Want to stop your identity being stolen, or photos being misused? Worried about how much information others can collect about your activity? Or do you distrust online banking? THE SMART GIRL'S GUIDE TO PRIVACY will help. Violet Blue is a journalist with an interest in cybercrime and hacking. She tailors this excellent, easily followed guide to women, but it can apply to anyone. Women, as she says, are more at risk than men. I'm just passing on some of her tips but I recommend to read the whole book.

The first step Violet suggests is to Google your own name, in quotes; "Mary Brown" to see what is out there already; don't forget images. Google your address, phone number and social security number. View your social sites as a visitor and tailor the privacy settings. Tape over your webcam - on anything from a tablet to a phone to a camera - to stop someone activating it. Password-protect any computer or phone you use and never sign in to an account from someone else's phone or tablet; the website recognises a returning computer and this makes it easier for someone else to log in as you. Install ad-blocking and spyware finding software; this can be free. You can set up Google Alerts for your name and personal details - these alerts let you know when something about you is added to a site Google searches.

Disturbingly, Violet tells us that it is safer to go online with a male name than a female name. She suggests women try it. Women are targeted, looks appraised and abusive comments passed about them. Women and gender-different people are perceived as weaker and unsupported, by chauvinists or trolls. And stalkers can ruin a woman's life. Personally I would suggest that if this happens to you, complain to the site overseers and find another site or forum. There are a lot of male allies, Violet reassures us. She warns that a stalker may set up a fake name and 'friend' you which means they may be able to follow your activities and track your movements across many different linked sites.

We learn about a Miss Teen USA whose computer webcam was hacked by a creep so that he could take pictures of her without activating the light. He tried to blackmail her for the photos, or he would share them on line. Turned out he was blackmailing twelve girls this way. Sites exist on a black market to sell lists of hacked cams and the pictures taken with them - generally of girls.

Never scan or photograph any ID and send it to others on line. Nor should you reveal private or sensitive information in forums online. If you wouldn't tell something to a creepy man on the street, says Violet, think twice about writing it online. Violet gives a list broken into red alert, yellow and green for data it is safe to share. Don't forget that sites may be hacked and your data stolen. Does your pizza delivery site really need your date of birth? If it does, lie. Several sites demand the same information from you so a person getting access to one can get into them all. Big sites like Twitter and Facebook continually sell your data to many other sites and marketers, and they keep switching the privacy settings every few months. Either don't use Facebook or check often. Facebook has sold its users' data to a Russian-based search engine. You can't get it back. Your employer can legally monitor your computer use on work equipment; do your banking or personal mail from home.

Install antitheft apps on mobile computing and phones. A friend of mine had an IPhone6 stolen on the first day she had it. If she had put on a tracking app, she could have tracked its movements, used the camera to see where it was and who had it, and given the data to police. Even your personal fitness monitor can stealthily give your details to an app like Facebook which can tell the world your exact location and jogging routine. Find how to prevent it.

There's succinct technical information and basics like, back up everything, including family photos. And make sure passwords are not too easily guessable. Not your pet's name - Paris Hilton's phone was hacked this way. Violet lists the steps to take if you think a social profile or credit card has been hacked. She also tells you how to make a smart dating site profile to block con artists.

If you take half of the precautions in THE SMART GIRL'S GUIDE TO PRIVACY you are already beating the scammers, creeps and phishers. You can keep doing what you like to do. Just do it smarter, says Violet Blue. She recounts her own experience of being cyber bullied for a year by a man and a woman, the legal recourse she took, and why she is now on the advisory board for a group called Without My Consent. I recommend this sensitive, smart and practical book to every modern computer user, especially women.

Book Summary

The whirlwind of social media, online dating, and mobile apps can make life a dream—or a nightmare. For every trustworthy website, there are countless jerks, bullies, and scam artists who want to harvest your personal information for their own purposes. But you can fight back, right now.

In The Smart Girl's Guide to Privacy, award-winning author and investigative journalist Violet Blue shows you how women are targeted online and how to keep yourself safe. Blue's practical, user-friendly advice will teach you how to:

• Delete personal content from websites
• Use website and browser privacy controls effectively
• Recover from and prevent identity theft
• Figure out where the law protects you–and where it doesn't
• Set up safe online profiles
• Remove yourself from people-finder websites

Even if your privacy has already been compromised, don't panic. It's not too late to take control. Let The Smart Girl's Guide to Privacy help you cut through the confusion and start protecting your online life.