Before the era of private email (or even email for that matter), classic spy films like Mission Impossible and James Bond often depicted private and secure communication as being a high-tech government device, hidden in the  brief case of an agent that would get them up to speed on the latest secret mission.

While having a brief case send you secret messages and then self-destruct in 15 minutes sounds pretty cool, private email technology today goes a step further by allowing users to communicate with one another privately over the Internet, without having to worry about their sensitive information being compromised. PrivacyHarbor.com email, for example, protects your email from spam, viruses, scams and invasions of privacy. Whether you are getting briefed for a secret mission, sending a resume to a prospective employer, emailing a significant other, or sending sensitive documents to your lawyer, PrivacyHarbor.com keeps your information private and secure with secure web servers and additional privacy features.

Common email providers like Gmail, Hotmail and YMail may offer free email, but often it comes at a price. For example, the common email inbox below is filled with a mixture of unopened email messages from friends, membership websites and potential spammers. From first glance, it’s hard to tell which of these email messages are legitimate communications versus unwanted messages that could contain spam, scams or viruses.

Sorting Out Common Email -

With PrivacyHarbor, sorting out and deleting unwanted email messages is easy. Simply click on the “SnapGuard” tab at the top of your account. Once in the SnapGuard folder, you can view all of your new, unopened emails. These could be emails sent from legitimate sources that you haven’t yet been in contact with or emails sent from potential spammers, scammers and hackers. SnapGuard helps you to safely review these new emails to approve, discard, or mark them as spam without having to worry about viruses, scams or unwanted advertisements hitting your inbox.

SnapGuard -

In addition to SnapGuard, PrivacyHarbor email is sent and received using private, SSL secured web servers, requiring that all users login and that all unregistered users follow a secure process for entering PrivacyHarbor.com to safely view their private email. This provides an additional layer of privacy and security for both senders and recipients of PrivacyHarbor.com messages.

My prediction for the next Mission Impossible and James Bond films: the secret agents toss out their old self-destructing brief cases and instead login to private email on their computers. Not only will they have more than 15 minutes to read their messages, but they can now save their sensitive communications and read them later using private and secure email at PrivacyHarbor.com.

The holiday season has arrived, which for many families means it’s time to pull out the seasonal food recipes, prepare for a visit from the in-laws, and keep an eye out for the biggest holiday discounts. But one important task often overlooked by families during this busy time of year is to create an online safety checklist.

Before you make your next online gift purchase or update your social media profile, make sure you are aware of the following safety tips, geared to help protect the privacy and security of you and your family:

Online Purchases –

• Never buy gifts from websites that do not have SSL encryption. If your web browser doesn’t display a lock icon at the bottom of the window when you visit a website, then that website may not secure your credit card information.
• Be sure to use and update existing firewall and anti-virus software to prevent website cookies, viruses and spyware from damaging your computer or exposing your personal files.
• There are a number of fake holiday e-card and song lyric websites, phony seasonal discount web pages, as well as various email scams that show up during the holidays. Make sure to research the legitimacy of each organization before making your purchase or donation. McAfee recently released an article covering the “12 Scams of Christmas” that offers additional advice on what to look out for online this holiday season.

Social Media Websites –

• It may be tempting to provide your friends and family with constant updates over Twitter and Facebook about your holiday activities and when you’ll be away on vacation; however, publicly posted personal information can help thieves determine the best methods to break into your online accounts or even your home.
• When updating your social media profiles for the holidays, it is a good idea to avoid posting potentially inappropriate or explicit photos that might hurt your chances of getting a new job or promotion (sometimes too much peppermint schnapps and a cell phone camera is not the best combination).
• Avoid clicking on shortened or masked URLs posted in social media status updates, blogs, forums and chat rooms, unless the post comes from a trusted source and is free from spam-related content.

Email Privacy –

• Never include private information such as passwords, social security numbers or credit card information in emails sent through common webmail providers. These emails often pass through several unsecure web servers, exposing your private information to hackers, spammers and identity thieves.
• When going on vacation, avoid setting up auto-rely email messages for your personal email account that might alert robbers that you are out of town.
• Avoid opening emails from any sender you don’t recognize, even if they appear to represent a legitimate organization. Many phishing schemes involve emails that ask you to “login” to your account to take part in a holiday offer or to verify sensitive account information.  In many cases, the links in these emails send you to a fake login page designed to steal your credit card number and personal information. If are unsure whether the email you received came from a legitimate representative, call the organization directly to confirm.

PrivacyHarbor.com provides a  private email service that prevents spam, scams, viruses and identity thieves from ever entering your inbox, which will help keep you and your family safe this holiday season. Purchase a PrivacyHarbor.com yearly or lifetime private email account through the month of December and we will donate 5 percent of your purchase to the Toys for Tots Foundation.

As you shop for your friends and family this holiday season, consider giving the gift of privacy or treat yourself to a private email account and you will help a child in need. When you register a paid PrivacyHarbor yearly or lifetime account through the month of December, we will donate 5% of your purchase to the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.

Sending private and secure email messages through PrivacyHarbor.com ensures that your emails and personal information are kept private and safe. The PrivacyHarbor Personal Account includes Basic Account features, as well as additional compelling features, including:

• 5 GB of storage
• Send attachments up to 100 MB
• Delay sending a message
• Retract a sent message
• Read message status
• Customizable eBusiness cards
• Prevent forwarding and downloading of attachments

During this busy holiday season, it’s important to remember to stay safe online. Take precaution when posting information on public profiles and forums, and never share credit card or sensitive information using common email.

By purchasing a private email account you can help keep the private information of you and your family safe this holiday season while also giving back to kids in need.

Have a wonderful holiday and let us know if you have any questions about private, secure email solutions.

It’s that time of year when online purchases peak and many people are working with their financial advisers to review the past year and plan for the coming one. The Internet has become a convenient and standard tool for exchanging financial information, and email is now a staple in this online exchange of information. Unfortunately, email is routinely targeted by online scammers, hackers and identity thieves snooping for financial information.

Becoming aware of these online threats is the first step toward reducing your risks online. According to Identity Theft Fixes, each year approximately 10 million Americans become victims to identity theft. Of these individuals, an average of $1,800 to $14,000 is lost. Moreover, victims spend an average of 840 to 1,300 hours each year to resolve identity theft issues with their credit report and personal information.

Here are five steps you can take to help ensure your financial information is protected:

1) Keep security software active and up-to-date. Anti-virus, anti-spyware and firewall protection can only combat new threats if the software is current. Set your security software to update automatically, and periodically scan your computer for viruses and spyware.

2) Make sure your OS and Web browser are current. Operating system companies issue security patches to repair flaws in their systems. Set your operating system and Web browser to automatically download and install these critical security patches.

3) Use private email to protect your information. Common email is exposed to spam, identity theft, and phishing scams to name a few. Using a private email service like PrivacyHarbor.com to send private and secure email ensures that your information is kept safe.

4) Password-protect your financial information. If you keep financial information stored on an electronic device, be sure to password-protect the information in case of theft. Do not store the passwords in the laptop or device.

5) Back-up your information. When you have important financial information stored on your computer, be sure to store the information externally on a flash drive, removable disk or external hard drive.

Taking proactive steps to protect your financial information will ensure a safer online experience. Contact us to learn more about how PrivacyHarbor.com can help protect your personal information during this busy financial season and secure it throughout the new year.