Hey. I think i saw your picture on this website/blog here CLICK HERE

Hey. check out this funny blog!! LOL CLICK HERE

Hey. this person wrote something about you in their blog.. CLICK HERE

hey i thouight this iQ quiz was cool. i just took mine!! CLICK HERE

hey! check this out! I just saw who my Secret VALENTINE WAS !! it really works.. see who your VALENTINE is just CLICK HERE

No doubt that everyones come across one of these, been warned of these in countless journals, or worse yet, clicked one of these false links.

Now I'm not here to warn you about how bad these are or tell you to spread the word with more journal warnings (even though you really should, the more who know the better).

No, Im here to educated you on a simple matter. One that many people may take for granted but one that can really save you some frustration or even your most precious information!



Here is a screenshot of a function that all internet browsers provide. All browsers, whether you hover over the link or right click it and scroll to properties, will show you down to the last backslash the destination URL for a link you are going to clic (boxed in red).

This here is the Opera browser and other browsers may not show it in the exact same place. Some browsers you may be forced to right click and search the properties menu.

As the red type says this link is familiar and it is widely known to be safe, so theres no problem in clickin on it.



However, hackers dont just use normal tect links anymore. Some have gone as far as to develop pictures to link to phishing sites as well. Thats not a problem, as even links embedded in pictures have link properties and can be checked in the exact same way as if it were a normal link.

This link is also familiar, and I know that its a trusted destination so again, no fear in clicking.

Now, this is the important part so pay attention.
Many who have clicked the links will have run across a similar page. It leads to a page that says you've been logged out of Deviant Art and need to log back in.

The page is made to look official and look exactly as if it had been made by Deviant Art. This is just a disguise.



This is link properties of the link that leads to the Deviant Art login page. A clear and readable link with a clear and trusted destination.



Now this is one of the infamous fake links that appears on quite a few deviants' pages.

When I hover over this link and check the properties it says it will lead me to the Deviant Art login page.

The link says it leads to a blog not the login page. That there should be suspicious enough! Theres something going on screwy there.

Beyond that blatant fact though, the link is clearly not the Deviant Art login page link. It does not match the link in the previous picture does it? Therefore, its not the same link. Its clearly a fake and you shouldn't click on it.

This is a simple tool that can save you immense ammounts of wasted time and lost passwords. So if your on a site you dont entirely trust r if your usually trusted website is in the midst of a hacking storm be careful and think before you clcik, check the link properties!

And this can be done with any link, be it in comments notes or pictures!

For more information on Phishing Scams and how to spot them check out these informative pages.

[link] - Wikipedia Article
[link] - CyberSmart
[link] - Microsoft