Chris Pirillo » virus

Tempting You to Click

Chris — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:58:42 +0000

Tempting You to Click is a post from Chris Pirillo

Online advertising is so pervasive that most people barely glance at it. Advertising has become part of the Internet landscape. One way that advertisers are hoping to stir interest is to put their advertising on social network sites like Facebook and Twitter. For example, on Twitter, you would see someone you follow post a link. A click leads to advertising. This has been called in-stream advertising. It carries the weight of someone with whom you have some familiarity online, and it increases the chances that you will click and look at that link.

This type of advertising also provides hackers and criminals another access to your computer. That person you follow online may have his/her account hacked and may be unknowingly serving up malicious links.

This is just one scheme to deliver malware to your computer. By the time this paragraph is read, there will be new means to spread malware. The daily news will trigger another flood of malware. There is no doubt that the criminals are fast and creative. There are big dollars to be had and easy targets to be found online.

That is why security programs are necessary for protecting your computer from these infections. We repeatedly urge our readers to protect themselves and inform their friends and family. Some of your friends and family may not have the slightest interest in computer security. Those are the people who become easy targets.

You may hear the argument from these people that they are careful online. However, no one can be vigilant 100% of the time. There are drive-by downloads that can install malware on your machine, without your even having to click a link. Sometimes, a person is just tired and errors are made. Hackers count on such errors and an absolutely necessary protection is an excellent security regime on your computer. You should have an Anti-Virus, a Firewall and at least one Anti-Spyware program running at all times. For an Anti-Spyware program, we are recommending SUPERAntiSpyware. We have an excellent deal for you that offers real time protection:

SUPERAntiSpyware has Real-Time Blocking of threats! Prevent potentially harmful software from installing or re-installing! First Chance Prevention examines over 50 critical points of your system each time your system starts up and shuts down to eliminate threats before they have a chance to infect and infiltrate your system.

The program offers much, much more and you can read about it at the links provided. SUPERAntiSpyware will detect and remove Spyware, Adware, Malware, Trojans, Dialers, Worms, KeyLoggers, Hijackers, Rootkits and many other types of threats. This program is easy to use and it is effective. SUPERAntispyware is being offered at a special rate for our readers. There is a ten dollar ($10.00) saving, until December 3, 2009.

This is a program that is highly recommended within the security community. People who work on these pages use it and recommend it, too. We use it. We need it and so do you. We are trying to make it as easy and as economical as possible for you to protect yourself and your computer.

What Drives Your Productivity?

Chris — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:08:57 +0000

What Drives Your Productivity? is a post from Chris Pirillo

Being sick has its advantages – ones I never knew about! I have had some sort of crazy virus for several days now. I admit to spending one entire day sleeping it off as best I could. I stayed out of my office for the most part, and knocked myself out with the medicines the doctor gave me. Since that day, I’ve spent as much time as possible doing nothing other than sitting in my office. Since that happens to be where I work… I’ve actually accomplished quite a lot! I haven’t felt like going anywhere really, or “doing” anything much.

I’ve managed to catch up on some reading I felt I was behind on. I have come up with some ideas for upcoming projects. And, I’ve even managed to croak out some geeky new videos for the YouTube channel. I’m ahead of myself on those, which is kind of cool. Usually, the things I record are uploaded immediately the next day. Now I have a bit of a “buffer”, in case there’s a day I am too busy with other things to record.

As backwards as it seems, being sick has made me more productive. What helps boost your “get things done” levels? Also – what do you spend the most time doing when you’re sick? Do you curl up in front of the tv, or read a book? Do you spend all of your time sleeping? Or, are you like me and plant yourself in front of the computer monitors?

Don’t forget to check out all of the hot new apps we have for you in our downloads center. Today you’ll find several things for Windows, as well as mobile devices!

Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware

Chris — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:10:34 +0000

Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware is a post from Chris Pirillo

There used to be the belief that if one stays away from “bad” Web sites, then malware is not a problem. That is not true, as a recent example with the New York Times illustrated. The popular news Web site was compromised, and the trusted site was serving up malicious ads:

The malicious ad took over the browsers of many people visiting the site, as their screens filled with an image that seemed to show a scan for computer viruses. The visitors were then told that they needed to buy antivirus software to fix a problem, but the software was more snake oil than a useful program.

Exploiting weaknesses in online ad systems is an increasingly common approach for computer criminals around the globe who hope to make a quick buck from the audiences of the sites they attack. Experts say the problem is likely to get worse as companies scramble to satiate a click-happy online culture.”

This is just one way in which criminals / hackers are becoming exceedingly creative in exploiting site visitors. No reputable software company would market products in this manner, but the criminals are relying on the trust that people have in the site.

There have been malware installations without the site visitors having to do anything. These are the so called ‘drive-by’ downloads, and just visiting the site puts one at risk. No click – or download – is necessary.

It is absolutely essential to be running an anti-virus and anti-spyware program. One of our recommendations is VIPRE from Sunbelt Software. It is effective without draining your computer of resources. VIPRE’s memory footprint is very small, and this has brought a lot of memory back to otherwise bogged-down machines.

Sunbelt Software is offering our readers a 20% saving on VIPRE. This offer is good until November 18, 2009.

VIPRE works with “Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista+ (All flavors) 32 and 64-bit, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP SP1, SP2, SP3 (Home, Pro, Media Center, Tablet) 32 and 64-bit and Windows 2000 SP4 RollUp 1.” And yes, it works with Windows 7, too.

The Sunbelt people are making a generous offer to protect all the computers in your home. It is a “home site license” which allows using the program on more than one computer. There is a discount for this “home site license,” and it’s just a huge saving for our readers.

We have worked with the people at Sunbelt for years. They work diligently to keep up with what is happening with computer security. It is a ‘cat-and-mouse’ game where criminals are trying to exploit people in creative and innovative ways. The people at Sunbelt keep up with what is happening and this is reflected in their security product. Many Gnomies use this program… and we recommend it.

Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?

Chris — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 21:03:26 +0000

Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy? is a post from Chris Pirillo

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.

Whether it is a natural disaster or the death of a celebrity, hackers / criminals are almost always first responders, ready to exploit the situation at hand for personal gain. For example, you may find email that supposedly gives you the latest news about a tragic situation that just occurred. The news story itself may have happened but that email is dangerous. It could carry malware.

The email is just one venue. Are you on Facebook? Have you joined Twitter? These are just some of the examples of social media where people are sharing and clicking on links. If you are on Twitter and have a good number of followers, there are links posted every minute. It would be so easy for a hacker to play the social network and drop some malicious link there. And it will happen more and more often.

There’s even a spam campaign on YouTube. Reports say that this spam does not contain malware. However, it may be a matter of time before slick malware infections find its way onto this popular video site.

This should be frightening to you. These criminals want to exploit you and your computer. You may think you are careful enough. However, no one can be vigilant 100% of the time. There are drive-by downloads that can install things on your machine without your even having to click a link. This is the type of incidence that calls for an excellent security regime on your computer.

You should have an anti-virus, a firewall, and at least one anti-spyware program running at all times. It is foolish to be online without security protection. For an anti-spyware program, we are recommending SUPERAntiSpyware. We have an excellent deal for you that offers real time protection:

The program offers much, much more and you can read about it at the links provided. It is being offered at a special rate for our readers. There is a ten dollar ($10.00) savings for our readers until October 15, 2009.

This is a program that is highly recommended within the security community. People who work on these pages use it and recommend it, too. We use it. We need it and so do you. SUPERAntiSpyware will detect and remove spyware, adware, malware, Trojans, dialers, worms, keyloggers, hijackers, rootkits, and many other types of threats. This program is easy to use and it is effective. If you have any problems with SUPERAntiSpyware , let us know. We will tell the founder / director of the company and have any problems addressed. Nick Skrepetos is well known in the security community and he stands behind his products. And if you need this program in large numbers, let us know. We will see if we can help with pricing for your company.

You may be wondering why we are recommending security programs when there are programs that are available for free. There is an old adage: ‘you get what you pay for.’ SUPERAntiSpyware has been doing Internet security for years. It is excellent. It works. It protects our machine and has for years. That’s why we recommend it.

Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine

Chris — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 21:28:40 +0000

Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine is a post from Chris Pirillo

The number of malware sites are increasing. IBM has reported an increased sophistication with attempts to infect computers. The frightening thing is that some malware is being pushed unknowingly by legitimate sites.

This is a danger to all computer users. However, there is one segment of our readers who are going back to school in a few days and increasing their downloading. As students, these computer users will be downloading for school work and for their own entertainment. You have to know that the downloading puts you at risk. Even visiting some seemingly innocent sites can put you at risk.

It is absolutely not true that if you stay away from so called “bad” sites that you can escape the dangers of malware. Even a file transfer from a friend or classmate could infect your machine. With the expertise and sophistication of today’s criminals, any site can be compromised and turned into a site that delivers malware. This may be a site that you use for school work. Just recently, on June 1, 2009, Ryan Naraine reported that 20,000 sites were “hit with drive-by attack code.”

A drive-by attack means that you don’t have to click anything and malware junk will find its way onto your computer. This garbage will install on your machine without asking for your permission. Then your computer is infected.

Your computer needs a constant watchdog. This is the concept of WinPatrol – and “Scotty” is the watchdog. WinPatrol runs in the background and the watchdog Scotty will give an alert when there are any changes attempted on your machine. Scotty will alert you if you are installing any program. This may be an annoyance, but it is minor. It shows that WinPatrol is doing its job. It will save so much trouble when there is a rogue program trying to install itself on your computer.

WinPatrol is easy on the computer resources and it is on many people’s “must have” list. This is a program that has an excellent history – and countless recommendations over the years. We are recommending this for every student. You must know if some rogue program is trying to install itself on your machine. And WinPatrol will tell you.

WinPatrol has been available for over ten years, thanks to the work of Bill Pytlovany. The improvement functions packed into this program will surprise you.

For the Lockergnome / Chris Pirillo readers, we have an exceptional offer. Until September 5, 2009, we have a ten-dollars-off ($10.00) savings from WinPatrol. We have tried to make this super-affordable to students. We know this is a rough time financially and hopefully this make it an affordable security program for you. Use coupon code: Gnomes when ordering!

Effective for any version of Windows – including Windows 7.

This is a security program that is recommended without any reservation. The people who use this program have nothing but good things to say about it. Bill Pytlovany is an trusted name in computer security. He is a recognized MVP by Microsoft – and he stands behind this product. If there is even a hint of a problem, let us know. We stay in touch with Bill. If you are a business and want this to secure all your desktop and laptop machine, let us know and we will see if Bill can help you.

Protect All of Your Computers at Once

Chris — Wed, 20 May 2009 03:24:13 +0000

Protect All of Your Computers at Once is a post from Chris Pirillo

Most people now have more than one computer. Some may have a main desktop machine and a laptop for out-of-the-house work. It is baffling why each and every computer that a person owns does not have the same level of protection against malware and spyware. The analogy that comes to mind is that the front door of the house has the best dead-bolt lock on the market while the back door is secured by a hook and eye mechanism.

Protect all your computers! That cannot be stressed enough. In an office setup, all that is needed to compromise security is for one machine to be infected. The details of how that is done is not relevant here but it is not difficult.

Spyware Doctor is a highly rated and award winning program. The offer that is available is that one purchase allows the person to protect three (3) machines. That is more than sufficient for most people. Spyware Doctor has a long track record over many years:

“Spyware Doctor is a top-rated malware & spyware removal utility that detects, removes and protects your PC from thousands of potential spyware, adware, trojans, keyloggers, spybots and tracking threats.”

The awards and recognition goes back for many years. Privacy Guardian is available to clean and prevent tracking of computer activities. This is an excellent program, at an excellent price. However, your first concern should be security.

Malware attacks are not going away. Just today there were reports of web sites being infected with JSRedir-R. That is just one example. Tomorrow, it might be other junk. Unfortunately, this is just the reality of the Internet. Protect yourself.

Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request

Chris — Wed, 13 May 2009 19:46:16 +0000

Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request is a post from Chris Pirillo

Some people who spend many hours online fighting malware requested that this top-rated firewall be brought back, as an offer for our readers. It was formerly known as the Kerio Personal Firewall. Now, it is called the Sunbelt Personal Firewall.

This firewall was discussed previously. Not all firewalls are the same. They differ in efficiency. The Sunbelt Personal Firewall blocks unwanted traffic that is incoming but it also monitors what leaves from your machine. That cannot be stressed enough.

Let’s say that for some reason a malware does infect your machine. If that malware starts sending out information from your machine, you want to know that. For example, what is sent out may be your personal information. Furthermore, it may be that your computer is now part of a bot spamming operation. A good firewall, which monitors the outgoing traffic, will give you an additional chance at catching some infection that has occurred on your machine.

This offers expires on May 20, 2009. The Sunbelt Personal Firewall is really a gift at ten dollars. Yes, it is only ten dollars when you use this link and the coupon code SPFLOCKERGNOME when you place your order.

There is one further note from the people who deal with malware, like our very own resident Malware-removal Expert Kat. It is a bit of a shock – but there are still people who do not use a firewall. That may be hard to believe but when these malware fighters inspect logs of what people have on their machines, there isn’t a firewall. At this price, the Sunbelt Personal Firewall is more than affordable protection. Look on your email contact list and see if there is a family member or some newbie who might be just learning about computers. Ask them if they use a firewall. And don’t be surprised if they ask you… “what is that?”. – Then just buy this for them. You’ll be glad you did.

Malware – Hate to be Correct

Chris — Wed, 06 May 2009 05:45:23 +0000

Malware – Hate to be Correct is a post from Chris Pirillo

There are times when internet predictions are simply too easy. Last Monday, on these pages, there was an indication that there would be an increase in malware because of the news of the swine flu problem. Regrettably, this has come true. There has been an increase in spam, phishing, malware and other nefarious online activity.

For this reason, the suppliers of SUPERAntiSpyware were asked if they would extend their promotion with us. They have extended the generous offer to our readers until May 8, 2009 to save ten dollars off the normal purchase price.

The other reason for extending this offer for our readers is that it gives an opportunity to address an issue that one of the commenters raised. There was a question about who in the security community recommended this product. Well, names can be listed and we will do so briefly:

Our very own Kat is a four-year Microsoft MVP in the area of Windows Security. Kat has been working on malware-removal forums for nearly seven years now, and is an Administrator at GeeksToGo. She highly recommends this program on a regular basis.
Catherine Forsythe and her software assessment group recommends this program. Catherine has been assessing security programs for over a decade now.
Mike Healan from the original SpywareInfo site and newsletter began recommending this product when it was first introduced.
Sean Roe, another Microsoft MVP and owner of 247Fixes calls SAS an excellent program.
All of the malware-removal websites that are “heavy hitters” in this field recommend this program to their users. The list of sites includes (but is far from limited to): GeeksToGo, BleepingComputer, SypwareInfoForum, and What the Tech.

We could go on and on, but there should be a point made here. No security program is absolutely faultless. Given the nature of the internet and the pace of infections, absolute guarantees just do not happen. However, that being said, pains are taken to recommend the very best available. There may be disputes about which program is the most effective and that is bound to happen. What is recommended has been vetted thoroughly by literally hundreds of Experts in this field on a regular basis. Each and every one of them still recommends this program to literally thousands of people every single day.

IF there was a dubious program recommended, the inbox would feel it within hours of the program being featured. This does not happen. One person raised an issue. Nevertheless, let there be no doubt whatsoever that computer security and keeping your data safe are taken seriously here. It would be wonderful if no security products were needed. That is not going to happen any time soon. Therefore, we present serious security software to our readers and do hope that, with the good prices, some time and focus will be paid to keeping the computer safe. It matters because it can impact upon you and then others online.

Back Up Your Data with Special Savings from Acronis

Chris — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 05:53:56 +0000

Back Up Your Data with Special Savings from Acronis is a post from Chris Pirillo

It frightens me how many people do not back up. This is not to scare you (well, maybe you should be scared) but that hard drive will fail. It is just a matter of “when“. At that point, the warranty that you have will mean nothing to you. Why? The first thing that will cause some high blood pressure is that all that data on the hard drive is lost. Files gone. Music gone. Pictures gone. Software gone. Maybe the hard drive files can be recovered if you send the hard drive to specialists, who will charge you an incredible, astronomical amount. And that recovery is not guaranteed.

Please – do yourself a favor. Back everything up! Here is a program that will do this for you. It is the well known Acronis True Image Program. The backup can be done easily:

Acronis True Image Home 2009 is an award-winning backup and recovery solution for a good reason: it protects your PC after just one click and allows you to recover from viruses, unstable software downloads, and failed hard drives. Create an exact copy of your PC and restore it from a major failure in minutes, or back up important files and recover them even faster.

From now until April 6th, you can save fifteen dollars ($15.00!!) on this excellent program. That’s 30% off!

Buy this program and prtect your data. If you have a virus or malware problem, you will have an extra layer of protection. Save yourself from hard drive failures. Restoration is simple. Just make sure that you are making a copy when your computer is free from malware and other infections. Otherwise, you will be replicating the problem. And you can find in our archives the security programs that we recommend. Believe me – you don’t want to risk what you have on that hard drive. Acronis is an excellent layer of security and they are offering our readers a true bargain.

More Acronis Coupons:

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Acronis - 5% off Acronis Backup & Recovery 10 Advanced Server Virtual Edition using coupon code NDJABR10VE5 - Posted on 11/3/09 and Expires on 1/15/10
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Find More Coupons

Geek Savings on WinPatrol

Chris — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:57:22 +0000

Geek Savings on WinPatrol is a post from Chris Pirillo

USA Today has called WinPatrol “very powerful protection”. Yesterday, the founder of WinPatrol, Bill Pytlovany, was gracious and answered a few questions for us.

WinPatrol protects your computer by keeping it under constant surveillance. There are stealth methods whereby malware and spyware can infect your computer, without you knowing. Even when you are super cautious, it may be a hurried click or an errant keystroke of the “Enter” key to cause a whole load of problems. Worse yet, the changes may happen without you having to doing anything.

This is where WinPatrol become critical to having a secure computer. Like a trusty watchdog, WinPatrol gives out a warning when there are any changes attempted on your machine. Then you decide whether to allow the change. The icon for WinPatrol is appropriately a little “scotty” dog. This program runs in the background and takes up little of your computer resources. You will notice WinPatrol when it spots a potential problem. You will be warned.

WinPatrol is on many “must have” lists. This is a program that has an excellent history – and countless recommendations over the years. WinPatrol has been available for over ten years, thanks to the work of Bill Pytlovany. The improvement functions packed into this program will surprise you. Here is a list from Bill: included functions of WinPatrol.

Briefly, here is what WinPatrol will not do:

it won’t drain your system resources.
it won’t interfere with other security programs.
it won’t ask you for an annual payment. That just won’t happen.
it won’t ‘phone home’ and collect information from the computer user.

For the Lockergnome / Chris Pirillo readers, we have an exceptional offer. Until March 30, 2009, we have a ten-dollars-off ($10.00) feature from WinPatrol. Use coupon code: gnome2009.

We recommend WinPatrol. At this special price, it is more than affordable security software that will keep your computer settings under constant surveillance. Remember, this offer does end on March 30, 2009. And we thank Bill for this very nice discount for our online community.

A Few Moments with Bill Pytlovany

Chris — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 22:12:39 +0000

A Few Moments with Bill Pytlovany is a post from Chris Pirillo

Bill Pytlovany is well known within the internet security community. He is receiving some much deserved press recently from print publications. Bill was gracious in giving us some time and answering a few questions:

Bill, you are a Microsoft MVP. Can you tell us how you became interested in security software?

Yes, I’m very proud to have been awarded a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional with expertise in Consumer Security. Being an MVP allows me to hear directly from Microsoft developers so I know how serious they consider security.
Early on I was curious and started to dissect how viruses were able to move between floppy disks. The result was a more useful program that provided auto boot functionality for the Commodore 128. My program and research was published by “Run” magazine in the August 1986. My real interest started in the fall of 1997 when I was infected by an AOL password surfer attack. When I called AOL support for help, they told me that I couldn’t get back online until I formatted my hard drive. I knew there had to be a better way and the first version of WinPatrol was born.

How are some ways that WinPatrol defend against malicious programs (malware)?

The main way WinPatrol defends is by alerting users to a change and gives them the power to stop it. These days you don’t need to do something stupid to get malware on your computer. Just being connected to the internet can be enough. There are some things that malware must change to install itself and become dangerous. WinPatrol has over ten years experience monitoring critical internal areas and has a solid history of catching the bad guys. You should be the only one making changes to your computer and WinPatrol is designed to back you up.

As a security expert, what are three basics that you recommend for computer users – in addition to having WinPatrol on their machines?

It’s not easy to give generic advice without knowing more. Does the user have kids, are they active on social networks, have they heard of snopes.com, do they watch a lot of videos online, download music etc… Number one is a decent firewall to monitor network traffic. Second, would be to routinely run some kind of signature based AV scanner. How often depends on the user but it’s important that the signature files are updated regularly. Which AV scanner is the best changes every couple of months. Third and most important is to make sure you have the most recent Windows updates to protect against vulnerabilities. I don’t always recommend people update on the same day Windows updates are released but at some point they need to be protected. The same goes for updates of other installed programs like Adobe Flash or QuickTime which have a history of attacks on their vulnerabilities.

What will happen when Windows 7 is released? Will people who have WinPatrol need to pay for a update for that operating system?

There is never any addition cost for new versions. Upgrade to PLUS is not a subscription, it’s a one time fee. WinPatrol 2009 is all ready for Windows 7 in its current state. I have been keeping up with all new builds of Windows 7 so if anything does need to be updated it will be available immediately.

I know that you are constantly in product development. Can you give us some inside information on anything that you are doing? We promise to keep it just between you, us and the internet.

New features in WinPatrol are commonly based on user feedback. I have many ideas on the wish list and implement them based on security threats and frequency of feature requests. The security features of WinPatrol won’t change much unless Windows 7 introduces new ways for programs to auto run. There’s a lot of competition in the security market so most of the new features will be unique ideas that other companies haven’t considered. I don’t know of many other programs that monitor for changes in file associations, windows auto updates or UAC settings. I will continue to find unique settings that make a huge difference but aren’t obvious.

Thanks, Bill! ~ Tomorrow, we will be presenting Bill’s WinPatrol Plus program, with a ten dollar ($10.00) discount for our readers. Here’s a early look at the generous offer that Bill is giving to our readers!!

Special Geek Savings on Sunbelt VIPRE AntiVirus and AntiSpyware

Chris — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 02:24:16 +0000

Special Geek Savings on Sunbelt VIPRE AntiVirus and AntiSpyware is a post from Chris Pirillo

Sunbelt’s VIPRE program has been receiving excellent press coverage. PC Magazine says that “VIPRE PC Rescue can indeed clean up in a situation where full-scale security software may not be able to install. Keep it in mind if you run into a system so gummed-up with Malware that ordinary solutions won’t work.”

Sunbelt Software has agreed to give our community of Geeks ten dollars off on its AntiVirus and AntiSpyware program called VIPRE. VIPRE combines both AV and AS, along with AntiRootkit, AntiMalware and many other security technologies into one seamless solution. VIPRE delivers comprehensive protection against today’s complex Malware threats.

Sunbelt takes your security seriously. They do extensive testing, using a team of people who have years of experience in Malware research. VIPRE has been tested for many months prior to release, and Sunbelt is confident that they are offering the best protection that you can buy.

To take advantage of the ten dollar savings, please use coupon code SPYINFO during the ordering process. This coupon is good for both VIPRE and VIPRE UHSL (Unlimited Home Site License).

This offer begins today, March 17, 2009 and ends on March 22, 2009.

Thanks to Sunbelt for making this discount available to our readers!

How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans

Chris — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 20:17:16 +0000

How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans is a post from Chris Pirillo

There’s all sorts of news about trojans being unleashed on Mac OS X. However, there’s only one fool-proof way of protecting yourself from trojans on Mac OS X:

STOP PIRATING SOFTWARE, YOU MORON.

This way, there’s little chance of you installing trojans in the first place. If you were stupid enough to pirate software, you deserve everything that happens to you and your system. Yeah, that goes for Windows users, too – if you pirate content and your system gets hosed, you have nobody but YOURSELF to blame. Stop blaming Microsoft for YOUR problems.

I actually received an email the other day from someone claiming that LimeWire installed viruses on his system. Well, he was right – and yet completely wrong. This recent outbreak of Mac OS X trojans doesn’t illustrate how vulnerable Mac OS X is so much as it shows that users, no matter the platform, can be unethical and stupid.

If you pirated iWork, you got a trojan. If you pirated Adobe CS4, you got a trojan. Either way, you do NOT have my sympathies.

Top Five Ways to Prevent Phishing

Chris — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 03:54:25 +0000

Top Five Ways to Prevent Phishing is a post from Chris Pirillo

This is Ognjen Regoje’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:

Phishing is a Cybercrime where the criminal attempts to acquire important information about you, such as user names, passwords and credit card details. It is usually done by sending fake emails and redirecting unsuspecting users to fake websites whose look, feel and even the URL are quite similar to the original and legal ones. With the increasing number of Phishing websites and people who make them, it is getting harder and harder to distinguish between a real site, and the ones that are there just as a front. However, by following these five easy things you can avoid being the victim of such emails.

Check who the email is from – This is an extremely effective and easy way to stay safe. Just check the sender of the email. If the email address is not the domain of a legitimate bank/service, then it is certain that it is a phishing scam. Also, be aware of banks or institutions who send you an email saying you need to verify your account information, and it’s a place you don’t even do business with! Simply delete any emails like these.
Do not follow a click here link in the email – Phishing emails usually have a “Click here to re-enter your user information” kind of link that leads to an illegitimate website. This is not fool-proof. Just by looking at the link, you may be able to determine whether the link is the real deal. Also, do not just focus on the domain, take a look at all the slashes that follow. Also, make sure that if there is a copy-and-paste link that the one that is embedded is the same like the one written. Furthermore the connection should be encrypted – the link should start with https:// instead of http:// . Don’t click the link in the email thinking you will set them straight. Instead, you would have just fallen into their trap by letting them have your information.
Check contact information provided in the email – A lot of Phishing emails contain bogus contact information that would just serve you into their hands. In case you get an email with a phone number or an address, check that against the one that you got when opening the account. If they are not the same the email is a scam.
Check the information about you provided in the email – Perpetrators are getting better and better at obtaining your information. Just because they know your name does not mean that the email is legit. They could have gotten that from any social networking website. Instead, if there is any other information provided, such as an account number, make sure it corresponds to what you have.
Use your browser – All newer browsers have some sort of website identification mechanism that allows you to check the identity of the site. “Real” websites will have that information… while those set up solely for the purpose of farming information will not.

By following these simple steps you can decrease your chances of being hooked by a phisher (a little pun intended). Now that we have taught you more about how to stay safe, why not test your Phishing IQ?

Is Your Network Secure?

Chris — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 01:02:41 +0000

Is Your Network Secure? is a post from Chris Pirillo

This is Rodrigo Anonimo’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:

When you think about security, you probably think of your own physical security. There are other kinds of security that you should be concerned about. When you are working on the computer, your personal information can be at risk. You should be concerned about network security, and what can you do to protect yourself. In fact, your credit/debit card is part of some kind of Network. This article explains threats and solutions for a computer network.

Viruses are the first threat to be concerned with when using the Internet. A computer virus is a small application which is downloaded while you visit a web site, or can be embedded in something you download. There are different kinds of viruses, but the most common are Trojan horses and Worms. If you know about the Trojan horse back in history, you should know that it was a threat pretending to be a gift, and that’s what Trojan viruses are. The program claims to do one thing (it may claim to be a game) but instead does damage when you run it, such as corrupting your hard drive. Worms are like bacteria in the human body, and they can reproduce and pass themselves on to other people. The worms have the ability to copy and paste and pass themselves to other computers. A worm is the most risky virus in a network because it can spread to other computers, and make the network crash.

You may be asking yourself, who makes all of these things? People who make the viruses and other security threats call themselves hackers. There are two types of hackers, White Hat hackers and Black Hat hackers. A hacker is someone who modifies something that already exists, and makes changes to it. For example, they can do reverse engineering which allows them to modify an existent computer program to make it work better… or to completely trash it. When one is using the hacked program, their computer can completely crash or the program can spy on the infected computer. The same thing applies to computer hardware.

There are tons of securities tools, but none of them are one hundred percent secure. The best bet is to enable firewalls on your computer to protect yourself from hackers. You must also get an AntiVirus software, to protect yourself from the different types of Viruses. Be careful when you buy your AV software. Make sure you buy from a well-known brand of AV. Also – make sure you have a WPA password for your wireless network. This type of key is harder to crack/hack. The last thing to do is to make sure the operating system is up to date with all security patches and fixes.

You will never know if you are hundred percent secure, and any kind of security is not one hundred percent safe. Having a little knowledge of what dangerous threats can do for a computer can be very helpful.

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

Starting at just $3.99/month, web hosting from GoDaddy includes 99.9% uptime, 24/7 support and free access to GoDaddy Hosting Connection, THE place to install over 30 FREE applications sure to help you get the most from your hosting plan and Web site. Enter code CP2 at checkout, and save an additional 10% on any order.

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.