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You’ve seen us repeatedly say to back up your files. When someone has computer problems, one of the first questions that we ask is whether there is a backup of the important files. You would be surprised at how many people do not have a backup. And there is no reason for that lapse in security.
Read more on Backup Security and Synchronizing (even for Macs!)…
Earlier on Geeks, I read a thread someone had started asking what basic technology that we use today will not even be around in the future. The author lists such things as the keyboard and mouse, a land-line telephone, public Wi-Fi, and even operating systems! Wait, what? You don’t think operating systems will be around in the future? Well, you could be right, actually. With more and more computing being done in the Cloud, that’s something we may yet see in our lifetimes.
Read more on What Technology of Today Will be Obsolete Tomorrow?…
It is not good enough simply to say that you have a firewall. Not all firewalls are the same. Qualities – and functions – differ.
In very simple terms, you want a firewall that protects your computer in two directions. You want to stop unwanted traffic from reaching your computer. In addition, you want to stop some traffic leaving your computer if your security has been breached. And a security breach may happen. All it takes is an errant click. Further, there is no security program on the market that gives you a hundred percent protection. It is a cat-and-mouse game with criminals/hackers. Sometimes, the hackers are a step ahead of the security people.
There are items in the news every day about identity theft. The obvious consequence is an unexpected financial disaster. However, it can be worse. There can be crimes committed under a stolen identity and warrants issued for the person who has had his/her identity used. And yet, it can be worse.
I had to chuckle a little while ago when someone in our live chat room stated that Google’s new operating system will be 100% invulnerable to malware attacks. That’s an awful hefty claim for Google to make, if they in fact did. The truth is that nothing is impossible in this day and age of malware. Criminals, hackers and malware writers will indeed figure out a way to get inside of whatever Google comes up with. Sadly, it’s par for the course. It’s rumors like these that make people who don’t know any better think that they don’t need any type of security software.
It always makes me cringe when someone in my live chat room boasts that they are smart enough to not need any protection software on their computer. I shudder when they claim they couldn’t possibly get infected because they watch what they download. Seriously, folks… in this day and age, do you honestly think that’s all there is to it? Have you not listened to anything we’ve been trying to tell you?!
I read an article on TechCrunch earlier today, discussing how Twitter will soon dominate the Internet, replacing even Google as the king. This made me stop and think for a bit. I mean, come on… Google is, well… Google! Do we honestly believe that anything could topple it from its undeniable reign at the top of the Internet ladder? The answer is a resounding YES.
The World is buzzing with talk of the release of Windows 7 at long last. Heck, even I spent my evening talking to the community about their thoughts on the new OS, including a nice long convo about the security of 7 with my assistant, Kat. Everywhere you look online, people are talking about Windows 7. It’s all over Twitter. It’s on blogs. It’s on both Lockergnome and Geeks. It’s even in the news. So, what are people saying?
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I took several live calls earlier tonight to talk to people in the community about Windows 7. I wanted to get their honest reactions – find out what they love and hate. One of the calls was with my assistant, Kat. She’s been a Microsoft MVP in the area of Windows Security for over four years now, and has been considered an Expert in the malware removal community for about seven years. We talked a bit about the security side of Windows 7, and her take on the new operating system in general.
Identity theft has been tagged as being the fastest growing crime in America. Your private information is a commodity that some criminals harvest and resell. It is a whole subculture. The people stealing the personal information may not bother with committing the actual identity theft, but there are buyers for your personal information.
There are some things that you want to keep private. It may be financial information, sensitive data like your passwords, proprietary information, or other such confidential material. You simply don’t want friends, colleagues, roommates, family, or repair people to have access to that information. Not only is that information private, but you want to secure that sensitive data from identity theft. And sadly, sometimes identity theft is perpetrated by someone you know.
One of the absurdities that is circulating the Internet is that even hackers are suffering in this economy. With the tough economic situation, supposedly hackers are having more competition. This is just one of the theories to explain why there is a steady increase in malware and criminal activity such as phishing and identity theft.
It should be a simple rule that every computer user should follow: back up your data. It is not a matter of “if” your computer will give you problems. It is a matter of “when.” This applies to everyone. Students, for example, should back up regularly. Your whole academic year, with notes, papers, presentation, lecture material and other necessary things are on that laptop and/or desktop. And of course, there are the music, games and other personal stuff there too. If a hard drive fails, your academic year can be put in jeopardy. This is only one example. Everyone has important material on the computer.
Today on Geeks, there’s a forum post talking about having limited online time. The poster states that you should imagine for a moment that a law has been passed, allowing you only one hour of Internet time per day. There’s no way around this. After an hour, the Internet just shuts down. Can you even begin to process that thought? I nearly hyperventilated when I did. However, it was kind of a neat exercise. What would you do with your hour a day? Would you exchange emails with friends and family? Are you a Twitter addict, who would spend the entire hour sending out frantic tweets? Or would you maybe spend some time catching up on what everyone else is up to?
At this time of year, some of our readers who are back to university and colleges have set up new email accounts. Some educational institutions require this in order to broadcast messages to its students. Unfortunately, this is just another avenue that hackers / criminals can use to access the computer. Spam is not only annoying and a waste – it is dangerous.
Read more on Protect Your Inbox From Spam at Half the Price…
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