Hackers running wild? Data theft hits $1 trillion in 2008

We're barely into February and already a rash of computer security breaches is shaping up to be one of the biggest technology stories of the year.

It certainly seems like we've been on this road for a while now. Late last month, the numbers tallied by McAfee pegged total economic losses due data theft and security breaches thanks to organized crime, malicious hackers, and inside jobs at a full one trillion dollars. The report even highlights the rise of a "cyber mafia," which breaks into corporate databases and targets executives, and often extorts money out of both along the way.

No business appears to be safe. The FAA reported Tuesday that it had 45,000 employee records stolen by hackers last week. And even Kaspersky, which makes security software, had its website broken into this weekend.

In a reaction to this and other news of security breaches, President Obama yesterday announced an immediate 60-day review of how the federal government handles computer security, with an eye on what the government is doing to protect essential domestic networks -- including electrical distribution control systems, banking networks, and travel back-ends like air traffic control systems -- not just government-run systems like Pentagon file servers.

Are you at risk? If there's a bright side in all this news it's that in general, hackers have been actively targeting bigger fish -- corporations and millionaires instead of average users -- simply because that's where the more valuable booty is. But still, the standard pitfalls of malware, phishing, and virus attacks remain at large, so every computer user is still vulnerable to getting ensnared in one of these traps unless precautions are taken.

Advice on avoiding hackers remains the same as ever:

> Update your operating system and web browser with the latest security patches.
> Install solid anti-malware software and ensure it's up to date.
> Use common sense when opening emails and clicking links. Employ a spam filter, and never click links embedded in an email unless you personally know the recipient. (And never click a link sent by your bank -- it's almost certainly phony.)
> Use a strong password on any site that houses personal information, and don't reuse that password on sites that you consider less secure or where you have doubts about their reliability or vulnerability.