Online gamers face many challenges as they try to protect their identities and personal information while playing for real money online. online. Competitive and social media players are often targeted by hackers who purport to offer free money online casino games and free money on sign up slots to lure in unsuspecting players and then steal their personal information and, sometimes, their money as well.
Online players typically receive chats and other messages from individuals from around the world so they aren’t suspicious when they receive offers to play free credits online casino games. They know that there is often free money bonuses upon registration (like at Grande Vegas) which they can access once they sign into a specific casino website and link their ebank account to the registration. Unfortunately, one wrong click on an unsolicited scam link makes it possible for hackers to break into accounts, steal money, trick innocent players and even cyberbully.
How can you stay safe while playing online? Well, you can ONLY play here at Grande Vegas....but here are a few more tips:
Passwords
Your first line of defense against hackers and scammers is to choose good passwords for all your accounts. No two passwords should be the same and each should be long, unique and complex. Choose passwords that are at least 12 characters long and that include numbers, both capital and small letters and symbols (exclamation point, question mark, dollar sign, percentage sign, period, etc).
Your password shouldn’t be a recognizable word or phrase -- no phone numbers, birth dates, clever sayings, etc.
Investing in a good password manager is a good idea. These online tools aren’t difficult to use and help you stay organized and safe.
It goes without saying that you should not share your passwords to any of your accounts with anyone. That includes “advisors” who promise to help you increase your wins if you’ll allow them to access your account.
In addition, scammers may send you emails asking you to “confirm” an account – either at an online casino or through a cloud gaming site like Steam. Don’t click on the links in such emails, don’t submit your password and don’t provide these email cheats with any information that would allow them to access your account. Any email that a legitimate gaming site wants to send you will be accessible in your account’s inbox.
Multi-Factor Authentication
Multi-factor authentication, sometimes called “2-factor authentication” adds an important level of security to your gaming accounts and your banking accounts. Gaming systems are increasingly including the option for MFA – take advantage of it. Sometimes the second authentication method involves facial recognition, a fingerprint scan or a message to your cell phone with an access code. Use the opportunity! It costs nothing and can save you big-time!
Settings and Updates
Keep your devices updated by making updates automatic. You can set your settings so that updates are immediately downloaded and installed as soon as they are released from the software, app or device creator.
You can also set your device to automatically restart every morning for any updates to install fully. You can set the downloads, installations and re-starts for a time of day or night when you generally don’t use the device so that you aren’t inconvenienced. The updates contain codes that deflect any newly identified digital hacking attempts.
Always configure privacy and security settings on all gaming devices as soon as you turn it on. Right from Day 1, the devices’ settings should be configured to the most secure settings. The devices come with default settings but those aren’t always the safest nor settings that protect your privacy properly. So go into the settings and set them to a high security level.
Disguise
Unfortunately, cyberbullying and harassment is a fact of life for online players, especially gamers who stream or play competitively. There are people “out there” who get their kicks out of harassing players because of their race, their sex, their sexual preference, their appearance or any number of insignificant reasons. Some gamers have even reported death threats even though they did nothing other than stream their gameplay.
Unless you’re streaming and want to be seen and recognized, consider using an avatar so that your photo isn’t displayed online. And consider using a pseudonym so that your real name and contact information isn’t available. If you do decide to “go public” and expose your real identity, unfortunately the best advice that we can give you is to grow a thick skin and ignore inappropriate comments. And block any offenders immediately.
No Debit Cards
When you play at online casinos or make other types of gaming purchases, you should refrain from using a debit card. With a debit card, the money is automatically deducted from your account, giving you no recourse in case of a dispute over a charge.
The best options is to use a credit card, (or maybe even better....bitcoin) so if you don’t receive an item, if the item isn’t what you ordered, if the service is unsatisfactory……for all those reasons you can open a dispute with the credit card company and you have a chance of getting your money back.
Logging In and Out
Log out of any account where you store sensitive information --.your bank, your ebank, your gaming account, etc – whenever you’re using a public WiFi. When you log in using public WiFi, hackers can access those accounts as well.
