Blog – Page 12 – Anti-virus Software, Spyware Protection & Firewall

Jon August 19, 2010

8 Character Passwords Are So 2009.

There’s a really interesting article from Georgia Tech that talks about how the advanced computing power that’s readily available today may actually be making password length an even more important factor for creating a secure password. Using graphics processors, researchers are able to quickly, and cheaply, break 8 character passwords in a matter of hours. From the article:

Georgia Tech researchers are investigating whether this new calculating power might change the security landscape worldwide. They’re concerned that these desktop marvels might soon compromise a critical part of the world’s cyber-security infrastructure — password protection.

We’re big proponents of secure passwords here at StopSign, so this story really spoke to us. It confirms that any password less than 8 characters in length is pretty much useless, and even 8 character passwords are now not exactly cutting edge. The new recommendation for the total number of characters in a password? The article says:

…any password shorter than 12 characters could be vulnerable — if not now, soon

Brute force attacks on passwords that are 12 characters would currently take approximately 17,134 years, while an 11 character password would take around 180 years. It’s amazing what one character difference can make.

As usual, we recommend not only longer passwords, but also that you use a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, as well as other characters and symbols such as the asterisk (“*“), hash sign (“#“), ampersand (“&“), and the like. Doing so will greatly increase the time it takes to break your password. For more on creating strong passwords, check out our article “12 Tips for Making a Good Password.“.

Image courtesy of Georgia Tech, taken from a screenshot of their website

If you're looking for great anti-virus software that won't break the bank, try StopSign. You don't pay extra for tech support for difficult malware, and our web protection software just works. Download & install StopSign to find out why our members choose us over the other options.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Internet Security, passwords, strong password

Jon August 13, 2010

Who Do You Trust?

There are millions of websites online and many of them offer things you can buy, download, or receive by some method. They’ve got the stuff, and you want the stuff, but you’re worried that somehow/someway your info will get leaked out. So how do you know who you can trust with your personal information or credit card numbers?

One good way to determine who you can trust is by checking the website for trust, verification, or privacy seals/certificates from trusted third-party sources. There are companies out there whose job is vetting company’s and websites and ensuring that they are safe, secure, and legitimate. In most cases the seal/certificate will be a link back to the issuing company with details on who they are, what they do for the original site you clicked on, and what level of trust or security you can place on the site.

There are many options when it comes to third-party accreditation or authentication, but here are some of the more popular options: (Disclaimer)

Verisign:
According to their website, “VeriSign is one of the most trusted and recognized brands on the Internet (Synovate/GMI research, September 2009)”, and the VeriSign Trust™ Seal is a widely-recognized program for monitoring sites for malicious software and website authentication.
BBB Online:
A long-time favorite of consumers, the Better Business Bureau is one of the most widely trusted third party organizations that vets businesses. The BBB uses their own Standards of Trust as a “comprehensive set of policies, procedures and best practices focused on how businesses should treat the public – fairly and honestly in all circumstances.”
TRUSTe:
As noted on the TRUSTe website, “For over a decade, TRUSTe’s online privacy services and trustmarks have enabled businesses to strive for the highest standards in online privacy and customer satisfaction.”

A seal or certificate from any of the aforementioned companies would be a good indicator of trust, as long as there’s a legitimate relationship between the site and one of the 3 companies listed above. Before you go entering your credit card number or other personally-identifiable information, be sure to click on those seals and certificates to make sure the website is actually part of their program. It’s easy to put up a picture of the seal/certificate with no real affiliation with the third party site, so be sure to do your own check first.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/alancleaver/ / CC BY 2.0

StopSign uses Verisign’s services and is also an accredited BBB company.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: authentication, Internet Security, privacy, trust

Jon August 5, 2010

How to Avoid Craigslist Scams

Gently used clothing, bartered services, even free books and bicycles… these are all commonly found deals you can luck into on Craigslist, one of the worlds most popular (mostly) free online sites for classified ads. But just like with any other popular website, the unscrupulous use Craigslist to scam folks looking for a great deal.

With all of the items and services being sold, bought, bartered, or advertised, there’s a lot of temptation for an e-crook to use Craigslist to scam people out of their hard earned cash. Luckily avoiding Craigslist scams mostly falls under common sense, but there are plenty of tricky grifters out there, so watch out!

To help you avoid scams on Craigslist, we’ve written down some of the commonly used tactics used by alert buyers and sellers to avoid hassles with scams. Hopefully these tips will help you avoid a big headache, too.

Meet Face To Face:
Keeping things in the real world vs. on the Internet of via snail mail will help make sure that you actually get what you paid for. And this tip leads us to…
Locals Only:
Only buy/sell from/to someone who is close enough to you that you could arrange to meet in a public place. Choose someplace like the parking lot of a grocery store or a department store, and only meet during the daytime. There’s no sense in letting a stranger know where you live and into your house just to save a buck on gas.
Cash Only:
If you’re selling something, make sure to ask for cash only. Wire transfers and checks can be faked, but cash in hand is much harder to scam with.
Avoid 3rd Party Services:
Many online escrow services are well-known to be run by scammers, so keep things nice and simple. If you’re dealing with someone who insists on using an online escrow service, save yourself the hassle of a headache and look for a new person to deal with.

For more details on Craigslist scams, check out the official word from Craigslist on their “about scams” page.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/_skylark_/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: craigslist, internet fraud, Internet Safety, online scams

Jon July 28, 2010

Too Much Information (TMI)

Are you guilty of putting Too Much Information (TMI) online? Probably, right? If you’re a human who has been online more than about 15 minutes, you probably are a little guilty of the occasional TMI moment.

Putting too much information online has been a time-honored tradition since the early days of the Internet. The Usenet groups and BBS systems of the good old days of the web were a boiling mass of TMI, and the blogs and social networks of today are no different. From stories about being dooced to YouTube videos about drunk people getting caught by others acting, well, like drunk people act… the Internet gives us many examples of what not to do. But people still keep giving the rest of us too much information.

Samples of TMI include:

Work:
It’s not a good idea to talk trash about your boss, much less putting it online for the world to see. Avoid this TMI no-no and avoid waiting in line for your unemployment check.
Home:
The last thing you want is for your spouse to know that you do, in fact, think that she looks fat in that dress. This TMI tip keeps you out of the dog house.
Friends:
What happens in Vegas is supposed to stay in Vegas, and a TMI slip up getting back home just might force you to find a new best friend. Or maybe a new place to live.
Family:
Venting online about people like your neighbor or your your Mother-In-Law on Facebook may seem like a good idea. Unless you forget that they follow you on Facebook, or that someone they’re close with follows you. Do that and you could have some awkward conversations in your near future.
Strangers:
A potentially dangerous example of TMI is anything that tells people where you live or when you’re going somewhere on a trip. You may as well put a welcome sign out for crooks.
Personal:
Possibly the worst kind of TMI, nobody wants to know about what happened in your bathroom or in your bedroom. Just don’t do it.

Keeping the aforementioned in your head and not on your blog or Facebook page will do wonders to keep your family, friends, and co-workers from being exposed to too much information.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/vykrasivy/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: etiquette, Internet Safety, privacy

Jon July 22, 2010

Antivirus Software – Your Helping Hand for Security.

Using antivirus software is an important part of owning a computer. As a PC user and web surfer, you’re constantly faced with online threats, Internet security holes, and the spectre of viruses & spyware. Downloading and installing antivirus software is the best first line of defense for avoiding these problems.

Sure, decent antivirus software is going to cost you a little money, but it’s well worth the price. The money you spend on antivirus software is like the money you spend on oil changes for your car. You may not always see the benefit with your eyes, but it’s preventative maintenance that’s necessary to keep things running smoothly and costs you less in the long run. Better to pay $50 for antivirus software today that keeps you protected, than spending $200 or more to have your local computer geek fix things every time you’re hit with a virus of spyware.

Antivirus software does a lot for you behind the scenes and frees you from having to not only keep up with all of the latest virus and spyware trends, but also gives you peace of mind to know that whether you’re working or surfing, you’re safe from online threats. Benefits of a decent antivirus software solution are:

Virus protection:
Any antivirus software worth its salt is going to help prevent a virus from wreaking havoc on your computer’s operating system, and if on a network, on any computer attached to it.
Infected email detection:
Good antivirus software will provide a method of detecting and removing infected emails; a commonly used way to spread viruses and spyware.
Keeps important files safe:
You’ve got pictures from your digital camera on your computer, don’t you? How about your taxes? The video of your wedding? Important emails? Sure you do. One good virus could wipe them all out. Or a nasty piece of spyware could transmit personally identifiable or financially-related information to a hacker somewhere.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/tambako/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: antivirus, antivirus software, cyber security, Internet Security

Jon July 16, 2010

Exposed – Geolocation Dangers and You

On the Internet nobody knows you’re a dog.

You’ve heard that saying before, right? Well, nobody may know you’re a dog on the Internet, but through the magic of GPS-enabled gadgets, they may know where you’re located.

With today’s advances in technology and all of the swanky new things we can do with our gadgets, the dangers of geolocation are something many people don’t realize. Slowly but surely, more creeps and criminals are using technology to find victims, and GPS-enabled devices are helping them out in a big way.

Here are a few prime places where geolocation information can creep up, and why you don’t want it to show itself:

Your Cell Phone or Digital Camera:
If possible, turn off any location-aware abilities, especially for pictures or any media that’s made publicly available. Exif information (which can include GPS data) can be included in pictures in some of the new/popular smartphones (iPhone and Android people, I’m talking to you), and that’s a prime example of geolocation danger waiting to happen.

It’s not a big deal to geocode (e.g. add the GPS data) a picture you take in a store, or a restaurant, but if you’re hanging around the house or taking a picture of your kids at school, the last thing you want is to let strangers have the GPS location of those places.
Your Social Networks:
Just say no to showing where you are. If you want to let people know how much fun you’re having someplace, do it after the fact. For example, if you’re going on vacation, don’t announce it on Facebook or Twitter before you go; wait until you’re back. The plus side is that you’ll be able to show off your pictures and videos, too.

For the same reason you don’t want your geolocation revealed publicly to strangers through your pictures, you don’t want to do it on your social networks. Keep personally identifiable information safe from prying eyes.

By the way, the EFF has a great article and PDF download on living with, but not being hampered by, geolocation services and tools.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/raggle/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: cyberstalking, facebook, geolocation, Internet Safety, twitter