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Eris' Guide to Internet Safety

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Epicmafia.com

1) In general most information leaks happen due to people believing they haven't leaked anything important. Yes, the facts you've relayed may be seemingly trivial, but the confluence of many trivial and seemingly irrelevant facts can lead to a big leak of personal info. Be careful out there.

2) Using the same names across multiple forms of media is a big no no. Seriously. Unless it's something very common. The username Luke, especially if your real name isn't Luke, would hardly be an issue, because there's too many Lukes on the net. The username BigGayLoser1995 on the other hand.

3) Strip EXIF and other identifying info out of selfies. Also for the love of God don't repost a selfie on EM you've posted to say, a secret tumblr, reverse image search is a b*tch.

4) Skype leaks a lot of info on you, namely your IP, as well as any details you've chosen to share. It's possible to partially seal off the IP leak by only allowing direct connections with contacts.

5) To add to the above, IPs by themselves aren't very useful. You can be DDOS'd, and if someone manages to get a hold of your IP and anyone has ever skype resolved you, there's a decent chance your skype username can now be retrieved via a reverse resolver.

6) Logs from Skype can be used to find you. Searching the skype directory for your own currently set display name will lead people right to your account if the display name isn't very common.

7) Seemingly irrelevant linkages between identities can be used to trace you. if e-identity 1 links to e-identity 2 which links to e-identity 3 which links to rl identity then a persistent adversary can find you.

8) Protect your password. Not only are you responsible for what happens on your account, but someone with access to it can: read your pms, talk to other people as you for information, and more to the point there's various ways they can obtain the email used to setup the account. Entering emails into FB and other social media search engines is one of the fastest and easiest ways to get owned.

9) Don't run executables someone else sends you. Seriously. Don't do it. If you do make sure it's absolutely someone you can trust. Maybe run it through virus total anyway.

10) Don't talk to weird sketchy trolls. There's a reason everyone says they're sketchy.

11) If anyone crosses any boundaries, especially if you're a minor, talk to a moderator or an admin. Seriously.

12) From Moon: Google your first and last name and city and then request removal of your information from all of the whitepages-type sites. so people have a bit of a harder time stalking you if they know your full name and general idea of where you live

13) From Arcbell: Use different passwords for different sites. If you don't, one site being compromised can lead to them all being compromised.

Basically minimize the amount of personal info you share online, especially with people you barely know. Be wary of any possible information leaks caused by your own loose lips or by your chosen software. Exercise extreme caution when dealing with anyone.

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