At one time thieves and robbers were limited to where they could work from for geographical reasons.  They had to take into account how much petrol would fit into the tank of their getaway car, how much swag they could carry and if they could plan a decent escape route that would take them away from the scene of the crime as fast as possible, before the road blocks went up.  

Nowadays thanks to the wonders of the internet cyber-theft knows no boundaries and super hackers have found ways to make it possible to carry out crimes that bring in rewards of tens of millions of dollars without having to get up out of their easy chair,

From their havens around the World, with centres being as far apart as the Far East and Eastern Europe, cyber criminals can employ the latest spyware to extract information on individuals or company’s sensitive financial details.  Once they have that information at their disposal the sky is the limit to as how much money they can extract. And the chances are that nobody will notice till it is long gone. Cyber crimes are very difficult to solve as fingerprints or any other form of evidence is left at the scene.

So basically the only way that a computer owner or operator can protect their information and security us to set up roadblocks before the crime is committed. These days information highways are getting broader all the time, and the thieves that travel on them are getting smarter and more sophisticated as fast as the companies who provide software such as web browsers and operating systems progress. That means that these roadblocks whose role it will be to prevent the infiltration of viruses, malwares and worms into a computer need to be equal to the task of manning the roadblocks.

That’s why companies and individuals who can’t afford to take chances and  need to know that they are being protected at all times go for the most powerful and professional anti-virus software that is available on the market.

These raids can come from everywhere and at any time of the day or night, so remember that a good anti-virus program never sleeps. 

For more information of anti virus soft ware visit http://www.mcafee-downloads.co.uk/

Tags: Anti Virus, cyber-criminals, cyber-theft, cybercriminals, Fraud, Phishing Scams, Spam

A bug that has lain undiscovered in Windows operating systems since its very early days was finally eradicated in the recent Microsoft Patch Tuesday.

The bug goes back to the days when  DOS operating system was much closer to the surface in Windows NT 3.1, and, unbelievable though it may seem, has been carried forward to this day in every updated version of Microsoft’s market leading operating system.  As well as the oldest bug in history, which saw the light of day well before computer viruses and malware was ever dreamed about, a further 25 chinks in  will be “patched over” with information that at least five of the bugs are “critical”

However the most veteran of all Microsoft’s bugs is very lightweight and the security researcher from Google who unearthed the flaw  in January of this year did notice that  it allows newer versions of Windows still  to run programs that date back from the DOS era.

Google’s researcher quickly found a way to exploit this utility in Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and 2008 as well as Windows Vista and Windows 7, and it would only have been a matter of time before hackers would have also come across the same potential security flaw, if it had continued to remain “un-patched”

As well as the ancient bug, at least five of the bugs in Windows that are too patched were serious enough to allow hackers to carry out various actions that could effectively lead to the hijack of a Windows PC and upload some fairly damaging viruses to it. The current Patch Tuesday will also deal with bugs discovered in most versions of Windows as well as Office XP, Office 2003 and even the Office 2004 version for Apple Macintosh machines.

Meanwhile this update is far away from being the largest that Microsoft has ever released, with the security update for October 2009 taking the prize. That particular patch tackled a total of 34 vulnerabilities, with eight of them being rated at the highest level of critical.

Last month, Microsoft also broke a few precedents by releasing an “out of band” patch to cope with a serious vulnerability in Internet Explorer that was being vigorously exploited online, with the most prominent infringement being used to attack Google in China.

Following the attack on Google, many other cyber criminals started seeking ways to exploit the loophole.  Further security research has brought about the discovery of Internet Explorer’s vulnerability to an attack that will allow hackers to view the files held on a victim’s machine.

The issue of security online is coming increasingly to the fore, and computers are vulnerable to attack from every quarter. The means to protect a computer and the valuable information that it contains can only be done through installing the most powerful and readily updatable virus protection programs available.

 For more infomation on how to protect your pc or laptop security http://mcafee-downloads.co.uk/

Tags: DOS, Google, Microsoft, operating systems, Windows, Windows 7, Windows operating systems, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista, Windows XP

Recent reports have it that hackers are attempting to steal the identities of Twitter users, through a fairly sophisticated phishing scheme. What appears to be making the scheme easier to spot is that the hackers are bulk e-mailing subscribers, with some attempted victims, receiving up to ten e-mails a day containing the following message.

“Due to concern that your account may have been compromised in a phishing attack that took place off-Twitter, your password was reset. Please create a new password by opening this link in your browser” Needless to say the link was false, and those who fell victim to the scam had inadvertently given away all of their account information.

Yet who can be truly surprised that the latest internet sensation would become a target of an online phishing campaign. After all, they are only falling in the footsteps of Facebook, Google, Hotmail, EarthLink, Yahoo, and Comcast among others.  Estimates are that more than one million accounts may have been compromised, resulting in login details falling in to the unscrupulous hands of phishers.

The earliest examples of phishing that were seen on the internet were the almost laughable “Nigerian prince” scams that were very active around five years, although quite a few people fell victim to them. Another more recent example was a bulk e-mail campaign by phishers posing as representatives of PayPal, asking for account holders for their user name and password, again bringing surprisingly good results for the hackers and bad news for those who fell victim.

Some of the profits from these phishes appear to have been invested in the next generation of phishing, known as “spear phishing,” in which the web fraudsters have used a friendly and local cover to attempt to prize sensitive information from the unsuspecting public. If scammers send an email blast to an entire local community, under the disguise of a bank or local department store, the chances are that a few people will click on the link before news spreads.

This is the reason why internet users are urged to regularly update their passwords, even though it can some inconvenience. Yet the inconvenience will certainly bear no comparison to that caused if a person’s identity is stolen, Another, and probably more efficient method of preventing cyber theft, is install the most powerful anti-virus software on the market and to take every step to make sure that it is maintained and  up to date to protect themselves from  phishing fraudsters.

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If you would like to know more about how to protect your PC and/or Laptop visit Mcafee Downloads

Tags: Comcast, EarthLink, Facebook, Google, Hotmail, phishing campaign, phishing fraudsters, Phishing Scams, Trojan Horses, Viruses, Yahoo

Internet security analysts are never the most popular people you will find online, simply because nobody likes the bearer of bad news. Especially when it is becoming an ever increasing occurrence.  And sadly as the war between computer hackers and the consumer gathers pace hackers are constantly seeking out new chinks in the security armour to implant their evil seeds in someone’s computer. The latest means by which viruses and other malicious software (malware) that looks destined to spread itself across the web will be under the disguise of an ” impossible to refuse” online money making scheme which not only will not transpire but will also  house one or more viruses in  their many forms.   

In these difficult financial times we are living through with unemployment still on the rise, these ultra-cynical hackers are playing on honest people’s honest desires to earn some money online, and preying on their vulnerability. And for people who are least well prepared to spot a scam, these on line get rich quick schemes are very well disguised.  And the hackers look for signs that a computer has already been compromised are fully exploited by infiltrating the computer owner with promises of earnings through low key envelope stiffing schemes to “double your money overnight” offers. 

Once someone bites, the next stage that the hackers will take will send an e-mail with an innocent looking e-mail containing an attachment, that the innocent opportunity seeker will be compelled to open. And why not? This is a chance to get out of the rut and clear up some financial problems. Instead opening the attachment will be the equivalent of opening a Pandora’s Box and instead of solving some problems, the victims have just fallen into a whole new set of them.

The moral of the story is, no matter how enticing an offer may appear, check it out very thoroughly before you get to even the first stages of contact, especially if the offer came through a pop-up that suddenly and mysteriously appeared.  No matter how short of money you are, if you regard the security of your personal details seriously enough, and don’t want to be constantly pestered by these get rich quick scams or, even worse, fall victim to them, block them off at source by installing a reliable and effective anti-virus software program. And never open an attachment that has an exe. Suffix, because nine times out of ten they will by carrying a virus.

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If you would like to know more about how to protect your PC and/or Laptop visit Mcafee Downloads

Tags: Anti Virus, anti-virus software, Internet Security, Malicious Software, Malware, Mcafee, Trojan Horses, Viruses

Web search giant Google, in the wake of the recent malware raid, have announced that they will be phasing out support for Microsoft’s IE6 version browser, identified as the weak link in the. Google announced that from the first of March 2010, some of their services, among them Google Docs, would not be unavailable through their browser. At the same time, Google, as a show of solidarity with Microsoft, have warmly recommended web surfers to upgrade their Internet Explorer software and “as soon as possible”.

Chinese hackers were reportedly the ones who pinpointed a flaw in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) version six browsers to target the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists.   Google have since threatened to withdraw from the Chinese market in the wake of what they described as “sophisticated and targeted” attacks.

To highlight the seriousness of the attacks, both the French and German governments issued press releases strongly advising their citizens to switch to a different browser until the security breach had been repaired.  Microsoft, to their credit, were swift in acknowledging that the breach had occurred, and reacted quickly updating the IE6  browser almost three weeks ahead of its programmed  security update. To protect themselves from the possibility  of further breaches, it now appears that Google intend to gradually phase out access through IE6, with their Google Docs and Google Sites applications being “grayed out” as the first phase.  

The breach was undoubted bead news for IE6, which has now been online for almost ten years, and already updated twice. Despite that fact there are still millions of computer owners who use IE 6, although the bad publicity has reportedly allowed rivals such as Firefox to gain market share.

Firefox is now a close second to Internet Explorer (IE) in Europe, with 40% of the market compared to Microsoft’s 45% share, while in  Germany and Austria, Firefox has already overtaken IE in users..

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If you would like to know more about how to protect your PC and/or Laptop visit Mcafee Downloads

Tags: Firefox, Google, Google Docs, IE6, Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Microsoft's Internet Explorer

It’s a moment you wouldn’t wish on anyone. That moment is when the realization sinks home that your computer has been attacked by a virus; a virus which has succeeded in slipping through your computer’s defences which, up to that moment, you were convinced were strong enough. Your computer technician is now breaking the sad news that you were over-optimistic of your chosen software’s ability to protect your computer, and the valuable information that it contains, from the ever growing and increasingly sophisticated array of computer viruses that are appearing on a daily basis.

As he shakes his head, your computer technician explains that the only way to give your computer a clean bill of health is to re-format your hard disc, meaning that all the information contained on it will be gone forever. There are many viruses around these days that will save the technician the job of clearing out the hard disc, as the virus will clear out the hard disc during its raid on your computer.

When it comes to protecting the information on a hard disc there are two methods. Preventing virus attacks on your computer means investing in the best virus protection software that you can find and not necessarily in the cheapest. The information that you have online will, for certain, be worth a hundreds times more than it will cost you to invest in the software.

The other method to protect your data also involves an investment, and again one that is very worthwhile. Anyone who wants to protect their information needs to spend some money on an external hard disc to house and back up all the information on their computer. The information can be related to your business and your personal life and many times cannot be replaced.      

So don’t make the mistake of adopting the “false economy” approach. Spend some money on protecting your information. You won’t regret it.

For more information on Protection your PC or laptop visit http://www.mcafee-downloads.co.uk

Tags: Anti Virus, anti-virus protection, Back Up, Computer Viruses, Digital Download Products, Mcafee, PC Back up, Trojan Horses, Viruses

Nearly 30,000 people signed our Safety.Net campaign petition, which tells the Government that the internet must be made safer for children.

The petition, which launched in June 2009, will be presented to 10 Downing Street on Wednesday 20 January 2010 by celebrity supporter Levi Roots and NSPCC staff.

In the petition, the Prime Minister is urged to take action on the following six issues:

1. Stop the use of software for private sharing of child abuse images.

2. Block children’s mobile phone access to adult content.

3. Ensure social networking sites protect children by proactively reviewing and removing offensive/illegal content.

4. Pre-install child safety software on all computer and mobile web devices.

5. Make therapeutic services available for children who have been abused and had pictures and films of the abuse appear on the internet.

6. Provide specialist training for professionals who deal with online offenders.

People from across the UK signed the petition, with Children First in Scotland also backing the campaign.

Tags: Internet safety petition, NSPCC

These days a computer owner and/or operator have to be ever aware of the fact that their private information is under constant threat from attack. And these attacks can come from several directions and in many forms. Once something that could be taken fairly lightly, anti-virus protection is now a thing that needs to be taken very seriously. There are currently three separate issues that need to be addressed when protecting a computer against malware. The first is to have powerful firewalls installed on every computer which is a default, and after that to have powerful enough software that can handle both spyware and viruses. In case anyone tells you different, computers require both anti-spyware and anti-virus protection.

The debate is whether any virus protection software is capable of offering sufficient protection against both. While there is no specific answer, depending on exactly what you’re doing, most computers should need only one of each, and dependent on the strength and versatility of the software, one should be more than sufficient. The mistake that many computer owners make is failing to believe that there is no single programme that will catch all viruses or spyware. Instead they install two programmes which, in certain cases, do provide the solution. However downloading and installing two programs that are incompatible to each other can be at best counter- productive and at worst catastrophic both in terms of virus and spyware protection and the computer’s general operation.

First of all, most anti-virus programs, when you install them, operate and enable real-time monitors. Sometimes running two or more real-time anti-virus monitors simultaneously will more than likely cause them to conflict. Conflicts in a computer are not something that you want to happen and will create crashes of the anti-virus programs, among a wide list of other types of failure.

Summing up: the simplest path to take when contemplating how best to protect your computer and the valuable information it contains is to place your faith in MacAfee, the industry leaders in virus protection.

Tags: Anti Virus, anti-spyware, anti-virus protection, firewall, Mcafee, Trojan Horses, Virus, Viruses

Owning a computer and especially one that is used as a work or study tool is not without its pressures. All of a sudden, in the middle of the day or night, something can happen to your computer that is difficult to explain: Strange occurrences that seem to happen only once in a while, and certainly not often enough to become a major irritant. You mention it to your friends, family and colleagues and it becomes a bit of a talking point, and you almost wish it would happen again. Till it does! And then, instead of it becoming an irregular occurrence, it becomes a regular one, and a nuisance to boot. What has happened is that your computer has become invaded by a virus and your failure to react properly the first time has meant that the virus has spread and you will have some work, some inconvenience and some expense, to cope with until your computer will once again be virus free.

One of the most likely and early signs of a virus attack is when the browser page of your computer changes itself, usually to something a lot less than savoury. While it takes next to no time to change your home page back to its usual format, many people will regard this as a bit a fluke and a talking point, little realising that there is something much more sinister afoot.

Known as “high-jacking”, it is almost always caused by some spyware that has succeeded in infiltrating your computer. You will find that even if you have some forms of anti-virus software installed in your computer, the people who are smart enough to program such sophisticated forms of spyware will make short work of slipping past your virtual sentry. And once these spywares are in place they are difficult in the extreme to remove, even by the most powerful and sophisticated anti-virus programs.

The secret of keeping your computer clean and clear of viruses is to not cut corners with your computer maintenance and the type of computer software that you use to protect your privacy and safety. Many spywares are introduced to a computer by the owner downloading other freeware programs and innocently allowing these invasive programs to be downloaded at the same time. Not every anti-virus software will pick up on these spywares sneaking in and the damage and inconvenience they can cause is considerable.

There are many people that neglect the first signs of computer problems. You shouldn’t neglect those simple maintenance tasks that can enhance or prolong the life of your computer.

Tags: Anti Virus, Digital Download Products, Mcafee, Trojan Horses, Viruses

Towards the end of last week a major virus attack was reported to have focused itself on Internet Explorer 6 running on Windows XP, although industry sources later reported that it appeared that the virus looked like it was also being modified and could possibly attack more recent versions of Microsoft’s highly popular browser.

Fears are that any hacker could pick up the code originally used to attack IE6 and adapt it accordingly.  Also believed to being targeted by the attack are industry leaders Adobe Systems, as well as Yahoo, Northrop Grumman and Dow Chemicals.

Microsoft t has rushed out security advisory on the IE security flaw and the possibility is yet to be ruled out that an emergency “out-of-cycle” patch to seal up the security gap will be issued, despite Microsoft’s next set of security patches not being due till the 9^th of February. This is more than three weeks away and will give hackers too much time to take full advantage of the flaw. On the upside, security experts have projected that exploiting the flaw would be very difficult on Windows Vista or Windows 7 systems, due to their advanced memory protection technology.

According to a spokesman from McAfee, Microsoft will have little option but to release a repair patch, since the IE6 is currently too vulnerable and will provide rich pickings for computer hackers. On Friday 15th, Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security, advised users to work through an alternative browser until Microsoft fixes the issue.

Industry experts predict that repairing the flaw might not prove to be too easy, because Microsoft’s team not only has to repair the chink in their armour but must also ensure that the hackers are not capable of creating another one that can also infiltrate the other three versions of its browser.  Information online is that the hackers behind this latest virus are from China, making it difficult, if not impossible, to trace them.  

A spokesman for Microsoft hastened to point out that while their Internet Explorer and especially version 6 was currently vulnerable, every other browser also has its security issue and while switching, even temporarily, to another may be tempting, it could expose computer users to another series of risks.

For the best PC protection visit http://www.mcafee-downloads.co.uk

Tags: Anti Virus, Mcafee, Trojan Horses, Viruses