Chris Pirillo » privacy

Don’t Believe Everything You Read

Chris — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:22:13 +0000

Don’t Believe Everything You Read is a post from Chris Pirillo

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.

I hate rumors and speculation. I’m a hard facts type of guy. Show me proof, or don’t tell me at all. I know, not everyone is like that. And that’s ok, I suppose. However, it’s imperative that you do your research, and find out the truth of the matter in anything you want to believe. It’s ok to have “faith”, yes. It’s not ok to blindly ASSume something is right and correct and real. Sometimes, that can get you in to trouble.

One of the reasons I love our community so much is that as Geeks, we take the time to back up what we say with facts and resources. Have you taken the time to read what it is they are trying to say?

Over in our Downloads Center, you’ll find new software and apps every day that may be vital to your existence! For instance, today we are featuring a piece of freeware that allows you, the parent, to control what sites are allowed on your family’s computers. Safety and security – for free!

Safeguard Your Security and Privacy

Chris — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 01:40:31 +0000

Safeguard Your Security and Privacy is a post from Chris Pirillo

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.

One of the best ways to protect yourself is to encrypt your computer information. Encryption has been advocated for years by the security people, such as our very own Kat. And we agree that it is an effective means of protecting your information. Encryption is an extra layer of protection. Somehow, there is a common belief that encryption is difficult and totally geekish. It really isn’t. SafeBit Disk Encryption makes it easy:

SafeBit features on-the-fly disk encryption, by creating encrypted virtual disk drives, where you can hide files and folders, keep them encrypted all the time, but still work with these files just like you work with normal files. Disk Encryption is transparent to the user…

This program is efficient and easy to use. It effectively provides security and stays out of your way. It really is non-intrusive. And, to encourage you to protect your sensitive data and to keep our readers safe, the SafeBit people are being kind and offering our readers an unbelievable discount of forty percent (40%) off the normal price.

This is an exclusive, time-limited offer that is available to our readers. It is a fifteen dollar savings. It expires on October 28, 2009. Safebit supports 32-bit versions of Windows Vista/XP/2000/NT.

In terms of security, there are three more things that need to be said. Often identity theft is not perpetrated by a stranger. It can be someone you know and that someone has access to your personal data. The second point is that you may have all the security software protection ever recommended on your machine. You may be protecting yourself from malware, spyware, Trojans, rootkits and all that other computer trash. An infection still can compromise your computer. No security software program dares to offer a hundred percent protection. It just takes one mistaken click. You are tired sometimes, focused on other things, and make a mistake. We all do that and hackers count on that. And then there are drive by infections that don’t require you to do anything except visit a site.

And finally, what happens if you lose or have your machine stolen? For example, missing/stolen laptops are reported every day. Then, all your confidential information is available to whoever is powering up your machine. And this security breach leads to identity theft. This type of encryption should be on every business and government laptop. [Give a shout if you want this program in high volume. We will see what we can do for you.]

The other thing is that there is no backdoor. None. The SafeBit Disk Encryption people state this clearly. The software does NOT include any backdoor. Neither the vendor nor any other entities are able to break the SafeBit Disk encryption. You must remember your password. There is no two ways about it. The vendor is not going to be able to save you. Again, you must remember the password. The program really is that good. Losing your machine may be costly but losing the confidential personal information on that computer may mean possibly long term anguish. SafeBit is just an efficient, easy way to protect yourself.

Protect Your Data From Prying Eyes

Chris — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:12:39 +0000

Protect Your Data From Prying Eyes is a post from Chris Pirillo

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.

Invisible Secrets 4 not only encrypts your data and files for safe keeping or for secure transfer across the Net, it also hides them in places that on the surface appear totally innocent, such as picture or sound files, or Web pages. These types of files are a perfect disguise for sensitive information. Using our file encryption software nobody, not even your wife, boss, or a hacker would realize that your important papers or letters are stored in your last holiday pictures, or that you use your personal Web page to exchange messages or secret documents. With Invisible Secrets 4 file encryption software, you may encrypt and hide files directly from Windows Explorer, and then automatically transfer them by e-mail or via the Internet.

We have Invisible Secrets 4 available to our readers at a 40% discount.

Invisible Secrets 4 works on Windows NT / 2000 / XP and Vista. This generous offer ends October 22nd, 2009.

Cisco Systems uses this program. The Drug Enforcement Administration (USA) uses this program. The Exchange Bank uses this program. McCain Foods Limited uses this program. Privacy and security are important to these companies and institutions – it is essential to computer protection. This is a preventative measure that individual computer users have to recognize because there is so much information on just one hard drive.

This program should be standard on every machine. With business laptops, government laptops, and personal laptops going missing every day, this security program should be on every portable machine, as well as desktop. This would be an enormous savings for sensitive information that is breached and the subsequent nightmare of paying for identity theft protection. It’s simple and it’s effective.

If you need large multiples of this program, please let us know. We will try to negotiate a good price for those companies that might need many copies for laptops holding those confidential files. For the individual user, think of the files, emails, pictures, passwords, and other bits of information that you don’t want people to access. That is exactly why we want this privacy/security program for our readers… and our thanks to the Invisible Secrets people for this kind offer.

How Long Should Yahoo, Google or Microsoft Keep Your Personal Data?

coupons — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 08:11:03 +0000

How Long Should Yahoo, Google or Microsoft Keep Your Personal Data? is a post from Chris Pirillo

Yahoo announced today that they will be shortening the length of time they keep your personal data. This move makes their length of retention the shortest among any of their peers. Their previous standard was 13 months; a stark contrast to that of Google, who earlier this year announced they would anonymize personal data after 9 months, previously at 18-24 months.

While at first these companies had stated they can’t change how their systems keep personal data, in an about-face and through litigation it had become apparent their systems require change. Viacom’s lawsuit and the court ruling given to Google ordered that Viacom be allowed complete access to personal data; they requested unrestricted access to view every piece of log data YouTube retained. This information included usernames, IP addresses, videos uploaded, videos watched, comments and ratings… basically everything you do on YouTube. Because of the court order Google had no choice but to cough up the goods, regardless of how wrong it seemed. Thankfully, the Video Privacy Protection Act was there to save the day, and Viacom had to reduce their demand.

The EU is putting pressure on search companies to anonymize data at a point no greater than 6 months. Last week, Microsoft responded to the EU and offered up that same challenge to their rivals, stating “…it is imperative that all search companies adopt the same standard to truly protect people’s privacy.”

Important to note – any commitments these companies make about their data retention can be enforced by laws already in place in the United States.

Big deal, what does this mean and why should I care?

Everything you do on the internet is logged. Your searches, page views, clicks, the ads you’ve been served – your internet provider, your IP, the time of day – whatever possible demographic information can be retrieved. This isn’t meant to make you paranoid, but you need to be careful – be aware of the footprint you are leaving on the internet. Not only will questionable searches and websites be logged, you can make your computer susceptible to viruses and malware.

That’s scary. What can I do?

Unfortunately, creating a digital footprint is part of the deal you make when going on the internet. You ask for information and you get it, on the condition that the entity you’ve asked (and possibly others) will take information for themselves. You can reduce your tracks by doing a few simple things:

Delete your cookies and temporary files frequently. Browsers aren’t usually set to delete information on their own; you must give it the instruction to do so. With a few clicks, your browser can do this easily. Something you need to be aware of are the persistent cookies; these are the kind that stay no matter what you do, aside from setting fire to your machine – these may have to be permanently removed by an application designed to do so. A good tool here is knowledge, and finding out which of the sites that you visit are setting these persistent cookies so they are easier to locate and remove.
Keep your browser updated. Don’t give hackers the excuse to get your information. Keep up on any security or software updates for your browser. Case in point – the very recent critical Internet Explorer security flaw that has affected every single version since 5.01 (gee, how did they miss it for THAT LONG?!?). The thing about critical updates is the phrase that defines them. It means simply FIX NOW.
Don’t let your browser store your password! This is persistent information and could be exploited. Instead of using your browser to store passwords, use an encrypted spreadsheet program or an application to store the data. Some users have their application installed on a flash drive that follows them wherever they go.
Read the privacy policy on web sites you visit. Do they log your IP and send you ads based on your location? Do they sell any information from your user account? If you’ve ever wondered why your spam folder or junk email folder is full of… well, junk… you can bet a lot of it comes from the sites you visit who sell your information. Your real-world mailbox isn’t protected, either.

Do you have ideas on how to keep your information secure? Do you know of a great application or tool that will help others in doing this? Don’t keep it a secret, let us know!

The Government is Wiretapping Your Phone and Email and Most of You Don’t Care

Chris — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 02:55:31 +0000

The Government is Wiretapping Your Phone and Email and Most of You Don’t Care is a post from Chris Pirillo

This is Richard Dicter’s submission for the HP Magic Giveaway. Feel free to leave comments for this article as you see fit – your feedback is certainly welcomed! If you’d like to submit your own how-to, what-is, or top-five list, you can send it to me. Views and opinions of this writer are not necessarily my own:

Last Tuesday, with relatively little notice from the public, two arguments were taking place in the San Francisco US District courtroom of Judge Vaughn Walker The arguments generated little scarcely any buzz last week, but OS X 10.5.6, a possible new Apple netbook, Snow Leopard, the vision of a sugarplum of a $99 iPhone, Vista SP2, and leaked Windows 7 Build 6956 did. At stake was whether the Telcom and Comcom companies, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, Comcast and others, whose past employees have verified have been warrantlessly wiretapping your phones and email for the U.S. government, could be sued – and two major lawsuits against them could go forward, or whether a bill passed recently by Congress could confer immunity on them.

The Bush administration – and a number of your Senators, as well as the respective companies – reasoned that they have broken no laws. If this were the case, there wouldn’t have been such a monumental fight in Congress to grant them immunity. When these companies wiretapped you and collected your email, they were hardly naïve. Their corporate counsel were very seasoned litigators who came from the ranks of a little known division of the DOJ called the National Security Division, or NSD. They wrote the laws on wiretapping that have been passed in the past 20 plus years.

Immunity is not really about protecting these large companies from suits. It was specifically designed to cover the backside of the administration who trampled over the laws to protect you from being spied upon by your government for the last eight years. The Bush administration has insisted for the past several years that no innocent Americans were being wiretapped. Nothing could be further from the actual truth. A recent book written by an attorney who was a former ABC News producer, naval intelligence officer, and former CIA employee James Bamford called The Shadow Factory details how every word you speak or write electronically is being listened to and catalogued in stunning detail.

This book analyzes the enormous tentacles of the National Security Agency and CIA, including billion dollar satellites that can hear your whispers on a cell phone, dishes that pull in millions of phone calls, emails, and FAXes an hour, and the largest collection of super-computers on Earth. Few people realize that the NSA also has its own secret military force called the Central Security Service – with a massive fleet of ships, submarines, and aircraft that cover the globe (soaking up your messages, and those in other countries, like a sponge).

This intelligence-gathering eavesdropping force is composed of tens of thousands of people, and occupies fifty large buildings. It occupies an actual city (Fort Meade, Maryland) with 37,000 cars in its parking lot and 70,000 pieces of mail per day. Its police force has 700 uniformed officers.

Lawrence Wright is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author who won the prize for a book he wrote on Al Qaeda. He was wiretapped after he interviewed Intelligence Chief Michael McConnell and confronted him over wiretapping and waterboarding, then wrote about it in a 15,000 word article in the the January 21, 2008 issue of The New Yorker. Every other major media outlet refused to print the story – including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Wright confronted McConnell in his interview with the fact that he had been wiretapped, and McConnell insisted that if this were true, Wright must have received a call from "some known outfit associated with terrorism." In fact, though, Wright had originated the call, FBI counter-terrorism agents visited him, and accused his daughter of calling terrorists when she was off at college and not even home at the time.

You’re being wiretapped – every phone call and email – and you’re doing nothing about it.

When Do Personal Blogs Get too Personal?

Chris — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 23:36:45 +0000

When Do Personal Blogs Get too Personal? is a post from Chris Pirillo

This is Thomas Ward’s submission for the HP Magic Giveaway. Feel free to leave comments for this article as you see fit – your feedback is certainly welcomed! If you’d like to submit your own how-to, what-is, or top-five list, you can send it to me. Views and opinions of this writer are not necessarily my own:

I love to read other people’s blogs. Not because I like to pry into the personal affairs of others, but because I like to know how people of other cultures live their respective lives. I have found blogs to be very enlightening, especially when you come across a firsthand journal of a different land’s customs and social trends. In some cases, it can even be an educational experience. In most cases, however, I have found blog posts to be a great way to let others know your opinions on the issues that matter to you, as evidenced by the blog posts of Senator Barack Obama and John McCain.

During my online travels, however, I have begun to notice a rather unsettling trend. It seems that almost every personal blog is required to have at least one post in which the writer airs some sort of personal drama that they’re going through. Whether it is a bad breakup, a friendship gone awry, or some sort of problem with their significant other, you can guarantee that it will end up on the Internet somewhere.

How did this trend start? Considering that most people would rather remain anonymous on the Internet, it seems that people are more willing to open up about their personal lives online than in previous years (no facts or figures, just an observation). Not only that, people have continued this trend, knowing that anything they post in their blog can, and most possibly will, be used against them in some way.

Posts, written in graphic detail, recount the fact, figures, and, sometimes, even names of the people involved. Last week, I even saw a blog post from a lady in which she even asked people to write her boyfriend and tell him that he’s a jerk! In some cases, I have even seen pre-pubescent boys (who, otherwise, shouldn’t have their own Web site, much less a blog) write horrible things about their parents.

Now, not all of the stuff I’ve seen online has been bad. Numerous times, I have seen people (both male and female) reach out for advice through their blogs. Usually, posts like these involve someone going through a hard time in their life, such as a death in the family, a recent breakup, or a small argument they’ve had with their best friend. These posts, while still personal in nature, are usually a little more vague than the kinds I mentioned before. It is these types of posts that I actually enjoy reading and, in many cases, responding to. As a matter of fact, many online friendships have actually stemmed from this sort of contact.

I don’t know how this trend got started, but I honestly think that it needs to stop. If you want to air your personal business or get something off of your chest, do like most people and go see a psychologist. There are a lot of things that belong on the Internet, but your personal business is not one of them. And, if you are going to post something about your personal life, at least be sure to be vague in your storytelling. After all, you never know who your blog posts could hurt, or what repercussions it could reap.

Privacy

Chris — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 04:57:53 +0000

Privacy is a post from Chris Pirillo

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In this day and age, you can’t be too careful with your personal information. We all know I’m not a private person in any way, but I do value your privacy and want to help keep you safe. Here are some excellent tips that Josh sent in, to help your data and identity stay secure.

Don’t shop online or check your email on public computers, or when using unencrypted wireless networks. If you do have to do these things, be sure you log out and clear any cookies and login information you possibly can. Also, try using After Work on a U3 Flash Drive if possible. After Work erase online and offline history: Temporary Internet Files, IE history, typed urls, opened documents, started programs, temporary registry values.
Only visit trusted sites for downloads. For example, if you need to download drivers for hardware, check the manufacturer’s website first. Don’t rely on a Google search. You may end up entering personal information to get your download, or even paying for things that should be free.
Keep your passwords long and difficult. You more than ten characters, add punctuation where allowed, add a mixture of letters and numbers, and mix up your capitalization with lowercase letters. There are a couple of excellent password managing tools out there, including the open-source KeePass, and RoboForm. The simple version of RoboForm is free. However, if you’d like a paid version, I can save you 20% if you ask nicely.
Create a password for your BIOS. This will make it impossible for anyone to get onto your computer without the password. This is a password that must be entered before the OS even loads. Also, change your Windows password often, to prevent anyone from figuring it out.
Encrypt your data. TrueCrypt is open-source (FREE!) software that will encrypt your data as it is entered.
Two bonus tips: Make use of hidden files and folders, and keep the option to view them turned OFF. Also, change file extensions whenever possible.

These are excellent privacy tips, Josh. For everyone else, what other privacy tips do you have that you want to pass along to the rest of the world? Leave them for me in a comment to this video, or email them to me at chris@pirillo.com

Want to embed this video on your own site, blog, or forum? Use this code or download the video:

Adobe Flash Privacy Settings

Chris — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 03:41:10 +0000

Adobe Flash Privacy Settings is a post from Chris Pirillo

Chris | Live Tech Support | Video Help | Add to iTunes

http://live.pirillo.com/ – If you’re watching this video, then you’re probably using Flash player. David wrote in wondering how to adjust the privacy settings, and whether his personal history is viewable by Adobe.

Adobe’s Flash Player is a widely used program that allows you to watch videos on any number of websites. It can also be used to play online games, as well.

You can easily check your Flash privacy settings by going to this video, or any online video, and right clicking on it. This will open up a small settings box, and from there you should click the “Advanced” tab. This will take you to Adobe’s site, where you can adjust your privacy settings, and view your history. On that page, it will straight out tell you that all information is stored locally… on YOUR machine… and not on their actual site. They do not access it for any reason, nor do they use it in any way, shape or form.

Instead of asking “who here uses Flash?”, the question of the day is… who doesn’t?

Want to embed this video in your blog? Use this code:

<param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/zMXKkPbmISM”></param><param name=”wmode” value=”transparent”></param></object><br /><a href=”http://chris.pirillo.com/”>Chris</a> | <a href=”http://live.pirillo.com/”>Live Tech Support</a> | <a href=”http://media.pirillo.com/”>Video Help</a> | <a href=”http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow”>Add to iTunes</a>

Formats Available: MPEG4 Video (.mp4) Flash Video (.flv) MP3 Audio (.mp3)

Tweak Flash Player Settings

Chris — Thu, 29 Jun 2006 01:58:15 +0000

Tweak Flash Player Settings is a post from Chris Pirillo

I discovered this through preparing my TagJag presentation, prompted by Ken Rossi. If you’ve ever wanted more control of your Flash Player, you have to visit the Flash Player Settings Manager on Adobe’s site. I had no idea this even existed, and I’m baffled why this Flash control panel isn’t embedded directly within the player itself! Change Global and Site-centric Privacy, Storage, Security, and Notification settings. You can get to it from the Macromedia Flash Player Settings “Advanced” button on the Privacy tab, but it’s not nearly as intuitive as what’s found on their Manager page. Adobe, here’s a bit of freedbacking for you!

How to Handle Remote Tech Support

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 06:30:00 GMT

Using GoToAssist is the easiest way to view and control another person's computer online. Use it to provide instant technical support to family, friends and customers. Start a session with just one click, and instantly connect with the other party.

Network Tools for Windows

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:30:00 GMT

You need these network tools, no matter which operating systems and networks you have to support. SolarWinds ipMonitor: Affordable Network Monitoring for SMBs. Get turnkey network, server and application availability monitoring with SolarWinds ipMonitor v9.0. This easy-to-use, reliable solution for SMBs delivers out-of-the-box availability monitoring so you always know exactly what's up with Active Directory, DNS, Exchange, FTP, Web, IMAP, MS SQL Server, and SMTP. Download your free trial today. Or, try their totally free tools! And, through 2/29, save 20% when you purchase ipMonitor 9.0.

Get Your Own Web Site

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:30:00 GMT

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Plus, as a friend of Chris Pirillo, enter code CHRIS7, that's C-H-R-I-S and the number 7, when you check out, and save an additional 10% on any order. Get your piece of the internet at GoDaddy.com.

VMware and Parallels for Virtual Machines

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:30:00 GMT

It doesn't matter if you're running on Windows or Mac OS X - every power user needs either Parallels or VMware (or both). There's never been an easier way to test software without destroying your primary operating system's stability. Think of how many times you wish you could press a 'reverse' button on your computer. Plus, there's no easier way to try new Linux distributions - see what all the fuss is about. Run Windows in OS X, run Linux in Windows, but the best way to do either is with VMware and/or Parallels.

Coupons for Online Shopping

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 07:56:13 GMT

This feed is fueled by Lockergnome Online Shopping and Coupon Codes

Before you shop next time, see if we have a coupon first.