It's the Halloween season, when kids go "trick or treating," they are eager to enjoy their sweets without considering the consequences. Adults use email and websites in a manner similar to this—they go right in without thinking about the risks.

The following are some of the tips on how protect yourself from cyber threats:

• Always be careful of email attachments and resist the urge to act without first thinking out of curiosity. Ask yourself first, why would someone send you this, and why do you need to open it? Is it from a domain you recognise, or is it from someone you know well? Also, disabling automatic downloads in your email program is a good idea.
• Be careful about the website links in email because they could lead to malicious websites or be a target of phishing attempts. When a well-known acquaintance sends you an email with an unrelated link or a very shady URL, it’s possible that their account has been compromised so be careful not to click them.
• Keep your software and devices updated. Many people disregard alerts and notifications about uninstalled updates. Keeping your devices updated will reduce the risk of an attacker successfully tricking you.

These things are usually overlooked, or people aren’taware of the risks that come along with them. The next time you are browsing website links while going through your inbox, ask yourself is it a Trick or Treat?