Online gaming has increased expansively in the past two decades, forging a community of 2.7 billion worldwide. People play online games for different reasons: Enhancement and development of skills including analytical skills, and improved memory.
But there are dangers and risks to online gaming. They include viruses, worms, or malicious software from gaming sites. Some attackers could also get hold of your sensitive data through ransomware. News flash: Hackers seldom release your data even after you pay them.
Despite the risks, online gaming is growing rapidly throughout the US, especially in Pennsylvania where revenue is worth over $33.5 million. Here’s what we mean
Pennsylvania Online Casinos Revenue is Up
In 2017, Pennsylvania recorded less than $5 million in online gaming revenue. The Keystone state had just legalized online casinos. Fast forward to 2019, and revenue in PA sky rocketed to $316.3 million.
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted online casinos’ growth in PA. But after eased lockdown restrictions, the state’s 12 casinos are recording profits. Interested in playing slots and card games?
Check for safe Pennsylvania online casinos at trusted review sites like scams.info. You’ll save your time and avoid the risks of joining fraudulent operators. You could also qualify for a bonus—money you could use to play your favorite games.
With that in mind, below is a list of helpful tips on how to play online games safely.
Protect your device
Most devices come with antivirus or antispyware software for protection. Quality antispyware software is one thing that every internet user should not compromise on when using any device. The reason is that the risks and cost that comes with malicious software by far outweigh the cost of installing reliable antivirus software.
In addition to installing software, make sure that the antivirus is updated on time and is properly-suited to handling the virus threats that present themselves when gaming. Gaming experts recommend top-rated antiviruses like Bullguard Internet Security, Windows Defender, and Norton Security as the best antiviruses suited for online gaming.
Limit personal information
One good rule of thumb when gaming is to ensure that you have a separate email when creating gaming accounts. An email is the most common way to compromise your device either through malware or losing personal information from your device.
Another concern comes when determining what type of personal information is risky to provide when gaming online. When signing up for an online game, some amount of data will be required; mostly your name, email address, and age especially for ae restricted games.
Personal information that poses a higher risk includes financial information, information on where you live, or your workplace. Another rule is varying usernames on different gaming accounts. This is because a common username can easily be traced to one user.
Familiarize yourself with terms and conditions
A common internet joke is on how numerous internet users rarely read terms and conditions. The majority of users give the complicated legal jargon and extreme length of these terms and conditions as a reason for not going through these documents.
However, if reading these terms and conditions is important for pure internet users, then it is even more essential for online gamers especially those that plan to buy or sell gaming information over the internet. The privacy policy is also another essential document that online gamers need to go through to determine the safety of their personal information.
Legal experts recommend taking note of important keywords when skimming through these documents. Terms such as “authorize” and “accept” tells the type of information a website will collect. Alternatively, one can download software such as tos.dr that can rate the quality of the terms and conditions on different gaming software.
Utilize licensed gaming software
Authorized and licensed gaming software is the best way to ascertain that your online gaming experience will be as safe as possible.
Licensed gaming software is free from malware and viruses that are dangerous to your device. This malware could potentially crash your device or lose important information that is stored on the device. Miniclip Games, Fragrr, WB Kids, and Real Arcade are some of the recommended gaming sites that are guaranteed to provide a safer and stress-free gaming experience.
Create Strong Passwords
When coming up with passwords for gaming sites, it is best to make them as random as possible to stay safe from ransomware-related cyberattacks. For instance, using your date of birth as a password or your initials is an easy giveaway and is usually the first guess for anyone trying to access your account.
Additionally, gamers are cautioned against responding to any emails that require them to update or reconfirm their login password as these may be from malware that attempt to gain the user’s personal details.
Parental Control
For parents looking to ensure gaming safety for a safe gaming experience for their children, installing parental control on gaming software allows the parent to monitor and adjust the gaming activities the child does.
Children in particular are especially vulnerable to cybercrimes who may not fully understand how to properly discern the dangers that exist on the internet. This can be done through monitoring Internet usage by blocking specific websites and software, restricting the amount of time spent on gaming platforms, and the amount of money used to make gaming financial transactions.
Approach cheat codes with caution
The world of online gaming is very competitive. Gamers aim to attain the highest levels in their games in the quickest possible time. Cheat codes provide a shortcut to the online gaming experience. They also allow you to accomplish their goals and missions in the gaming world more easily and attain a higher level when gaming.
Because they are created in the form of software that installed on games, cheat codes can have malicious software embedded in them that are dangerous to the user`s device. Gamers therefore need to be very careful when using cheat codes and if possible avoid them altogether.
The online gaming industry has been growing and is projected to continue growing in the coming years. It is therefore necessary to find ways to mitigate the dangers involved when it comes to online gaming.
The risks can make the experience scary; however, taking the necessary precautions is the best bet to ensuring that the experience is as safe as possible for the gamer. The steps above offer simple ways for online gamers to protect themselves and their information from cybercrimes in the online gaming world.
