Cyber Security: Clicking on a Link

Links within emails and webpages can be very useful and time saving - but sadly they can be exploited by criminals or 'jerks' who want to con you, play a trick on you or just waste your time.

It is therefore vital that you get into the habit of checking the address that a link will take you to before you travel across cyberspace.

If you do not recognise where it is going to take you - do not go!

Err on the side of caution and be safe.

Links on webpages

To be safe, before clicking on any link, you should develop the habit of 'checking the address' that the link points to.

This can be done by hovering your mouse pointer over the link and checking the status bar of your browser.

Or you can bring up the code and see how the link is written:

On a mobile or tablet device, touching and holding the link will usually bring up a dialog box showing the complete link address and some options of how to open it.

You can then easily see whether you are being led away from a safe site to a potentially 'dodgy area'.

Get into the habit of doing this each time you are tempted to click on a link.

The 3Rs for safe emailing

1. Recognize

Check the sender is who you think it is.

Double-click, tap or hover over the sender's name at the top of the email to view the real email address.

2. Rethink

If you can't verify the sender, do not click at all - investigate further. If the email refers to a known website, type that website address into a new browser window instead and check for information there.

3. Report

If you suspect it's a phish then report it.

Here is a nice You Tube Video from Indiana University that explains is really well: