Protection Two-Step

Hi Everyone. I am asked all the time about anti-virus, both personally and professionally. The answer always starts the same; it makes no difference how much you buy or how much you have. Nothing is 100%. With that being said, I want to talk to you about your home protection.

My suggestion is a two-part scenario that focuses on prevention more so than remediation. Think about that. Certainly, it would be more beneficial to your time and energy if you put a plan in motion that works on being proactive, so you do not spend much time reacting to every threat, am I right? Let’s have a look at this scenario.

Part One – There are dozens of anti-virus products out there and they are essentially as effective as the flu shot; not very. So how do you choose which one to get? Should you pay for protection or get the free protection? Free protection is great if you are the type of person who will scrutinize everything that happens to your system because of the horrors of the Internet. However, if you ask what Joel does, I pay for the premium version of MalwareBytes Anti-Malware. Here is why. MalwareBytes has a much different stand on viruses; instead of remediation after infection, they focus on being proactive and making sure the infection cannot harm your system and they do so by stopping the two-way communication between the virus and the virus command center.

Part Two – Take an extra step to protect your home network and do it for free! Stop on over to OpenDNS.com and sign up for an account and start protecting. Here at Reybold, we use Cisco Umbrella which is the Enterprise version of OpenDNS. With this free personal service, you will either change some settings in your computers or in your home router with their incredibly easy-to-follow instructions and once done, you are under the umbrella of protection by the service. Not only does OpenDNS provide a much faster browsing service for your Internet, it also has the build-in protection that Cisco offers by blocking bad elements from passing through the DNS to your router and/or systems.

So, this is my personal plan that somewhat follows the path we use here at work. We deploy a strong Anti-Virus package on the computers and then we add the outer layer of protection from Cisco to keep bad guys out to begin with. Just remember, this is like anything else and not 100% effective. All of these things cannot prevent the number one problem when it comes to infections; the human element. You still have to be vigilant with where you are browsing and what happens in your email.

http://www.malwarebytes.com/premium
http://www.opendns.com/home-internet-security

Why Backup?

I want to talk to you about backups and their importance in today’s digital world. There are plenty of choices of software and hardware that will do the job as well as cloud services. Let’s dive in.

I still get asked the question “why backup”? Why would you not backup is what I ask. There are no guarantees that your computer will last forever and now with all the malicious bugs roaming the Internet the chances have only increased that you will have a problem. The question is no longer “if” you get infected; it is now a question of “when”.

External hard drives are good for backups. However, the potential for failure is greater than, say, cloud backups because this is a piece of hardware, after all and therefore capable of the same mishaps of mis-managed computer equipment. You must run diagnostics and maintenance on the backup drive to ensure that the hardware is in top shape and preserving your data. Also, if you choose this method, I recommend that you connect the device, run your backup and then disconnect it from the computer. If you have an unknown virus on the computer, you do not want it to affix itself to your backup drive infecting it.

Cloud backups are quickly becoming the popular trend in data backup and for obvious reasons. When you do online backups through a service, you set some parameters like time and what you want backed up and forget about it. Your data is backed up onto servers that are maintained, kept safe from viruses and ready when you are for recovery if necessary. You are putting your data into someone else’s trust and many of these companies do a very good job at cloud backup. This has become my method of backup with a twist. I manually control my backups to the cloud then delete everything from my computer. If my computer is compromised, hackers will be disappointed in their findings.

The best defense against Ransomware is a good backup. It pains me the amount of people I know who still do not have a backup plan. Your most important documents and precious memories are extremely important to you. Make a conscious effort to choose a method of backup and stick with it. You’ll be better off if disaster strikes!

Ransomware Is Getting Worse

As I write this I am thinking, I am so sure that you probably encounter an article like this at almost every turn on the Internet. So you ask yourself why you would stop to read my article on Ransomware? Because, my articles are way cooler!

First thing that we need to do is to identify what Ransomware is. Ransomware is an exploit in which the hacker encrypts the unsuspecting user's data demanding ransom for the decryption key payable in un-traceable funds. This is a true mess any way that you look at it and Ransomware has become a multi-billion dollar venture globally.

Between January 2016 and November 2016, the distribution of ransomware increased by 267% (Source: 2017 State of Malware, MalwareBytes) and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, it is predicted that ransomware will move beyond encrypting your files and begin to lock the boot partition of your hard drive, meaning that you will not so much as be able to load your operating system.

So what do we do about this? Ladies and gentlemen, there is not much we can do about the problem. I'd like to say that if people stop paying the ransom monies, the business would go under. However, like Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in California, there are going to be organizations who find themselves in the position where they must pay. There will be senior citizens who are preyed upon by this attacks who feel there is no alternative than to pay up. This is not true. Let's continue our journey.

How Did I Get It? - A very good question with a very bad answer. There are several ways that you can get it and it does not mean that you did it to yourself. The most common way to get ransomware is by opening an email attachment from an unsuspected sender. Many of these emails come in the form of IRS notifications, shipment receipts, important documents, etc. You can also receive the bug from an infected website and even now, it can be on a legitimate website embedded in an advertisement. Or, in today's advanced world of "always connected" high speed Internet, you could have received it through a drive-by payload.

Prevention is The Best Medicine - Education is key here and lucky for you stopping by to read this, I am like a techie educator. Let's look at some things that you should do to try and prevent an infection on your device.

• Keep your computer clean as far as making sure that your software and any Internet-connected devices are up to date. Be sure and run critical updates from all vendors on a regular basis or better yet, automatically.
• 
  Use strong passwords. Include letters, numbers, symbols, upper case and lower case characters and at least 8 in length. Try phrases, they work better.
• 
  If you have the opportunity to do so, use two-factor authentication with every service that you can. If your accounts are hacked, this will speed up the time it takes to gain control of your accounts again.
• 
  Never open email attachments from persons that you do not know. As a rule of thumb, the IRS will not contact you by telephone or email to discuss anything with you; they will snail mail you. No one will email or text you and ask you for personal information or passwords; if this happens do NOT respond. Shippers (UPS, USPS, FedEx, etc) will not send you shipping information or receipts in your email. It is the responsibility of the company with whom you placed your order to send that information to you. If ever in doubt, trash the email without opening it.

OK, But I Got Infected - If I leave you with one piece of urgent information to take away from this article, it is BACKUP BACKUP BACKUP! If you become infected with Ransomware or any other extremely damaging malware, the best defense is to have a backup of your files because the only recourse that should be considered is to know that you have a recent backup so you can take a deep breath, relax and format your device and start over. You should never consider payment to these criminals. If you have a good backup then yourself or your technology professional will have you fixed in no time.

There are many things that you can do, both free and monetary, to protect yourself from Ransomware. However, the truth is that there is no way of avoiding it. Hackers will work feverishly every day to find new and innovative ways to steal your money and that means that Ransomware will only get worse. Do yourself a favor for piece of mind and backup and do it regularly so that you are current. Do what I do. I keep my documents, pictures and other important stuff on cloud services and never on my computer. In the end, if infected, I've only lost the time to restore. I hope this gives you a little valuable information that keeps you a little bit safer on the Internet.

TECH SUPPORT SCAMS ON THE RISE

My friends, I know that you might hear this from me a lot, but the issue with these fake #tech #support #scams, which come by way of Pop-up windows, pop-up windows with AUDIO and telephone calls is becoming ever so more serious. I have been inundated with clients dealing with these issues daily which tells me that they are on a steady rise. These scams are not going to go away because it is a multi-billion dollar (annually) industry.

Here are some questions I am getting and I pass this on to you. Feel free to pass this on to friends and family and SHARE my page so folks can find me if they find themselves in peril with their computers.

What did I do wrong to get this pop-up? Likely, nothing. These pop-ups are generated by scripts that are placed into websites unknowingly by the website owner so it is passed to you when you land on an otherwise legitimate website. One of the newer ways this is happening is that the malicious code is tied to advertising on webpages, which again, will auto-launch when you land on the page.

I have a pop-up, what do I do? The first thing to do is realize that it is FAKE. No one from #Microsoft or any other company knows if you have viruses or such. But you have to get this off your screen and fast, right? So you might notice that you cannot just close the browser so you have to open your Task Manager. To do this, Right-Click on the taskbar that lays across the bottom of your screen. Select the Task Manager. When that loads, you can click on the web browser that is open (Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer...) and click End Process. That should close the browser and all associated windows/pop-ups along with it. If that fails, you can always hold your power button in until the computer shuts down (NOTE – I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS SHUTDOWN PROCEDURE).

Now am I infected? You might be. There is no guarantee that the pop-up did not drop a drive-by downloader off when the pop-up activated. To be sure you should check your system fully or have a qualified technician look it over for you. If in doubt, have it checked out.

Until we cut off the money supply these types of scams will not only continue but they will continue to outsmart the human element to get what they want. Using some common sense decisions will prevent the cyber criminals from winning.

Still Using Windows XP? Then Read On!

We've all heard the warnings and the techie nay-sayers scream from the data center rooftops, "Get rid of XP! Abandon XP!" From the standpoint of security, sure it is a good..no..great idea to move on to a more modern and/or more secure operating system. But there are a good handful of reasons why people cling to Windows XP and if you are one of the more than 25% of the operating system share that chose to do so then here are some tips for you.

Use Anti-Virus Protection: It goes without saying that everyone should use a good anti-virus software. There are still a good number of free suites that are still supporting Windows XP, even if Microsoft is not. Take a look at AVG, Avast!, Comodo and Panda to name a few who have not announced end of Windows XP support dates as of yet.

Use Malware Protection: A very good companion to any anti-virus protection is the use of a good malware scanner. Again, there are many free options. The thing about free versions is that it is completely manually invoked. If you can part with the few dollars for say MalwareBytes Anti-Malware, then the program can be setup to check for updates and scan the system on a schedule.

TIP: While you are downloading MalwareBytes Anti-Malware, pick up the free MalwareBytes Anti-Exploit as well. Just one more layer of protection to help when you are browsing online.

Toss Internet Explorer: Besides the fact that Internet Explorer is stuck in version 8 under Windows XP, it is slow, bogged down and everyone is trying to exploit its many vulnerabilities. Using alternatives like Chrome, Firefox or others is the best way to go because they are still supported, safe and they self update without so much as a normal restart of the browser which we do anyway when we are done browsing, right?

Do Not Use Outlook Express: Like Internet Explorer, Outlook Express has been abandoned by Microsoft and therefore does not receive any love, or updates for that matter. So if you are not ready to abandon the application-style email client for the cloud-based solutions, then check out Mozilla Thunderbird, Windows Live Mail, IncrediMail, etc. Or, if you really like the Outlook experience, fork out $5 per month and get the Office 365 subscription.

Keep Checking Updates: I know, it sounds crazy, right? Didn't Microsoft stop supporting Windows XP? Yes, they did but there may be other elements of Microsoft that have available updates. One such item is the Malicious Software Tool. Also, if there is a major update to any hardware that is still supported then you can get that downloaded too.

So let's review. There are still plenty of users who have not yet given up the Windows XP platform. If you are still using it, all you have to do is be very careful and take some sensible precautions. Be sure that you are also self-monitoring where you go and that you are not being socially-engineered. You can still enjoy one of the greatest operating systems abandoned by Microsoft...at least for a couple more years.

Computer Support on a Stick? Hold That Thought!

You’ve seen the ads on television; Everything from a USB flash drive to solve all of your computing woes to inexpensive remote service techs. These sound like great tools when you are watching a thirty second or sixty second ad because they squeeze a lot of fantastic words into the delivery and the end result is that this flash drive or service will solve your problems instantly and forever! Remember that anything that sounds too good to be true probably is not.

So let’s break this down by the two different classes. The first class is the all-in-one USB stick. You purchase this product and insert it into a USB port and it is suppose to solve all the issues on your computer. There will be interaction by you, the consumer. This is a suite of tools that will need to be run individually to do certain functions of cleaning and disinfecting. But when you’re finished how do you truly know that the infections are gone? How do you know that your computer is actually clean? What if your infection was a root kit? Wait..what is a root kit? That is a lot of unanswered questions, right. Guess what, all you really paid for there was a glorified cookies and browser cache cleaner. It did nothing to eradicate the viruses, Trojans, spyware or anything else.

The second class is the over-the-telephone experts. Call them now and get your computer running faster in 30 minutes only $19.99! Well, the $19.99 is apparently a fee you give them to allow an unknown person remote access to your computer. Once in they tell you that you have $300-$1000 worth of necessary work to be done to your computer. Believe it or not many people will fall for this and the headaches that ensue afterwards are anything from even slower computers to more viruses to have pictures and documents stolen from your computer. What is that worth to you? Scary isn’t it? The end result is that you have to hire a professional anyway to undo the damage that was done when you could have hired a qualified technician in the first place to take care of your needs. Several know cases to me on this are that after not allowing the additional work to be performed, strange things happen after the “tech” logs off the computer.

So as you can plainly see there are problems with both of these classes of computer hope. The facts are that only a qualified technician can actually diagnose your computer and tell if you have a serious problem and how serious. No two viruses are the same; some keep regenerating after software or a tool gets rid of them. A USB stick will not tell you if you have legitimate problems lurking in your system. It takes the care and expertise of a professional who knows what to look for and the end result is that you are treated kindly and taking care of in a manner that is much more guaranteed than a flash drive you purchased off the television. Look into the guarantees that come with these other products and services. Trust your computer to an expert and develop a relationship with that individual or business. You will be much happier in the end.

Windows XP: End of an Era

Well, my friends, now rather than later this has to be said. The End of Life (EOL) for Windows XP (all versions) is just around the corner on April 8, 2014.

First of all, what is End of Life? This is a term used when companies assert that a product is at the end of its useful life and will no longer be marketing it, selling it or offering any support on the product. This is exactly what Microsoft is doing with their most successful operating system to date, Windows XP. Whether we agree or not, its their decision.

So what does this exactly mean to you? What this means is that Microsoft will no longer making available any of the critical and security updates and patches that you may be used to seeing about every two to three days. These updates provide patches to the software when it becomes hacked and made vulnerable to malicious intent. This will no longer happen. Meanwhile, after the EOL happens, any vulnerability found will be exploited in high risk. That means that your computer, data, etc is open for anyone to attack, take over and confiscate.

Sounds gloomy, right? Well ten or fifteen years ago, I might have had a different aspect on this and thought it would pretty safe to continue using for a few years...just so you can get comfortable with spending money for an upgrade. However, to paraphrase a great author's work, that was then and this is now. With cyber crime at unimaginable rates, I just cannot imagine there being a good reason to hang onto it...as good as it is.

So my suggestion is that you start working your way to the next big thing. Now, many people who run out and buy from the shelf at a local retailer will definitely wind up with Windows 8. You do have a choice, you can get Windows 7 if you order from the manufacturer and tell them what you want. Microsoft has it out as orders that all retailers have to push Windows 8. Not everyone is falling for it; Windows 8 still has under a 4% market share...take that Microsoft. You could always opt for a Mac and why not; Mac have a near 0% reputation of coming under attack. However, for most people the cost in prohibitive.

We here at Delaware Valley Tech Rescue are getting many calls from clients who are switching over now before the deadline so we are doing a good number of setups and we want to make that you are thinking about this now rather than later to avoid the rush.

So like it or not, Windows XP closes the book on itself but keep in mind that there are choices. You just have to take a good look at all the prospects.

No Maintenance? Bad Idea..

One of the absolute worse things that you could do for your computer is to not maintain it. Sure, we are all busy browsing, downloading, watching, listening, tweeting and more. If we do not keep these computers in top shape, they are liable to "unlike" you.

Maintenance on a computer means that the system is kept both physically cleaned and virtually cleaned. The system should be checked for maintenance issues with the operating system (Windows) and make sure the hard drive is healthy and the system is free from viruses, Trojans, malware and all of the things that we are afraid of catching. Also the system needs to be loved inside by way of a good cleaning.

Periodically is the answer. The computer can be maintained monthly, 3 months, 6 months or a year. The longer that you wait, the more at risk you become. If you are working on a laptop, then you can imagine how much faster such a small place becomes engulfed in heat and dust. I recommend that you do it or have it done. Of course, I can guide you on the cycle and even set you up with a maintenance plan. You can leave it to us to maintain it while you go and tweet about it to your heart's content.

If you wait too long...well...you shouldn't wait. Your computer has needs too; service them.

Call me for a special maintenance service for just $59! (302) 261-5397

Computer Maintenance: Part Three

Welcome to the final installment of the Computer Maintenance series. Part three will discuss a small battery of defenses that can be installed to help round out the protection to your computer. These are merely suggestions. Many IT professionals have patterns and techniques that work. This article lays out a plan that has proven successful in 99.4% of computers serviced by the author’s consultation firm, Delaware Valley Tech Rescue.

The computer has been physically cleaned and firewall and anti-virus are installed and running. Now it’s time to place the finishing touches on the computer utilizing the following FREE utilities.

SpywareBlaster – SpywareBlaster is an invaluable tool and is available through Java Cool Software (http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/). After installing the program, be sure and run the updater so that the definitions can be updated. Then be sure to enable protection for all items. SpywareBlaster does not need to be opened to run and it will work completely unnoticed by the user. It protects the computer from a database of malicious websites that contain content that could be harmful to the computer.

Spybot Search & Destroy – Created by Safer-Networking (http://www.safer-networking.org/), Spybot S&D also maintains a database of big bad websites. Besides updating the database regularly, you also must run the immunization module to place the new databases into effect. This program also comes with a scanner so if you feel that you might be infected then you can scan the computer. The added bonus is that this program builds a HOSTS file automatically to be sure that the websites in the database cannot push their wares through to your environment.

MalwareBytes Anti-Malware – MalwareBytes is a great addition to your protection scheme and like Spybot S&D, it needs to be updated regularly and then scanned if you feel there is a problem. It can be downloaded by the vendor (http://www.malwarebytes.org/). MalwareBytes has actually been known for finding issues that other scanners do not pick up and therefore has become an industry favorite. Keep in mind that MalwareBytes and Spybot S&D should be updated and scanned about once per week just to be sure that there are no issues brewing. There are many malicious packages out there that will not load immediately and can lay dormant.

There are no guarantees that any program will win over all the malicious objects floating around the Internet and sometimes, it takes different combinations of resources to rid the computer of the infestation. If used properly, these three programs can aid the anti-virus and firewall in keeping the operating environment safe and efficient. If a more severe problem is discovered then consult with a professional computer technician as most cases, severe as they can be, are able to be cleaned without drastic measures.

Computer Maintenance: Part Two

Computer Maintenance Part One explained how to get the case of the computer cleaned and free of dust and debris. Now that the very essential of the project is complete, it is time to ensure that the system will be safe from the outside intruders. Part Two will focus on Anti-Virus programs and Firewalls.

Looking first at firewalls, what exactly is a firewall? A firewall is a software utility or hardware device that limits outside network access to a computer or network by blocking ports. Though firewalls are very simple to use and plug and play ready, they can also be customized and tuned to block additional port requests or control every port if the user wishes to do so. Windows comes with a built in firewall that for most users, will do the job necessary without issues. When a program that you install, an instant messenger program for example, requests outbound or inbound traffic the firewall will notify you and also allow you to determine if you want to be notified each time the instance occurs. The only time it may be necessary to install a more comprehensive firewall is if you have very serious attacks on your system frequently. In that case, good recommendations would be Comodo, Sygate or Zone Alarm. These are the top rated firewalls and are also the simplest to use and the least demanding of your computer’s resources.

The single most important piece of software that every user should have in the computer is anti-virus software. There is no excuse for not including this as a basic strategy to combating the horrors of the internet. When choosing a solution, be sure that the program has the most complete protection for your overall security but do not allow it to go overboard. Simply put, there are some products on the market that will run amok with the computer’s resources and that will slow the performance down. For the purpose of this article, look at AVG Anti-Virus Free available from Grisoft. AVG comes with a complete protection package including email scanning, link checking, real time scanning of downloads and basic spyware protection built in plus much more. The price of $0 makes it all the more attractive. AVG is extremely customizable and allows the user to select how often and when the computer is scanned. One very nice feature of the free version is that the program must update virus definitions everyday and cannot be customized; an easy feature to live with.

Firewalls and anti-virus; two critical items in the computer maintenance department and should not be overlooked. Look for Part Three of this series which will square up on the balancing factor of protecting the computer, spyware and malware protection.

Computer Maintenance: Part One

Welcome to Part One of this three part series on maintaining your computer to keep it running smoothly and keep it protected from the worries of the Internet. The common factor in this series will be that the methods will cost you very little money or, in most cases, be completely free.

Part One will deal with basic maintenance of the actual hardware of the computer. There are some differences in desktop cases as well as differences in laptop computers. The differences are far too numerous to break down here so I would suggest that almost every computer manufacturer maintains a great support site on the web that should supply you with a manual to show you how different components to the system come apart. Be sure to follow a few precautionary tips if you decide to do the maintenance yourself. Properly ground yourself using a ground strap, be sure that any static electricity is discharged from your body and use the proper tools.

There are three main elements that are harmful to your computer; dust, smoke and food/liquids. The best advice here is to keep the computer in a well ventilated area free from tobacco smoke and avoid eating or drinking around the computer to avoid accidental spills.

To clean the case, remove the side covers of the desktop and if the computer is a laptop, remove only covers recommended by the manufacturer. Using a can of compressed air (available at most electronic or computer superstores) in a sweeping motion, blow the dust and dirt out of the machine. Pay special attention to the heat sink and all fans in the case because this is where dust really gathers up. You can also spray the air through the slots of the power supply unit to move the dust out of the back side thus keeping the electrical components inside dust free. Use the same technique by opening the CD drives and spray in them as well as any floppy drives that you may have.

Next, using electrical wipes, clean only the metallic surfaces in the case (for example the bottom). Use the wipes to clean the entire outside of the case as well. Finish up by using a vacuum with a brush attachment to gently vacuum the crevices, grills and other fine areas to get any hidden dust out. When completed, put the case back together or return the covers of the laptop.

This is a good first step to maintaining the computer. As with any electrical device, keeping them free of the dangers of elements will help them last longer and operate more efficiently. The recommendation is to clean your computer case a minimum of once per 6 months. If you have pets or feel that your home or office generates more dust than usual, feel free to do this more often. Watch out for Part Two of the series which deals with Anti-Virus software and Firewalls.