling them "Free Public WiFi" in hopes of stealing your personal data. Even if the WiFi is legit, it's still dangerous to access private information in an unsecured network. Always opt to pay the small fee for a service that requires you to log-in to an official network.
• Safely search for celebrities: Googling your favorite celebrities can be a dangerous business if you don't recognize the sites you are clicking on. Many Google results of famous celebrity names lead to infecting your PC with malware and viruses.

See more tips to better privacy.

The holiday season is here and millions of Americans are heading out to tackle their last-minute shopping lists. Though doing the lions share of your shopping online can save you time, there are many dangers lurking out there on the Internet, especially where there are credit cards involved.

One recent Internet phishing scam involves Apple fans, and a so-called "Christmas Awards" program. This email-based scam sends you a message from a non-Apple email address (like rediffmail.com) asking you to download an attachment to learn more about the awards program. The attachment is a Word document, which is a red flag for downloading viruses and malware. While the download doesn't appear to host any viruses, it does say that you've won $250 million dollars and a commemorative iPhone 4S. All you need to do to claim the "prize" is hand over all of your personal and sensitive information. Don't! If you get this email, don't open it and be sure to report it to the FTC.

Stay safe while shopping this holiday — and beyond — by following these tips that will keep your personal info out of the hands of hackers.

• Don't be fooled by fake log-in screens: If you're already signed into Twitter, Facebook, or your email, you won't be asked to sign in again unless you've logged out. Even if the screen looks like the normal log-in, it probably isn't.
• Don't be fooled by emails: I've been asked to reply to my "banking institution" with my account log-in information before. The email is formatted to look legit, but if you check the sender's address, most likely it's from a third-party account like Gmail, Yahoo, or MSN. Be diligent and never reply to emails with your bank log-ins or passwords and always check where they are coming from first! When in doubt, call instead.
• Reset your passwords often: Too often, people have some pretty lame passwords, which allow their accounts to get hacked even without a phishing scam. Make sure your passwords are tough to guess, and try to change them every few months.

See the rest of the tips after the break.

Talk about a nightmare! A 20-year-old Minnesota woman found her Facebook account had been hacked. Not only was she denied access, but also she found her Facebook photos had been stolen and posted to a porn site. Getting hacked is just like being robbed — you feel totally violated — but she wasn't the only one being taken advantage of online. Turns out, the same hacker had gained access to at least 100 other Facebook accounts, posting names and places of residence alongside photos on sexually explicit sites.

Not only is this kind of incident bad for your online reputation, but for your reputation as a whole. Imagine if a potential employer decided to Google your name, only to find photos of you on a not-so-savory website promoting pornography! The good news is there are steps you can take to lower your risk of being hacked on Facebook, Twitter, and other online destinations. Get the tips when you read more.

You've heard it a hundred times before: you need to create a hacker-proof password to keep from falling victim to cybercrime. But not only are you supposed to choose a hard-to-guess password, it's best to have a different one for each website you've registered with. This fact was reinforced after the recent hacking of Gawker, which allowed hackers to gain access to Gawker user accounts, as well as any other online account that used the same password. Even more worrysome: this weekends massive email data breach.

Talk about confusing! So how do you go about creating a hacker-proof password that's easy to remember? Find out after the break.

A new report published by the Georgia Institute of Technology says that eight-letter passwords are on the way out, soon to be replaced with 12-letter passwords. The reason? Researchers were able to crack all eight-letter passwords in about two hours using clusters of graphics. Swell.

For more on the joys of complicated passwords, keep reading.

Unfortunately, it may be a few years until Spencer Pratt begins his war on cybercrime, so until then, we'll have to rely on this Norton study — that ranks the 10 worst US cities for cyber security — to keep our Internet safe. Cybercrime costs Americans $560 million dollars a year (mostly from fraudulent online purchases), and according to Norton's latest figures, Seattle tops the list as the most vulnerable city for cybercrime. The results were tallied using stats like access to available hotspots, online shopping figures, potential cyberattacks, and malware infections. Seattlites — watch out!

To see the full list of the 10 worst cities in the country, and to get some tips on maintaining a healthy online presence, just read more