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.
>> 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.
Alert: Scary Windows Ten Scams
Folks, as you might know (or have learned to expect), there are some dangerous scams circulating you need to be wary of (and tell your less-savvy friends and family about).
-
New Windows 10 scam will encrypt your files for ransom
“Just days after Microsoft released its latest operating system, hackers have begun targeting soon-to-be Windows 10 users with an emerging kind of malware.” Read more..
- Don’t get fooled into clicking phony Windows 10 upgrade emails
“If you’re still waiting for your reservation to come up as Microsoft rolls out Windows 10, we can’t blame you for being eager to get your virtual hands on Microsoft’s latest OS. But if you get an email encouraging you upgrade to Windows 10, you’ll want to exercise a little caution, lest you get taken by scammers. ” Read more..
So the fun just continues… Does anyone even use email any more? Or am I the last holdout..?
Today’s quote: “Life’s Tragedy is that we get old to soon and wise too late.” ~ Benjamin Franklin
Copyright 2007-2015 © “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.
Another “Uh oh” (Scary)
Well, I can’t say I didn’t see this coming, but… uh oh.
* U.S. government warns of hack threat to network gear
(Reuters) – “The Department of Homeland Security urged computer users on Tuesday to disable a common networking technology feature, after researchers warned that hackers could exploit flaws to gain access to tens of millions ¹ of vulnerable devices.
The U.S. government’s Computer Emergency Readiness Team, on its website, advised consumers and businesses to disable a feature known as Universal Plug and Play or UPnP, and some other related features that make devices from computers to printers accessible over the open Internet.” Read more..
It’s kind of what happens when you think about security after you design and build something.. Like we’ve done with this “tech”.
Rapid 7’s free “are you vulnerable?” scanner: ScanNow for Universal Plug and Play (UPnP)
¹ emphasis: mine
Unrelated reading reco: 100 Wars
Today’s quote: “Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want.” ~ Margaret Young
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.
Attention Apple Users (And More)
Those of you out there who are iPeople are probably aware that there is a new cat on the scene — OS X 10.8 (code name “Mountain Lion”). Here is some important information to know about Apple’s latest operating system.
Don’t upgrade to OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion before reading this
“It’s tempting to install OS X 10.8 “Mountain Lion” immediately, but to avoid a costly mistake you need to thoroughly check all of your productivity apps to make sure that they’re compatible.” Read more..
New Mac Trojan installs silently, no password required
“A new Mac OS X Trojan referred to as OSX/Crisis silently infects OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard and OS X 10.7 Lion. The threat was created in a way that is intended to make reverse engineering more difficult, an added extra that is more common with Windows malware than it is with Mac malware.” Read more..
[note: Just because they say this item is not yet floating around the web does not mean you can not think about having AV (aka “antivirus”) on your devices..]
Important advice there.
In other news: Microsoft says something out loud that should have been said long ago…
Microsoft: Update Java or kill it
“Microsoft is offering advice on how to protect yourself from Java-based malware. The instructions are simple: either update it, disable it, or just uninstall it completely.” Read more..
My advice on that is: uninstall it. If it should prove that some application (aka “program”) you have needs Java to run.. seriously consider uninstalling that, too.
If you are an Über Geek: please participate in my latest poll and help resolve the most pressing question of our time. Star Trek’s Best Captain (Debate Settled)
(And thanks to those of you who have already joined in.)
Another reading reco: Can Microsoft be right about tablets and Apple, Amazon, and Google be wrong?
“If you haven’t realized it yet, Microsoft is trying to do something different in tablets. But, the strategy has three big question marks.” Read more..
(If you’re wondering.. the likelihood is that my first tablet – if I ever go that route – would be a Surface. [I do much more than look at YouTube, is why.])
Today’s quote: “An invincible determination can accomplish almost anything and in this lies the great distinction between great men and little men.” ~ Thomas Fuller
Copyright 2007-2012 © “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.
Warning To Firefox Users – Fake Update Installs Malware | SUPER-Contest Deadline
If you use the popular Mozilla Firefox web browser (as I do) and you see this,
immediately hit Alt+F4 to close Firefox (or use Task Manager to kill the firefox.exe process [An Overview and Tutorial on the Windows Task Manager]).. it would also be a good idea to start a Full anti-malware scan.
Why? Because this is a carefully crafted criminal cyber attack which is attempting to trick you into clicking a link that will install a fake (aka “rogue”) antivirus program. This page sure looks real, but it is 100% fake. (It has been a while since I mentioned rogues here, but everybody should know about them by now, right? Right. If you don’t, click here, Your Computer Is Lying To You… The Epidemic Of Rogues)
The full story of this (current) attack is here, Fake Firefox Flash Update is Rogue. I bet this one is going to nail a lot of people… Hey. Cyber Czar. You see this *stuff*??? Think there might be a problem?
In happier news..
** SUPER Software License Giveaway Ends Tonight **
To help celebrate SUPERAntiSpyware’s recent inclusion in VirusTotal’s premier file analyzing service, the good folks there at SUPERAntiSpyware (known in the biz as “SAS”) have generously donated some Professional Edition licenses to me – “lifetime” licenses no less – to award to my readers.
SUPERAntiSpyware is a program for combating spyware and Internet threats. Today’s Grand Prize retails for $200, and features software I have endorsed from Day One.”
For details (and to enter), click here.The contest ends at midnight (Pacific) tonight, so don’t miss out – act now.
Today’s recommended website: Should you suspect that you have been cyber-attacked, and/or you want to make sure nothing has slipped past your onboard defenses (and trust me, it happens), and you have Internet access, head over to Microsoft’s Windows Live OneCare safety scanner and Get a free PC safety scan. Windows Live OneCare safety scanner is a free service designed to help ensure the health of your PC.
- Check for and remove viruses
- Get rid of junk on your hard disk
- Improve your PC’s performance (it examines and repairs your Registry)
Today’s free download: Microsoft Security Essentials provides real-time protection for your home PC that helps guard against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software. Get high-quality, hassle-free antivirus protection for your home PC now. Free. Lifetime.
Copyright 2007-2010 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved. 
post to jaanix.
>> 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. <<
| Share this post : |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Cyber-criminals Use the Olympics to Spread Malware
Scammers and hackers are quick to take advantage of “hot news stories” and events like natural disasters to lure us into foolish clicks. So it is not all surprising that as the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games kick off, security researchers have identified emails from cyber-criminals attempting to use the Olympics to spread malware and stage targeted attacks.
One example is an email with the subject,
“Information and resources to help you travel during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games. TravelSmart 2010.htm” includes legitimate links to genuine sites, but, also has a hidden iFrame embedded in the email itself that can be used to drop almost anything onto the victim’s computer (read: virus/trojan/malware).
Folks, I constantly am reminding my readers to simply delete, unopened, any e-mail you receive unless you know the Sender… and then be leery, as the Sender heading can be easily “spoofed”.
Curiosity is not your friend when you are online.
For those who understand the need to be a little more proactive:
* How To Block iFrames*
* Got A Computer? Top 10 Things You Should Do*
Let’s be careful out there…
Copyright 2007-2010 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix
| Share this post : | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
• 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.
-
Say "thank you!" Buy Tech Paul a cup of coffee (and keep T4E ad free).
-
-
McAfee® Cybersafety Resource Portal, an online help center designed to assist victims of computer crime and provide information on how to avoid becoming a victim.
-
Subscribe to Tech--for Everyone by EmailRecent Comments
-
-
-
-
Also:
-
-
Tech - for Everyone 