How to Spot a Safe Site

While antivirus programs and other cybersecurity tools make it much harder for criminals to attack you with malware, you still need to be able to spot suspicious websites that can put you in real danger. Luckily, there are several easy ways to tell if a website is safe or not. 안전사이트

Look for a Trust Seal

A trust seal is an important tool to reassure users your website is safe. It can be placed anywhere on your site, but will probably have the greatest impact in areas where buyers are initially skeptical about making a purchase or giving you their personal information, such as the checkout or registration page.

Badges can come in all shapes and sizes, but the most effective ones are dynamic – they display an organization’s identity upon click-through. The Sectigo seal, which was formerly Comodo CA’s seal, is an example of a dynamic trust badge.

Other types of trust badges include a money-back guarantee, customer logos, awards, and satisfaction guarantees. The most effective types of trust badges are those that are recognized by consumers as being trustworthy and credible. This is why the Norton and McAfe seals, which are well-known anti-virus software brands, topped the Baymard Institute’s survey of 1286 participants. The study also found that PayPal Verified and BBB Accredited were highly trusted by consumers, too.

Look for Contact Information

Authentic websites tend to list contact information, whether that’s a phone number or physical address. If a site doesn’t, it could be a sign that it’s not safe. It’s also important to look at the website’s URL to make sure it’s spelled correctly. It’s fairly easy for phishers to create fake URLs that are similar to real ones and trick people into providing their personal information.

If you’re not sure if a site is safe, type its URL into a safety scanning tool such as Google Safe Browsing or Norton Safe Web. These tools will run a scan of the URL and tell you if it’s been linked to identity theft or phishing attempts. They will also let you know if the site is using SSL, which encrypts data in transit so that hackers can’t read it. If the site is secure, your browser will display a green padlock icon in the address bar and include the company name.

Look for a Privacy Policy

When it comes to online security, there is a worldwide consensus that users deserve to know what kind of information is collected about them. Ideally, this information should be made available to visitors through the website’s Privacy Policy or in a clearly visible banner, particularly on pages that collect personal information such as registration forms.

The Privacy Policy should indicate how any personal information will be used, including whether it will be sold or shared with third parties. It should also specify if any cookies are placed on the user’s device and describe any other activities that might be monitored such as browsing history or uploads/downloads.

It is also good practice for websites and apps to have a clear email address, return policy (if applicable) and social media accounts so that customers can contact the company with any concerns or questions. This helps build trust and confidence with the customer and shows that the website is committed to ensuring their safety.

Look for a Reputation

It can be difficult to tell if a website is safe or not, but there are a few things you can look for. First, make sure the site uses HTTPS (the “s” is for secure). This means your information is encrypted while in transit to and from the company’s servers, which helps prevent hackers from stealing your data.

You should also look for a privacy policy, which will explain how the site collects and uses your data. If a website doesn’t have one or doesn’t explain its policies clearly, it’s probably best to stay away.

Finally, a good way to determine whether a site is legitimate is to check its reputation. You can use a service like Get Safe Online, which provides a free, easy-to-use tool that analyzes a URL and determines whether it’s likely to be a scam or a malicious site. Another great tool is VirusTotal, which scans links using 70 antivirus scanners and URL/domain blacklisting services.