Headlines of note
Interesting ‘news’ items today.
* PayPal Vulnerability Allows Hackers to Steal All Your Money
* Supercookies are back, and they’re as unappealing as ever
“Supercookies are back in force. But if supercookies are so great for consumers, why aren’t mobile carriers bragging about using them?” Read more..
* Scanner identifies thousands of malicious Android apps on Google Play, other markets
“A team of researchers have created an app vetting scanner referred to as “MassVet,” and they used it to identify more than 127,000 potentially harmful applications (PHA) in more than 30 Android markets – including Google Play.” Read more..
* The Internet of Things is a safety issue, and therefore a business risk
“When you merge the physical and the digital, it’s not just about InfoSec any more. People’s lives could be at risk.” Read more..
* Adobe Flash steadily heading toward demise
“After multiple malvertising campaigns on major ad networks, including Yahoo and AdSpirit.de, as well as the disclosure of major vulnerabilities, companies have begun banning Adobe Flash ads on their websites.” Read more..
[ Well.. that’s about 5 years too late.. But, better late than blah blah. ]
* Here’s How Iranian Hackers Can Hack Your Gmail Accounts
“Hackers are getting smarter in fooling us all, and now they are using sophisticated hacking schemes to get into your Gmail. Yes, Iranian hackers have now discovered a new way to fool Gmail’s tight security system by bypassing its two-step verification – a security process that requires a security code (generally sent via SMS) along with the password in order to log into Gmail account.” Read more..
* Warning! How Hackers Could Hijack Your Facebook Fan Page With This Trick
“Facebook bounty hunter Laxman Muthiyah from India has recently discovered his third bug of this year in the widely popular social network website that just made a new record by touching 1 Billion users in a single day. At the beginning of the year, Laxman discovered a serious flaw in Facebook graphs that allowed him to view or probably delete others photo album on Facebook, even without …” Read more..
Oh, yes, there’s more, but…
Today’s quote: “It is not fair to ask of others what you are not willing to do yourself.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
Copyright 2007-2015 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.
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All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.
If you build it, they will come
lapel-pin-US-flag
An item for you thinkers out there..
* Cryptocurrency mining malware discovered on surveillance DVRs
“Johannes Ullrich, dean of research with the SANS Technology Institute, posted on Monday that DVRs made by Hikvision, a video surveillance products and solutions supplier headquartered in China, were found to contain malware that mined for Bitcoins.” Read more..
What are the implications here?
(Puts a twist on the meaning of “Made in China” a bit, too, doesn’t it? But you should know that already: remember the “infected digital picture frames” [circa 2008] ? )
* * *
Other tech: What you should know about Windows 8.1 Update
“The soon-to-be-released Windows 8.1 Update brings minor improvements that favor those using a mouse — in other words, most Win8 users.
Anyone currently on Windows 8.1 will want the update; those who still haven’t made the Modern plunge won’t be impressed.” Read more..
[ This actually does eliminate my main beefs about Win8. But I won’t be switching – it’s Win 7 for me still.]
Today’s free software: IObit PCtransfer
“To find a best solution to safely and thoroughly transfer data for XP users, IObit newly releases PCtransfer. It is a free, light, and portable data transfer tool that provides users with an easy and secure way to backup and restore data with one click. PCtransfer especially supports bookmarks and favorites backup on Internet Explorer 6 and 7, and also allows user to quickly select and backup the third-party programs and settings. PCtransfer not only helps user to transfer data from Windows XP system to new systems but also provide assistance to users for moving data to a new PC.”
Today’s quote: “The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do.” ~ B. F. Skinner
(I think he meant “humans”, or “people”, but..)
Copyright 2007-2014 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.
>> Folks, don’t miss an article! To get Tech – for Everyone articles delivered to your e-mail Inbox, click here, or to subscribe in your RSS reader, click here. <<
All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.
And please, never forget – one person can make a difference.
Find a way to make someone’s day today.
(Best advice I ever heard? Don’t sweat the small stuff.)
Earn 1 million $’s the Easy Way (Seriously)
I thought it’d be bigger..
I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of not being a millionaire. Fortunately, two recent reader submissions have pointed me to two ideas that will put an end to my days of brown bag, peanutbutter sandwich lunches, and will have Robin Leach looking for me.
“As to the “Easy Money” of today’s “Tech-for Everyone”, many, many years ago, did I say many years ago? I bought my usual Saturday morning comic book. In the back of it were interesting things one could order. Tucked into a sharp ad was an inticing promise; “Earn 1 million $’s the easy way.” Of course I wanted to know how. The clipping said that I had to send $1 to the address on the ad. I did so and waited anxiously for the golden information that would make me a millionaire…the easy way. After 2 very long weeks I received a postcard that said, “Take out an ad in a comic book ad ask for $1 for the information on how to get rich.” That was it. I immediately felt that I had been ripped off and took it to my dad so that he might take legal action. He informed me that I had just paid for a a very important lesson and he was glad that I was learning it at 7 and not at 27. I guess the more things change the more they stay the same.” ~ Ann
Method 2: if you have a new smartphone, one with near-field technology (like the Galaxy S III), you could just stroll around town for a while…
* Credit card data can be stolen with a wave and an app Certain smartphones allow potential fraudsters to get sensitive info, with minimal effort
“It seems like there’s a smartphone app for everything these days — including one that could be used to steal your credit card information.” Read more..
I guess the $700 it takes to buy an S III isn’t such a bad investment after all…
I sincerely thank the readers for bringing those to my attention!
Today’s quote: “Sometimes it’s important to work for that pot of gold. But other times it’s essential to take time off and to make sure that your most important decision in the day simply consists of choosing which color to slide down on the rainbow.” ~ Douglas Pagels
Copyright 2007-2013 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.
>> Folks, don’t miss an article! To get Tech – for Everyone articles delivered to your e-mail Inbox, click here, or to subscribe in your RSS reader, click here. <<
All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.
Something to think about….
Sometimes.. a new paint job just doesn’t cover up the fact your car is still a clunker..
Attackers Divert Bank Phone Calls to Cover Tracks
(You really should read this – it’ll open your eyes – but I warn you.. the state of things is depressing. But, facts is facts, as they say.)
Researchers at Trusteer uncover banking malware that steals telephone information to help attackers re-route calls from banks alerting customers to fraud.
“A new version of a sneaky piece of banking malware has been armed with a new feature to help attackers cover their tracks. According to Trusteer, certain new configurations of Ice IX – a modified variant of the Zeus platform – are capturing telephone account information belonging to their victims. The goal is to enable the attackers to divert calls from banks that are intended for the customer to telephones controlled by the attacker…
In one attack observed by researchers at Trusteer, the malware stole the victim’s user ID and password as well as their secret question answer, date of birth and account balance at login. In the second phase of the attack, the victim is asked to update their home, mobile and work telephone information and select the name of their service provider from a…” Read more..
Yes folks, the “cyber mafia” is sophisticated, and .. to quote a certain Congressperson, “the biggest threat to National Security we are facing”.
You should read that article – learn about “man-in-the-browser” and then think about it.. IMHO. But, sorry to depress you. They are out to get you, so please, let’s use a little “paranoid common sense” out there.
On a lighter note..
Today’s quote: “I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.” ~ Theodore Geisel (aka “Dr. Seuss”)
Copyright 2007-2011 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.
>> Folks, don’t miss an article! To get Tech – for Everyone articles delivered to your e-mail Inbox, click here, or to subscribe in your RSS reader, click here. <<
A Smorgasbord
* Firefox add-on allows session hijacking of popular sites
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“In this digital age, we are all connected, and each of us plays an important role in securing cyberspace |
“A computer researcher has released a plug-in for the Firefox web browser that lets anyone scan open Wi-Fi networks and hijack, for example, Twitter and Facebook accounts“
(Yeah.. that’s just what we needed… Anyone else think that this “computer researcher” is an asshat?)
* Firefox zero day being exploited
“Cybercriminals are exploiting a “critical” zero-day flaw in Mozilla’s Firefox web browser to distribute malware, security firms are warning.“
* Google Street View Cars Collected E-Mail Credentials
“A blog by Alan Eustace, Google’s Senior VP, Engineering & Research admits that the payloads sniffed by the company’s Street View cars contained e-mail usernames and passwords. The statement came as part of an explanation of how the company is improving privacy controls.”
Folks, let’s not make it any easier for the Evil Doers than it it already is, see Protect your computer from cybercrime..
In other news: The good folks at TuneUp Utilities have asked me to let you know that – as of today – TU2011 is available — and they sent me an evaluation key. I installed it a few days ago.
“TuneUp Utilities is designed to keep PCs running smoothly, extend their lifecycles and provide users with a noticeable boost in speed and performance. Key features include:
- With the new TuneUp Program Deactivator, users can turn off unused programs completely to avoid the loss of PC performance. Any services, start-up entries, background processes or scheduled tasks in a program that are turned off will remain inactive until they are needed again.
- TuneUp’s Turbo Mode is 10 times more powerful than before—with a single mouse-click, users can increase PC speed by shutting down more than 70 background processes that slow down Windows 7, XP and Vista.
- The Live Optimization feature is even more focused to speed up the program that a user is working with and prevent background programs from using up too much of the PC’s resources.”
My review of TU2010 is here, and the TuneUp Utilities website is here (you can read more, and/or download a trial version…). Though I have only had it going a few days, I can say that my earlier review expresses my initial impressions here. Check it out.
October is National Cybersecrity Month, and the theme is STOP. THINK. CONNECT. Protect yourself and help keep the web a safer place for everyone.
Copyright 2007-2010 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.
>> Folks, don’t miss an article! To get Tech – for Everyone articles delivered to your e-mail Inbox, click here, or to subscribe in your RSS reader, click here. <<
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Alert: World of Warcraft Phishing E-mail
I noticed on the SophosLabs blog that Sean McDonald has warned of a *new* phishing scam that, instead of trying to steal banking logins, is trying to steal WoW accounts.
The attack uses the same methods as a banking scam — embedded hyperlinks that take you to a realistic-looking fake login page, and a scary “verify your account or else!” message. Here is what the e-mail looks like:
And here is what the bogus page looks like:
I would like to tip my geek hat to the good folks at Sophos, as well as remind you, Dear Reader, the Internet’s police force is us. Use your good “paranoid common sense” when online!
You can see Sean’s entire article here.
Today’s free link: Free Lifetime License for SUPERAntiSpyware Professional – 20 to Give Away
Copyright 2007-9 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved.
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• About Tech Paul
I am a Retired computer & network technician. I used to think the machines were pretty cool. Now I don’t.
They’re anything but.
I regularly posted how-to’s and tricks & tips and general computing advice here starting in 2007. (Use the Search tool to find answers. But be aware, many are rather dated.) Sometimes I answered (your) specific questions in an article if I believed the answer was generally helpful to “everyone”. All the writing you see was my own, typos and all. There always is/was an implied “IMHO” in what you see here.
Note: You are responsible for using this blog and its content. I am in no way liable for any losses caused by user error, viruses and/or other malware, hardware or software failure, or any other conceivable reason.
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