Ongoing research on the subject of adware infiltration has shown that he state of online security threats in general and adware infiltration is growing in tremendous leaps and bound. Especially worrying is the reports that what not so long ago looked like being a respectable and credible website not so long ago has degenerated to become  a den for   malware and spam. Most of the leading virus protection software developers are working around the clock to ” batten down the hatches” against these ongoing threats, but suffice it say that with around  forty billion websites  online, they have their work cut out to keep pace. Reports are that there was more than a two hundred percent increase in reports of malicious websites in the last six months of 2009, with almost three quarters of the web sites found to contain some form of malicious code. Were existing websites that had been infiltrated by malware?  

So how come it appears to be so simple for adware to infiltrate your personal computer? Even when we take tremendous steps to make sure that our back door is protected we discover that our front door is blatantly under threat.  What we have to understand is that the internet today generates billion in turnover, and of any currency you can think. Internet fraud today is a massive industry who have decided to stake their future on robbing the unsuspecting instead of applying their talents to more positive aspects of the online revolution.

Adware, if it succeeds in infiltrating your computer, can and will play havoc with your computer’s registry.  

To begin with once the adware has gained control of your registry as an unwelcome guest, it will begin to take up more and more space, and your computer will begin to malfunction, as the registry has been designed  I to guide you every  time  you search  your  computer’s operating system., and gradually  the registry becomes  so slow  that it fails to provide  you  with any information.  Even worse, these annoying and unwelcome ads will begin to pop up all the time, and it your friends and colleagues have also been affected by an adware invasion they will begin to point accusing fingers at you.

So how to avoid all this unpleasantness?  By realising that owning a computer is not a game, and the only way to keep your computer clean of viruses is by making sure that the most powerful anti-virus program that you can lay your hands on is working on your behalf, and around the clock.

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

Tags: Adware, Anti Virus, Mcafee, virus protection software

Adobe discover what it is like to be under constant attack from hackers

Under fire software giant Adobe have released yet another fix for two critical security flaws discovers in their Reader and Acrobat programs. The fixes came in the wake of a recent report that showed that 80 percent of all virus intrusions trough Adobe’s software in December of last year came through their much used Portable Document Files (PDFs).

The out of sequence patch is for Adobe Reader and Acrobat versions 9.3 to 9.3.1 for the Windows, Macintosh and UNIX versions of Reader, as well as the Windows and Macintosh version of Acrobat. Those computer users, who are still using the 8.2 version of either program, will need to update to 8.2.1 to receive a suitable patch for the inherent security flaws that were discovered. Those wishing to download Adobe’s update, need to click on Help | Check for Updates from within either the Reader of Acrobat program.

The second security flow is potentially the most dangerous is it could allow an attacker to infiltrate either versions of the program and execute commands.

In addition to the problems with its Reader and Acrobat software, Adobe Systems are reported to be preparing this time to deal with a critical issue in their Flash Player. Analysts reckon that the Flash Player flaw  might allow a  hacker  to trick a Web browser into carrying out actions that would be detrimental to the software and the computer that it is played on, although can’t be used to directly install unauthorized software onto  a victim’s computer.

Normally Adobe patches Reader and Acrobat in quarterly security updates, but Adobe is being forced to rush out next Tuesday’s fix because these products are also susceptible to the Flash Player flaw.  Adobe’s Flash is so widely used it is essential that companies and individuals update their installations of the Flash Player at the earliest possible opportunity

Adobe’s security has come under scrutiny over the past year as attackers have increasingly leveraged Reader and Acrobat flaws to hack into computers. Because Reader and Flash Player are installed on almost all desktop computers, a well-crafted attack has the potential to affect considerably more victims than one that targets Internet Explorer or Firefox.

Adobe’s next scheduled Patch update is due April 13 201

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

Tags: Adobe, Adobe Reader, Anti Virus, Flash Player, Mcafee, Trojan Horses, Viruses

Mozilla have made a recent announcement that they have discovered that two experimental add-ons for the Firefox operating system, Master Filer and the Sothink Web Video Downloader version 4 have been infiltrated with a virus which has infected victim PCs with a Trojan horse virus when either add-on was installed.

Especially worrying for Mozilla was that both of the small-distribution extensions were  available for download  via Firefox’s add-on site, which led computer owners who run Firefox in preference to Microsoft IE can no longer be certain that Firefox will not be susceptible to virus attacks. Needless to say, both of the infected add-ons have since been removed from the list of Firefox opt-ins. Before the presence of the viruses had been picked up on, Mozilla have estimated that Master Filer add-on had been downloaded about 600 times and installed the Bifrose Trojan to the unsuspecting public. The Sothink Web Video Downloader version 4 was much more in demand, having been downloaded about 4,000 times and have slipped in the LdPinch Trojan.

 According to the industry security specialists, the malicious add-ons managed to sneak by the solitary and yet to be named malware scanner used by Mozilla.  In a classic example of locking the stable door after the Trojan horse has infiltrated around 5,000 computers, Mozilla have announced that they have begun scanning all of their third party add-ons with not one but two additional malware scanners, which are yet to be named,  

Firefox have suggested to those people who have installed either of these malicious add-ons rushed to point out that un-installing them will not lead to the removal of the Trojan horses from their system at this stage. In order to say goodbye to these unwelcome guests, computer owners will be required to run a separate antivirus scan to clean their system. Mozilla have been kind enough to include a list of antivirus software currently known to detect the particular Trojans involved in their most recent post.

Mozilla Firefox’s embarrassment and their subsequent reaction to the security failure only goes to emphasize why  a single  anti-virus scanner might not be sufficient as rarely is one program strong enough to pick up on every possible virus. Only the strongest and most versatile anti-virus programs can carry out this task.

Tags: antivirus software, Firefox, Master Filer, Mozilla Firefox, Sothink Web Video Downloader version 4

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

Every day a fresh Trojan seems to hit the net and as they become more invasive their names become more bizarre. The latest comes with the distinctive name of the Vundo virus, and is indeed a pesky little invader. Early reports have it that the Vundo virus is particularly problematic because it is capable of installing deep in a computer’s registry and only a top anti-virus will have the ability to totally remove it in all of its many formats and disguises.  

The Vundo Trojan falls into the category of being a rootkit virus because it houses itself in your computer’s software registry, which is the very root of your operating system, and if left undetected takes full control of the computer. These forms of viruses are infamous because of the difficulty in removing them, as well as being dynamic in nature. This means that if less than capable software is employed in removing the virus, and succeeds in only partially removing it, Vundo will rapidly rebuild and reinstall itself and set about attacking its prey from where it left off, inside the registry file.

What is equally as worrying is that the Vundo Trojan virus will even start to create pop-ups that will attempt to sell its host computer a series of fake antivirus software. If anyone falls for the Vundo scam then the program or programs they will install are liable to infect the computer even further. Later on, when it has totally manifested itself, Vundo will slow the computer’s system down to a crawl and possibly cause it to seize up altogether. These are just a few of the ways that a Vundo-infected computer will behave. Suffice it to say that all of them are annoying and offensive.

The Vundo virus will make a very major struggle to prevent itself from being exorcised from a computer that it has taken over. Experience has shown that the only effective way to keep the Vundo Trojan at bay or totally remove it in the case of infection is setting the best tried-and-tested anti-viruses in place. 

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

Tags: Anti Virus, Digital Download Products, Mcafee, Phishing Scams, Trojan Horses, Viruses, Vundo virus