Articles for January 2016

Cybercriminals are taking advantage of an organization that issues free digital certificates, sparking a disagreement over how to deal with such abuse.

Source: Malvertising campaign used a free certificate from Let’s Encrypt

I recommend Webroot SecureAnywhere to all my clients.  But here is the breakdown of the other top contenders.

In 2016, resolve to keep your PC safe from viruses, malware, and other threats. These are the top-rated antivirus packages we’ve tested.

Source: The Best Antivirus Utilities for 2016

So today one of my users got this pop-up in IE11.
The pop-up says that they are infected and needed to call the phone number listed right away.

The phone number that my pop-up showed was (888) 479-3640.

Once I called the number the guy told me that my entire network was infected and that I needed him to clean the network and all workstations.
I calmly asked him for the physical address of his location so that I could mail him a check for his services.
He refused to give me his location and told me that it was against policy.

These types of pop-up scams are very common on the internet.  They try to get you to call and take control of your PC.  Once they do that, they will infect your PC with malware or other bogus software.

Let’s have some fun with them… shall we?
If you can establish a reverse connection, like from your machine to theirs, let me know… I’ll buy you a pizza!  (you will need to prove it)

Happy Hunting!

Recently, I read that Microsoft has analyzed statistics for their security intelligence report. It revealed: still, the clear majority of windows users do their daily work as administrator. An administrative account is a burden, security-wise. My article will show an alternative.

Source: Free yourself of your administrative account

Even with the rise of cloud storage, the USB flash drive is still vital for cases where the Internet won’t cut it, especially as CDs and DVDs die off. Not only are USB drives typically higher in capacity than disc media, they are faster for copying data such as setup files, and have much quicker […]

Source: How to create a bootable Windows 10 USB flash drive

Microsoft is ending support for Internet Explorer 8, 9, and 10 next week on January 12th, releasing a final patch encouraging users to upgrade to one of the company’s more recent browsers. The end of support means that these older versions of Internet Explorer will no longer receive security updates or technical support, making anyone who uses them much more vulnerable to hackers. A recently-announced patch will deliver the last few bug fixes, as well as an “End of Life” notification telling users to upgrade to IE 11 or Microsoft Edge — the company’s successor to Internet Explorer, built for Windows 10.

Source: Microsoft is pulling the plug on Internet Explorer 8, 9, and 10 next Tuesday

Ditching the default DNS service can boost performance, reliability and security. Here are the options

Source: Best 6 free DNS services 2016 – boost Internet performance and security

If your PC knows your Wi-Fi password, but you don’t, these tips will help.

Source: How to retrieve Wi-Fi passwords saved on your PC | PCWorld

Guess who? Microsoft itself…

Microsoft has just issued a clear warning saying Windows 7 users should remain on the aging operating system “at your own risk, at your own peril.”

Read more @ hackbusters.com

Of all the cyber threats driving headlines, malvertising – seeding malicious code in online advertisements to infect unsuspecting users – might be the most jarring and difficult for many Web surfers to fathom. No one expects to get infected with malware when they visit trusted sites like YouTube or Reuters – hardly the seedy sides of the…

Source: Why Malvertising Is Cybercriminals’ Latest Sweet Spot | WIRED