MADRID, September 30 (Portaltic/EP) –
When browsing the Internet through different web pages, sometimes the browser displays a alert notification in which he points out that it is a unsafe website or what the connection is not private, which should alert the user to check the security of these pages before accessing them.
Websites on the Internet are often recurring places that the malicious actors use to launch attacks on users, in which, sometimes, they end up installing malicious software and stealing sensitive information such as passwords or personal data.
In this sense, when the browser identifies that a website may be suspicious (for various reasons), it must be pay attention to the notifications displayed by these browsers to alert usersso that they can take security measures to avoid falling into the possible attack of cybercriminals.
Thus, there are different reasons and warning messages that browsers send users when they suspect a website. For example, as Google points out on its help page, your browser may display warnings about dangerous and misleading content.
In this way, Google Chrome will launch a notification of misleading website, when you consider it to be a phishing or social engineering site. That is, a website where malicious actors attempt to trick the user into performing dangerous actions while logged in, such as revealing a password.
Likewise, Chrome will also display a warning when it identifies a place dangerous websitewhich will be referred to as a malicious or unwanted software website that may damage your computer.
THE CONNECTION IS NOT PRIVATE
Following this line, browsers can also display the message warning “the connection is not private”, which does not have to mean that it is a malicious website, but alerts the user to check the website they are browsing.
Specifically, as detailed in the National Cybersecurity Institute (Incibe) in a post on his blog, when the browser shows the alert “the connection is not private” it is because the website has not established a secure connection using a valid SSL/TLS certificate.
This is a system by which the identity of the website is verified and then an encrypted network connection is established with another system using the Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) protocol. In turn, this protocol acts as a digital identity card that secures network communications so that user data travels safely over the Internet, and establishes the identity of websites on the Internet.
That is, if the connection is not private, you must have caution because it means that information submitted to the website may not be protected and, although it does not mean that it is a malicious page, malicious actors can take advantage of this factor.
STEPS TO FOLLOW TO CHECK IF A WEBSITE IS SECURE
For all these reasons, it is essential that, upon receiving any type of warning notification, users take some steps to check whether the website is safe or not.
First of all, it must examine the full website URL to ensure that it is an address consistent with the page that the user intends to visit. If it is a fake website, malicious actors typically use addresses that look very similar to legitimate ones, but have some difference, such as a different spelling.
Likewise, they must especially check the links that are obtained from unknown sitessuch as emails, text messages or social media posts.
Furthermore, as Incibe reminds us, it is important confirm the legitimacy of the sources. If you have doubts about whether a website is reliable or not, you can search for additional information about that same website, but from reliable sources already known to the user.
For example, you can search for a company’s website in a different browser or search engine. It is also an option to check it through official communication channels, such as a phone call or message.
Finally, there are url analysis tools with which you can check if a web page is trustworthy or if it could be a malicious site.
Some of these tools, which can also be used for free, are WoT safe Browsing Tool, URLVoid, Virus Total. In the case of the latter, it examines files or URLs of web pages by analyzing them with more than 90 online antivirus programs.
Once the website has been analyzed and it has been verified that it is a secure page, users will be able to access the website by clicking on the ‘Access URL’ option. Nevertheless, in case of doubtis It is advisable not to continue browsing said website.
