IT Security Blog

Your Online DUI Mug Shot Photo: Can it Be Taken Down?

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Can you imagine the horror of seeing your own DUI mug shot photo online for everyone to see? That DUI incident that results to having your photo taken can result to the ruin of all that you have worked for. The first thing that happens to a person who gets arrested on suspicion of drunk driving or driving under the influence of drugs is that he or she will be taken to the nearest police station. There the fingerprinting process will most likely happen as well as the dreaded taking of photo.

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For many people who have been arrested on suspicion of DUI, it may not be as easy as paying the fine and resolving never to make the mistake of doing it again. Even those who have not been charged or convicted will soon realize that they have left their mark forever in the police records and the Internet via their DUI mug shots uploaded online. Consulting with the best DUI defense attorney may just be something you need to keep in mind, just in case.

So Why are These Mug Shots Found Online?

Apparently because of some misguided need to become transparent, many police and sheriff’s departments have inadvertently or knowingly put mug shots along with their booking details straight into the hands of enterprising website owners.  This they have done by making them available in searchable databases . From the  embarrassing moments of people arrested for varying crimes rose the Mug Shot Website industry.

The Mug Shot Websites

So now, the possibility that you or someone you know or knows you will come across your DUI mug shot is very real. Photos of thousands of people in the same boat are out there, haunting them for the rest of their lives. That mug shot in the hands of an employer may cost a job. That mug shot in the hands of a loved one may cost a relationship. That mug shot in the hands of an enemy can be used as a weapon.

Having Your Online DUI Mug Shot Removed

The first instinct is to contact the website where your DUI mug shot appears. Most would ask for a removal fee to expunge such records. It has to be noted though that your photo may appear in several other similar sites as well. It is possible then that you may find yourself needing to pay an unlimited number of websites.  After all, the information has been made freely available. You may consult with a lawyer to find out if there are any legal remedies available to you. Many are living with the fear of having one mistake found out. For some, that fear may become permanent.

How to Protect Your Content Against Theft

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All site owners would feel good in knowing that there are people who actually read their contents. The feeling may not be as awesome though when they see their work copied verbatim or even in part and placed under the name of another author. Plagiarism or copying of content is a rather common practice in the online world because it is usually easy to do.

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Why Do Anything About It?

Technically speaking, your content is your intellectual property. That in itself should give you enough reason to do something about copyright issues. Just think of the effort, time, talent, and money that you put  into your blog contents before you decide to just let it go at that.  You even take additional efforts to promote your blog like submitting it to a reputable lifestyle blog directory, among others. You are even sharing a part of you in it regardless of what kind of blog you maintain. The stakes are too high not to do anything and the benefits derived from speaking up are considerable.

What is the Implication When Your Content Is Stolen?

When your content is stolen, copied, or plagiarized, the possibility of having duplicate content arises. What is ironic in this situation is that the thief sometimes succeeds in getting more traffic than the original. Adding insult to injury is seeing it rank better than yours.

How to Protect Content Against Theft

It is highly recommended that you include a permission post in your blog which specifies what interested parties should do if they are interested in using your content. You can also choose to say that you are not giving permission for all instances. You should also be paying attention to sites linking to yours for any indication that your contents are being copied. There are also sites like Copyscape which can be used to check for plagiarism. There are also some ways to make copying your content and material a little more difficult like disabling copy and watermarking images.

What Should You Do When Faced with Content Theft

If you come across materials that you believe have been copied from your site, you should file a takedown notice with Google so that the offending site will be removed from the search coverage. You can also try making a direct takedown request to the plagiarist. This kind of request is usually heeded by amateurs who think it is not such a big thing to copy. Serious plagiarists usually require much sterner action.

How Parents Can Protect Their Children from Cyberbullying

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When bullying entered the online scene, it just made the act easier to do. Bullying of this kind often slips unnoticed by parents and school authorities  because  it leaves no physical mark  of abuse. However, the emotional mark is definitely there.

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What Parents Can Do

1. Place the computer in a public place in your home.

Discouraging computer use inside the private bedroom of a child will allow parents to check on their children without being extraordinarily snoopy and and in violation of privacy. This will also make it easier for parents to detect any sign of distress when using the computer.

2. Look for signs of distress that can be associated with computer use.

Sudden stoppage of using a computer is a sign that something is wrong and so is too frequent use. Anything out of the ordinary is suspect. The reason behind unusual behavior must be checked discreetly.

3. Talk with the child.

Talking with a child about his life in general is something that should be done with or without any special concerns.Many children are willing to tell their parents when asked especially those who feel that their parents can understand their situation. This is the reason why trust should have been established early on.

4. Observe for any signs of fear related to school or the neighborhood.

Cyberbullies are usually found where the victims spend much time in like school and the neighborhood. Observing and taking the time to speak with people who spend much time with the child can provide important information. It always pays to know friends and “enemies” of the child.

5. Listen and help the child.

Many bullied children fail to directly say what’s troubling them for fear of retaliation but are doing so in their own way. It is the responsibility of parents to help a child going through this. They should not ignore it and dismiss it as childish fights.

Cyberbullying is Serious

Cyberbullying is one of the undesirable effects of technology since bullies can now follow their intended victims wherever there is Internet connection. The computer which used to be a source of fun and easy-going communication with family and friends can become an instrument of fear and hatred. It need not be this way for anyone.

Cyberbullying is serious and parents should make sure that they know what is happening to their children before technology is used to destroy their lives.

Staying Clear of Online Stalkers

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One of the biggest possible nightmares in participating in online activities is being harassed by online stalkers. People who know what’s best for them should stay clear of these people. In the online world however, it is very difficult to determine if someone is actually doing the stalking since there is seldom any physical intimidation similar to the real world where the target would see  the stalker’s presence everywhere he or she goes.

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Forms of Online Stalking

Online or cyber stalking can take many forms but they all boil down to the great discomfort and anxiety of the target. Online stalkers can be someone known to the target or a complete stranger. If one thinks about it, a known perpetrator tend to be more dangerous because they already have access to certain personal information which a stranger may find difficult to obtain.

Some of the more common forms of cyber stalking include monitoring of online activities of the target and gathering personal information from social media accounts of relatives and friends of the target.  It can also be in the form of making false accusations , encouraging other people to join in the harassment activities, posing as the target specifically in online purchases and transactions, and  sending a virus to the target’s computer. Whatever form the stalking takes, the end result is distress to the target.

How to Avoid Online Stalkers

Protection is always the first step in avoiding something potentially dangerous. In the online world, it makes sense to protect the personal information of users. Posting very personal information in social media platforms makes possible targets very vulnerable to online stalking attacks. It is best to keep private things private and share only those that can be safely seen by anyone.

Online users must always be cautious in their dealings since the cyber-world has made it possible for  stalkers to hide behind a made up name and profile image. If any form of online communication makes a person uncomfortable in some way, it would be best not to react but rather report the questionable behavior or communication to the people who can handle it better such as the online community moderator and the like.

Know the Current Risks

Online users who know the current risks will always be one step ahead of potential stalkers. Awareness allows people to create their own safety measures applicable to their situation. By observing the usual decorum in human communication even in the online world, users can help themselves stay clear of online stalkers.

Spam Trigger Words – Are There Such Things?

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If we are to believe that someone is watching our online communication, we should be careful of the subject line we choose to use in our emails. There are certain words, when detected, arouse special interests from the wrong people. If they have reason to believe that someone would have the slimmest interest in a related product or service, they may cause the floodgates of spam emails to open.  These are the so-called spam trigger words.  These are the very same words that email programs will block and effectively prevent emails from being read by intended recipients.

Some examples of these words include “as seen on”, “buy”, “clearance”, “shopper”, “order”, “order status”, “buying judgments”, and “buy direct” which are words often seen in commercial messages.  Words such as “meet singles”, and “score up with babes” appear very spammy in personal messages.  There are also words categorized as spammy in employment, financial, greetings, marketing, medical, numbers, offers, and call-to-action and words depicting a sense or urgency.  Using the word “free” is sometimes enough to send off warning bells.

Descriptive phrases like “satisfaction guaranteed” or “greatly reduced” also raise the ante of email spam filters.  This is the reason why seemingly harmless emails will end up in the spam folder.  It is best to check the spam folder once in a while since many will get trapped in there because of the words’ presumed meaning.

Many people receive a load of spam emails everyday.  They can choose to aggravate the situation by opening them and forwarding them to friends and associates or they can simply ignore them and move on to more productive online tasks.  Although no one will probably be able to stop spam emails altogether, at least not providing any more information to spammers by responding to such emails will go a long way in not further clogging emails of email contacts.

Spam emails are so easy to create and sending them to thousands of recipients will cost the sender nothing.  Many gain something by getting a response or even closing a sale  from the use of such spam email.  It is no wonder then that this practice is not about to stop anytime soon.

There are many eyes watching our online transactions.  Sometimes, they only need to see a word to see you as a probable client for their offering. Do yourself a favor and stay away from these trigger words in your communication.

Teresa is a researcher-writer who covers a wide range of topics in search of useful information.

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Getting Rid of Malware

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It could happen to anyone.  Those highly disturbing malware trying to inch their way into an unsuspecting user’s computer system are simply the bane of computer use.  Once they are able to enter a system, it could be very difficult to get rid of them.

A computer user will feel the symptoms.  He or she may not exactly realize at once what exactly is different but the feeling is uncanny because the difference is there.  It can be a slow start-up or computer resumption, a link that does not work, an unexpected change in browser, a program that will not start, advertisements seem to appear from nowhere, and anything else that doesn’t seem right.  A computer user will know especially if he or she has been using the same computer for some time.

Malware usually enters a computer system through malicious codes embedded by the hacker.  The problem here is that these codes cannot easily be seen and are purposely hidden.  They may come with innocent-looking communication which has been opened by the user in the ordinary course of operating the computer.

There are malware that can easily be removed once identified but there are others that are more persistent which can be a major source of headache to computer users.  In attempting to rid of malware, it is important to disconnect the computer from the Internet.  A computer can be booted in the Safe Mode such as that provided by Microsoft so that only the minimum required programs and services are being used.  It would be best to back up important files and delete temporary files before running a virus scan.  A reliable antivirus program should do the trick.

About the Author:

Teresa is a researcher-writer who covers a wide range of topics in search of useful information.

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