(Newswire.net — June 2, 2015) Sydney, NSW –Trusting the people you meet online is not as simple and direct as we’d like to believe. Is that handsome 35 year old personal trainer really a hacker from Nigeria? Is that busty blonde with soft brown eyes actually a data thief down the street?
The ease of posting online has made the internet the dominate way we transact business, search for information and…meet new people.
Online dating is now a widely accepted method to date and even meet our future spouse. The number of dating websites has exploded exponentially. Specialized sites include proximity (ex. Tinder), religion (ex. ChristianMingle), ethnicity (ex. BlackPeopleMeet), sexuality (Grindr), and many more. Dating apps and websites have become a normalized way for people to meet their long term and short term partners. According to Pew research, one in five Americans between ages 25 and 35 have used an online dating site or app in the past year.
A recent story in the Washingtonpost.com reported the dangers, however are increasing. Hackers easily peel off the personal information of many unsuspecting lonely hearts. Many online dating sites seek to make registration easier and ask users to sign up with their Facebook or Google Plus account. In some cases, using social media logins (as opposed to a simple name and email submission) can expose one further and make you more vulnerable to identity theft. One major hack on the adult site, AdultFriendFinder, revealed the email addresses, usernames, sexual preferences, dates of birth, postal codes, and unique internet addresses of over 3.9 million people.
“People really need help. Unfortunately, many are being misguided by marketing hype. They’re misdirected, and spending a lot of money without getting the results they want.” says Allison Shreeve of Business Formulas.
Shreeve and her company do not own any dating sites, but have consulted with dozens of them, including one that rakes in over $1 million per month in revenue. “When a business grows to a certain level, they become juicy targets for identity thieves. While the high profile cases make the news, there are thousands of small businesses that are under attack daily. When we work with clients, we not only help them grow their business profitably, but we help them keep their profit by recommending proper security protocols. It’s not a revenue generator, but it is actually more important to put in place early on,” stated Shreeve.
She continues, “Many business owners hire different firms for different needs. This increases your security risks tremendously. Your online assets should be managed by a single company. This not only creates a consistent brand, ease of cross promotion, but makes your site more secure.”
Like insurance, online security is not a sexy topic. Most sites are not hacked or attacked. But when they are, it’s never pretty. Most businesses look into security only after the damage is done.
About The Business Formulas
Business Formulas currently works with over 15,000 clients globally in five languages; English, Russian, Mandarin, Thai and Vietnamese.We specialize in Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Websites and Sales Pages, Targeted Traffic, Online Strategies, Webinars, Product Creation, Copywriting, Affiliate Marketing, Key Wording, Apps and Coaching.