Computer Safety & News

Windows 8 is currently being developed by Microsoft.  Below are some of the possible forthcoming features: TechTarget – A first glimpse at Windows 8 http://searchenterprisedesktop.techtarget.com/feature/A-first-glimpse-at-Windows-8 QUOTE: Windows 8 has been the topic of speculation for many months now, but as was the case with Windows 7, Microsoft is pretty tight-lipped about what’s to come in the […]

Below are some interesting statistics related to Internet Explorer’s SmartScreen protection: SmartScreen Application Reputation in IE9 http://blogs.msdn.com/b/ie/archive/2011/05/17/smartscreen-174-application-reputation-in-ie9.aspx QUOTE: Through the SmartScreen Filter, IE has been effective at blocking socially engineered malware attacks and malicious downloads – IE blocks between 2 and 5 million attacks a day for IE8 and IE9 customers. Since the release of […]

Last week, Firefox 5b was installed and it is working well in early testing.  Currently, no extensions are being used as that is often a root cause for incompatibility issues. As with any beta version, only experienced professionals who can resolve technical issues should test this new product. Mozilla delivers Firefox 5 beta on schedule […]

From a security awareness perspective, these are indeed good and easy-to-follow guidelines for staying safe when using the Internet: Internet Safety – Krebs’s 3 Basic Rules for Online Safety http://krebsonsecurity.com/2011/05/krebss-3-basic-rules-for-online-safety/ QUOTE: Yes, I realize that’s an ambitious title for a blog post about staying secure online, but there are a handful of basic security principles […]

Technet offers some excellent security recommendations for protecting Windows 7 and Server 2008 environments Windows 7 – Recommended Corporate Security Settings http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh125921(WS.10).aspx QUOTE: This guide is a reference to the security settings in Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 that provide countermeasures for specific threats against the current versions of the operating systems.Many of the countermeasures […]

Sophos offers a detailed report related to FAKEAV attacks Sophos – Research report on What is Fake AV? http://www.sophos.com/en-us/security-news-trends/security-trends/fake-antivirus.aspx QUOTE: Fake AV, or Fake Anti-Virus, is one of the most frequently-encountered and persistent threats on the web. This malware, with over half a million variants, uses social engineering to lure users onto infected websites with […]

The first FAKEAV attacks have surfaced for Mac OSX systems as noted below: FAKEAV – MacDefender is the first attack designed for Mac OSX systems http://vrt-blog.snort.org/2011/05/macdefender-and-its-variants.html http://blogs.pcmag.com/securitywatch/2011/05/how_to_remove_macdefender.php QUOTE: MacDefender showed up on the radar last week, as the first fake Anti-Virus (AV) ScamWare for MacOSX. Currently, its distributed under a couple of different names (that […]

In using Facebook to keep in touch with family and friends, there are constant daily attacks.  Many of these are socially engineered well and can trick people who are not aware or careful.  In many cases, there are offers for capabilities that do not exist in Facebook (e.g., to see who checked your profile).  Please be careful […]

Microsoft has issued recent warnings for social engineering schemes that start with an unexpected phone call.  Cybercriminals attempt to convince people by phone to visit malicious websites or provide confidential information, including credit card accounts. Please avoid these scams as noted below:   Telephone Scams – Microsoft will not come to your home and fix your […]

As evidenced by friends I’ve recently helped, there is a tremendous growth in the number of FakeAV attacks circulating.  Some of the recent Facebook or email scams provide ways of infecting vulnerable systems with just a few clicks of the mouse.  Always be careful with links and in installing any type of software, as only […]