Be Wary of Giving out Your Email Address

Written by Saran on November 30, 2008

Emails are supposed to make life easier but sometimes, it may be wise to choose who you give out your email to. Today, a lot of mischief can be done and normally this comes in forms of email attacks or email bombs. In such scenarios, don’t be surprised if you find your email downloading hundred to a thousand emails in one sitting. That is not the best part. You would be lucky if this was done only once since others would schedule it daily.

Why do they do it? One is for trials of these foolish software and the other can perhaps be for malicious reason. It is a fact that while many people on the web cannot be harmed physically, they can create headaches for you in the form of discomforts from the privileges you get from the web. One of the main elements an online user would need to use is his email and by doing these email attacks, it burdens the person on how to get important information usually sent through the web.

One cannot avoid such instances. But the best way to prevent it is to choose the people you give it too. For people you meet on the web, it would be wise to use free mail accounts from Gmail or Yahoo over your personal one. Avoid the troubles of such since it will not only be a discomfort, but a forgettable experience as well.

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Categories: IT Security Basics, Malware, Security Policies, Spyware, Tips

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Hacker Gets $50K from Sandwich Treasury

Written by Saran on November 28, 2008

Hackers in the modern day can really be a problem. But if you talk about money being involved (which is usually the case) breaching a supposedly secure IT infrastructure is bound to get a lot of attention.

It is in these cases where you have to wonder, do you credit the intelligence of these people or curse them for being able to breach such confidential systems. The $50,000 dollars that they got was no joke and these days, that money can go a long way. A recourse stemming from the hard times perhaps?

Police said a hacker, possibly with international connections, succeeded in planting a keystroke logger onto the computer of Sandwich, Mass., Treasurer Craig Mayen, and was able to watch while he entered his security password, The Boston Globe reported Wednesday.

You have to hand it to these people. In times where money is hard to come by, hitting a town treasury is certainly an accomplishment for them. However, it also means that you are liable for crime and lawsuits especially if you get caught. At the moment, the only lead to it all is a Florida man who said he was wired money to open the accounts reportedly from Russia. A Russian hacker? It can make sense.

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Categories: Network Security, News, Real-World Issues

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Assigning Limited Email Space and Security

Written by Saran on November 24, 2008

A lot of the viruses and Trojans today find their way into a network or a computer using emails. They come in the form of links or attachments which are always a risk for anyone especially if they don’t have the proper software to screen these files being sent via email. One good way to go about it is to set limits as far as the main email configuration server is concerned. While it may not be able to screen links in emails, attachments of any sort can be minimized.

A good way to provide manual preventive measures is through memorandums and of course lectures that IT personnel can provide to the people in an organization. Newsletters are another option, warning people of virus alerts and how they can make their way into computers.

Spreading in networks starts from one computer. These are a given. So if network and security administrators want to avoid having to address such issues, it would be best to start by safeguarding workstations and orienting people of the threat of such.

Of course, not all people will be listening to you. As far as they are concerned, it is the duty of IT personnel to block them off even before they reach the individual mailboxes. Petty as it may seem, it would be best to use all precautions necessary. While many people will not cooperate, there are measures a good IT person can do and it all starts with research and beefing up security measures through software and policy declarations.

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Categories: IT Security Basics, Network Security, Spyware

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The Price for Downloading Cracked Software

Written by Saran on November 20, 2008

Whether you are downloading a trialware or files from Bittorrent, the chances of cracking or using the full version has severely dwindled in the past months. For one, other than possibly downloading infected software with Trojans and malware, unlocking these supposed protection software has taken a bad hit by the advanced efforts of private software companies to crack down on piracy.

Take for example Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 which has cracked the whip on licenses by blocking them once you start updating the software. While you can install and crack them, they are rendered useless in the end since once you hit that update option, your key is automatically blocked. Worst, malware and Trojans start coming in (a scenario which I don’t understand if it was made on purpose by the vendor in sending malware) infecting the systems folder where Windows is installed.

Before you know it, dozens of files in the form of dll’s start showing and mind you, they are dangerous. So if that was the case, it makes you think if you were better off not using an anti-virus software at all.

But such is the price to pay for trying to pull a fast one. Everyone loves free things and free software is surely to be an eye-catcher. But if the return is tons of viruses and malicious programs that can wreck your computer, you better think twice before downloading them again.

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Categories: Operating Systems, Spyware

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Trying out Anti-Virus Software Independently

Written by Saran on November 15, 2008

For each PC owner, there will be a preferred setting and software to use. It may depend on the impact and addition of processes or how they protect your computer from malicious intent stemming from viruses and spyware that are spread all over the web. But in the end, you may ask yourself which is the best among these anti-virus software solutions and which can really protect my computer from potent intrusion?

Seriously, there is no definite answer for this. We may see a lot of reviews and best ranked anti-virus software on the web but none of them guarantee 100% protection. Viruses and malware will always find a way and the degree of infection can start from minimal to dangerous at times.

While you can always rely on brand recall, depending on how you understand reviews and features that each software could give, trying them out one by one via their trialware options when you download and evaluation copy would be great. However, beware of some marketing gimmicks such as warning you of infections that may be dangerous to them yet minimal to others.

Anti-virus software selling is still a business and to get the nod of consumers, you have to impress them by showing them something. This is not to say that software companies are actually turning to these low way of marketing their product but why would you purchase an anti-virus software if you have nothing better to show than the price?

That is why you would be better of trying majority of these software programs. For sure you will know which are really needed and which are not.

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Categories: IT Security Basics, Malware, Spyware

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Would you Download an Anti-Virus Freeware for Purchase?

Written by Saran on November 11, 2008

Getting hold of an anti-virus software these days is not as hard as before. Normally, you had to the nearest computer shop and ask around which best anti-virus software can keep your protected and then install it once you buy it outright. Through the years, software companies have allowed anyone to download their software, try it and then eventually be given the option to buy it. Some are even lucky enough when geniuses develop certain key generators to which they can crack the trialware into the full version. But all that seems checked now.

To date, there are still an abundant number of sites like forums that house such cracks and codes. Some of them work but not as plenty as before. Software companies have religiously sought to skim them one by one, blacklisting said codes to which makes freeloaders scratch their heads and continue to get a working key just to avoid a couple of dollars. Sadly, that is not as rampant as before.

If you think about it, this may only be the tip of the iceberg. Software companies may soon follow the cue of Microsoft in blacking out their screens if they are using pirated versions. If Microsoft can do it, then why not companies like McAfee or Norton? They are not small time companies and for sure, they have the funds to make it work like Bill Gates did.

Cheaters cannot complain and so do pirated users. So if that happens, it will all be due to the nature of being a cheapskate that did these people in.

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Categories: IT Security Basics, Operating Systems, Spyware, Tips

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Annihilate Spyware with SpyZooka

Written by Saran on November 3, 2008

What drives a potential developer to come up with their own anti-spyware software? Well for sure, it is the part where he would experience such a inconvenience and apparently for Blue Penguin Software founder Carl Haugen, this lead to the development of SpyZooka.

SpyZooka guarantees 100% removal of spyware, adware, Trojan horses, hijackers, botnets and other malware threatening the security of your computer. SpyZooka will accomplish this in an astoundingly fast 24 hours! Blue Penguin backs up this guarantee with solid results, round the clock technical support and a string of satisfied customers.

The success of SpyZooka has been quiet since 2004. In fact, SpyZooka was not even among the top anti-spyware software that we would come across the web. But regardless, SpyZooka is not a hoax or pushover. It has even gotten a number of prestigious awards including Wugnet’s Shareware Hall of Fame and Tucows five cows.

So how is this new software reliable? Well for one, it covers most of the hazards of the web today including Trojans, spyware, adware hijackers and botnets. Much of these malicious things reside on the web and on some websites that we rarely notice. So if that were the case, we need protection especially now that people are at fever-pitch attachment towards using the web for various purposes such as browsing or sending a simple email.

If you are in the market and want a reliable software to help you out, check SpyZooka out. It can make a difference and perhaps resolve problems faster than other spyware annihilators available today.

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Categories: Malware, Network Security, News, Spyware

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