Archive for January, 2008
Thursday, January 31st, 2008
Merchants Can Reduce Fraud With This Trick
I write regularly about credit card fraud and identity theft. Most online merchants struggle to combat this type of crime, and detest it just as much as you do. If you are selling online or plan to do so one day, here is a bright idea used by one merchant to deal with [...]
No Comments » - Posted in News by Syd Tash
Wednesday, January 30th, 2008
A Small Victory For Us Consumers, Maybe
Almost two years ago, the American Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charged AccuSearch, an information broker, with illegally obtaining individuals’ phone records, and selling them to any and all comers. This of course was done without the consumers’ knowledge or consent.
Now a judge in Wyoming has found the company guilty as charged. [...]
No Comments » - Posted in Alerts by Syd Tash
Monday, January 28th, 2008
Vista vs. Other Operating Systems
Microsoft is hard at work showing us that Vista is safer and more secure than Windows XP or other open source operating systems (OS). In Vista’s first year just now ended, the new OS had significantly fewer security bugs and holes than XP and others had in their first years. According to [...]
No Comments » - Posted in News by Syd Tash
Sunday, January 27th, 2008
Of Mice and You
Today we will look at your trusty, hardworking mouse, and see what tricks it can do for you. That friendly neighborhood rodent can sometimes drive you crazy when you cannot find the pointer on the screen. Other than that, you may not pay much attention to it. So here are a few [...]
No Comments » - Posted in Featured by Syd Tash
Saturday, January 26th, 2008
Is This a Good Thing Or What?
Security researchers in England have unexpectedly stumbled across a bunch of hackers who are scamming other scammers.
It seems some people in Morocco who go by the handle Mr. Brain, are offering free phishing set-up kits to all comers. The software is available on a Web site hosted in France. It allows [...]
2 Comments » - Posted in News by Syd Tash
Friday, January 25th, 2008
Another Firefox Flaw, in Its Extensions
A bug has been found in the Firefox browser, or more precisely, in its user interface, called Chrome. Using certain extensions or plugins, an attacker could scan your computer to see what applications and data you have available. A more serious attack might be mounted later, using this information.
The vulnerable extensions are those [...]
No Comments » - Posted in Alerts by Syd Tash
Thursday, January 24th, 2008
Got a Router? Be Careful!
A security researcher with Symantec says he has seen a new form of attack on the loose, on the Web. It involves malware embedded in a web site or email, in the form of malicious javascript code. The code can change a high-speed home router’s settings, which control the Domain Name System (DNS). [...]
No Comments » - Posted in Alerts by Syd Tash
Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008
You Did Update Your Windows, Right?
Back on Jan. 8, Microsoft released some critical patches for Windows XP and Vista. Now security researchers have developed attack code that targets computers which have not been updated with this latest fix.
So far, the malicious code will only cause a PC to crash. However, a more dangerous attack could soon follow, [...]
No Comments » - Posted in Updates by Syd Tash
Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008
Would You Pay Based on Usage?
Here is a bad idea (in my humble opinion) that pops up from time to time. Time Warner Cable Inc. in the U.S. is going to conduct a trial to bill it’s high-speed Internet users based on the amount of their usage, rather than a flat fee as is commonplace today.
Time Warner is [...]
No Comments » - Posted in News by Syd Tash
Saturday, January 19th, 2008
Careful With That Laptop!
If you were especially good last year, Santa may have brought you a brand new laptop computer for Christmas. Or perhaps you already have one. In any case, laptops require some additional safety measures, beyond the usual security programs that protect you on the Internet.
You may have specifically insured the notebook against loss [...]
