Security tips that can save you time, money and stress (from my own experience, thank me later)
I have to admit I’m a tragedy when it comes to being first at trying new technology or so… which means I’ve fallen for more scams and shady situations than I’d like to count. 😀
(At least I can warn my friends and family before they make the same mistakes, so that's the only advantage.)
I decided to share some best practices I regret not doing sooner:
Use a separate card with a very limited balance for any new subscription or service. One platform made it literally impossible to cancel recurring payments and then vanished into thin air – money just kept disappearing every month; I solved it by blocking the card.
Always send a tiny test amount first. I once accidentally sent a 4-figure transfer because I “assumed” everything was set up correctly. Start with $5–10 and wait until you see it arrive safely. (That was really dumb from me.)
Open every link from an email in an incognito/private browser where you’re not logged in anywhere. I almost approved a fake login request that would’ve handed over all my accounts.
Use separate emails for different purposes: one for testing tools & random sign-ups, one for newsletters/junk, and a clean main email only for banking, clients, and anything important.
Got any solid security tips of your own?
Drop them below; it’s the best little Christmas gift we can give each other this year.
Replies
This hits home. I’ve learned a few of these the hard way too. The separate card + tiny test payment habits are boring but lifesaving. Definitely the kind of stuff you only appreciate after getting burned once.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@syed_hassan9 Right now, I would like to save my files from the disc that seems to be lost. Any secret tips for this? :D
@busmark_w_nika - That’s the worst 😬 If it’s still visible, copy the files off immediately and stop using it to avoid overwriting anything. Acting early usually makes a big difference.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@syed_hassan9 If you have any recommendations on how to see those files, I am open, because I canot see anything :DDD
@busmark_w_nika - If the drive doesn’t show files but is still detected, first thing: don’t write anything to it.
A few things that sometimes help:
Try plugging it into another computer or using a different cable/port
Check Disk Management (Windows) or Disk Utility (Mac) to see if the files are there but not mounted
If it shows up but looks empty, tools like TestDisk or PhotoRec can sometimes list recoverable files
If the data really matters, I’d avoid random fixes and go straight to recovery before things get overwritten. Hope you can get most of it back
minimalist phone: creating folders
@george_esther Tell us, what did you pay for? :DDDD
IXORD
I recommend using temporary accounts to test any service. This helps you avoid spam and also protects against personal data theft. However, during testing, do not download any files or visit suspicious links
minimalist phone: creating folders
@ixord Do you mean those gmails created specifically for these cases, right?
IXORD
@busmark_w_nika You can use not only temporary Google accounts. I know that there are services that create a temporary mailbox for you with a generated login and password, which you can use to sign in to different services and test them
minimalist phone: creating folders
@ixord Which services? It is new to me.
IXORD
@busmark_w_nika For example, the Mailinator service :)
TinyCommand
Very Relatable,
One habit that’s saved me a lot of stress: I never save card details on tools I’m just testing, even if it means typing them again later. It’s a small friction, but it’s stopped a few “wait, why was I charged?” moments.
Also +1 to separate emails that alone keeps so much noise away from important stuff.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@anushkahode I recommend documenting your savings, earnings, and money withdrawals or payments. Even in an Excel sheet, so you will have some overview. Track finances :)
These are some solid best practices, Thanks for sharing @nika
minimalist phone: creating folders
@ajinsunny You are welcome, Ajin :)
Thanks for this wonderful gift!
I've always followed the first one for some reason because I'm always skeptical about new services in the beginning. But the other practices are also solid and something that can help many people avoid common scams🙌
I would like to add one to this that I recently fell into -
Never click on a message on socials like Instagram that says "please vote for me ..." or something like this. What the scammers do is that they will route you to a page that legit will say that some connection error occurred and instagram needs your login creds to log you back in. The scammer then gains access to your account and tries to do the same with your connects to ask money in name of some donation/causes for yourself.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@avhijit_nair own experience? :D