Web Host News – SAN FRANCISCO — OpenDNS, the award-winning navigation service that makes the Internet safer, faster, smarter and more reliable, today joins the Internet industry in kicking off National Cyber Security Awareness Month, a campaign spanning the month of October aimed at educating Internet users about how to protect themselves from the dangers lurking on the ‘Net.
To date, OpenDNS’s PhishTank has blocked more than a quarter million phishing scams for Internet users around the globe, each one representing a potentially devastating financial outcome for recipients. PhishTank is the only community-run clearinghouse for phishing data on the Internet. As the problem of identify theft increases in scale globally, fighting phishing becomes increasingly important. OpenDNS is the world’s largest and fastest growing DNS service provider and all users of the free service automatically gain phishing protection powered by PhishTank.
In addition to using OpenDNS to stay safe online, the National Cyber Security Alliance recommends the following:
• Protect your accounts. Choosing hard-to-guess passwords and change them regularly to prevent criminals from gaining access to your money or personal information.
• Make copies. Regularly backing up your music, photos and other important files can save you if your computer crashes or is stolen.
• Keep informed. Subscribe to the National Cyber Alert System from the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team at www.us-cert.gov. Through the Alert System, you can receive timely information about current cyber security problems to protect home and office computers.
• Get your school involved. Suggest or sponsor an event at your local school or university designed to increase student and staff cyber security education and awareness. Download EDUCAUSE’s cyber resource kit online at www.educause.edu
For more information on all of these tips, including detailed guidance on how to protect your computer, your kids and your identity, visit the National Cyber Security Alliance at www.staysafeonline.org or get more information at www.OnGuardOnline.gov
About OpenDNS
OpenDNS makes the Internet safer, faster, smarter and more reliable. Based in San Francisco, the company operates a large distributed network that powers a new kind of recursive DNS (Domain Name System) service that provides all Internet users increased security, reliability and performance. OpenDNS is thoroughly committed to building and operating the best DNS platform in the world and to improving the Internet. For more information about OpenDNS, please visit: http://www.opendns.com
About PhishTank
Launched in October 2006 to coincide with National Cyber Security Awareness Month, PhishTank is the world’s only collaborative clearinghouse for phishing data. PhishTank employs a sophisticated voting system that requires the community to vote “phish” or “not phish,” reducing the possibility of false positives and improving the data’s overall breadth and coverage. PhishTank makes all phishing data it accumulates public and available via programmable APIs, which allow other software developers to incorporate anti-phishing elements into their tools. The open access is intended to encourage the sharing of information and increase the chance of eliminating phishing all together. For more information about PhishTank, please visit: http://www.phishtank.com.
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