General Santos City is holding the 2018 Pasko sa Gensan Pyrotechnic Competition starting Dec. 10 with the first entry showcasing its display. The other competitors are scheduled on Dec. 13, 16, 19, and 21. The fireworks show will be hold at the Oval Plaza between 7 to 9 p.m.
News stories from across the nation. Visit www.bworldonline.com (section: The Nation) to read more national and regional news from the Philippines.
By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
GOT into the win column of the ongoing best-of-seven Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup finals series last time around, the Alaska Aces look to build on it as their championship matchup with the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok moves along.
A big 100-71 winner in Game Three on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, the Aces arrested their skid that saw them bowing in the first two games of the finals of the season-ending PBA tournament.
Alaska was in its element throughout the contest, shedding the struggles, particularly on the defensive end, that marked its first two outings.
It is a performance that Aces coach Alex Compton hopes to use as a blueprint against the Hotshots for the remainder of the series.
“The overall story of the game was that we made a bunch of shots in the first three quarters. We didn’t commit many turnovers and we played defense with great intensity,” said Mr. Compton following their breakthrough victory.
In Game Three, Alaska used a strong effort in the middle quarters to pull away and cut the Hotshots’ series lead.
Magnolia took early command of the match, holding a 22-16 lead by the end of the first quarter.
After that, however, Alaska would cascade down on the Hotshots big time, outscoring the latter, 67-28, in the next two quarters to carry a commanding 83-50 lead heading into the final frame.
With the game pretty much settled, the Aces spent the rest of the fourth quarter holding down any attempt by the Hotshots to rally back, something they would have success in as they cruised to the victory.
Import Mike Harris led the way for Alaska in the victory with 36 points and 18 rebounds.
Vic Manuel and Carl Bryan Cruz came off the bench to chip in 14 and 10 points, respectively, while Simon Enciso had 12 markers.
Despite winning huge in their last game, Mr. Compton downplayed it and underscored the need for them to continue taking on the challenge of the tough Magnolia squad.
“If I were to choose between winning with this score and being up 2-1, of course I’d choose being 2-1 up. I’m glad that we won, but we’re still down at this point,” said Mr. Compton, who is looking to notch his first PBA title with the team.
He went on to say that they are expecting the Hotshots to make the necessary adjustments for Game Four, and the game itself anything like that in Game Three.
The ongoing finals series between Magnolia and Alaska marks the first time that the teams are meeting in the championship since the 2009-10 Philippine Cup finals where Magnolia, then playing under Purefoods, swept Alaska, 4-0.
Alaska is seeking its first title since the 2013 Commissioner’s Cup while Magnolia is gunning to win it all since the 2014 Governors’ Cup that completed for the team a rare league grand slam.
Game Four of the finals is on Wednesday.
By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
WHILE him playing as a naturalized player for the Philippine men’s national basketball team is still to be determined, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings and Alab Pilipinas import Justin Brownlee nonetheless expressed his readiness anytime his number is called for national team duty.
One of the players being considered for Gilas Pilipinas for the remaining window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers next year along with Andray Blatche, Christian Standhardinger and Stanley Pringle, Mr. Brownlee, whose naturalized player papers are now being worked on, said he considers it as an honor to don the Philippine colors and vowed to give his all for the team.
“I would love to. If that opportunity comes, I would love to play — especially being able to represent the Philippines and play for a coach like Yeng Guiao, who’s an incredible coach here in the Philippines, and some of the players as well in the PBA. It will be fun to team up with some of the guys. If the opportunity comes, it will be great,” shared Mr. Brownlee while in attendance to watch defending champion Alab Pilipinas’ ASEAN Basketball League season debut on Sunday in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
Descended on the country in 2016, American Brownlee has become a three-time Philippine Basketball Association champion with the Kings and a one-time ABL champ while playing for Alab.
His all-around skills set has left many Filipino stakeholders impressed and batting for him to be part of Gilas Pilipinas as a naturalized player.
Mr. Brownlee, 30, said his papers is being worked on by those concerned and is looking forward to having them signed and completed.
“It’s just processing from all I know. I’m not sure exactly how it’s supposed to be but from what I heard, it’s getting close, but I’m not sure if it’s I’m already playing,” he said.
If ever he gets the nod to play for Gilas, Mr. Brownlee joins a team that would ask a lot from him as it tries to book its place in the World Cup in China in 2019.
The road to the World Cup became narrower for the Philippines after Gilas dropped its two matches in the fifth window of the qualifiers recently held in the country.
The Guiao-coached national team lost to Kazakhstan, 92-88, on Nov. 30 and then to Iran, 78-70, on Dec. 3.
The twin home stand defeats dropped the Philippines outside the top three in Group F with a 5-5 record.
As per tournament format, the top three teams in each of the two groupings advance to the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China.
Australia is on top of Group F with a 9-1 record, and is already assured of a spot in the World Cup, followed by Iran (7-3) and Japan (6-4).
The Philippines are to play Kazakhstan and Qatar in away matches in the sixth window in February.
THE TOWN of Palompon in Leyte has once again strengthened its positioning as a mecca for watersports with the successful staging of the recent Abre Grande sports festival which featured a 15-km kayak marathon and a mantaha regatta.
Organized by the Palompon Municipal Eco-tourism Council, Inc. and supported by 2Go Travel Supercat and the Department of Tourism-Region 8, the sports fest is the kick-off to the monthlong Lawig Festival which is part of the town’s patronal feast of St. Francis Xavier.
According to Mayor Ramon Oñate, the sports extravaganza and the festival seek to promote environmental protection through eco-water sports and rediscover the town’s precolonial heritage of sailing and maritime trading.
The tandems of homegrown paddlers Marjun Montealto and Joemer Montealto of Team Cyclist Palompon and Diosdado Paradero Jr. and Arnold Panilag of Team JoPao capitalized on their home water advantage to capture the first and second places, respectively, of the kayak marathon.
Visiting competitors Danilo Atendido and Joebert Abad of Team LGU Dimasalang from Masbate province edged the rest of the pack to secure their third-place finish.
The paddle fest ran from the Kalanggaman island, named last year as the country’s most amazing sandbar by the travel portal Skyscanner, to Palompon town proper.
In the mantaha category, Cambinoy Mangrove and Livelihood Association Paddlers and Brgy. Parilla 4Ps Paddlers, snatched the top two honors, with Dimasalang Masbate National High School Paddlers settling for third.
The mantaha is an improvised dragonboat made out of two hulls of the typical fisherman’s outrigger boat to simulate the excitement of sprint paddling. Crewed by eight paddlers, a drummer and a rudder man, the 300-meter race was held at the town’s Tabuk Mangrove Park.
Now on its eighth edition, Abre Grande also included with duathlon for kids and open categories (run, bike, run), long board competitions, and a 6.42-km trail run at the Palompon Terrestrial Eco-Adventure Park.
Literally meaning “grand opening,” it is a recipient of the Pearl Award from the Association of Tourism Officers in the Philippines (ATOP) for being country’s best sports tourism event in 2017.
Meanwhile, Palompon town was elevated to the group’s Hall of Fame for winning the Best Tourism-Oriented Local Government Unit (Municipality Level) for three years in a row because of this event.
ONE of the iconic players in the National Basketball Association in the 1990s, legend and Hall-of-Famer Alonzo Mourning said he is amazed at, and proud of, how far The Association has come since he first stepped on it.
Recently visited Manila to witness the official tie-up between NBA Philippines and smart phone maker Vivo as local partners, Mr. Mourning, a 16-year NBA veteran, said much has changed in the NBA, and all for good, from the time he became part of it in 1992.
He mentioned how the game has evolved, particularly the play of big men in the league.
“The players that are coming into the league now are more versatile and more talented in different areas. Not only are they able to shoot the basketball but they also able to dribble the basketball very well. You have taller guys who back when I was playing were limited to the post but now they play in the perimeter, shooting threes and handling the ball like Kevin Durant,” said Mr. Mourning, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014, during the NBA-Vivo partnership launch.
“Dirk [Nowitzki] started it when he began shooting from the outside. The way the league is calling the game has helped the perimeter players. It’s still physical but not as physical as before. So players are freer from the perimeter. But it has been good,” he added.
As a brand, the NBA has also grown globally, a testament he said to the leaders of the league throughout the years who made sure the NBA continues to be relevant in every possible way through partnerships it has forged, including the one with Vivo.
“Anytime we get to celebrate another partnership it helps grow the brand. The more partnerships we have the bigger this brand becomes globally. It has grown well since I first played in the NBA. It means we are doing something good,” said the two-time NBA defensive player of the year (1999 and 2000).
Drafted second overall in the 1992 NBA rookie draft by the Charlotte Hornets, Mr. Mourning, 48, ended his career with the Miami Heat in 2008 with one NBA title to show for (Heat, 2006) and career averages of 17.1 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks.
He also won an Olympic gold medal in 2000 while successfully coming back from a life-threatening kidney disease after.
A decade away from the game, Mr. Mourning said he has not been completely away from what he loves doing, still being part of the Heat franchise.
He said he enjoys what he is doing now and committed to giving back to young players in the league.
“When I retired I took a year off and afterwards I was hired by the Miami Heat and I took the position of vice-president for player development where I help create programs which I work with the players not only to help them become professionals on the court but off of it as well,” said Mr. Mourning.
“Outside of that, what keeps me busy is also I work as ambassador for the NBA. So I travel to different places and doing work for the league as well as having a foundation back in the States to provide services for children in Florida,” he added.
As to the Philippines, Mr. Mourning said he has heard a lot of great things about it prior to coming here, including how good the food is here and how passionate basketball fans Filipinos are.
He encouraged local fans to continue supporting the league and continue growing the sport which he considers as the best and biggest out there. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas became solo men’s champions anew while its women’s team ruled for the fifth straight year in the UAAP Season 81 judo competition Sunday the Enrique Razon Sports Center in De La Salle.
With heavyweight Dither Tablan and half lightweight Ryan Benavides leading the five-gold haul, the Growling Tigers collected 45 points to complete a three-peat and annex a record 14th crown overall.
Ateneo, which shared the men’s title with UST last season, settled for second place with 18 points after winning two golds.
University of the Philippines, which also had 18 points but could only muster third place as it only won a gold to show.
Tablan emerged as the season MVP, while Benavides captured the Rookie of the Year honors.
Other Tigers gold medalists were Russel Lorenzo (extra lightweight), Mitchell Salcedo (middleweight) and George Kim (half heavyweight).
With MVP Khrizzie Pabulayan’s half lightweight gold and a deluge of seven silver medals, UST collected 36 points to extend its longest winning streak in the women’s division to five years.
The Tigresses won their 11th tiara overall.
UP captured three golds but placed second with 25 points, edging
University of the East, which tallied 24 points in third spot.
Lady Warrior Remieanne Pangilinan, who topped the half middleweight category, took home the Rookie of the Year honors.
In the juniors division, UST retained the boys title, while UE made it two in the girls section.
Chess.com Isle of Man International
October 20-28, 2018
Douglas, Isle of Man
Final Top Standings
1-2. Grandmaster (GM) Radoslaw Wojtaszek POL 2727, GM Arkadiy Naiditsch AZE 2721, 7.0/9
3-9. GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 2779, GM Alexander Grischuk RUS 2769, GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 2763, GM Wang Hao CHN 2722, GM Gawain Jones ENG 2677, GM Baskaran Adhiban IND 2668, GM Jeffery Xiong USA 2656, 6.5/9
10-28. GM Anish Giri NED 2780, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave FRA 2780, GM Viswanathan Anand IND 2771, GM Sergey Karjakin RUS 2760, GM Richard Rapport HUN 2725, GM Le Quang Liem VIE 2715, GM Vidit Santosh Gujrathi IND 2711, GM Vladislav Artemiev RUS 2706, GM Zoltan Almasi HUN 2702, GM Peter Leko HUN 2690, GM David Howell ENG 2689, GM SP Sethuraman IND 2673, GM Vladislav Kovalev BLR 2664, GM Hrant Melkumyan ARM 2660, GM Emil Sutovsky ISR 2633, GM Mircea Parligras ROU 2623, GM Surya Shekhar Ganguly IND 2622, GM Daniel Fridman GER 2600, IM Alina Kashlinskaya RUS 2447, 6.0/9
Total Participants: 165 players
Time Control: 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 50 minutes for the next 20 moves followed by 15 minutes play-to-finish with 30 seconds added to your clock after every move starting move 1
The past few months have been chess-packed, what with the Batumi Olympiad (Sept. 23-Oct. 6), European Club Cup (October 13-18), the women’s world championship (Nov. 3-23) and the Magnus Carlsen vs Fabiano Caruana world championship (Nov. 9-26) following in quick succession.
One of the strongest opens in the world is held annually in the Isle of Man. This is an island between Great Britain and Ireland which is a self-governing British Crown dependency: the head of state is Queen Elizabeth II and defence is the responsibility of the United Kingdom). This year the giant open took place from Oct. 20-28. A total of 65 International Grandmasters, 20 of whom are rated 2700+) and 45 International Grandmasters went to the Isle to participate.
The husband-and-wife team of GM Radoslaw Wojtaszek and IM Alina Kashlinskaya were the big winners. GM Wojtaszek tied for 1st place with the Latvian-turned-German-turned Azerbaijani GM Arkadiy Naiditsch and then won the tiebreak to claim the trophy. The two of them received 37,500 British pounds for the first place tie and Wojtaszek received an additional 500 pounds for winning the tiebreak.
The wife, IM Alina Kashlinskaya had a very good day on Oct. 28, 2018, which was the last round of the tournament. She defeated Samuel Sevian, a 2634-rated GM which brought her total score to 6.0/9. This earned her first GM norm and won the top woman’s prize of 7,000 pounds. To top it all it was her birthday! The Polish-Russian couple won a combined 45,000 pounds, the equivalent of around P3 million. Not bad at all!
A lot of very good chess was played in the tournament – I will show you two brutal queen sacrifices.
First a brilliancy by the 23-year old Indian GM Vidit Santosh Gujrathi. With a rating of 2701 he is currently the third highest-rated Indian after Anand and Harikrishna. After the game he went over the moves with IM Danny Resnch and I have incorporated several of his comments in the notes below.
Eggleston, David J (2406) — Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi (2711) [C54]
Isle of Man Masters Douglas, Isle of Man (1), 20.10.2018
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6
I went through Wesley’s DVD on playing the Black side of the Italian Game. He points out here that Black wants to play 5…d5 however, it does not work because of 6.exd5 Nxd5 7.Qb3 winning a pawn. So, instead of 5…d5 Black can either castle kingside or play 5…d6. The latter is safer because 5…0–0 6.Bg5 is a hard pin to break. On the other hand 5…d6 gives up the idea of pushing the d-pawn to d5 in one go.
6.0–0 0–0 7.a4 a5 8.Bg5
The significant factor here is that White has already castled, because now …
8…h6 9.Bh4 g5
Taking the pawn on g5 with the knight is not as strong with the white king on g1.
10.Nxg5?!
GM Vidit remarks that he has studied this position and concluded that 10.Nxg5 is not good here because White needs many moves to get his pieces into position, for example the b1 knight still has to travel over several squares to get to its optimum position on the e3 square. It appears that best move here is 10.Bg3.
10…hxg5 11.Bxg5 Kg7 12.Qf3 Rh8!
Better than 12…Kg6 13.Bh4 Rh8 14.Qg3+ Kh7 15.Bxf7 White is doing very well.
13.Nd2 Qe7 14.h4 Bd7 15.Bd5
White’s intention is to follow this up by Nd2–c4–e3.
15…Rag8 16.Nc4 <D>
POSITION AFTER 16.NC4
Now comes the surprise.
16…Nxd5!
Vidit wasn’t sure if the queen sacrifice is absolutely correct, but he saw that his moves now are easy to make and so the decision to go for it was easy to make.
17.Bxe7 Ndxe7 18.Ne3
After the game Vidit said that White should not have given up the h4–pawn so easily and perhaps try to take the initiative with 18.g3 Kf8 19.Qf6 but that doesn’t work because of 19…Rxg3+! 20.Kh2 Rh3+ 21.Kg2 Rg8+
18…Rxh4 19.g3 Rh6 20.Rfc1 Rf8!
Opening up the f-file.
21.Kf1 f5 22.Ke1 fxe4 23.Qxe4 d5!
The final difficult move. The point is that 24.Nxd5 is refuted by 24…Bf5 25.Qc4 Bxf2!
24.Qg2 Bh3 25.Qg1 Bxe3 26.fxe3 Rhf6
It is already a clear win for Black.
27.Ke2 Bg4+ 28.Ke1 e4 29.d4 Rf3 30.c4 Nb4 31.Kd2 Rf2+ 32.Kc3 R8f3 33.Kb3 Rxe3+ 34.Rc3 dxc4+ 35.Kxc4 Be6+ 36.d5 Bxd5+ 37.Kd4 Nc2+ 38.Kc5
[38.Rxc2 Rd3+ 39.Kc5 (39.Ke5 Rf5#) 39…Rxc2+ 40.Kb5 Rb3+ 41.Kxa5 Nc6#]
38…Rxc3+ 39.bxc3 Rf6 40.Kb5 Nxa1 41.Qxa1 e3 42.c4 Bc6+ 43.Kxa5 Kf7 44.g4 Bf3 45.c5 Nc6+ 0–1
After 45…Nc6+ 46.Kb5 Be2# it is mate.
Do you remember IM Vincent Keymer? He was only 13 years old when he won the 2018 Grenke Chess Open in April of this year ahead of 49 grandmasters (four of whom were 2700+), scoring 8/9 for a performance rating of 2798. This was a sensational result and qualified him to play in next year’s Grenke Classic, a category 20 event where he will be competing against the likes of Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Levon Aronian and, well, you get the picture.
Vincent did not do as well here in the Isle of Man, but he did come up with a brilliant victory over a tough opponent – former candidate GM Boris Gelfand.
Keymer,Vincent (2491) — Gelfand,Boris (2701) [D46]
Isle of Man Masters Douglas ENG (8), 27.10.2018
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Qc2 Bd6 7.Bd3 0–0 8.0–0 Re8
The main line goes 8…dxc4 9.Bxc4 b5 10.Be2 Bb7.
9.e4 dxc4 10.Bxc4 e5 11.Rd1 exd4
The text move has never been seen before, and 11…Qe7 is the most common move. However, Gelfand is a great expert in the Semi-Slav and if he plays it then it must be good.
12.Nxd4 Qc7 13.g3 Ne5 14.Be2 Bh3 15.Bg5 Neg4 16.Bf1 Bxf1 17.Rxf1 Be5 18.Nf5 g6 19.Nh6+ Nxh6 20.Bxh6 Ng4 21.Bd2 Rad8 22.Kg2
White must not get overoptimistic with 22.f4 which only looks good but actually loses to 22…Qb6+ 23.Kh1 (23.Kg2 Bxc3 24.Qxc3 Rxe4 White’s position will be collapsing soon) 23…Bxc3 24.bxc3 Rxe4! 25.Qxe4 Rxd2 mate will soon follow.
22…Qe7 23.h3 Nf6 24.Rfe1 Qc5
Black cannot win the e4–pawn: 24…Bxc3 25.Bxc3 Nxe4 26.f3.
25.Rad1 Qc4 26.Bg5 Rxd1 27.Rxd1 b5 28.f3 b4 29.Qe2 Qe6 30.Na4 Qxa2 31.Qc2 c5 32.Nxc5 Rc8 33.Rd2 Qa5 34.Be3 Qc7 35.Qd3 Qc6
[35…Bxg3? 36.Na6 Qe5 37.Bd4 followed by 38.Bxf6 will win a piece for White]
36.Kf2 Bc7 37.Na6 Rd8?
The correct move is 37…Ba5.
38.Nxb4!
It looks like Gelfand missed this and only looked at 38.Qe2 Rxd2 39.Bxd2 Nh5 40.Nxc7 Qxc7 41.f4 a5 where he is at least equal.
38…Qe6
[38…Rxd3 39.Nxc6 Bxg3+ 40.Ke2 Rxd2+ 41.Kxd2 a6 Material is equal but White’s centralized king gives him the advantage in the ending.
39.Qxd8+! Bxd8 40.Rxd8+ Kg7 41.Bd4 Kh6
Maybe a better chance is 41…Qxh3 42.Rd6 Qh2+ hoping for perpetual check.
42.g4 Nd7 43.Nd5 f5 44.Rh8!
Threat is 45.g5+ which forces mate.
44…fxe4 45.f4! Nf8
[45…Qxd5 46.g5+ Kh5 47.Rxh7#]
46.g5+
Not 46.Rxf8?? Qxd5 and the tables have turned.
46…Kh5 47.Nf6+ Kh4 48.Nxh7 e3+ 49.Bxe3 1–0
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
bobby@cpamd.net
LeBron James is a great many things, and among those great many things, he can also be an egotist, a blowhard, a whiner, and a fool. Yet, he continues to lord the National Basketball Association precisely because those are the worst that can be said of him. In two and a half weeks, he will turn 34, an age where countless other superstars before him have been compelled to greet with a rocking chair in the horizon. In his case, it’s simply a number that reinforces his status as the most singular presence in the sport’s highest echelon.
Today, James will share the court with best friend Dwyane Wade for the last time. They joined the league together in 2003, but while his banana boat colleague is in the midst of a farewell tour as a substitute for the lottery-bound Heat, he is just in the opening stages of a four-year stint as the herald of the on-the-rise Lakers. The pictures in the short and medium terms are rosy due in large measure to his exertions; apart from 7.7 rebounds and 6.9 assists, he’s norming a 10-year-best 28.3 points. And the purple and gold are thriving as a result; were the season to end today, they would be the fifth seed in the highly competitive West, a whopping six spots better than their immediate past lottery position.
Indeed, the Lakers are in the conversation for all the right reasons anew. And, significantly, they’ve stuck to their guns in terms of retaining their flexibility heading into the 2019 offseason. Staying committed to a youth movement designed to fortify their future, they’ve inked veterans outside of James to one-year deals. The intent is clear: they’re swinging for the fences in the 2019 offseason to partner him with one or two major free agents. And for all the gains they’ve made, they’re not short-circuiting their plan to instigate moves for the here and now at the expense of the there and then.
Needless to say, James affords the Lakers the luxury of time. In terms of going for the hardware, he could have chosen better and taken his talents elsewhere. But because he values family and friendship above all, he made a career decision that furthers his dreams not involving the basketball. That it’s also paying off on the floor is a testament to his skills. Sure, he commands the room and, in the words of some of his critical peers, sucks the air out of it. On the other hand, he has proven himself worthy of the attention, and if they can’t see their stars shining brightly alongside his own, then that’s on them and not on him.
Meanwhile, James couldn’t care less. He know his body of work speaks for itself, and he continues to build on it in a way that no one else can. He doesn’t have legal issues. He hasn’t embarrassed himself, those around him, his employers, and his sport with public transgressions. He strives to give back to his community and speaks out on social issues without fear or favor. If that’s what a “toxic” environment means, then so be it. Ask Wade, who was glad to experience it up close. Ask the Lakers, who are ecstatic to be relevant and respected once more.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.
In today’s hyperconnected society, we have unprecedented access to information. We are online for a significant portion of our waking hours, using the internet to communicate with friends and family, conduct business, and complete financial transactions. But just as these tools continue to make our lives more convenient, they’ve also introduced new ways for the criminally-inclined to mine the data we create, and use it against us.
Jonathan John B. Paz, data protection officer and enterprise information security officer of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), shares these simple tips to protect your data and ward off online scams, especially during the Christmas season.
When accessing websites that require your information, ensure that you have a secure connection. Check for a lock icon beside the https:// on the address bar of your browser.
It may seem like a hassle to update your password often, but many have fallen victim to cyber-attacks because they use the same, or even similar, passwords on different accounts, be it on social media or online banking sites. Consider using password protection software, such as One Password or LastPass, which store your passwords and help you create unique passwords that are harder for criminals to guess.
Cyber criminals can collect data by sending fake online promotions. These online sale scams are usually spread via social media. They may even come from your friends who are just as excited by great deals. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Verify online promos first before you provide your information.
While it may be more convenient to use free WiFi to purchase items on the go, this can put you at risk of having your data and your hard-earned money stolen. Cyber criminals have different ways of masking WiFi networks (e.g., setting up a fake public WiFi) which allow them to monitor your online activities and obtain sensitive personal information such as your login credentials, credit card information, and the like.
Install the latest anti-virus software, anti-spyware software, and a firewall on your devices. Make sure that all these are updated and that software update patches are installed as soon as they are released. This is to protect yourself and your computer from most basic attacks.
Cyber criminals choose no time or place to attack. They rely on your complacency and your preference for convenience. The easiest and most effective way to make sure that no one can access your data is to log off once you’re done with your transactions. Make sure to lock or shut down your computer when you leave the office.
Rather than throw documents in the trash, shred or cut them up. Criminals can easily glean information from bank statements, medical results, insurance statements and credit applications.
Unless needed, do not bring important documents with you during the day. When you go out, take only the IDs, debit and credit cards you need. This minimizes the possibility of misplacing your files or cards and leaving yourself open to attacks.
Delete personal files, empty digital trash bins, uninstall relevant software, delete browsing history. In other words, just wipe out every piece of personal information in your devices before throwing them out or giving them to somebody else for recycling.
Posting too much information about yourself allows identity thieves to know about your life, use their knowledge to answer “challenge” questions on your accounts, and get access to your money and personal information.
“When it comes to protecting your data, you shouldn’t take shortcuts,” Paz said. “Criminals expect us to always choose convenience over protection, especially during the Christmas rush. These simple tips remind us of the practical habits we need to develop.”
