As Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, Valentine’s Day e-cards are proliferating. However, sweet and romantic e-cards are not the only ones on the loose. Spammers and other cyber criminals actually use this time of the year to spread more malware. This is why it is necessary that you take extra caution when opening emails on Valentine’s Day.
You might be surprised when you see an e-card from an unknown source upon logging into your email account. However, don’t get overly excited even if you think your crush might have sent you an e-card. Chances are, this e-card came from spammers and it may carry a link that would take you to a site that hides malware.
How to avoid malware
When you receive an e-card from an unknown source, you should be skeptical. Don’t click the link you may find in the email because it may lead to the automatic download of malicious software to your system. If the sender is a legitimate company, visit the official site by typing the URL in the browser rather than by following the link. You should not also respond to the sender of the e-card. It is better to delete the anonymous e-card that you suspected of having malicious content than take the risk of installing a software that could weaken the resistance of your system and make your computer vulnerable to viruses, worms, and hackers. Another thing that you should do is to install an anti-virus and anti-spam software to help you detect content that could pose threat to your system.