Using the Internet safely may seem like a simple thing, but many have discovered that this is not always the case. Almost everyone knows about the dangers of malware, spyware, and viruses, but there is one Internet threat on the rise that can be extremely difficult for technical services to deal with called “Ransomware.” Read more »
RESCUECOM has tallied up all the computer repair calls it received, including tablets, for the 2015 Q1 Computer Repair Report, showing a surprising leap in certain problem areas.
The Computer Repair Report is created by tallying the data from all calls RESCUECOM receives at its 1-800-RESCUE-PC call center to form a list of the most common computer and tablet problems. RESCUECOM ranks the top ten computer repair problems in order from most frequent to least and explains them by category, creating a useful tool to inform users about the threats their tech devices face.
The cyber-criminals behind a threatening malware called CryptoLocker have infected computers around the world – from large company systems to home use computers. The virus has been hitting hard for the past six weeks or so, and, due to state-of-the-art encryption used, the only ones who have the key to unlock the files are the criminals themselves. Read more »
Every new computer comes with at least a free trial of one of the many popular security scan programs. People recognize that security scan programs are important and tend to not take the time to fully read something that appears to be one of them, but which is in fact a scam, because they are afraid of getting a computer virus. By not reading everything that pops up on the screen, many people unknowingly infect their computers with malware and viruses. Many scams pretend to be legitimate security programs by telling you that you are unprotected or have a virus already, in order to gain access to your computer.
The biggest problem in the tech sector is not supply chain problems, environmental regulations, lack of creativity or even limited battery life. The biggest problem in the tech sector, like so many industries, is hubris. Hubris, the pride that leads one to believe that they are invincible, flawless, destined for greatness/market dominance/perfection, is the true scourge of the tech sector. Why? Quite simply it is the vainest form of hubris wherein the largest technology companies come to believe that because they have hired the absolute best and brightest tech school graduates, that the pool is empty, no other geniuses exist. Virtually every major tech company believes that they have the individuals and teams who are the most skilled and most creative. That belief makes them blind to the creative programming geniuses who work outside the corporate structure.
Symantec was so blinded when hackers cracked into their servers and downloaded the source code for Symantec’s pcAnywhere and Norton Antivirus.
Everyone does it and no one really thinks about it. You register on a new website and your browser automatically asks if you want to save your password. If the computer belongs to you, you think, “Sure, why not?” and click ok. Unfortunately, there could be some major consequences to that little decision.
If your computer were ever stolen, the thieves would have instant access to all of your sites. They could get into your email, your social networking sites, your online shopping accounts, and any other website for which you have saved the password.
Even if that never happens, saving passwords in your browser does not make them secure passwords. Most browsers have a way to look up all the saved passwords, usually under the ‘tools’ or ‘settings’ menu. Anyone with access to your computer can find this registry of your saved passwords and use them.
Malware can also get into your computer and find these passwords in the same manner. If you have poor Internet security, malware can even steal these passwords undetected. Sometimes even a scan specifically designed to detect malware programs does not find them.
There are a few options available, however, to make certain you have secure passwords. At home, the easiest thing to do is simply write them down and keep them near the computer. Unfortunately, you would then have to re-enter them every time you login to the website.
Another thing to consider is that there are programs that will keep your secure passwords safe. These kinds of programs have a master password that you can set-up, which you must enter once each time you open your browser, that will then unlock all the saved secure passwords. This eliminates the need to constantly re-enter all of your passwords on different sites, but the problem with this is that you cannot ever re-set the master password, even if you forget it.
If you do not want to use either of these options but tend to forget your passwords, you can always keep changing your passwords using the ‘forgot password’ feature on the website. Most websites make this an easy and quick process, and it is another way to make sure you are using secure passwords.
Fortunately, if you ever do run into problems stemming from lost or stolen passwords, you can easily get computer support help from a computer repair company such as RESCUECOM. If you follow the tips above, however, you should have fewer worries about whether or not you have secure passwords.
About RESCUECOM:
RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.
For More Information, Contact:
David Milman, CEO
315-882-1100
david@rescuecom.com
In the wake of news stories about viruses and identity theft, Internet security remains a very real concern for everyone who goes online today. Internet security issues have created a big business for programmers in the virus removal industry. But with dozens of computer anti-virus programs available on the market, it is hard to know which provides the best virus removal and the greatest Internet security. For that, the best response may be overkill.
Researching Internet security issues and virus removal protocols is enough to make the head spin of anyone who is not a trained computer expert. Astute computer users who just want to check out what the current threats to their computer are become baffled by technical jargon. Looking at reports from the major Internet security companies like Symantec are likely to leave the average computer user confused. After reading their report on the Packed.Generic.340, most computer users will not know how serious a threat it represents to their computer or if they need any form of virus removal.
Many companies that specialize in Internet security rely upon more than one antiviral software product to ensure they are adequately protecting their computer or network. Some of the leading Internet security companies take the time to test the leading products on criteria like malware detection and virus removal. AV Comparatives recently released their report on their tests of anti-viral software. Even that, though, may be too much for the common computer user to handle and process. Their testing methods are rigorous, methodical and designed for the best minds in Internet security and virus removal to understand.
Businesses only survive online when they have adequate Internet security and powerful virus removal. Thousands of businesses and home computer users use the Rescuecom Internet Security Suite. Rescuecom has one of the most reputable Internet security and virus removal products on the market. As a leader in Internet security and virus removal, Rescuecom has a proven track record for business and home computer users. Even though the Rescuecom Internet Security Suite may have more virus removal options and greater Internet security provisions than the average user is likely to need, you have to ask, “If the professionals are using this much protection, shouldn’t I?”
The answer, of course, is that you should. With the threats of identity theft, infections that require aggressive virus removal and emerging Internet security concerns, private computer users should not skimp on their anti-viral software: overkill is safer than being under protected.
About RESCUECOM:
RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.
For More Information, Contact:
David Milman, CEO
315-882-1100
david@rescuecom.com
Whether your Facebook account is a few months old or whether it will be celebrating its seventh birthday soon, chances are that you have accumulated quite a bit of data the website’s servers. Unless you regularly weed your pictures, tags, wall posts, comments, and “likes” to remove old—and often embarrassing—data, then all this data is lingering in Facebook cyber space.
Maybe you just don’t like the feeling of having so much Internet activity documented and scattered on dozens, maybe hundreds, of pages, photos and links, or maybe you’re worried about a stalker, regardless, there are plenty of reasons to want to purge your public online activities off Facebook . The problem is, it’s virtually impossible to do it all manually. There’s no way you can remember every post you’ve made or every photo you’ve liked. Even if you did, going through and removing them all would take endless hours. It might also cause you more distress than you need as you see old and embarrassing photos and posts. Fortunately, if you’re looking to clean up your Facebook account before an important job interview, for example, a new Android app called “Exfoliate” can do the job for you. The app can delete old Facebook posts, comments and “likes,” putting your mind at ease.
Currently, the app only works via an Android phone. Once you install it, you connect it to your Facebook profile and select what exactly you want deleted. For example, you can specify that all your Facebook wall posts older than two years be deleted, or you can have the app delete all comments older than 3 months. The latest “Exfoliate” also supports photo deletion.
The apps creators warn that it does use up a lot of the phone’s battery and can clog up the user’s network service. Still, it’s faster to run the app on a Wi-Fi connection. Most people will want to run it over night, as it does take quite a while to go through a few years of old posts.
One thing that the app doesn’t do is remove others’ photo tags of you. That unfortunately, you’ll have to do manually. Recent Facebook upgrades, though, are making it easier to remove unwanted tags. You can now even ask friends to take down pictures that you appear in if they’re not particularly flattering.
Sadly, another limitation of the app is that despite removing data from public visibility, all your Facebook activity, your posts, your pictures, your comments, are stored by Facebook ’s servers. The issue has gotten recent media attention as more people start to freak out—rightly so—about how much Facebook really knows about them.
“Exfoliate” is highly rated on the Android Market app store, and for the amount of work it does, $2.99 is an incredible price. For the opportunity to clean your Facebook activity off yours and your friends’ walls with such ease, it might even be worth buying an Android phone just for the app!
About RESCUECOM:
RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.
For More Information, Contact:
David Milman, CEO
315-882-1100
david@rescuecom.com
Computer viruses and virus removal can cost you more than just time and money; they can cost you valuable data or even a physical hard drive. The problem is that we’re often careless when it comes to getting the right kind of protection against computer viruses. In fact, even after we suspect that some kind of malware has infected our device, we often put off virus removal either because we think it’s not necessary or because we think it’s too much work. Well, both approaches are wrong.
If your device is infected with malware, letting the virus just sit there should never be an option. You should start virus removal immediately. The longer you wait before getting virus removal, the longer your private data is subjected to risks. Additionally, with many viruses, delaying getting virus removal allows them time to brew, so to speak. Think of computer diseases the same way you think of human diseases.
First, this means that prevention is the best cure. So protect your device with the right kind of anti-virus software to avoid the need for virus removal in the first place. Secondly, if your machine does get a virus or malware, don’t wait and be aggressive with your removal efforts. Seek out a virus removal specialist to avoid the risks of amateurish virus removal efforts. This is especially important if you’re worried about the data on your machine. Data recovery can be complicated and expensive, and it can be made worse by poor virus removal techniques.
A crude way of handling virus removal is erasing the entire hard drive and reinstalling Windows. Though his amateurish method of virus removal is relatively easy, it usually means that your data will be lost and that you’ll need a professional data recovery service. One way of avoiding this hassle is backing up your data regularly using a secure service like that offered by Rescuecom.
Getting professional virus removal can make data recovery efforts much easier as professionals can target the threats to your computer while protecting your data. Instead of having to pay for virus removal and data recovery, be cautious, and protect your device to avoid viruses. When you do get them, get them off as soon as possible.
Remember, viruses are not only a threat to your privacy and security; they are also a threat to your valuable data, since they can erase or damage it. In some cases, viruses can damage a hard drive so badly that extensive and complicated data recovery is the only solution left. In fact, sometimes even the most advanced data recovery efforts fail.
Given the risks to your data and to your wallet, the best way to avoid needing extensive data recovery efforts and complicated virus removal services, it is best to stay protected and vigilant. Don’t let viruses destroy your device just because you can’t see any imminent harm. This is one case where ignorance is certainly not bliss.
About RESCUECOM:
RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.
For More Information, Contact:
David Milman, CEO
315-882-1100
david@rescuecom.com
Approximately 300 billion spam messages go out everyday according to a recent Cisco Annual Security report. Over the course of a year, spam emails make up 90 percent of the world’s emails. Given such absurdly large figures, it is essential to maintain strong Internet security practices and to use secure network services.
Spam continues to thrive because it is an easy and cheap marketing tool for advertisers and other parties using it. Even when the vast majority of spam emails are ignored, the small percentage that actually reaches people can help improve the sender’s sales. Not all spam is advertising, though. A great deal of spam is laden with viruses and malware that can compromise a user’s Internet security and network services. In fact, most spam originates from network services infected with spam malware. So strong Internet security is essential to prevent machines from becoming spam hosts.
According to the Spamhaus Project, approximately 100 spam gangs taking advantage of the globalization of network services produce the vast majority of spam targeting the North America and Europe. The computers and network services that generate the highest spam emails are in Brazil, according to Cisco. Approximately 7.7 trillion spam emails originate in Brazil every year. The U.S. is a close second with 6.6 trillion.
Users can try to limit the amount of spam that they get by employing good Internet security practices, but even then, getting some spam is inevitable. The best Internet security measure to fight against spam is to be selective in giving out your email address. Just as you don’t go around telling random strangers where you live, you should protect your email address the same way. If you had to give out your address to a list of criminals every time you wanted a service, wouldn’t you say no? So why do we so readily give out our email addresses to facebook apps and other services?
It’s hard to say whether spam will actually disappear anytime in the foreseeable future. Spammers are already indifferent to laws governing Internet security, so it is unlikely that they will suddenly become concerned about their actions’ legality. Network service providers try to reduce spam, but their attempts are usually futile because of the dangerously simplistic nature of spam. Internet security services that are readily available in email, for example, have limitations. Even advanced ones like Gmail’s spam filter let spam through sometimes. On the other hand, spam filters often perceive harmless or real emails as spam, which can prevent authentic mail from getting through.
Spam is not only annoying, but it can pose a threat to your Internet security and harm your network services in the attempt to produce more spam. Improving Internet security against spam requires action on your part. No one is completely immune to getting spam, but safeguarding your email address is the clear-cut first step towards getting less of it!
About RESCUECOM:
RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.
For More Information, Contact:
David Milman, CEO
315-882-1100
david@rescuecom.com