Triona's Tech Tips

If you get a phone call saying you have a virus on your computer, hang up.

As reported by researcher Orla Cox on Symantec’s blog, the sellers of fake antivirus and security software have gone old-school and are now phoning victims to peddle their snakeoil. Cox posed as a computer novice to investigate:

Once I was connected to one of their agents I explained my problem to them. My computer was running really slowly and crashing a lot. The agent, “Brian”, proceeded to tell me that I was the victim of a virus that had entered my computer over the Internet. He walked me through opening up the Event Viewer and asked if I saw any errors or warnings in there.

[Note from Triona: That's because Event Viewer's purpose is to log what Windows is doing. These errors and warnings are part of normal operations and don't necessarily correspond to problems.]

Cox continues:

Naturally, I did. Brian then told me that these were indications of a virus infection. Was it serious, I asked? Brian said yes. Sounds ominous. Thankfully there was help at hand though… To clean up the computer, and also to avail of their software maintenance service, I could pay a yearly subscription fee of 129 euro. I could also pay 250 euro for a two year subscription. Brian was pushing hard for me to go for the two year option but in the end we agreed to go for just a one year subscription.

Cox was then urged to send an email with name, address, phone number, email address… and credit card details. If your red flags haven’t already been raised, that should send them to the top of the pole. No legitimate company would ever ask you to email your credit card details, that’s like a burglar asking you to stick your keys under the doormat.

Why are the miscreants behind rogue security software resorting to this tactic? Remember, it’s all about social engineering: the art of getting you to breach your own protections. Real security programs have become so good that the best way to commit cybercrime is to trick you, the person at the keyboard. Just as no security in the world can protect your house if you unlock the door, no security software can protect your computer if you can be tricked into bypassing it. That’s why these scams are called scareware — because they try to scare you into falling for their tricks.

Don’t be a victim of scareware scams. When in doubt, hang up on that fake call, ignore those phony “antivirus” warnings and pay no attention to spam emails. If you think you may have a virus use a real program like AVG’s free antivirus, Malwarebytes’ malware scanner and Trend Micro’s online House Call scanner to determine if you’re infected.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

Each year I give parents a roundup of the best parental control software on the market.

Parental control software offers automatic blocking of inappropriate sites as well as content and image filtering. You can schedule when the Internet is available to your kids, log instant messages, keep tabs on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace, and monitor mobile communications. New to parental control software is the ability to protect from cyberbullying.

I continue to like SafeEyes, available for Windows and Mac. NetNanny and CyberPatrol have also been upgraded with new features. While Windows and Mac offer built-in parental controls, as do many security suites, they are no substitute for a dedicated program.

Hardware parental controls are physical devices that sit between your home network and the Internet. At this point there are none I recommend because they slow down your network and can easily be removed by wily kids. However, you can configure some home routers to perform certain parental control functions like content filtering.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

It may be hard to believe, but some of the best software is free. Try out these fabulous freebies:

1) AVG Antivirus (Windows)
AVG offers some of the best security suites on the market, and they make the antivirus component free for personal use. If you’re looking for greater protection, try the paid AVG Internet Suite which also includes anti-spyware and a firewall.

2) Malwarebytes (Windows)
I use Malwarebytes to rid computers of the worst spyware infections. It doesn’t offer continual protection (you’ll need a security suite for that) but it can help get rid of anything that may sneak through.

3) CutePDF Writer (Windows)
Need to create a PDF file? Try this quick, free program. (Mac users, use the built-in Print to PDF option under the File menu.)

4) Mozilla Thunderbird (Windows and Mac)
A free email program that rivals Outlook and spotlights Outlook Mac equivalent Entourage’s shortcomings.

5) OpenOffice (Windows) and NeoOffice (Mac)
Why pay for Microsoft Office when you can get the same functionality for free? OpenOffice and NeoOffice can open and save Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents with ease.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

We’ve got another off-schedule emergency update, this one for Adobe Reader and Acrobat. It applies to both Windows and Mac users and will be released sometime next week. I encourage you to check for updates (under the Help menu) and make sure you install this one when it comes out. You can read Adobe’s advisory here.

The new update will take version 9 users to version 9.3.3 and version 8 users to 8.2.3. However, if you’re still on version 8, I recommend you move to version 9. And if you’re on a previous version (like the omnipresent Acrobat Reader 7), you definitely want to move to version 9. Acrobat 7 was the standard for a long time but is now obsolete and can be used as a entry point for viruses.

In case you’re wondering, the difference between Adobe Reader and Acrobat is that the former allows you to read PDF files while the latter also lets you create them. Adobe Reader used to be known as Acrobat Reader and is still referred to as plain ol’ Acrobat. So, yes, these updates apply to you regardless of whether you have the full version of Acrobat or just plain Reader.

You can also visit this web site to find the latest versions of all your Adobe products.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

Today Microsoft released an off-schedule update to fix a bug in Windows that could allow your machine to be infected simply by browsing a list of files with Windows Explorer. This emergency update applies to Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Server 2008. You can read the Microsoft security bulletin here.

Microsoft’s normal monthly updates arrive the second Tuesday of the month, otherwise known as Patch Tuesday. Off-schedule updates are typically only released in cases like this, where vulnerabilities are being actively exploited by viruses and malware. One particular virus is especially virulent. A variant of the Sality virus, it disables your security software and downloads more malware onto your computer.

If you have Automatic Updates enabled you’ll eventually get this update, but to make sure you are protected as quickly as possible visit update.microsoft.com and make sure you install update MS10-046 (aka 2286198).

The battle for your computer has stepped up a notch, as fake security software now offers real tech support. Talk about twisted!

As I’ve written before, rogue security software pretends to be real antivirus and anti-malware software in order to commandeer your computer. It disables your bona fide protections and claims that you must purchase their super-duper software to save you from invented infections. Now, they’ve added a “support” option as further bait. After all, if the software offers you tech support by live chat and email, it must be legitimate, right? And so much money is being made on this fake software that they can actually afford to hire real people to provide said tech support! It’s a whole new take on social engineering, the unethical art of doing anything and everything to manipulate you.

Remember, rogue security software will not protect you; it will leave you vulnerable. Your best protection is to stick with security programs from known vendors. Norton, McAfee, AVG, Trend Micro, and avast! are all real companies with real products. Although I’m still not enamored of Norton and McAfee (see why), you’re certainly better off with them than a rogue. Become familiar with what your regular antivirus program looks like. If you sit down at your computer one day and see something different, be very suspicious. Also, be careful if you do a web search for antivirus software, because many of the “sponsored links” lead you to fake programs. Once fake security software is on your computer, it’s extremely difficult to remove. And don’t fall for the trick “uninstaller,” which leaves remnants of the rogue to regenerate itself.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

Are you prepared for a disaster? This checklist will help you assess your plans for home and business.

1) Critical resources
What are your most important resources, and which ones can you do without in a crisis?

2) Backups
What is your backup strategy? Where are your off-site backups located? Do you test your backups to make sure they are valid?

3) Inventory
Do you have a complete and current list of all hardware and software, including serial numbers and documentation?

4) Network and Internet
Do you understand the layout of your network? What is the impact if your connection goes down? Consider alternate options for use in the event of an emergency.

5) Remote Access
Can you work from somewhere other than your primary location? What resources would you need to do so? Evaluate various options to find one that works best for you.

6) Security
What would you do if you had a security incident, such as a virus infection, loss of data, or identity theft? Develop a plan, including resources that can help you.

7) Fire Drills
Test your strategies to verify that they will work in a real-world situation.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

Everyone needs backups, but you may not have a lot of money to spend. Here are some great bargain backup ideas.

1) Buy an external hard drive
Many external drives come with their own backup software and are simple to set up. You can get one terabyte (that’s 1,024 gigabytes, or about 256 DVDs’ worth) of storage for around $100-120. If you have a lot of pictures or music, this is your most cost-effective solution.

2) Use an old computer
What good is that ten-year-old computer? If it’s still functional and has a large enough hard drive, you could turn it into a dedicated backup station. You may not be able to back up your entire computer to it, but you will probably have enough room for basic documents. You’ll need to network it to your existing computer and share files between them.

3) Burn it to disc
Almost all computers these days have writable CD drives. Many newer computers also have DVD burners. The media is inexpensive and stores well over long periods. It’s easy to create duplicate backups for off-site storage.

4) Use a flash (USB) drive
Flash drives are inexpensive and portable. However, their long-term storage abilities have not been tested because the technology is relatively new.

5) Use an online storage service
These services are often inexpensive, but are not available if your Internet connection goes down. Security may also be a question.

Subscribe free to Tech Tips and receive bonus tips, tricks and product reviews. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

Microsoft has unveiled its latest version of Microsoft Office. But Office 2010 offers no upgrade path for previous users of the software suite.

In the past, users of Office were able to purchase upgrades instead of paying full price for new versions. In my opinion, discontinuing this option is a mistake, given the economy and the fact that many Office users see no reason to upgrade.

Microsoft faces competition from the free OpenOffice as well as from cloud-based services like Google Docs. Perhaps Microsoft’s reasoning behind the discontinuation of upgrade pricing is to lure people to the cloud-based version of Office 2010 (which is available free for consumers on Windows Live via an ad-supported service). If so, alienating previous customers is a gamble that may not pay off.

What do you think? Do you plan to upgrade to Office 2010 and if not, would upgrade pricing have altered your decision?

My column in today’s Northwest Herald talks about the importance of regular maintenance for your computer, and how a qualified computer professional can help keep your systems up and running. But there are also some things you can do on your own to maintain your computer.

Don’t forget, if you subscribe to my Tech Tips email newsletter you’ll receive tips like these, plus tech support tricks and other ways you can get the most out of your PC or Mac computer. Click here to subscribe or send email to techtips-request-at-guidryconsulting-dot-com, subject “subscribe”.

• Turn your computer off. Some people like to leave their computers on all the time, and that’s fine. But computers benefit from a proper shutdown, so be sure you turn it off once a week so it can refresh itself at startup.
• Check your security software. Double-clicking on your software’s icon in the lower right-hand corner of your Windows screen will bring up a status window. As for Mac users, don’t forget that you need antivirus software too. I’m fond of Intego VirusBarrier.
• Run a cleaning utility. I like CCleaner for Windows and Snow Leopard Cache Cleaner for Mac (also works on Tiger and Leopard). These programs don’t do anything on their own but instead provide a convenient way to run the built-in utilities for Windows and Mac, which means they are very reliable and safe to use.

When in doubt, call a professional. It’s easier to fix small problems before they become too large, and it’s best to have a trained expert assist with your computer needs.