Anti Spam Guide 101
By Mansi Aggarwal
One thing that has plagued more or less all the Internet users is Spam. Thus, the biggest ask of todays Internet age is Anti Spam tools.
As the usage of internet is multiplying day after day, e-mail has become the most powerful and desirable means of communication. But some people are trying to annihilate its great reputation by introducing the spam into it. Spam is nothing but unsolicited, unwanted, irrelevant or inappropriate e-mail. They are also known as junk mails. Spam mails are basically aimed at wasting the time and as a result, money of the individuals who are at the receiving end. Many people get annoyed when they see their inboxes full of junk mails, which are hidden between the legitimate ones. This situation may lead to chaos as these people may inadvertently delete the legitimate e-mails while deleting the spam. Also, the spam mails can cause unnecessary burden over the servers by uploading lots of redundant data over them. Moreover, they may even contain viruses, spyware and trojans which can damage the whole system of the receiver.
Hence, people who are acquainted with these ill effects of the spam mails are on the constant look out for better and more advanced Anti Spam solutions to get rid of this menace. Therefore big software companies are continuously trying to develop Anti Spam solutions, spam blockers and e-mail spam filters. Anti Spam solutions are basically designed to check the sender’s name and address and filter the spam e-mails according to a black list of spammers they own. They may also check the recipients’ names and addresses and filter the spam mails according to certain parameters decided by them. Some Anti Spam solutions also use content filtering or Bayesian Logic. They can scan the e-mails and search for certain words or phrases which are common in most spam mails like ‘viagra’ or ‘click here’ and filter the spam e-mails accordingly.
However, these Anti Spam solutions are not infallible. If the software companies are trying to develop more and more advanced ways to block and filter spam, the spammers are also not sitting idle. They are also constantly inventing new ways to hoodwink these Anti Spam programs and cause havoc in the world of internet. Moreover, most of these Anti Spam solutions are not reliable as they may delete some very necessary e-mail taking them as spam. This might happen if a legitimate sender makes use of some of the terms which favorites among the spammers or use an IP address that has been used by spammers in the past. Thus, a reliable Anti Spam solution is one, which minimizes these false positives by adopting a comprehensive anti spam approach by examining both the message content as well as the history of the sender. Moreover, an effective anti spam software is one, which learns the user preferences by analyzing his behavior towards some particular messages. For instance, most of us may delete the messages containing the word ‘viagra’ but some medical organizations may not do so.
Thus, while no Anti Spam software is perfect, still we should use them to reduce the risk of getting plagued by the menace of spam mails.
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About the Author
Mansi Aggarwal recommends that you visit Anti Spam for more information.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mansi_Aggarwal
Wednesday, June 28
Monday, June 26
Introduction to Spam Filters
An Introduction To Spam Filters
by Peter Emerson
Using spam filters is another very effective way of combating spam or junk mail. These programs use some keywords like ‘guaranteed’, ‘free’, etc and block any email with those words in them. But this has the disadvantage of sometimes blocking even important mails from your contacts and preventing those senders from sending mails to your address again. The way out is to use add-on spam filters which allow you to control the content that should be allowed into your inbox. This will save you a lot of time and energy as you no longer will have go through each and every email before identifying it as spam and eliminating it.
Spam filters can be installed on any computer system and aim at filtering junk and getting only relevant information to the user.
Setting up a simple spam filter can be very easy. Identify the section ‘filters’ in your email program and create a new filter. Lay down the rules or filter conditions for the new folder. These can be the parameters under which an email would be marked as spam and deleted from your inbox. If you prefer to look at the filtered mail before deleting it, you can choose the option to move it to another folder once it is filtered. Once you save the changes you have made in the new filter, it will be active.
You have a new variety of spam filters in the market now which are called ‘smarter filters’. While these fight and prevent spam very effectively, setting it up is a very complex process and is recommended only for technical experts.
New generation spam filters are different from traditional ones in that they go in for statistical data rather features of spam. These filters decide on spam by analyzing the entire email and comparing it with other already identified spam mails. The error margin for these filters is almost zero as more than 99% of scams are identified and eliminated through this method.
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Stop Spam provides detailed information on Stop Spam, Spam Filters, Spam Blockers, Anti Spam Software and more. Stop Spam is affiliated with Free Spam Filters.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_Emerson
by Peter Emerson
Using spam filters is another very effective way of combating spam or junk mail. These programs use some keywords like ‘guaranteed’, ‘free’, etc and block any email with those words in them. But this has the disadvantage of sometimes blocking even important mails from your contacts and preventing those senders from sending mails to your address again. The way out is to use add-on spam filters which allow you to control the content that should be allowed into your inbox. This will save you a lot of time and energy as you no longer will have go through each and every email before identifying it as spam and eliminating it.
Spam filters can be installed on any computer system and aim at filtering junk and getting only relevant information to the user.
Setting up a simple spam filter can be very easy. Identify the section ‘filters’ in your email program and create a new filter. Lay down the rules or filter conditions for the new folder. These can be the parameters under which an email would be marked as spam and deleted from your inbox. If you prefer to look at the filtered mail before deleting it, you can choose the option to move it to another folder once it is filtered. Once you save the changes you have made in the new filter, it will be active.
You have a new variety of spam filters in the market now which are called ‘smarter filters’. While these fight and prevent spam very effectively, setting it up is a very complex process and is recommended only for technical experts.
New generation spam filters are different from traditional ones in that they go in for statistical data rather features of spam. These filters decide on spam by analyzing the entire email and comparing it with other already identified spam mails. The error margin for these filters is almost zero as more than 99% of scams are identified and eliminated through this method.
-----------------
Stop Spam provides detailed information on Stop Spam, Spam Filters, Spam Blockers, Anti Spam Software and more. Stop Spam is affiliated with Free Spam Filters.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_Emerson
Sunday, June 25
Spyware Adware Protection while Browsing Web
Be Careful Where You Point and Click
by Dwight Brown
You've heard it a thousand times: be careful where you point your browser and what you type if you're on an untrustworthy Web site. Some sites contain nasty stuff like spyware, viruses and malicious code. In some cases, you'll get spam if you give them your e-mail address.
Now there's data to back that up, albeit commissioned by a company that makes its money selling products to protect you against the Internet's dark side. Self interest aside, the data from a study co-led by Internet anti-spyware expert Ben Edelman and commissioned by McAfee confirms what experts have been saying for years: Be careful about sites that come up in searches. In addition to selling security software and services, McAfee, this April, acquired SiteAdvisor, which helps consumers analyze the safety of sites.
The researchers analyzed results of searches on Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL, Ask and found that "all of the major search engines returned risky sites in their search results for popular keywords" and that "dangerous sites soared to as much as 72 percent of results for certain popular keywords, such as 'free screensavers,' 'digital music,' 'popular software,' and 'singers.'
The report warns users to be especially cautious about sites that come up as sponsored (paid) results; these "contain two to four times as many dangerous sites" as the non-paid results, the report said.
Sometimes you have to look carefully to figure it out, but the reputable search engines label sponsored results so users can distinguish them from the ones that come up based on the search engine's actual criteria that establishes a site's relevancy to a search term.
A Google search for "free iPods," for example, gives you a number of paid results which, according to SiteAdvisor, are potentially unsafe.
The report found that "MSN search results had the lowest percentage (3.9%) of dangerous sites while Ask search results had the highest percentage (6.1%). Google was in between (5.3%)."
The authors concluded that, "on the whole, we see little basis to conclude that any search engine is much safer than any other; safety rankings vary too much from search to search."
The report's authors estimated that each month consumers click on an estimated 285 million "hostile sites."
The researchers compiled 1,394 popular keywords using lists of common searches. "Adult search terms" were excluded. The results were analyzed using the database from McAfee's SiteAdvisor Web safety database which is based on "automated tests that analyze Web sites for exploits, downloads containing spyware, adware, or other unwanted programs, pop-ups, links to dangerous sites, and e-mail submission forms," according to the report.
In addition to pop-ups, spam and adware, some sites use what are called "browser exploits" to install unwanted code on a user's PC. In theory, these exploits can do serious damage to a PC or jeopardize a user's privacy and safety by exploiting information for malicious or criminal purposes.
The report was released to draw attention to a free McAfee product that helps consumers analyze a site before they click on it or before they submit any data to the site. SiteAdvisor works with both Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox to show you a site's rating from within Google, MSN or Yahoo even before you click on it. With SiteAdvisor installed, when you search for a term in one of those search engines, you'll see a "safety button" next to the listing.
A green check mark means that the site was tested and there were no significant problems found. A yellow exclamation point means that "tests revealed some issues you should know about. (Example: a site tried to change our browser defaults, or sent a lot of "non-spammy" e-mail)" and a red X means that the site found "serious issues that you'll want to carefully consider before using this site at all. (Example: The site sent us lots of spammy e-mail or bundled adware with a download.)"
Once you get to a site, regardless of how you got there, there is an icon in the lower right-hand corner that gives you a color-coded assessment of that site -- which, if you click on it, reports with details as to why the site was given its rating, along with rating of some sites linked from the site you're on.
In my tests, I found the SiteAdvisor results to be pretty helpful, but it wasn't perfect. For example, it gave a green light to the greeting card site, 123Greetings. While I don't have any evidence that the site puts any malicious code on your system, I do know that it pops up a lot of ads not only when you use it to send a card, but also when you click on a card that someone else sends you.
Flaws aside, SiteAdvisor generally does give users some pretty good advice when it comes to sites that should be avoided. It's not the end-all, but it is one more tool is users' arsenal to help protect us from online bad guys.
-------------------------
About the Author
Dwight Brown writes about Spyware on his Blog Adware Spyware Remover
by Dwight Brown
You've heard it a thousand times: be careful where you point your browser and what you type if you're on an untrustworthy Web site. Some sites contain nasty stuff like spyware, viruses and malicious code. In some cases, you'll get spam if you give them your e-mail address.
Now there's data to back that up, albeit commissioned by a company that makes its money selling products to protect you against the Internet's dark side. Self interest aside, the data from a study co-led by Internet anti-spyware expert Ben Edelman and commissioned by McAfee confirms what experts have been saying for years: Be careful about sites that come up in searches. In addition to selling security software and services, McAfee, this April, acquired SiteAdvisor, which helps consumers analyze the safety of sites.
The researchers analyzed results of searches on Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL, Ask and found that "all of the major search engines returned risky sites in their search results for popular keywords" and that "dangerous sites soared to as much as 72 percent of results for certain popular keywords, such as 'free screensavers,' 'digital music,' 'popular software,' and 'singers.'
The report warns users to be especially cautious about sites that come up as sponsored (paid) results; these "contain two to four times as many dangerous sites" as the non-paid results, the report said.
Sometimes you have to look carefully to figure it out, but the reputable search engines label sponsored results so users can distinguish them from the ones that come up based on the search engine's actual criteria that establishes a site's relevancy to a search term.
A Google search for "free iPods," for example, gives you a number of paid results which, according to SiteAdvisor, are potentially unsafe.
The report found that "MSN search results had the lowest percentage (3.9%) of dangerous sites while Ask search results had the highest percentage (6.1%). Google was in between (5.3%)."
The authors concluded that, "on the whole, we see little basis to conclude that any search engine is much safer than any other; safety rankings vary too much from search to search."
The report's authors estimated that each month consumers click on an estimated 285 million "hostile sites."
The researchers compiled 1,394 popular keywords using lists of common searches. "Adult search terms" were excluded. The results were analyzed using the database from McAfee's SiteAdvisor Web safety database which is based on "automated tests that analyze Web sites for exploits, downloads containing spyware, adware, or other unwanted programs, pop-ups, links to dangerous sites, and e-mail submission forms," according to the report.
In addition to pop-ups, spam and adware, some sites use what are called "browser exploits" to install unwanted code on a user's PC. In theory, these exploits can do serious damage to a PC or jeopardize a user's privacy and safety by exploiting information for malicious or criminal purposes.
The report was released to draw attention to a free McAfee product that helps consumers analyze a site before they click on it or before they submit any data to the site. SiteAdvisor works with both Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox to show you a site's rating from within Google, MSN or Yahoo even before you click on it. With SiteAdvisor installed, when you search for a term in one of those search engines, you'll see a "safety button" next to the listing.
A green check mark means that the site was tested and there were no significant problems found. A yellow exclamation point means that "tests revealed some issues you should know about. (Example: a site tried to change our browser defaults, or sent a lot of "non-spammy" e-mail)" and a red X means that the site found "serious issues that you'll want to carefully consider before using this site at all. (Example: The site sent us lots of spammy e-mail or bundled adware with a download.)"
Once you get to a site, regardless of how you got there, there is an icon in the lower right-hand corner that gives you a color-coded assessment of that site -- which, if you click on it, reports with details as to why the site was given its rating, along with rating of some sites linked from the site you're on.
In my tests, I found the SiteAdvisor results to be pretty helpful, but it wasn't perfect. For example, it gave a green light to the greeting card site, 123Greetings. While I don't have any evidence that the site puts any malicious code on your system, I do know that it pops up a lot of ads not only when you use it to send a card, but also when you click on a card that someone else sends you.
Flaws aside, SiteAdvisor generally does give users some pretty good advice when it comes to sites that should be avoided. It's not the end-all, but it is one more tool is users' arsenal to help protect us from online bad guys.
-------------------------
About the Author
Dwight Brown writes about Spyware on his Blog Adware Spyware Remover
Friday, June 23
Virus Infection Protection in 9 steps
9 Steps To Protect Your Computer from Virus Infection
by Pauzi Said
Virus can create havoc in your computer. It can at the very least cause nuisance to your computer, to as bad as making your computer a useless junk. Here we list 9 steps you can take to protect your computer from being infected by viruses.
1. Install antivirus software, and get a high quality one. You can find many different anti-virus computers programs on the market, and some of them are just better than others. Do your research from reputable computer magazines or websites for ratings and reviews to help you find the one that fits your requirements.
2. Keep your antivirus software up to date. When you buy antivirus software it is very likely that you are subscribed for one-year updates. Most of them provide daily updates. Make sure you update you antivirus programs or database whenever an update is available.
3. Keep your anti-virus software active all the time. Make sure your anti-virus software is set to scan incoming and outgoing email messages, downloads, and any software programs you run.
4. Keep your computer's operating system up to date. Check for updates periodically to make sure you are running stable, updated versions of your software. The updates may address some security fault that may put your computer at risk to virus attacks.
5. If you use floppy disks or USB drives on public computers like your school computer lab make sure you scan them for viruses when you get home or back in your office. You don't want to be infected by viruses that may be present in those public computers.
6. Be careful with email attachments. Treat any email attachment as potential hazard. Never open attachments from senders you don't recognize, or even from senders you know but look suspicious. Some computer viruses disguise themselves as someone you know by reading addresses from the contacts in your email program.
7. Be cautious of links in instant messaging software. Don't accept invitations or click a link from people you don't know or trust. The link can easily redirect you to another website that will try to install a virus on your computer.
8. If you need to download software try downloading them from popular sites that have good reputation that scan software before they are uploaded. To make sure you are doubly safe scan the software for viruses with your antivirus software before installing it.
9. Lastly, make backups of your data regularly. Perform weekly or monthly backups to CD or USB drives. If you lose your data on the hard drive due to virus attacks, you still can fall back to your backups.
------------------
About the Author
Pauzi Said is the owner of More On Virus that discusses virus and antivirus. For more info on virus and antivirus visit More On Virus.
by Pauzi Said
Virus can create havoc in your computer. It can at the very least cause nuisance to your computer, to as bad as making your computer a useless junk. Here we list 9 steps you can take to protect your computer from being infected by viruses.
1. Install antivirus software, and get a high quality one. You can find many different anti-virus computers programs on the market, and some of them are just better than others. Do your research from reputable computer magazines or websites for ratings and reviews to help you find the one that fits your requirements.
2. Keep your antivirus software up to date. When you buy antivirus software it is very likely that you are subscribed for one-year updates. Most of them provide daily updates. Make sure you update you antivirus programs or database whenever an update is available.
3. Keep your anti-virus software active all the time. Make sure your anti-virus software is set to scan incoming and outgoing email messages, downloads, and any software programs you run.
4. Keep your computer's operating system up to date. Check for updates periodically to make sure you are running stable, updated versions of your software. The updates may address some security fault that may put your computer at risk to virus attacks.
5. If you use floppy disks or USB drives on public computers like your school computer lab make sure you scan them for viruses when you get home or back in your office. You don't want to be infected by viruses that may be present in those public computers.
6. Be careful with email attachments. Treat any email attachment as potential hazard. Never open attachments from senders you don't recognize, or even from senders you know but look suspicious. Some computer viruses disguise themselves as someone you know by reading addresses from the contacts in your email program.
7. Be cautious of links in instant messaging software. Don't accept invitations or click a link from people you don't know or trust. The link can easily redirect you to another website that will try to install a virus on your computer.
8. If you need to download software try downloading them from popular sites that have good reputation that scan software before they are uploaded. To make sure you are doubly safe scan the software for viruses with your antivirus software before installing it.
9. Lastly, make backups of your data regularly. Perform weekly or monthly backups to CD or USB drives. If you lose your data on the hard drive due to virus attacks, you still can fall back to your backups.
------------------
About the Author
Pauzi Said is the owner of More On Virus that discusses virus and antivirus. For more info on virus and antivirus visit More On Virus.
Protecting yourself from Malware
How to Protect Yourself from Malware
by Kevin Nelson
Malware is the broad term that computer security experts use to describe any type of software created to cause specific damage to a computer system or circumvent the security of a computer system. This includes the wide array of software types that we occasionally hear about in the press such as viruses, worms, Trojans, spyware, etc. Because these programs can cause damage to your computer system, infect other computer systems and possibly leave your personal information at risk, it is important to know how to identify and get rid of potentially dangerous programs before they can cause too much damage. There are three things most computer security experts would recommend you do in order to protect yourself from malware.
First, you should invest in a good firewall for your computer, especially if you use a broadband connection (cable modem, DSL, fiber optic or satellite connection) and have a computer that is always connected to the internet. If you use WindowsXP, you likely already have the Windows Firewall already built in. A good firewall will keep unauthorized users from gaining access to your computer from the outside and will keep programs on your system from communicating through to the outside without your permission. Most anti-virus programs come as a suite of programs, including a firewall so you should check to see if you have one of those in lieu of the Windows firewall. Finally, you can download free firewall software such as ZoneAlarm or, if you have a broadband router, it probably has a firewall feature built into the hardware.
Second, you'll need to be sure you're running an anti-virus program and that it is kept up-to-date. Yes, this means you will probably have to pay for a new license each year in order to keep getting the updates, but this really comes out to be about a few cents a day. In order to keep it updated, you should schedule automatic updates to occur at a set time or whenever the program detects new updates available. While it's important to keep your system up-to-date, it's better if it doesn't have to be one more thing on the to-do list. Automatic updates will take care of that so you can set it once and just move on.
Third, you should get a good spyware remover program. This might be a feature of your current anti-virus program but check that out and don't assume that's the case since many don't have this feature. A dedicated spyware remover will either detect/remove potential spyware whenever you run it or will also add the feature of monitoring programs as they run to prevent future installations of spyware. This is called real-time protection and is the best option for most users, again focusing on a set-it-and-forget-it type of solution. The spyware remover should also have the ability to auto-update, similar to what we recommended for anti-virus programs in the previous section.
With these three items, you should be well protected against malware of all sorts. The last piece is getting a better understanding of spyware, adware and other malware threats. With a good understanding of the threats and by knowing good security practices and computing habits, you can likely avoid coming into contact with malware and rely on your software tools as a backup (hey, we all make mistakes, right?).
-----------------------
About the Author
For a limited time, get exclusive access to our anti spyware mini-course - protect yourself from this growing threat. A $29.00 value, yours free if you sign up now. Click here: Spyware Mini-Course.
by Kevin Nelson
Malware is the broad term that computer security experts use to describe any type of software created to cause specific damage to a computer system or circumvent the security of a computer system. This includes the wide array of software types that we occasionally hear about in the press such as viruses, worms, Trojans, spyware, etc. Because these programs can cause damage to your computer system, infect other computer systems and possibly leave your personal information at risk, it is important to know how to identify and get rid of potentially dangerous programs before they can cause too much damage. There are three things most computer security experts would recommend you do in order to protect yourself from malware.
First, you should invest in a good firewall for your computer, especially if you use a broadband connection (cable modem, DSL, fiber optic or satellite connection) and have a computer that is always connected to the internet. If you use WindowsXP, you likely already have the Windows Firewall already built in. A good firewall will keep unauthorized users from gaining access to your computer from the outside and will keep programs on your system from communicating through to the outside without your permission. Most anti-virus programs come as a suite of programs, including a firewall so you should check to see if you have one of those in lieu of the Windows firewall. Finally, you can download free firewall software such as ZoneAlarm or, if you have a broadband router, it probably has a firewall feature built into the hardware.
Second, you'll need to be sure you're running an anti-virus program and that it is kept up-to-date. Yes, this means you will probably have to pay for a new license each year in order to keep getting the updates, but this really comes out to be about a few cents a day. In order to keep it updated, you should schedule automatic updates to occur at a set time or whenever the program detects new updates available. While it's important to keep your system up-to-date, it's better if it doesn't have to be one more thing on the to-do list. Automatic updates will take care of that so you can set it once and just move on.
Third, you should get a good spyware remover program. This might be a feature of your current anti-virus program but check that out and don't assume that's the case since many don't have this feature. A dedicated spyware remover will either detect/remove potential spyware whenever you run it or will also add the feature of monitoring programs as they run to prevent future installations of spyware. This is called real-time protection and is the best option for most users, again focusing on a set-it-and-forget-it type of solution. The spyware remover should also have the ability to auto-update, similar to what we recommended for anti-virus programs in the previous section.
With these three items, you should be well protected against malware of all sorts. The last piece is getting a better understanding of spyware, adware and other malware threats. With a good understanding of the threats and by knowing good security practices and computing habits, you can likely avoid coming into contact with malware and rely on your software tools as a backup (hey, we all make mistakes, right?).
-----------------------
About the Author
For a limited time, get exclusive access to our anti spyware mini-course - protect yourself from this growing threat. A $29.00 value, yours free if you sign up now. Click here: Spyware Mini-Course.
Thursday, June 22
Surfing Safely
Safe Surfing
By Edward Olsen
If you’re going to connect to the internet, you need to protect your computer, otherwise it’s like leaving your front door wide open with a big ‘Robbers Welcome’ doormat on your front step. You’ve probably heard all the terms – such as virus, hacker, firewall, spyware and a million more – but perhaps think that the anti-virus programme that came with the computer, or that your PC-savvy mate downloaded for you is enough to keep you safe, right? Wrong …
First of all, you need a firewall. This is your first line of defence, making it extremely difficult for any hacker or malicious programme to get through. Nothing is 100% impenetrable, however, and an anti-virus programme that will always be on the lookout for anything nasty that manages to find its way in is essential.
But there are things that manage to get onto your pc in the most unlikely of ways: it can be inadvertently added by you as you download music, screensavers or games onto your PC, or it can even be added by someone you know and trust, such as a suspicious spouse or your employer. This is Spyware and is a frightening breach of privacy which allows people or programmes to see what you’re doing, what sites you look at and even log your keystrokes so that they can reproduce everything you type, such as passwords and credit card details.
The only way to truly guard against spyware is to have a dedicated programme that detects and removes it.
So, you have your firewall and your anti-virus programme in place; surely an anti-spyware programme is just money down the drain? Unfortunately not: this will fill the cracks left by your other security programmes, and although it will not make your computer completely impenetrable (unfortunately the people writing these programmes are extremely good at what they do) it will be the equivalent of locking all your doors and windows and having an alarm system armed before you leave your house – someone could still get in if they really wanted to, but they’d probably rather go next door, where they’ve rather invitingly left a downstairs window open.
People are now using their computers for a range of personal and business applications, the loss or infiltration of which could do them serious emotional and financial damage. Taking preventative measures to ensure your online security should be as natural as closing the door behind you when you go out, and there are affordable and easy to use programmes out there to help you do just that.
---------------------
For a full range of products to keep your computer safe, visit www.vaultlock.com
Otherwise you might as well order that ‘Robbers Welcome’ mat now!
Article Source: http://www.EzinePlug.com
Want to have best of Firewalls, Antispyware, Antivirus software and online privacy tools, visit www.pcsecurityworld.com and protect yourself from Online threats.
By Edward Olsen
If you’re going to connect to the internet, you need to protect your computer, otherwise it’s like leaving your front door wide open with a big ‘Robbers Welcome’ doormat on your front step. You’ve probably heard all the terms – such as virus, hacker, firewall, spyware and a million more – but perhaps think that the anti-virus programme that came with the computer, or that your PC-savvy mate downloaded for you is enough to keep you safe, right? Wrong …
First of all, you need a firewall. This is your first line of defence, making it extremely difficult for any hacker or malicious programme to get through. Nothing is 100% impenetrable, however, and an anti-virus programme that will always be on the lookout for anything nasty that manages to find its way in is essential.
But there are things that manage to get onto your pc in the most unlikely of ways: it can be inadvertently added by you as you download music, screensavers or games onto your PC, or it can even be added by someone you know and trust, such as a suspicious spouse or your employer. This is Spyware and is a frightening breach of privacy which allows people or programmes to see what you’re doing, what sites you look at and even log your keystrokes so that they can reproduce everything you type, such as passwords and credit card details.
The only way to truly guard against spyware is to have a dedicated programme that detects and removes it.
So, you have your firewall and your anti-virus programme in place; surely an anti-spyware programme is just money down the drain? Unfortunately not: this will fill the cracks left by your other security programmes, and although it will not make your computer completely impenetrable (unfortunately the people writing these programmes are extremely good at what they do) it will be the equivalent of locking all your doors and windows and having an alarm system armed before you leave your house – someone could still get in if they really wanted to, but they’d probably rather go next door, where they’ve rather invitingly left a downstairs window open.
People are now using their computers for a range of personal and business applications, the loss or infiltration of which could do them serious emotional and financial damage. Taking preventative measures to ensure your online security should be as natural as closing the door behind you when you go out, and there are affordable and easy to use programmes out there to help you do just that.
---------------------
For a full range of products to keep your computer safe, visit www.vaultlock.com
Otherwise you might as well order that ‘Robbers Welcome’ mat now!
Article Source: http://www.EzinePlug.com
Want to have best of Firewalls, Antispyware, Antivirus software and online privacy tools, visit www.pcsecurityworld.com and protect yourself from Online threats.
Understand Windows Registry
What is The Windows Registry?
by Kenth Nasstrom
The Windows registry is a database which stores settings and options for the operating system for Microsoft Windows 32-bit versions, 64-bit versions and Windows Mobile.
It contains information and settings for all the hardware, software, users, and preferences of the PC. Whenever a user makes changes to "Control Panel" settings, or file associations, system policies, or installed software, the changes are reflected and stored in the registry.
The registry is actually a big file where a lot of setting can be stored.
This file has been around quite a while and has had different names.
The first windows version that used the windows registry to store settings was windows 3.11 and the registry in that version of windows was called Reg.dat.
In Windows 95 & 98 the registry files are named User.dat and System.dat and are stored in the \Windows\ directory.
Windows ME called the registry files, Classes.dat, User.dat, and System.dat and stored them in the \Windows\ directory.
Finally the newest versions of windows like, Windows NT, 2000, 2003, & XP stores the registry files like this,
The Registry files are stored in %SystemRoot%\System32\Config\: * Sam * Security * Software * System * Default * Userdiff * NTUSER.dat * The NTUSER.dat file is stored in the profile folder.
The Windows Registry was introduced to tidy up the old way of storing text entries in INI files. These entries had previously been used to store configuration settings for Windows programs.
The ini files where stored in a lot of different directories and many programs used their own ini file for some or all of their settings. This way of using ini files all over the system, made them difficult to keep track of and handle in an easy and logical way.
What's Good with the Registry
Changing from having one or more INI Files per program to one centralised registry has some obvious and some not so obvious benefits:
The registry will be redone once more with the release of the new Vista Operating System from Microsoft.
About the Author
Visit Windows Registry Repair for more information.The Windows Registry Introduction was made by Kenth Nasstrom to answer questions from customers about Windows
by Kenth Nasstrom
The Windows registry is a database which stores settings and options for the operating system for Microsoft Windows 32-bit versions, 64-bit versions and Windows Mobile.
It contains information and settings for all the hardware, software, users, and preferences of the PC. Whenever a user makes changes to "Control Panel" settings, or file associations, system policies, or installed software, the changes are reflected and stored in the registry.
The registry is actually a big file where a lot of setting can be stored.
This file has been around quite a while and has had different names.
The first windows version that used the windows registry to store settings was windows 3.11 and the registry in that version of windows was called Reg.dat.
In Windows 95 & 98 the registry files are named User.dat and System.dat and are stored in the \Windows\ directory.
Windows ME called the registry files, Classes.dat, User.dat, and System.dat and stored them in the \Windows\ directory.
Finally the newest versions of windows like, Windows NT, 2000, 2003, & XP stores the registry files like this,
The Registry files are stored in %SystemRoot%\System32\Config\: * Sam * Security * Software * System * Default * Userdiff * NTUSER.dat * The NTUSER.dat file is stored in the profile folder.
The Windows Registry was introduced to tidy up the old way of storing text entries in INI files. These entries had previously been used to store configuration settings for Windows programs.
The ini files where stored in a lot of different directories and many programs used their own ini file for some or all of their settings. This way of using ini files all over the system, made them difficult to keep track of and handle in an easy and logical way.
What's Good with the Registry
Changing from having one or more INI Files per program to one centralised registry has some obvious and some not so obvious benefits:
- The registry keeps machine configuration separate from user configuration. When a user logs into a Windows NT/XP/2003 computer, their registry settings are merged with the system wide settings. This allows programs to more easily keep per-user configuration, as they can just work with the 'current user' key, whereas in the past they tended to just keep system-wide per-program settings. There are always some system wide settings that are common for all users though.
- Group Policy allows administrators on a Windows-based computer network to centrally manage program and policy settings. This is not used in a home environment, only in corporations with a dedicated logon server.
- Because the registry is accessed through a special API it is available to scripts and remote management using WMI. Each script does not have to be customised for every application's unique configuration file layouts and restrictions.
- The registry can be accessed as one item over a network connection for remote management/support, including from scripts, using the standard API.
- It can be backed up more easily, in that it is just a small number of files in specific locations. Bad things with the Registry Not all that shines is gold. The Registry introduces some problems as well:
- It is a single point of failure - damage to the Registry can render a Windows system unbootable, in extreme cases to a point that can not be fixed, and requires a full reinstall of Windows. This is why it is so important to use registry scan and repair utilities, while the registry still can be repaired.
- Any program which wants to manipulate the registry must use special Windows API functions whereas a configuration file can be manipulated using normal text file-processing techniques.
- Configuration files can contain comments to help the user by explaining what values are for and how they can be changed, the registry cannot. And the registry use something called guids in a large scale. Long strange unique numbers that is completely meaningless to humans. Making handling much harder.
- It is more difficult to backup - it cannot be done 'live' because it is always in use, and thus requires special software such as ntbackup.
- Restoring parts of the registry is hard because you cannot easily extract data from backed up registry files
- Any application that doesn't uninstall properly, or doesn't have an uninstaller, can leave entries in the registry, which can lead over time to increased file size and decreased performance. And once again, here's the major reason why you must use a registry scan/clean and repair software.
The registry will be redone once more with the release of the new Vista Operating System from Microsoft.
About the Author
Visit Windows Registry Repair for more information.The Windows Registry Introduction was made by Kenth Nasstrom to answer questions from customers about Windows
Wednesday, June 21
Condoms for Your PC - Backup Your Data
You want safe data - create a backup copy!
Backup is important and it is usually ignored. It is ignored until some malware wipes out a critical document, a power surge burns the PC, or you look away for a minute at the airport and find your laptop is missing. Let's look at what you can do to prepare for such a catastrophe.
SIMPLE COPY - Backup in the form of a diskette copy has existed foryears. For a document (up to 1.44 mB), you can copy (or save) that document to a diskette, a thumb drive (256 - 4,000 mB). You can "burn" the data to a CD (700 mB), DVD (4,700 - 8,500 mB). With a diskette, thumb drive, CD, or DVD, you can take it home with you so that it is stored off-site from your PC. If you work from home, then consider off-site storage at some other location.
You also can use a disk drive for a copy. One option is to use RAID 1 technology called "disk mirroring." It means that you make changes to two disk drives at once. One disk is a "mirror" of the other. If one fails to work, the data is available from the mirrored drive without any intervention on your part. You have a built-in backup of data that is on those drives. Another option is to have a 2nd standard disk drive to which you copy data on some regular basis - perhaps at the end of the day. You control what is to be copied and when it is to be copied. If the 2nd disk drive is an external drive, you can disconnect it and take it to another location. For critical situations, you might wish to do both "disk mirroring" and a copy to an external disk drive.
BACKUP UTILITIES (LOCAL) - There are backup utility programs that offer controls that a "copy" utility does not. They will document what is copied, they will offer the ability to copy all data or only what has changed, and most will offer the ability to schedule backup tasks. Most will also offer options for encryption and compression of data. If you backup to a 2nd disk drive, you have the added insurance of recovery of data if your primary disk drive fails.
BACKUP UTILITIES (OFF-SITE) - There are backup utility services that give you the added protection against loss of local data by storing your data in a server that is web-based. They generally offer the functions of local backup utilities, except that they may not offer encryption of data. Unencrypted data stored off-site (not under your immediate control) may be fine for you if you have no need to protect your data from being read by others. Family photos may be a candidate for free, off-site, web-based backup - with or without encryption - but probably not for your tax records.
CAN YOU AFFORD OFF-SITE BACKUP - If your data is sensitive, you want to be certain that it is encrypted with a key that you control, that only you can change the key, that the web-site is secure from break-in, that it will continue to operate 24x7 without interruption, that it has 24x7 monitoring onsite, that it has 24x7 technical support, and that it has its own off-site backup. Otherwise, even a free service may be too expensive if you lose your data or if it is compromised.
CAN YOU RESTORE - For all the great "feel good" aspects of a process that will backup your data and, no matter how secure it may be, none of the backup process is worth anything unless you can restore data from it. Imagine your chagrin to find that you've spent hours each day to secure your data through carefully orchestrated backups only to get to a point at which you need to restore some of that data and you cannot do so! The moral of this example is that your backup is only as good as your ability to restore data from it. Whatever backup process you choose, test your ability to restore data from it - then test it again. If you cannot properly restore data from your backup process, then find another backup process.
DID THE BACKUP SUCCEED - As important as it is to be able to restore from a backup process, it is equally as important to know that the backup process reached a successful completion each time it is run. Whether you watch the process, get an email notice of completion, or have a log record of completion, you need assurance that the backup did succeed. If not, you need to take remedial steps to get it to succeed.
It is important to have a backup process in place. It is important to have a backup process in place that is appropriate for your needs (privacy & security, cost, and convenience). It is important to know that the backup process works each time. It is important to know that you can restore from the backup process.
RUN REGULAR BACKUPS - Whichever backup approach best suits your purposes, you should implement and test a backup approach. Then, run backups on a regular basis.
This article contains suggestions for the use of utility programs under the Windows operating system. They are based on years of use, but they may not be the right suggestions for you and your PC environment. Before you follow any technical suggestion, be sure that you have a current (and tested) backup of all system and data files and that you can restore the system if necessary. You are welcome to contact me if you encounter a problem, but I assume no responsibility for your actions and/or use of the information provided and disclaim any legal responsibility for any negative results of such actions.
------------------------------
About the Author
Tim Flynt has spent over 25 years dedicated to efficient application and utility systems. Experienced in higher education, entertainment, and software development organizations. Current interest in "PC Maintenance Management." http://AcceleratedOffice.com
Backup is important and it is usually ignored. It is ignored until some malware wipes out a critical document, a power surge burns the PC, or you look away for a minute at the airport and find your laptop is missing. Let's look at what you can do to prepare for such a catastrophe.
SIMPLE COPY - Backup in the form of a diskette copy has existed foryears. For a document (up to 1.44 mB), you can copy (or save) that document to a diskette, a thumb drive (256 - 4,000 mB). You can "burn" the data to a CD (700 mB), DVD (4,700 - 8,500 mB). With a diskette, thumb drive, CD, or DVD, you can take it home with you so that it is stored off-site from your PC. If you work from home, then consider off-site storage at some other location.
You also can use a disk drive for a copy. One option is to use RAID 1 technology called "disk mirroring." It means that you make changes to two disk drives at once. One disk is a "mirror" of the other. If one fails to work, the data is available from the mirrored drive without any intervention on your part. You have a built-in backup of data that is on those drives. Another option is to have a 2nd standard disk drive to which you copy data on some regular basis - perhaps at the end of the day. You control what is to be copied and when it is to be copied. If the 2nd disk drive is an external drive, you can disconnect it and take it to another location. For critical situations, you might wish to do both "disk mirroring" and a copy to an external disk drive.
BACKUP UTILITIES (LOCAL) - There are backup utility programs that offer controls that a "copy" utility does not. They will document what is copied, they will offer the ability to copy all data or only what has changed, and most will offer the ability to schedule backup tasks. Most will also offer options for encryption and compression of data. If you backup to a 2nd disk drive, you have the added insurance of recovery of data if your primary disk drive fails.
BACKUP UTILITIES (OFF-SITE) - There are backup utility services that give you the added protection against loss of local data by storing your data in a server that is web-based. They generally offer the functions of local backup utilities, except that they may not offer encryption of data. Unencrypted data stored off-site (not under your immediate control) may be fine for you if you have no need to protect your data from being read by others. Family photos may be a candidate for free, off-site, web-based backup - with or without encryption - but probably not for your tax records.
CAN YOU AFFORD OFF-SITE BACKUP - If your data is sensitive, you want to be certain that it is encrypted with a key that you control, that only you can change the key, that the web-site is secure from break-in, that it will continue to operate 24x7 without interruption, that it has 24x7 monitoring onsite, that it has 24x7 technical support, and that it has its own off-site backup. Otherwise, even a free service may be too expensive if you lose your data or if it is compromised.
CAN YOU RESTORE - For all the great "feel good" aspects of a process that will backup your data and, no matter how secure it may be, none of the backup process is worth anything unless you can restore data from it. Imagine your chagrin to find that you've spent hours each day to secure your data through carefully orchestrated backups only to get to a point at which you need to restore some of that data and you cannot do so! The moral of this example is that your backup is only as good as your ability to restore data from it. Whatever backup process you choose, test your ability to restore data from it - then test it again. If you cannot properly restore data from your backup process, then find another backup process.
DID THE BACKUP SUCCEED - As important as it is to be able to restore from a backup process, it is equally as important to know that the backup process reached a successful completion each time it is run. Whether you watch the process, get an email notice of completion, or have a log record of completion, you need assurance that the backup did succeed. If not, you need to take remedial steps to get it to succeed.
It is important to have a backup process in place. It is important to have a backup process in place that is appropriate for your needs (privacy & security, cost, and convenience). It is important to know that the backup process works each time. It is important to know that you can restore from the backup process.
RUN REGULAR BACKUPS - Whichever backup approach best suits your purposes, you should implement and test a backup approach. Then, run backups on a regular basis.
This article contains suggestions for the use of utility programs under the Windows operating system. They are based on years of use, but they may not be the right suggestions for you and your PC environment. Before you follow any technical suggestion, be sure that you have a current (and tested) backup of all system and data files and that you can restore the system if necessary. You are welcome to contact me if you encounter a problem, but I assume no responsibility for your actions and/or use of the information provided and disclaim any legal responsibility for any negative results of such actions.
------------------------------
About the Author
Tim Flynt has spent over 25 years dedicated to efficient application and utility systems. Experienced in higher education, entertainment, and software development organizations. Current interest in "PC Maintenance Management." http://AcceleratedOffice.com
Saturday, June 17
Friday, June 16
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