Why Pay When You Can Get Free Anti Virus?

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I’m sure you have heard this from a friend before, even some of your computer literate friends; but what I want to warn you of is that this is a dangerous question to be asking. You for sure know about viruses and that anyone today is vulnerable to them if they haven’t taken appropriate efforts to protect themselves, but other than that (if you are like most people you don’t really know what is out there (lots more than just viruses) and how to really protect yourself properly. In the next few paragraphs I want to tell you some critical information to save you lots of time and money and tears.

So viruses are, just like their biological counterpart, parasites in that they use a host to exist and more importantly to replicate. A virus is made up of computer code that is written in such a way as to insert itself into existing code of (most often) an executable file that already exists on the host computer. It uses the internet mostly to travel but can and has been transferred by removable forms of media like floppy disks, smart cards, etc. Like viruses, worms use the computer as a host, but only in order to use the hardware, as they do not need the host computers software to replicate. Trojan Horses are another example of malicious software or malware that use techniques that evade the natural and built up defenses on a computer. The point is that there is more than just viruses that you need protection from and not all anti virus software (especially free anti virus software) provide the comprehensive coverage that you need.

The sad thing about free anti virus software is that it lulls computer users into complacency and they end up as bad or worse off than when they were virus free. The companies that offer these freebies are doing it more or less as an advertising ploy, bringing more traffic to their sales page.

Now there is a caveat to this that I would like to explain and that is that free anti virus software is better than having nothing at all. So, if you are too poor to purchase your own security software package than by all means get it on your computer. However I seriously doubt that if you are able to purchase a computer you would not also be able to get anti virus protection. Consider it nothing more than a necessary maintenance cost, kind of like putting oil in your car every once in a while.

Why Should I Use Antivirus Software?

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

The answer is really simple. To protect your own computer from damage, and to prevent your computer from being used to pass on infections to other machines without your knowledge.

Many people are reluctant to shell out the cash for decent antivirus software. I’ll agree that at roughly $50 for a decent antivirus program, it isn’t exactly small change. But, let’s look at the costs more closely for a moment:

Computer –> $600-$4,000
Monitor –> $250-$1000
Software –> $500-$5000
Internet Connection –> $25+/month
Personal/Business Data –> Priceless

So, on the low end of the scale we are looking at a computer investment similar in price to an older used car, on the higher end, similar to a newer used car.

Maybe I’m wrong, but I’m guessing that you wouldn’t buy a used car that had all the locks removed and didn’t need a key to start it, and comes with a free “STEAL ME” sign on it too.

Having a computer that does not have up-to-date antivirus protection is absolutely the same. You are simply asking for trouble.

And trouble WILL find you.

How can I be so sure? Simply because that is what viruses, worms, malware etc. are made to do. Their ONLY job is to find unprotected computers and attack and hijack them without your knowledge. These things are VERY good at what they are built to do, and they NEVER stop. If your computer isn’t protected, and you share disks or go online, it will get infected.

The top antivirus software programs cost as little as 2 months internet connection. They all include constant and unlimited automatic updates that keep your system safe and clean.

If you can afford $1500+ on a computer, $300+/year on internet connections, you can definitely afford another $50 once to make it safe (and prevent it from being used to spread viruses and Trojan horses behind your back).

Anything less would be uncivilized!

P.S. Some people have started to make claims that if you don’t use antivirus software you should be held legally responsible if your machine be used as part of an attack (even if you did not know about it).

What is RAM

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Anyone who works as their own tech geek on their computer system may be highly concerned about what is ram? It is a very important piece of a computer system. It is Random Access Memory which is the location where the application programs, the operating system, and data presently in use are stored. This way the computer’s processor has the ability to reach them momentarily when needed. RAM is head and shoulders above the other various types of storage inside a computer system. It’s even faster than floppy disk, hard disk, or CD-ROM. The information stored in RAM is only accessible for the length of time that a computer is begin run. Information previously stored in RAM disappears when a computer is shut down. When the computer is turned back on, information from hard disk is retrieved to bring RAM back to the forefront again. RAM is much like main memory that is accessible by programs.

How Does it Work?
RAM operates much like a human being’s short-term memory. Much like the human brain RAM is able to draw upon the computer’s long term memory for information. This is often necessary when short term memory becomes full. Most computers come equipped with at least 256 million RAM bytes plus the hard disk which has the capability of holding 40 billion bytes. Data is placed on a magnetized area that resembles a record. Computer printers also hold bytes of RAM as well. Each byte of RAM has the ability to be ascertained separately without the other bytes being accessed.

Types of RAM
RAM comes in dual forms. DRAM which is Dynamic Random Access Memory and SRAM which is Static Random Access Memory. DRAM is the most typical of the two types. DRAM requires refreshing at a rate reaching in the thousands each second. DRAM’s times for accessing information are 60 nanoseconds. SRAM is more costly, but does operate at a much quicker pace than DRAM. The interlocking of a capacitor and a transistor produces a memory cell. This is one bit of data. Also, SRAM allows access at times as quick as 10 nanoseconds.

What is CPU Speed

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

The CPU of a computer is the part of it which performs all of its logical and arithmetic calculations. All calculations are done by first converting the user’s input into binary, and then the calculations are performed on the binary. The binary system consists of only two different digits – 0 and 1. They are referred to as the logical zero and logical one. For every calculation the computer alternates between these two numbers. A single change from 0 to 1 or vice-versa is known as a clock cycle. The speed of a CPU is measured in clock rate. In short, the clock rate is the frequency of the clock in a circuit. It is measured in Hz, MHz (Million cycles per second) and GHz. The clock rate can also be defined as the speed at which the microprocessor executes instructions. This rate is used to compare the speeds of different computers.

The clock rate of a CPU depends on various factors such as system architecture, clock rate of RAM and file system, so two computers with the same clock rates may not perform the same. The first commercial PC the Altair 8800 which used the Intel 8080 chip had a speed of 2MHz while the original IBM had a clock rate of 4.77 MHz.

The Intel Pentium (2002) chip ran at 300MHz while the more recent Pentium IV runs at 3 GHz (3 billion cycles per second).
To find your CPU’s speed (Windows):

1. Right click on “My Computer” and click on “Properties”.

2. Under the “System” section, look for Processor – The processor’s name as well as speed (in GHz) will be mentioned.

“Microsoft” Scammers

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Hi all,

 

This post is more of a warning about the latest money making scam to come from india (so it looks like)

the scammers are phoning people up and pretending to be from microsoft claiming you have “big problems” with your computer

from what i’ve seen they are getting people to open up eventviewer on their computer and showinf them the warning’s and errors (these occur on every single pc in the world everyday!) this conjurs up images in the victims mind and makes them open to suggestion…..

which of course is where they ask you to use a genuine remote control program (logmein among others)

where they can then download a keystroke logger, trojan, fake anti-virus (whch requires you to pay to remove aload of fake viruses you don’t have in the 1st place) (pretty much anything that takes their fancy!) to your computer

 

Be Warned!

no one  is going to call you and offer free computer services (not even microsoft!)

About Botnet

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

BotNet, also called zombie network and network of bots is a group of computers which are used to discreetly send data like spam and viruses to other computers on the internet. These actions are carried out by malicious programs without the knowledge of the users. These malicious programs mainly consist of viruses, Trojans and worms. Infected computers are called bots or zombies. Most computers which are infected are personal home internet PCs which are inadequately protected.

When a PC becomes part of a BotNet, it can be instructed to do almost anything by the creator of botnet. In effect it becomes a drone which cannot resist the commands of its master. In this case, the master is the creator of the malicious software (malware). Most Bots are employed in propagation of spam and viruses. Often malware is used for key-press logging which can result in mass identity theft. Zombie computers can also be used for denial of service attacks in which many bots simultaneously log onto a particular server, thus exceeding the server’s bandwidth and crashing it. This technique is particularly effective when the Botnet is large and contains thousands of computers. Many advanced malware can even spread themselves via email while the malware of smaller botnets lack this capability.

BotNets are programmed in such a way that they are difficult to find and analyze. Normally they receive instructions from their creators through IRC (Internet Relay Channels).  As of April 2008, the Storm BotNet and the Kraken BotNet are the largest BotNets in the world with an estimated 400,000 bots. Other significant BotNets are Rbot and Bobax with an estimated 20,000 bots each.

So on a day to basis, the best way to protect your computer properly is to frequently scan and update your antivirus and firewall software. Special sensors called ‘honeynets’ have also been set up on the internet these nets mimic the characteristics of computers with known security flaws in an effort to lure hackers into them and track down malware creators. It has been recently quoted by Kaspersky Labs (creators of Kaspersky anti-virus) that botnets pose more of a threat to the internet community than individual viruses and worms.

Check List for Linux Security

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Check List for Linux Security

Linux is an amazing operating system considering how it was originally created. It was a modest program written for one person as a hobby  – Linus Torvald of Finland. It has grown into a full-fledge 32-bit operating system. It is solid, stable and provides support for an incredible number of applications.  It has very powerful capabilities and runs very fast and rarely crashes.

Unfortunately Linux machines are broken almost every day. This happens not because it is an insecure operating system. It contains all the necessary tools to make it very secure.  But the truth is. It hasn’t become significantly more secure with the increase in popularity. On the other hand, our understanding of the hackers methods and the wide variety of tools and techniques available contributed to help system administrators to secure their Linux computers.

Our goal in this article is to list the most critical situations, and how to prevent an invasion with simple measures.

1-    Weak passwords – By far the first and most used   method used by hackers to try penetrating a Linux system is cracking a password, preferently of the user root. Usually they will target a common user first, and then, using his/her access to the operating system, try to get a privileged access cracking the root password. Good password policy, and good passwords are absolutely critical to the security on any computer.   Some common mistakes when selecting a password:
A- use “password” as password.
B- use the name of the computer.
C- a well-know name from science, sports or politics.
D- reference to movies.
E- anything that is part of the user web site.
F– references associated with the account.

The latest version of Linux offer shadowed passwords. If a cracker can see an encrypted password, crack it would a simple task. So, instead of storing the password in the passwd file, they are now stored in the shadow file which is readable only for root. Before a hacker can crack a password he needs to figure out an account name.  So, simple accounts names must be avoided as well. Another security measure is to apply a “no login” to the account in the passwd file. This must be done to all the accounts that don’t need to log in to the system. Examples are: apache, mysql, ftp and other.

Limit which terminals root may log in from. If the root account is allowed to log in only in certain terminals that are considered secure, it will be almost impossible for a hacker to penetrate the system. This can be done listing the allowed terminals on /etc/security. The login program will consider insecure any terminal that is not listed on this file, which is readable, only by root.

2-    Open Network Ports

Any Linux default installation will provide the Operating System with tons of software and services. Several of them are not necessary or even wanted by the administrator. Removing these software and services will close the path to several attacks and improve security.  The /sbin/chkconfig program can be used to stop services from automatically starting at run levels 3, 4 and 5. Log in as root and type /sbin/chkconfig –list to view all the services set to start automatically. Select the ones you don’t need and type /sbin/chkconfig 345 name_of_service off. You must do that to all services you don’t want to keep running. Also, the xinetd server can be used to disable other services as well.

3-    Old Software Versions

Everyday vulnerabilities are found in programs, and most of them are fixed constantly. It is important, and sometimes critical, to keep up with the changes. There are mailing lists for every Linux distribution where one can have security related information’s, and the latest vulnerabilities found.
Some place to watch for security holes are:
·    http://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/redhat-announce-list
·    http://www.debian.org/MailingLists/
·    http://www.mandrakesecure.net/en/mlist.php
·    http://www.suse.com/us/private/support/security/index.html
·    http://www.freebsd.org/security/index.html
·    http://www.linuxtoday.com/
·    http://www.lwn.net/
It is crucial to insure that the security released patches are applied to the programs as soon as they area available. The hacker community will be aware of the discovered holes and will try to explore them before the fixes are applied.

4-    Insecure and Badly Configured Programs

There are some programs that have a history of security problems. To name a few IMAP, POP, FTP, port map and NFS, are the most known. The good thing is that most of these programs can be replaced by a secure version like spop, sftp or scp.

It is important that,  before deploying any service,  the administrator investigate its security history. Sometimes simple configuration measures can prevent serious headaches in the future.

Some advices regarding a web server configuration are well worth to mention:

-    Never run the web server as a privileged user;
-    Do not keep clients’ confidential data on the web server – Credit card numbers, phone numbers, mailing addresses, must be recorded on a different machine.
-    Make sure the privileged data that a user supplies on a form does not show up as a default for the next person to use the form;
-     Establish acceptable values for data that is supplied by web clients.
-     Check vulnerabilities on CGI programs.

5-    Stale and Unnecessary Accounts

When a user no longer uses his /her account, make sure it is removed from the system. This stale account won’t have this password changed periodically leaving a hole.  Publicly readable or writable files owned by that account must be removed. When you remove an unnecessary service make sure you remove or disable the correspondent account.

Security Resources in the web

Bugtraq – Includes detailed discussions of Unix security holes

http://www.securityfocus.com/

Firewalls – Discuss the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of firewall systems.

http://www.isc.org/services/public/lists/firewalls.html

RISKS Discuss risks to society from computers

http://www.risks.org/

Insecure.org

http://www.insecure.org/

A Computer And Internet Glossary

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

When you use computers and the Internet in your business, it’s all too easy to start feeling like you’re drowning in a sea of nonsense. Computer-related things tend to have a language all their own, and while you don’t need to know all of it, there are many confusing words and phrases that you’re going to come across sooner or later. Here’s a quick primer.

Bandwidth. Bandwidth is the amount of data that your website can send each second, as well as the amount of data that the visitor to your website can receive. If either one doesn’t have enough bandwidth, then the website will appear slowly. For this reason, you should choose a host with plenty of bandwidth, as well as testing that your site doesn’t take too long to download on slow connections.

Browser. A browser is the software (see below) that visitors to your site use to view it. The most popular browser is Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, which comes with Windows.

Cookie. Cookies are data files that your site can save on the computer of someone who visits that site, to allow it to remember who they are if they return. You will find that problems people have in ordering from you will almost inevitably be related to cookies — they will need to have them turned on.

Download. Transferring data from a website to a computer.

Favourite. A favourite is a website that a user has stored to look at again, by choosing ‘Add to Favourites’ in their browser’s menu.

FTP. File Transfer Protocol. This is a common method of uploading (see below) files to your website.

Javascript. A common language for writing ‘scripts’ on websites, which are small programs that make the site more interactive. Another common cause of problems for visitors.

JPEG. Joint Photographic Experts Group. This is the name of the most popular format for pictures on the web, named after the group that came up with it. If you want to put pictures on your website, you should save them as JPEGs.

Hardware. Hardware is computer equipment that physically exists. It is the opposite of software.

Hosting. If you’ve got a website out there on the Internet, then you’ll be paying someone for hosting. It is the service of making your site available for people to see.

HTML. HyperText Markup Language. A kind of code used to indicate how web pages should be displayed, using a system of small ‘tags’. The ‘b’ tag, for example, causes text to appear in bold, and the ‘img’ tag displays a picture.

Hyperlink. A hyperlink is when a piece of text on a website can be clicked to take you to another site, or another page on the same site. For example, if clicking your email address on your website allows someone to email you, then your email address is a hyperlink.

Programming. This is when the computer is given instructions to tell it what to do, using one of many ‘programming languages’. Programming languages for the web include PHP and Perl.

Server. The server is where your website is stored, and it is the server that people are connecting to when they visit the site. If someone tells you, for example, that your server is ‘down’, it means that your website is inaccessible. Note that server refers both to the hardware and software of this system.

Software. Programs that run on the computer, or that make your website work. Microsoft Word is software, for example, as is Apache (the most popular web server software). Opposite of hardware.

Spider. Don’t be scared if a spider visits your website! Spiders are simply programs used by search engines to scan your site and help them decide where it should appear when people search. It is good to be visited by spiders, as it means you should start appearing in search engines soon.

Upload. Uploading is when you transfer data from your own computer to your website. For example, you might upload your logo, or an article you’ve written. Opposite of download.

URL. Uniform Resource Locator. This is just a short way of saying ‘web address’, meaning what you have to type in to get to your website. Sometimes pronounced as ‘Earl’.

Web Site Backup Essentials That You Should Live By

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

More and more webmasters nowadays do not value the importance of a complete website backup (files and databases). They have left this to chance and good luck which poses a great risk to their online presence.

Can you relate to this? Then read this important article which might save you an arm and a leg later.

Web site backup is the most ignored task of the webmasters simply because it poses no immediate threat to them until something worse happen to their hosting server. Many times, this task is set aside, delayed and even regarded as nuisance to the busy website owner.

They just don’t realize what is at stake here.

So before your website will be wiped out of the internet by unexpected accidents like server breakdowns, harddisk failures, hacking and DDOS attacks among other bad things, let me share with you the 10 Backup E-S-S-E-N-T-I-A-L-S you should not live without online.

EXPECT – Know that your webhosting company (even the biggest and the most boastful out there) may encounter problems and that your diligence to backup up will pay off later on. Online computing has never been so unpredictable that the worse of times will happen when you least expect it. With the proper mindset, you are insuring the continuity of your online endeavour in any eventualities. In short, be ready.

SCHEDULE – Your backup process should not compete with your busy schedules. Create your own backup schedule at the most convenient time for you in the week. If you’re like me, I do this during lunch and dinner times. Sometimes, I have to leave my PC overnight working on the backups. If you can make it not to conflict with your busy schedules, you will be able to keep up with the demands of this job. In short, don’t complicate.

STICK with it – Just do it. Patience is key to your backup tasks. Once you have a schedule, stick with it. You must do this diligently every time it should happen. This is a tough challenge especially to busy people working online. But the sooner you discipline yourself and make backing up your files a habit, the more you will benefit from a worry-free online environment. In short, get a good habit.

EVALUATE – After a while, test your backup files. A good backup can be tested by simply restoring it on another system. Evaluating your backup results from time to time is good way to know that you are keeping what you should keep – a good and working backup. In short, be sure.

NO Complacency – After some time, your backup schedule may slip away and you will tend to forget or intentionally miss it. Don’t succumb to this temptation. Man has never been so busy in his lifetime like it is today in this era of the high tech trends, new developments and discoveries. In short, don’t be lazy to backup.

TRASH – Know which files to keep and not to keep. You need to do this to keep your backup process as short and as efficient as possible. It also saves you valuable resources like hard disk space and backup mediums. Backup only what you need. Keep out the trash and dump it. In short, don’t sweat with the trash.

INTUITION – Have faith in your backup results. Believe that what you are doing is for your own good later on. Like vitamins that keep your body healthy, backups keeps your mind away from stress and worries. A good working backup will make you smile even on the worst of times because you are insured by your patience. In short, believe in good results.

AUTOMATE – Look for alternatives to traditional backup process that can make your life simpler. There are several technologies and softwares you can use now to generate the fastest and safest backup files you will need to restore in case of emergency without you lifting a finger. Automation is king in this lazy man’s world. In short, be efficient.

LIBERATE – Free yourself from worries and anxiety of theunexpected. A death sentence that can be prevented will not kill you. So think about what you can do more (like sleepingmore at night) than to think about what harm may come. With your own backup systems established, you can retire at night calmly knowing the next day, if you don’t see your websites as you should, you know you can pubish it back within the day even if your webhost cannot recover it for you. In short, relax and enjoy life to the max.

SECURITY – Nothing beats the feeling of being secured. This is the reason why the insurance businesses have flourished over the years. But more importantly, your commitment to backup your files will not only save you from stress, humiliation, frustration, anger and guilt, but also lift your spirit and confidence because you know at the end of the day, your self reliance is well worth it.

And that, my friend, is a great and wonderful feeling.

10 Steps To A Safe, Smooth Running PC will guide you through the process of improving the performance of your computer.

Published on May 2, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

10 Steps To A Safe, Smooth Running PC By Michael A Silva

These ten steps will help you increase your computer’s security. From discovering viruses to learning how to avoid them, this article is a must read!

Windows password This is the easiest way to make sure you know who is using your pc. Choose a lengthy password that contains capital and lower case letters. Including a number or two will greatly increase your security. Having a Windows password means that the only people that can log onto a Windows session are people that you have granted access to.

Password manager You should never write your passwords down. Using the same password all the time will also make it very easy for hackers to reach your personal information. So if you can’t write it down and you’re not
supposed to use the same one – how are you supposed to keep track of all of your passwords? The easiest way to do this is to use a password manager. We prefer to use Roboform. Roboform is an easy to use password and profile manager that docks neatly into your Internet Explorer toolbar and keeps track of all of your passwords for you. Roboform also uses a master password system. You will have one password that accesses all of the passwords in the program. This way you can keep all of your information safe and secure. You can download Roboform for free by http://www.roboform.com.

Spyware Remover Next to spam, spyware is the internet’s biggest annoyance. By definition, spyware is “any software that covertly gathers user information through the user’s Internet connection without his or her knowledge, usually for advertising purposes. Once installed, the spyware
monitors user activity on the Internet and transmits that information in the background to someone else. Spyware can also gather information about e-mail addresses and even passwords and credit card numbers.” The amount of spyware that exists on your pc is dependent on the amount of internet surfing you do. A good rule of thumb here is to scan for spyware once per week or whenever poor system performance surfaces. If you don’t have a spyware scanner, we recommend http://www.webroot.com.

Antivirus This should go without saying, but if your computer is connected to the internet you need antivirus software. With weekly scans and program updates you should be protected from most threats. For added protection, we
recommend using more than one anvtivirus scanner.

Firewall A firewall will keep unwanted visitors out of your computer. You can obtain a firewall either by using software application like ZoneAlarm or Black Ice Defender, or by using a router with your internet connection. For more information on routers plese visit http://www.Linksys.com.

File sharing Basically, file sharing programs are the single biggest security risk you will come across. This is because the only facts you have about the files you are downloading are the file name and the file size. It is quite simple to change a filename to dupe someone into downloading a virus or other malware like keystroke recorders. Our advice – stay away from file sharing at all costs. If you need to use it, make sure you have updated antivirus software installed and running.

Research In a sentence – know what’s out there. http://www.Symantec.com  has a section on their website  that will serve you well. Knowing what types of viruses exist  and how to avoid them will make you a much smarter internet user.

Email protection Most of the antivirus applications available offer email scanning. If yours does not, you will want to get one that does. Email scanning will make sure all of your incoming and outgoing emails are safe for both you and the recipient. Email viruses spread very quickly by using your address book to propagate. Never read email from people you don’t know and always make sure your email scanner is active.

Network security Another way that viruses spread is through computer networks. We have a few quick tips to keep your network safe. Always scan any files that come in from other computers. Even if it’s a file you have brought from home. Never allow a file to be placed on your network until it
has been scanned. The main server should be the only computer with file sharing enabled. By not allowing computer users to transmit files, you can quickly neutralize a threat.

Maintenance Performing weekly virus and spyware scans will go a long way to keeping your computer safe. Defragmenting weekly will also greatly improve performance. If you put in the effort, you will be rewarded with a safe and smooth running pc. Not to mention less headaches!

By following these ten guide lines, you will greatly improve the performance of your computer. You will also generate peace of mind as you gain a new sense of security.