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Adware: How to Beat the Sneakiest Software
Promoters of adware, software that shows advertising on a user's computer, use some cunning tricks to get you to install their software on your machine.
Here's what to look out for.
Adware is, by definition, something reasonable people don't...
Cyber Utopia
Table of Contents I. What is Cyber Utopia? II. Free Internet Services of Today III. Who Owns the Internet? I. What is Cyber Utopia? Cyber Utopia is a non-existent Internet. It’s a place where information can be sent anywhere to anyone in a matter...
Falling in Love With More Than One Screensaver: The Fun Part
Having from five to ten and more favorite screensavers is cool. But how do you enjoy them all in a straightforward and convenient way? Draw the power you need from the little yet useful tools discussed in this article! As you remember, earlier...
Insure Your Information - Backup Software
There are so many ways to lose precious data stored on your hard disk - power loss or power surge, overheating, electrostatic discharge, virus attack, software failure, etc. Are you still thinking your data is safe? Don't! Backup! Backup early,...
Success Stories - 12 Doers Share Their Secrets: Interview with Milana Nastetskaya
This week we have another great interview - the third in the series - with a lady who is taking the Internet by storm. Milana Nastetskaya is the author of the highly regarded ebook "65 Instant Web Design Answers!". Milana currently lives in Central...
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Password Security - How Secure are You?
Passwords - we use them every day, here in cyberland. They're used as the first step in identifying ourselves. Yes, we're allowed to logon to this network, because we have the pre-approved password. They're necessary for our online banking transactions and our online bill payments. Or yes, we're allowed to read this ebook, because we've purchased it and here's our authentication.
There's almost a gazillion instances where we use passwords but most of us don't think about how easy it is for our lives to be broken into because we chose such an easy password.
A recent survey reported by the BBC suggests that more than half of computer users never change their passwords, and many use words that can be easily guessed.
Common Passwords:
23% child's name 19% partner's name 12% birthdays 9% football team 9% celebrities and bands 9% favorite places 8% own name 8% pet's name
In my experience, other passwords that are common in North America include:
- Mother's Maiden Name - Social Insurance Number or Social Security Number (SIN, SSN)* - Favorite Colour/Color - The person's name and the current year
* Before I go any further, I should stress that using ANY of those ideas as a password is an extremely bad security risk. Furthermore, the use of your SIN or SSN is particularly foolish as that can lead to identity theft. In the U.S. alone, this problem is estimated to be somewhere around 700,000 to 750,000 victims a year.
The problem with using such easy common names for passwords is that hackers, and identity thieves have special programs, much like dictionaries that go through all of the obvious common names, phrases and variations; they also go through the dictionary itself, including "foreign" language dictionaries. Sooner or later, they'll get a hit - and BINGO they're in and can do whatever it is that they want to do.
So what do we
do?
Security Tips:
> The best passwords consist of non-sequential numbers and letters used in a combination. Don't use words or word and number combinations that can be guessed at.
> Don't use the same password for different sites. Especially your banking password(s).
> Don't store your passwords on your computer. Data on your computer is subject to remote theft. In addition you should protect yourself with a good firewall and anti-virus software.
> Don't write down your passwords on a sticky note and place it on your monitor, under your keyboard, mouse pad, etc...
> The best secure place for a password is in your head. However we all know that our heads are full of a lot of other info, and our non-sequential passwords may be difficult for us to remember... If you must write down a password - lock it up when it's not in use, or at the very least, stash it safely.
> Change your password frequently; particularly the really important ones.
> Use passwords that are at least eight digits long. If you're given a choice always opt for a long password as each digit makes it a longer and harder process of cracking.
> Do not share your passwords with anyone. If you have to share your password because a technician is working on your PC, or a web site techie is installing a script on your site or a designer is uploading some web pages to your site, then change the password(s) as soon as the work is done.
Conducting transactions on the web is safe. Doing business on the web is safe. Filling out forms on the web is also safe. As long as you exercise a bit of security consciousness on your part these activities are no more at risk than they are in the off-line world.
About the Author
Pencil Dude is the publisher of the popular e-zine, Pencil Dude's Picks! What's he picked this month? Click on over and take a look: http://pencildude.com/
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Tucows Downloads - Download Freeware and Shareware Software |
Download freeware, shareware, and demos. Maintains over 45000 software titles that are tested, rated, reviewed and ready to download. |
www.tucows.com |
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Free Software Downloads and Software Reviews - Download.com |
Download shareware, freeware and Demo software for PC, Mac, Linux, and Handhelds categorized into categories, plus software reviews. |
www.download.com |
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Computer software - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
This includes application software such as a word processor, which enables a ... Application software is often purchased separately from computer hardware. ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
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Shareware.com - Search for shareware programs and free software ... |
Search for shareware programs from more than a dozen downloadable software directories. |
www.shareware.com |
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Jumbo: Free & Shareware MP3 files, Games, Screen Savers & Computer ... |
Source of free and shareware computer programs and utilities for PC and Mac. Evaluate software and read product reviews. Download games and screen savers. |
www.jumbo.com |
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Computer Software in the Yahoo! Directory |
Browse categories featuring sites devoted to computer software, including shareware and freeware download sites, operating systems, desktop customization, ... |
dir.yahoo.com |
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IEEE Software |
IEEE Computer Society's magazine covering all aspects of software, including software engineering. |
www.computer.org |
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Free Downloads on ZDNet | Shareware, Trialware, Evaluation Software |
ZDNet's Software Directory is the Web's largest library of software downloads. Covering software for Windows, Mac, and Mobile systems, ZDNet's Software ... |
downloads.zdnet.com |
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FSF - The Free Software Foundation |
Free software is a matter of liberty not price. Think of "free" as in "free speech". |
www.fsf.org |
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Apple - Software |
Software products for your digital life. ... The perfect addition for professional review. QuickTime Broadcaster. Encoding software for live events. ... |
www.apple.com |
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Open Directory - Computers: Software |
In Partnership with AOL Search. about dmoz | report abuse/spam | help. the entire directory, only in Computers/Software. Top: Computers: Software (38471) ... |
dmoz.org |
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freshmeat.net: Welcome to freshmeat.net |
About: The Web browser is probably the most frequently used software today, ... Web professionals can use the software for functional testing and regression ... |
freshmeat.net |
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Software - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF) |
Listing of the GNU software packages. |
www.gnu.org |
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Sun Software |
Get enterprise-class software--Solaris 10 OS, the Java Enterprise System, ... Sun Java StorageTek Software reduces cost and complexity with a single, ... |
www.sun.com |
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Internet Real Estate.com -- owns and operates a portfolio of the ... |
SOFTWARE.COM · SWEEPSTAKES.COM · PHONE.COM PODCAST.COM ... Software.com | Sweepstakes.com | Phone.com | Podcast.com | Shop.com | Safety.com ... |
www.internetrealestate.com |
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Joel on Software |
A weblog by Joel Spolsky, a programmer working in New York City, about software and software companies. |
www.joelonsoftware.com |
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Amazon.com Software: Computer & video games, business, accounting ... |
Online shopping for computer & video games, business & office productivity software, software from Microsoft, Apple, Adobe & more; accounting, antivirus, ... |
www.amazon.com |
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IBM Software - Home Page |
IBM home page for all of its software products, including Lotus and Tivoli, with keyword search, category browse and AZ product names. |
www.ibm.com |
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Opera web browser: Homepage |
Copyright © 2006 Opera Software ASA. All rights reserved. Skip navigation. Opera Software ... Copyright Opera Software ASA . All rights reserved. ... |
www.opera.com |
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Google Directory - Computers > Software |
Search only in Software Search the Web ... Software Categorized by Letter: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z ... |
www.google.com |
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