Imagine that you've just completed the last stressful assignment for your favorite game. You've been playing this game for a few weeks and it's almost over. The victory is so close that you can almost taste it. Then your screen goes black you can't get into your account and you lose everything you've done. You've been hacked off. Now you need to act quickly to protect your bank account before your virtual problem turns into a real disaster.

Whether you're a professional gamer a casual player or the parent of a young PC-obsessed child if you don't keep an eye on video game security and don't protect your device this hypothetical situation could happen to you.

When you play games online hackers can invade your online privacy in a number of ways and they can use that information in even more ways to make money. Hackers can be stopped before they become a problem if you follow the right security and online gaming safety tips.

So we recommend you follow the following most effective ways to protect yourself while playing online games.

Use a VPN

First of all it's better to have a different email address for each gaming account. Don't put anything personal in your nickname like your name or last name. Don't give out any personal information especially your home address when you play online games. But you can't hide your IP address for long though and it does show where you are. The best way to stop IP tracking while gaming is to use a VPN. From ExpressVPN to CyberGhost there are so many gaming VPNs that can help to spoof your location online.

A VPN download is a secure connection that lets you connect to the internet as if it were part of a local area network. This keeps the third party from being able to read what you and the VPN say to each other. It also makes it look like your outgoing network traffic comes from the VPN server's IP address instead of your own. But since the VPN provider may be able to see your traffic it is important to choose a reputable provider and not use the VPN of someone you don't want to know about your activities like your employer. Read the privacy policies of any VPN you want to use from a third party.

For the most privacy choose a VPN that does not keep logs of your traffic and does not keep or sell your information. You should also make sure that the VPN you choose has the ports you need to connect to the gaming servers you want to use and that it doesn't have too much latency.

Frequently Change Passcodes

Use unique hard-to-crack passwords for all of your games platforms and apps. If you change your passwords often you will have even more personal data protection. Every two to three months you should change your password.

Two-Factor Authentication Should Be Used

Two-factor authentication (2FA) makes it harder for people to get private information. With two-factor authentication you might need both a password and a fingerprint scan to get into a device instead of just a password. A wide range of devices platforms and games offer 2FA as an option.

Use Wi-Fi That Is Safe

If you're traveling and want to play games to keep yourself busy you can either use NordVPN or a personal/mobile hotspot to connect safely.

Pick Reliable Online Gaming Websites

Choose reputable gaming sites and play only safe online games; this is the one piece of advice we don’t emphasize enough. For example if you like gambling at online casino websites you may be putting your financial information at risk by providing data like your credit card number and bank account number. If someone else gains access to your account fraud may be committed in your name. Because of this it is crucial that you do your homework before settling on a gaming website.

It's Best To Use Passwords That Are Hard To Remember

Now that you've set up your email you'll need to make passwords for all of your gaming accounts that are just as safe. Each gaming account you make needs a different long and hard-to-crack password. That means you can do one of the following two things...

The first choice is a 15–30-character string made up of capital and small letters numbers and special characters. This string is completely made up at random and provides greater security. This could be how it looks: 53cv!iedJNN6KFfv#LbwCV.

The second option is to make a passphrase with three or more random words special letters and numbers. This could be how it looks: CallCab5-Water-CaPture-Refusal56

Avoid Using Unverified Third-Party Software And Apps

If you want to find tips or files that will help you improve your gaming experience don't go to sketchy websites or download software from unknown sources. So gamers shouldn't use their game account login information to get into third-party websites or apps.

Keep Your Gadgets Safe

Install and keep up-to-date a robust security program on your kids' phones tablets computers and game consoles before letting them use them. You should also keep the software on your gaming devices up-to-date so that it has the latest security patches.

Control Your In-App Purchases

Purchases need to be kept in check or you might spend more money than you planned and might get onto a website selling fake In-App purchases. Find out how to turn off in-app purchases in the App Store Google Play or Windows Store or set limits on them.

Access To The Mic And Camera

For those who don't know cameras and microphones are used in multiplayer games so that players can talk to each other. So everything you say and do gets posted online. So if you say something personal it will be shown live to the other players and anyone else watching.

Another problem is that gamers stream their games live on sites like YouTube which leaves them vulnerable to a data breach. Millions of people all over the world can watch the live stream and if the gamer's location and username are visible it could be a privacy issue. Hackers could use this information for their own gain which would be an invasion of your online privacy.

Conclusion

Even if you're playing your favorite online game you could run into trouble. Before you can fully enjoy and get into the game you need to take care of your security. To avoid attacks by hackers just do the simple things that have already been suggested above.