Landing yourself the Job of a Lifetime

I read on The Star yesterday that a pretty face used for a profile image is a sure way to attract online friends. Frankly, any female even without an actual photo profile image is target enough and I'm speaking from experience.

In this age of Internet, too much personal information you put out there could spell a breach of security and put you in the path of people out there with unsavoury intentions. Is it any wonder why so many people here are still being scammed losing millions to strangers? Some in the name of love.

Facebook and other social media sites are places where people can learn more about you. These sites are easily the sites investigators go to for a back ground check on a person. If you have good data on them, you might land yourself a job of a lifetime. That's one good aspect of being online. Let's not go to the bad side. You already know the drill about not revealing too much on the web.

Cyber-crimes on the rise

Every now and again, we hear or read in the papers about people being scammed either in person or online. Indeed, cybercrime is on the rise and according to the Norton Cybercrime Report 2011, cybercrime is increasing at an alarming rate worldwide with more than a million people becoming victims every single day.The victims of cybercrime also paid dearly with a total loss of US$388bil (RM1.21bil) to ­cybercriminals in 2010.

Below is an email, received a number of times, of someone who almost fell victim. The thing to remember is, if something is too good to be true, it probably is.

Subject: New Cheating - you see RM200K in your bank account!

Beware times are bad!

Any cheque banked in into your account need a few days to transact. Although the amount appears in your account, but it's still pending for transaction, the person issuing the cheque can cancel the cheque at any time! A few days ago, one of my friends received a sms with the message: "You've strike 1st prize with a prize money of RM200,000 cash." The sms came with a contact no. My friend ignored it since he had heard of too many bogus scams using similar tactics. After a short while his handphone rang, a Miss Fang asked: "Sir have you received a sms telling you that you've strike 1st prize?" My friend answered: "Yes, I have"

Miss Fang: "Please let us have your bank account number so that we can deposit the money into your account." My friend thought, why not, let's see what you can do. My friend has a buddy who works in that bank. Hence, he gave her his account number. Ten minutes later, my friend's handphone started ringing again. Miss Fang said: "Sir, we have deposited your prize money into your account, please check and verify." My friend checked using his handphone and found that RM 200,000 was really deposited into his account. He was euphoric, just like that and he's RM 200,000 richer!

30 minutes later, Miss Fang called again. She was crying: "I'm sorry sir, I made a mistake, I forgot to deduct the tax before I deposited the prize money, 20% of RM 200,000 equals to RM40,000. Now the company wants me to reimburse the money. Can you please return the RM 40,000 tax? I beg you." My friend thought for a while and felt pity for the lady. Thinking of the money in his bank account, he went to the bank. Suddenly he thought of his buddy working in that bank and decided to ask his buddy to double check and confirm with him first. Upon checking, his buddy found out that the money was deposited using a cheque of a different bank.

Even though the cheque was deposited but the actual amount of money can't be transfered into his account on the same day. If the other party decided to cancel the cheque, then he'll not get this RM 200,000. My friend was shocked. He almost lost RM 40,000. Before my friend left for home on that day, the cheque was actually cancelled. If not for his buddy, if not for him being a professional, or if he was cared of letting others know of striking the prize then this bogus scam would be successful. This is a true story, please beware. Future scams could be even better planned. Please don't forget to forward to your friends and relatives to warn them from being cheated.

Do-It-Yourself SEO Software

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a process if understood and put into practice can significantly enhance a site's visibility on the web thus increasing traffic which in turn results in more sales. Many site-owners pay big bucks to have their site(s) search engine optimized and be highly-listed on search engines such as Google and Yahoo! to name two popular search engines.

There is now available a "do it yourself seo software" in the market that will analyze your site for keywords, keywords that will help make your site visible and that will make you money, as a result. With Search Engine Visibility SEO Software you will quickly and easily submit your site to 200 directories and search engines at the click of a button.

With the software, you will find that do it yourself seo is not that difficult afterall The software is packed with a lot of resources including content analysis, meta tag optimization and correction, controlled crawling, site map generation, along with a full suite of reporting tools as well as best practices. Screen shots are available for better understanding.

SEO yourself comes with an unbelievably low price of $49.95 for a full year of analysis, research, reporting, software, and 24/7 365 telephone customer support via a customer support line. If you opt for a 2-year purchasw, you'll save 30%. Additional multi-year discounts are also available.

Watch what you post on the Net these days

I thought this would be good for sharing. It's a reader's letter from The Star..


I REFER to “Obama warns teenagers” (The Star, Sept 10) in which the US leader warned of the perils of “putting too much personal information on Internet social networking sites”.

It’s not only because these could “come back to haunt” them later, but they also provide an insight into one’s lifestyle.

Our leaders have also reminded us repeatedly of this, emphasising that even putting up one’s mobile phone number or a seemingly harmless picture could be risky.

Not too long ago, it was reported that a contestant in a reality-TV programme had her picture posted on Facebook, showing her in a sexy outfit engaging in risque behaviour with a female friend.

When exposed, she pleaded for a second chance and begged the public not to judge her based on that picture. She claimed that it was taken when she was young - only two years actually, as she is now 21 years old.

It doesn’t make a difference how old or young one is, as it is a fact that a lot of people now use the Internet to gain access to, and find out more about, someone.

Taking pictures during a girls’ night out, or at a karaoke session and even at a slumber party with friends and families might seem harmless, but, today, where almost everybody has a digital camera, camera phone and software to alter pictures, nothing is impossible.

It’s not just prospective or current employers one needs to watch out for, but those who are regarded as role models should also be careful when posting anything online.

For example, teachers who use vulgar language while chatting with friends on networking sites, those who talk about their bosses or colleagues online, or photographs of doctors smoking would be seen and heard.

What would their students, colleagues or patients think of them when they see these postings?

BIBI,
Rembau.