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Warning: Your Browser Extensions Are Spying On You http://www.howtogeek.com/180175/warning-your-browser-extensions-are-spying-o n-you/ The internet exploded Friday with the news that Google Chrome extensions are being sold and injected with adware. Related article: Not All “Viruses” Are Viruses: 10 Malware Terms Explained http://www.howtogeek.com/174985/not-all-viruses-are-viruses-10-malware-terms -explained/ Most people seem to call every type of malware a “virus”, but that isn’t technically accurate. You’ve *Early Malware If you used computers in the 90s, you remember the first mainstream computer viruses. They were often practical jokes of just proofs of concepts, created to mess with your computer and cause damage by people with too much time on their hands. Getting infected by a piece of malware meant that your desktop might be taken over by a pop-up proudly proclaiming that you’ve been infected. Your computer’s performance might deteriorate as a worm tried to send as many copies of itself out onto the Internet as possible. A particularly vicious piece of malware might try to delete everything from your hard drive and make your computer unbootable until you reinstalled Windows. For example, the Happy99 worm, considered the first virus to spread itself via email, existed only to spread itself. It emailed itself to other computers, caused errors on your computer while doing so, and displayed a “Happy New Year 1999 !!” window with fireworks. This worm didn’t do anything beyond spreading itself. *Keyloggers and Trojans Malware creators are almost purely motivated by profit these days. Malware doesn’t want to inform you that you’ve been compromised, degrade your system performance, or damage your system. Why would a piece of malware want to destroy your software and force you to reinstall Windows? That would only be inconveniencing you and the malware’s creator would have one less infected computer. RELATED ARTICLE Keyloggers Explained: What You Need to Know http://www.howtogeek.com/180615/keyloggers-explained-what-you-need-to-know/ A keylogger is a piece of software – or, even scarier, a hardware device – that logs every key you enter. Instead, the malware wants to infect your system and hide quietly in the background. Often, malware will function as a keylogger and intercept your credit card numbers, online banking passwords, and other sensitive personal data when you type it into your computer. The malware will send this data back to its creator. The malware’s creator may not even use these stolen credit card numbers and other personal information. Instead, they may sell it cheaply on a virtual black market to someone else who will take the risk of using the stolen data. Malware may also function as a Trojan, connecting to a remote server and waiting for instructions. The Trojan will then download whatever other malware the creator wants it to. This allows a malware’s creator to keep using those infected computers for other purposes and update them with new versions of malware. *Botnets and Ransomware Many types of malware also create a “botnet.” In effect, the malware turns your computer into a remotely-controlled “bot” that joins with other bots in a large network. The malware’s creator can then use this botnet for whatever purpose it likes – or, more likely, the botnet’s creator may rent access to the botnet to other criminal enterprises. For example, a botnet could be used to perform a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack on a website, bombarding it with traffic from a huge amount of computers and causing the servers to become unresponsive under the load. Someone could pay for access to a botnet to perform a DDoS attack, perhaps of a competitor’s website. A botnet could also be used to load web pages in the background and click on advertising links on a huge number of different PCs. Many websites make money each time a page loads or an advertising link is clicked, so these page loads and advertising link clicks – designed to look like real traffic from many different computers – can make the website money. This is known as “click fraud.” RELATED ARTICLE Ransomware: Why This New Malware is So Dangerous and How to Protect Yourself http://www.howtogeek.com/174343/ransomware-why-this-new-malware-is-so-danger ous-and-how-to-protect-yourself/ Ransomware is a type of malware that tries to extort money from you. One of the nastiest examples, CryptoLocker, takes… [Read Article] Ransomware like CryptoLocker is an extreme example of this trend taken to its logical extreme. When it infects you, CryptoLocker will encrypt the personal files it finds on your computer with a secret encryption key and delete the originals. It will then pop up a polite, professional wizard asking you to spend money to get your files back. If you don’t pay, you’ll lose your files – but, don’t worry, they’ll accept several different methods of payment to make it convenient for you. You apparently will get your files back when you pay them – of course, because otherwise word would spread and no one would pay them. Performing regular backups can defeat CryptoLocker and we don’t recommend paying criminals their ransom, but this is a clear example of malware being for-profit. They want to cause just enough trouble for you that you’ll pay up to get them to go away. cryptolocker[4] *Phishing and Social Engineering Attacks Online threats aren’t just about malware, either. Phishing and other social-engineering attacks are now also a huge threat. For example, you might get an email claiming to be from your bank that might take you to an imposter website designed to look like your bank’s. If you enter your banking information, the attacker will be able to gain access to your bank account on your bank’s website. These attacks are profit-driven in the same way malware is. The attacker isn’t performing a phishing attack just to mess with you – they’re doing it to gain access to your sensitive financial information so they can make a profit. RELATED ARTICLES Online Security: Breaking Down the Anatomy of a Phishing Email http://www.howtogeek.com/58642/online-security-breaking-down-the-anatomy-of- a-phishing-email/ In today’s world where everyone’s information is online, phishing is one of the most popular and devastating online attacks, Another related article that will give more answers to social engineering is: HTG Explains: What is Social Engineering and How Can You Avoid It? http://www.howtogeek.com/180186/htg-explains-what-is-social-engineering-and- how-can-you-avoid-it/ Malware isn’t the only online threat to worry about. Social engineering is a huge threat, and it can hit Malware isn’t the only online threat to worry about. Social engineering is a huge threat, and it can hit you. The article mentioned above ( HTG Explains: What is Social Engineering and How Can You Avoid It? ) can also help you understand other obnoxious types of software, like adware that displays advertisements on your computer and spyware that spies on your browsing information and sends it over the Internet. These obnoxious types of software are made for the same reason – profit. Their creators make money by serving you advertisements and tailoring them to you.]]>

What is the Malicious Software Removal Tool and Do I Need It? By How-To Geek http://www.howtogeek.com/180773/what-is-the-malicious-software-removal-tool- and-do-i-need-it/ Once a month, a new version of the Malicious Software Removal tool appears in Windows Update. This tool removes some malware from Windows systems, particularly those systems without antivirus programs installed. Bear in mind that this tool is no substitute for a solid antivirus program. It doesn’t run automatically in the background at all times, and only detects a few specific and widespread types of malware. What is the Malicious Software Removal Tool? Microsoft releases a new version of this tool on the second Tuesday of every month – in other words, on “Patch Tuesday.” It appears as just another patch in Windows Update. If you have your computer set to automatically install Windows Updates, it will be installed automatically. If you install updates manually, you’ve probably been installing it as part of the manual update process – it’s considered an important update, not just a recommended one. After Windows downloads the newest version of the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal tool, it will automatically run it in the background. This tool checks for specific, widespread types of malware and removes them if it finds them. If everything is fine, Windows will run the tool silently in the background without bothering you. If it finds a infection and fixes it, the tool will display a report telling you which malicious software was detected and will be removed after you restart your computer. Here is a related article. HTG Explains: Why Windows Has the Most Viruses http://www.howtogeek.com/141944/htg-explains-why-windows-has-the-most-viruse s/ We all know that Windows is the most malware-ridden platform out there, but why is that? Windows is the most… [Read Article] Microsoft introduced this tool back in the days of Windows XP, when Windows was very insecure – the first release of Windows XP didn’t even have a firewall enabled by default. Microsoft’s Malicious Software Removal Tool page says “This tool checks your computer for infection by specific, prevalent malicious software (including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom) and helps to remove the infection if it is found.” Note the three types of malware still described here in 2014 – these were widespread worms that infected many Windows XP systems back in 2003 and 2004, ten years ago. Microsoft introduced this tool to purge these widespread worms and other popular types of malware from Windows XP system without antivirus software installed. *Do I Need to Run This Tool? You shouldn’t need to worry about this tool. Set Windows to automatically install updates, or have Windows alert you to updates and install it along with the other new security updates when they appear every month. The tool will check your computer in the background and stay silent if everything is fine. All you need to do is ensure the update is installed from Windows Update. You don’t have to worry about running the tool manually, although you can. This tool doesn’t stay running in the background and scan everything you open, so it’s compatible with other antivirus programs and won’t interfere with them. *Why You Still Need an Antivirus This tool is nowhere near a replacement for an antivirus. It only covers specific types of malware, so it won’t purge all infections. It also only quickly scans the normal locations for the malware and won’t scan your entire system. Worse yet, the tool only runs once every month and doesn’t scan in the background. This means your computer could become infected and it wouldn’t be fixed until a month later when a new version of the tool arrives. Microsoft will be ending support for Windows XP on April 8, 2014 after 12 and a half years of supporting… The Malicious Software Removal Tool is a weapon Microsoft uses to purge worms and other nasty malware from infected systems so they don’t stay infected for years. It’s not a tool that will help protect you in your day-to-day computer use. If you’d like to see the full list of malware it removes, you can download the tool, run it manually, and click the “View detailed results of the scan” link after running a scan to see all the different types of malware it checked for. Microsoft will continue updating this tool for Windows XP until July 14, 2015, even though they’re ending support for Windows XP on April 8, 2014. But it’s no substitute for having a patched operating system and using a solid antivirus program. *Manually Running the Tool and Viewing Logs* You don’t need to run the tool manually. If you suspect your computer is infected, you’re better off scanning it with a dedicated antivirus program that can detect much more malware. If you really want to run the tool manually, you can download it from Microsoft’s download page http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/malicious-software-removal-tool-deta ils.aspx and run it like any other .exe file. When you run the tool in this way, you’ll see a graphical interface. The tool performs a Quick scan when you run it in the background, but you can also perform a Full scan or Customized scan to scan your entire system or specific folders if you run it manually. windows-malicious-software-removal-tool-scan[4] After the tool runs – either manually or automatically in the background – it will create a log file you can view. This file is located at %WINDIR%\debug\mrt.log – that’s C:\Windows\debug\mrt.log by default. You can open this file in Notepad or any other text editor to see the results of the scan. If you see a mostly empty log file with no problem reports, the tool didn’t detect any problems. windows-malicious-software-removal-tool-log[4] _____ So that’s why the Malicious Software Removal Tool keeps popping up in Windows Update. You shouldn’t ever have to pay attention to this tool. As long as you’re running a good antivirus program, it will do a quick double-check in the background every month and not bother you.]]>

. or other cloud service and assume they are safe because the company says so. If you wish to get Dropbox for quick sharing of files/folders with friends, visit this link. https://www.dropbox.com/referrals/NTE1MTA4NjU5?src=global9 Use free open source encryption software like TrueCrypt to secure your important data. TrueCrypt can be found at the link below. http://www.truecrypt.org/ Do not go through the trouble of encrypting the document and then forget to attach a strong password. 6. Skip the Conveniences of Mobile Transactions Sandboxing and HTTPS go a long way toward making financial apps secure. (Special note from Dan: a sandbox is a security mechanism for separating running programs. It is often used to execute untested code, or untrusted programs from unverified third-parties, suppliers, untrusted users and untrusted websites. The sandbox typically provides a tightly controlled set of resources for guest programs to run in, such as scratch space on disk and memory. Network access, the ability to inspect the host system or read from input devices are usually disallowed or heavily restricted. In this sense, sandboxes are a specific example of virtualization . Sandboxing technology is frequently used to test unverified programs which may contain a virus or other malignant code , without allowing the software to harm the host device. For a much more technical explanation, visit the link below. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandbox_(computer_security) (Special note from Dan: Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) is a communications protocol for secure communication over a computer network . For a much more detailed explanation visit the link below.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTP_Secure However, downloading apps also creates a trail of breadcrumbs, because now you’ve helped a criminal narrow down the possibility of institutions to access your accounts. With more than 70% of consumers still relying on weak passwords, your login credentials may not be much to deter hackers. Wait until you get home to your own secure network to conduct business. Even then, make sure your home network is secure. An article on how to do this is found here: http://joeorozco.com/blog_securing_your_home_network If you do plan on doing mobile banking, and most of you will: . Use your institution’s verified app; . do not use your mobile browser; . use two-factor authentication when this is available. . (Note from Dan: Two-step verification (also known as two-step authentication) is a process involving two stages to verify the identity of an entity trying to access services in a computer or in a network. This is a special case of a multi-factor authentication which involves the presentation of two or more of the three authentication factors : a knowledge factor, a possession factor, and an inherence factor. For more detail, visit the link below.) * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-step_verification * . conduct your business over a cellular network instead of public wi-fi. . If you do use public wi-fi, consider communicating over a virtual private network. An article explaining how to carry this typ of communication is found here. http://joeorozco.com/blog_securing_data_on_public_wi-fi Remember that the perception that one mobile platform is more secure than another is just that, a perception. 7. Prepare Your Phone for Remote Destruction It’s now possible to locate and track a lost or stolen smartphone; however, the phone needs to be set up before these precautions can work. Find My iPhone is a good way to find an iDevice using your iCloud account. Apple provides an article explaining the app found at the link below. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/find-my-iphone/id376101648?mt=8 On the other side of the aisle you can use Google’s native Android Device Manager. On Android Such an account can be created at this link. https://accounts.google.com/ServiceLogin?service=androidconsole &passive=1209600&continue=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fandroid%2Fdeviceman ager&followup=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fandroid%2Fdevicemanager remember that resetting a phone to factory defaults may not erase data on SD cards. Lookout Security & Antivirus is another popular Android option. More information on how to sign up and use the service is found here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lookout 8. Dress to Protect Don’t be a pickpocket’s dream come true. Avoid putting your wallet in a back pocket and avoid shallow pockets all around. If possible, use a coat’s inner pockets, or consider a money belt. 9. Miscellaneous Tips . Never become so inebriated that you lose track of your belongings. . Never share more about yourself with a stranger than is necessary. . Never use an ATM if your gut feeling raises the alarm, and when you do use an ATM, block the public’s view to the keypad. . If you’ve lost personal data, had it stolen, or you generally suspect trouble, check your bank statements and notify your banks and credit bureaus. . If you’re traveling abroad, take down the contact information to your closest embassy in advance. . * The HomePage for the USEmbassy.gov . Is found here: http://www.usembassy.gov/ . Some of the advice here may seem over the top, hence the Paranoid’s Guide. Yet, a little paranoia is worth it if it spares you a few headaches and a lot of unnecessary stress, but what say you? Would you add anything or revise anything that’s been suggested? If you enjoyed this post and would like to receive future updates, follow me on Twitter @ScribblingJoe or subscribe at the RSS at: http://feeds.feedburner.com/jsorozco You may also use the form found at the link below to receive e-mail updates. Don’t worry, no spam: http://joeorozco.com/blog_the_paranoids_guide_to_protecting_your_identity_while_traveling When using screenreading software, The form’s first edit field can be reached by:Top of Form Bottom of Form 1. Press the letter h twice. 2. Press the letter once. You are laced on “enter your email address.” Pressing the letter h twice jumps the cursor past the search field at the beginning of the page. If you pressed the letter F (commonly used for moving to a form field), the cursor would be placed in an edit field for searching this site. Thus this work around. One could use the find feature and search for the word “email” without quotes. After entering in the search string of email hit enter. The cursor is placed on “enter your email address.” Just as shown above.]]>

Have you tried rebooting it? Yes, once again, Rebooting is the solution to many network problems. Whether websites are failing to load, everything network-related seems slow, connections are dropping, or your wireless is flaking out, you may just want to try 1. rebooting your router. This shouldn’t be necessary, but many routers seem to need an occasional reboot to keep working well. The reboot process is simple on most routers – unplug your router’s power cable, wait a few seconds, and then plug it back in. If you have separate modem, you may also want to try unplugging your modem’s power cable and plugging it back in after a few seconds. Some devices may have a power switch, but the unplug-and-plug-back-in method applies to all routers. If you have to frequently reboot your router, the manufacturer’s firmware may just be unstable and buggy. Installing an alternative firmware like DD-WRT (which can be found here:-) http://www.howtogeek.com/56612/turn-your-home-router-into-a-super-powered-ro uter-with-dd-wrt/ This might help. 2. Check for Overheating Like any other electronic device, routers can fall prey to overheating. This overheating can damage the router over time or just make it unstable. Check your router’s temperature to see how hot it is. If it seems very hot, ensure that it’s getting enough airflow. If the vents are blocked or you have the router in a hot location – like on top of a tower PC that heats up – overheating could be causing instability. It’s also possible that past overheating may have damaged the router. 3. Verify Cables Are Securely Connected This may sound like a no-brainer, but we sometimes forget to check the most obvious solution before moving on to more complicated ones. Someone may have accidentally pulled on or kicked a cable, causing it to unplug or become loose. You should check all of the cables involved and ensure that they’re securely connected. Be sure to check the power cables to your router and modem, the cable between your router and modem, the cable between the modem and the wall socket, and each Ethernet cable plugged into the back of the router. Check each end of the cable and ensure it’s securely connected – it could look connected but be a bit loose. 4. Reposition the Router Like all sufficiently advanced technologies, Wi-Fi can feel like magic. But Wi-Fi isn’t magic – it’s radio waves. If you’re having trouble with your Wi-Fi signal, you’ll want to try repositioning the router. Ensure nothing is blocking the wireless signal, particularly large metal objects or devices that can interfere, like microwaves and some types of cordless phones. You should also ensure that the router’s antenna is positioned vertically rather than horizontally – a vertical antenna will give you the largest coverage area. Read our in-depth guide to improving your Wi-Fi signal for more information. This can be found here. http://www.howtogeek.com/126327/how-to-get-a-better-wireless-signal-and-redu ce-wireless-network-interference/ 5. Change the Wireless Channel If you’re in a location with a lot of wireless routers nearby, like an apartment building, there’s a good chance your router is subject to interference from other wireless routers sending signals on the same wireless frequency. Determining the optimal wireless channel for your area and changing your router to operate on that wireless channel instead of a more congested one can reduce this interference, improving your wireless signal. If you have an Android device, the Wi-Fi Analyzer app can help you analyze your area and find the optimal channel . You can then change the wireless channel on your router Some very awesome related articles that will help for improving router reception include: a. Analyze & Optimize Your Wireless Network with Wi-Fi Analyzer for Android http://www.howtogeek.com/105174/analyze-optimize-your-wireless-network-with- wi-fi-analyzer-for-android/ b. Change Your Wi-Fi Router Channel to Optimize Your Wireless Signal http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/21132/change-your-wi-fi-router-channel-to-opt imize-your-wireless-signal/ c. How to Access Your Router If You Forget the Password This may be one of the more important documents for this process of resetting your router. http://www.howtogeek.com/131338/how-to-access-your-router-if-you-forget-the- password/ d. How To Troubleshoot Internet Connection Problems http://www.howtogeek.com/126265/how-to-troubleshoot-internet-connection-prob lems/ The above article resources will provide significant support information to insure a successful outcome. Wi-Fi Analyzer for Android is the complete package. Not only will it show you the channels used by nearby wireless networks, If you live in an apartment complex you’ve probably noticed more than just the passive-aggressive network IDs that your neighbors use-very likely you’ve had problems with your wireless connections dropping out, or just not being as fast as you’d like. Here’s a quick fix. Reset Your Router to Factory Default Settings You may want to try resetting your router to its factory default settings if there seems to be a serious problem with its configuration. This shouldn’t be necessary in most cases, but it’s worth a try if you’re at your wits’ end. It’s possible that you’ve changed certain settings on your router that you shouldn’t have, and it may be easier to revert to a clean slate rather than changing the individual options back. Routers protect their web interfaces, where you can configure their networking, parental control, and port forwarding settings, with a username… [Read Article] Bear in mind that you’ll have to reconfigure your router after this, including setting up your wireless network name and passphrase again. You’ll likely need to long-press a Reset pinhole button on the back of the router to reset its settings, but the exact details will vary from router to router. This is the same process you need to perform to . reset your router’s password Change Your Wi-Fi Router Channel to Optimize Your Wireless Signal If you live in an apartment complex you’ve probably noticed more than just the passive-aggressive network IDs that your neighbors use-very likely you’ve had problems with your wireless connections dropping out, or just not being as fast as you’d like. Here’s a quick fix. [Read Article] Reset Your Router to Factory Default Settings You may want to try resetting your router to its factory default settings if there seems to be a serious problem with its configuration. This shouldn’t be necessary in most cases, but it’s worth a try if you’re at your wits’ end. It’s possible that you’ve changed certain settings on your router that you shouldn’t have, and it may be easier to revert to a clean slate rather than changing the individual options back. RELATED ARTICLE How to Access Your Router If You Forget the Password Routers protect their web interfaces, where you can configure their networking, parental control, and port forwarding settings, with a username… [Read Article] Bear in mind that you’ll have to reconfigure your router after this, including setting up your wireless network name and passphrase again. You’ll likely need to long-press a Reset pinhole button on the back of the router to reset its settings, but the exact details will vary from router to router. This is the same process you need to perform to reset your router’s password . 6. Other Possible Problems Internet connection problems can be frustrating. Rather than mashing F5 and desperately trying to reload your favorite website when you… [Read Article] As with any troubleshooting process, there’s a practically endless amount of things that could go wrong. Your router or modem may be broken. The Ethernet cables you use may be damaged and need replacement. If only one device you own is having problems with its network connection, it may have a software problem and you may need to go through a troubleshooting process on a specific device – or maybe just reboot it, if you’re lucky. Read our guide to troubleshooting Internet connection problems for more tips. If your router seems unstable no matter what you do or needs frequent resets, consider replacing it. New routers are fairly cheap and dealing with an unstable router can be a huge headache. I genuine hope this tip has helped someone out of a Frustrating Situation and made their computer experience more positive.]]>