Teach Your Parents to Be Sale Online.

It now is official: social media and smartphones no longer are the exclusive domain of millennials and Generation Y, as no less than 67% of 65- to 74-year-olds in the U.S. and United Kingdom use the Internet, with 34% having social media accounts.

"Although a lot of seniors are embracing smart and social technology, they need to be reminded about its dangers. Online scammers can take advantage of older people's trusting nature; therefore, we all need to teach our elderly relatives about cybersecurity to protect them" says Daniel Markuson, a digital privacy specialist at Nord-VPN.

Seniors use the Internet for the same reasons as everyone else --talking with friends and family, shopping, watching videos, and reading the news. However, the elderly often are targeted by scammers, who see them as wealthy and vulnerable.

Scams try to exploit weakness. Here are the five most-common mistakes made by inexperienced Internet users:

Using weak passwords. When signing up to a new account, your first priority is to set a strong, complex, and--above all--unique password. For best security, use different passwords for each account, changing them every once in a while to avert possible data breaches.

Sharing personal information. Avoid putting your email, phone number, home address, or vacation plans on blogs, forums, and social networks like Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Explain to your relatives that they never should reveal their Social Security number online, as identity thieves can wreak havoc with that kind of information.

Moreover, keep a cool head online; your parents should not share feelings or participate in heated...

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