Everybody loves a good superhero story, right? In the 1930s we were introduced to a few in 10-cent comics, the 1960s brought us the Silver Age of superheroes including corny tv shows (Pow, Wham, Boom) featuring over-the-top villains and it took until the mid to late 1980s before we got a real serious look at what a superhero movie could be (more on that in a bit).

I guess you’re wondering how superheroes tie into internet safety. It’s easy. Protection, sometimes when you don’t even know it.

At Wisper Internet we do our best to keep you safe before threats even reach our customers. In just the month of May, Wisper blocked 13,000 cyber threats before they could even reach customers’ homes. But as you know there are more threats out there.

Depending on your age (and nerd level), there are two particularly important superhero questions that must be asked before any conversation or argument. We all know Christopher Reeve is the best Superman, so I will not even put that up for discussion.

1. Are you a fan of the Marvel Universe or the DC Universe?

2. Who is the best Batman? Can we all agree on who was the worst?

For those who may not know, the Marvel Universe features characters like Spiderman, Thor, Hulk, Ironman, Captain America, Deadpool, X-men, Guardians of the Galaxy, and dozens of others. I am sure I will cause some aggravation by leaving out someone’s favorite.

The DC Universe, (my personal favorite) features Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Aquaman, etc. There may not be as many, but they are superior. Also, Michael Keaton, Batman 1989, is the best. My opinion only. Sorry, not sorry.

Whether you like Marvel, DC, or both, we can all agree on the idea of the forces of good protecting us from threats and evil in the night make us all feel good. In real life, we have flesh and blood heroes like police, fire, EMS, and others who are there to keep us safe from threats we can see.

We also know there is not a real Lex Luthor, Thanos, or Joker trying to take over our cities or world. However, every day, we are online, our phones, computers, gaming systems, etc. are bombarded with threats of viruses, malware, and bad actors with ill intentions. Why do the bad people do these things? Who knows, but unfortunately, because the threats are out there, we must take extra steps and be hypervigilant just to work, play and do the things we enjoy online.

In a recent chat with Officer Casey Harget with the Dupo, Illinois Police Department, we talked about many of the threats that are out there for both kids and adults. Officer Harget is the School Resource Officer (SRO) and teaches the D.A.R.E. program which includes a small section on internet safety for kids.

For the kiddos there are three simple tips: Keep Safe, Keep Away, and Keep Telling. Keeping safe means keeping your personal info off the internet and when playing games, make sure you are only playing with people you know. Keep away refers to online bullying and strangers and keep telling means to let a trusted adult know if there are strange people trying to contact you or asking you to do inappropriate things.

At the end of the conversation, I asked Officer Harget what was the overall biggest internet-related complaint they get at the police department from all ages. He told me they are phishing schemes asking for personal information and money.

No, they are not emailing bout actual casting lines and reeling in lunkers. These swindlers have been on the rise in recent years and can come from what look like legitimate sources like your own company as well as streaming or gaming services you may subscribe to and many other innocent-looking sources.

Harget also mentioned a particular case where an elderly resident was solicited online and asked to give money. I’m sure you can imagine how the rest of the story unfolded. Just like the kids who need extra protection, seniors could also use a little oversight when it comes to internet safety as well. It’s a shame we are forced to have these conversations, and we can’t all be superheroes, but we can do our part to keep our loved ones safe.

The bad guys are out there and hopefully it gives some peace of mind that Wisper will continue to stand in the gap to protect our customers. We may be good at internet, but we will leave fighting the Joker, Doomsday, and Green Goblin to the real superheroes.

Does anybody know any good stores to buy a cape and mask?

Asking for a friend.

To see my interview with Officer Harget visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq6Top2q4hM.