74. Understand the Download options on software

Know the Terms: Freeware, Trialware, & More
Have you ever downloaded a program that you thought was free and then, after using it for a while, saw a warning or some other message appear, prompting for payment to continue?

Assuming you weren't tricked into the download (see the next section for help avoiding that problem), you either downloaded the wrong version, especially if a number of different download options were available, or were mistaken about the cost of the program.

Almost all software developers use these three categories to classify their software:

Freeware: This means that the program is completely free to use as described.

Trialware: This means that the program is free to use for a certain period or time, or for a certain number of uses, and then will need to be paid for. This is also sometimes called shareware or just trial software.

Commercial: This means that the program is not free at all and must be paid for before you can use it. Even most commercial programs these days provide limited time trial versions before asking for payment, so I see this designation less often.

Be weary of a program that just says it's "free" as there are plenty of ways to spin that. I talk a lot more about this next.

Free Downloads ≠ Free Software Just because something is a Free Download does not mean that the software is free.

Unfortunately, some software makers intentionally confuse visitors with this trick on their download pages. They use "free download" in all the page titles, all over the software description pages, and then you usually end up clicking a big FREE DOWNLOAD button to start the download.

Of course the download process is free! The software, however, requires payment for use, sometimes right away but often after a short period of use.

Some software makers do this in the hopes of driving revenue from people who thought they were downloading and using free software and then see little choice but to pay up. It's unethical and a rampant problem among lower quality software programs.

So, before you download something that's labeled as "free" or as a "free download," check to see that the program description clearly states that it's freeware or completely free to use.

Don't be Tricked by "Download" Advertisements Some of the most "successful" advertisements are those that trick a page's reader in to believing that the ad isn't really an ad, but something useful on that site.

These sorts of advertisements run frequently on software download pages, appearing as giant DOWNLOAD buttons. As much as these large buttons might appear to be what you need to click to download the software you're after, trust me, they're not.

Worse yet, these DOWNLOAD advertisements don't go to benign websites - they usually go to a malware-ridden page where you really do get to download something, just not the something you thought you were getting.

Real download buttons tend to be smaller and located closer to the downloadable file's name, version number, and last updated date. Not all software download pages have download buttons, either - many are just links.

Another "what to click" problem is a bit harder to solve, but worth the try:

Avoid "Installers" and "Download Managers"

Full-time software download sites, like Download.com and Softpedia, typically host software makers' programs for free.

One way these download sites make their money is by serving advertisements on their sites. Another, increasingly more common, way they make money is by wrapping the downloads they serve inside of a program called an installer, or less often inside a download manager.

These programs, often referred to as PUPs (potentially unwanted programs), have nothing to do with the program you're trying to download and install. The download site earns money from the makers of those programs by including them with the one you were after.

I do my best to avoid linking to sites that use installers and download managers but sometimes it's impossible, simply because the software I'm recommending isn't available elsewhere.

Assuming you can't find a non-installer download link for the software you want, you can always install the package anyway, being extremely careful what you agree to during the installation process:

Choose "Custom Installation" & Decline Additional Software Last, but certainly not least, please slow down and read the screens you're presented with as you install the software you just downloaded.

I'm not talking about the terms and conditions or the privacy policy. Don't get me wrong, you should read those too, but that's another discussion.

What's important here are the screens that are part of the installation wizard: the screens with the check boxes, "next" buttons, and all the stuff you agree or disagree to allow to be installed or tracked.

Unless you enjoy random browser toolbars, your home page being changed automatically, subscriptions to free software that you'll never use, and stuff like that, then I highly recommend that you carefully read every screen in the install wizard and decline anything that you're not interested in.

The biggest tip I have here is to choose the Custom Installation method, if you're given the option. This makes the install process a bit longer with the few extra screens it adds, but it's almost always where the "don't install this" options are hidden.

One way to avoid all of these installation-based problems is to choose portable software instead of installable software, when available. Many software makers create versions of their programs that run without needing to be installed at all.

Reproduced from a Tim Fisher article on About.com

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73. Word: Start a New Line without Starting a New Paragraph

When you’re typing into a Microsoft Word document and you press the Enter key, Word starts a new paragraph. In old versions (Word 2003 and 2002), it looks indistinguishable from a new line: the new paragraph appears immediately below the last one. In Word 2013, 2010 and 2007, however, some extra space is added between the two paragraphs. This can be altered of course by changing the format of your paragraphs but if you like the extra spaces, read on:

You might like the approach taken by these newer versions – it does make a document look a little neater – but it has a drawback. If you’re trying to type an address over several lines, you’d prefer it to look like a single block without gaps between each line. The same might apply if you’re typing list of items – you don’t really regard each item in the list as a separate paragraph, so you don’t want them all separated by white space.

What can you do about it? Well, the solution depends on whether or not you’ve already typed the text in question:

* If you’re just about to type the text – the address or the list – don’t press Enter at the end of each line. Instead, press Shift+Enter. That will give you a new line, but without starting a new paragraph, so you don’t get that enormous space between the lines.

* If you’ve already typed the text in question, begin by highlighting the entire address or list. Next, make sure the Home tab is selected on the Ribbon and move your mouse up to the ‘Styles’ section where you’ll see a wide white box containing items such as ‘Normal’, ‘No Spacing’ and ‘Heading 1’. In this box, click on No Spacing. This removes the extra space that was added between all those lines.

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72. How to "Zoom In" on a webpage

When you’re visiting a web page, it can sometimes be useful to zoom in and make everything on the page larger and easier to read. In Internet Explorer you should have a little ‘zoom’ button in the bottom-right corner of the window that makes this easy – each click on the button zooms the page to 125%, then 150%, then back to 100% (normal size) again. For more options, click the tiny arrow beside that button and choose a zoom setting ranging from 50% to 400%.

But what if you can’t see that zoom button? Here’s the solution:

1. Press the Alt key on your keyboard (to the left of the space bar) to make Internet Explorer’s menu bar appear.

2. Open the View menu and move the mouse down to Toolbars.

3. On the sub-menu that appears, click Status bar.

The status bar appears at the bottom of the window, with this zoom button at its right-hand end. (If you want to hide the status bar again, just repeat the same steps)

You don’t necessarily need this status bar in order to zoom in and out of the web page, there are other ways:

• Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and roll your mouse’s wheel away from you to make everything larger, or towards you to make it smaller.
• Hold down the Ctrl key and repeatedly tap the + key on the top row of your keyboard to make everything bigger, or the – key to reduce it.
• Click the cog icon in the top-right corner of the window, move the mouse to Zoom and click a zoom setting.

Happy viewing

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71. Keyboard shortcuts we should all learn.

Using keyboard shortcuts can greatly increase your productivity, reduce repetitive strain, and help keep you focused. For example, highlighting text with the keyboard and pressing Ctrl + C is much faster than taking your hand from the keyboard, highlighting the text using the mouse, clicking copy from the file menu, and then putting your hand back in place on the keyboard. Below are our top 10 keyboard shortcuts we recommend everyone memorize and use.



Ctrl + C or Ctrl + Insert
 
Both Ctrl + C and Ctrl + Insert will copy the highlighted text or selected item.



Ctrl + V or Shift + Insert
 
Both the Ctrl + V and Shift + Insert will paste the text or object that's in the clipboard.



Ctrl + Z and Ctrl + Y
 
Undo any change. For example, if you cut text, pressing this will undo it. This can also often be pressed multiple times to undo multiple changes. Pressing Ctrl + Y would redo the undo.



Ctrl + F
 
Pressing Ctrl + F opens the Find in any program. This includes your Internet browser to find text on the current page.



Alt + Tab or Ctrl + Tab
 
Quickly switch between open programs moving forward.

Tip: Press Ctrl + Tab to switch between tabs in a program.

Tip: Adding the Shift key to Alt + Tab or Ctrl + Tab will move backwards. For example, if you are pressing Alt + Tab and pass the program you want to switch to, press Alt + Shift + Tab to move backwards to that program.

Tip: Windows Vista and 7 users can also press the Windows Key + Tab to switch through open programs in a full screenshot of the Window.



Ctrl + Back space and Ctrl + Left or Right arrow
 
Pressing Ctrl + Backspace will delete a full word at a time instead of a single character.

Holding down the Ctrl key while pressing the left or right arrow will move the cursor one word at a time instead of one character at a time. If you wanted to highlight one word at a time you can hold down Ctrl + Shift and then press the left or right arrow key to move one word at a time in that direction while highlighting each word.



Ctrl + S
 
While working on a document or other file in almost every program pressing Ctrl + S saves that file. This shortcut key should be used frequently anytime you're working on anything important.



Ctrl + Home or Ctrl + End
 
Ctrl + Home will move the cursor to the beginning of the document and Ctrl + End will move the cursor to the end of a document.



Ctrl + P
 
Open a print preview of the current page or document being viewed. For example, press Ctrl + P now to view a print preview of this page.



Page Up, Space bar, and Page Down
 
Pressing either the page up or page down key will move that page one page at a time in that direction. When browsing the Internet pressing the space bar also moves the page down one page at a time.

Tip: If you are using the space bar to go down one page at a time press the Shift key and space bar to go up one page at a time.

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70. Try “Dropbox” for easy online storage and backup

If you (like me) tend to be lazy about backing up those really essential files or photographs then Dropbox is an easy and free way to keep your files safe. It also helps if you have two or more PCs and you want to access the same files from each one.

OK so total storage is not massive but I am talking “essential files” here.

For instance if you keep records for an organisation in Excel files, or say you do a website and want to make sure you don’t lose your work then this solution is easy and needs no intervention from you once it is set up. You can even share your files with other people.

Go along to Dropbox.com and set yourself up with an account. You will automatically get 2GB of storage and extra chunks may be had by referring friends etc. (Details on Dropbox.com)

When you then allow Dropbox to set itself up on your PC it creates a Dropbox folder. Any files you then add to this folder are synchronised with your “cloud” folder on the Dropbox website. Cool. You now have your working file and a backup file without any effort.

Now when I work on important files (such as these web pages), I work on the ones in my Dropbox folder knowing that when I exit and save the files they are automatically backed up for me to the cloud storage folder. Additionally, by using the same Dropbox account on my laptop, the files are then synchronised downwards on to the laptop PC. So if I want to take my PC to another location to work on any files in Dropbox I know that they are automatically synchronised to the cloud and to my main PC. If I am working in a location without Internet connection then the files will be synchronised as soon as my PC connects to the Internet back at home.

The Dropbox website will provide details of how you can share your files and also allow others to download files from your personal Dropbox Cloud folder. The folders are private and perfectly safe unless of course you divulge your access credentials.

In order to get some Dropbox space you first need to sign up for it. Creating a free account will get you 2GB of space to start. Go to Dropbox.com

This is not an advert for Dropbox and there are others available but this is a free, quick, and easy way to get started. 

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69. Don’t be too quick to accept Friend requests

It’s exciting to see a Friend Request at the top of your Facebook page. You’re likely to accept Friend Requests without thinking twice, especially if it’s a friend or a name you recognize. You may even be thinking that there’s no real harm in accepting all Friend Requests that come your way. Having more friends means you’re more popular…right?

What you may not know is that with name, birth date, education, and work history available online, it’s relatively easy for anyone to create a duplicate of any existing user. Watch out, as cybercriminals could potentially be impersonating you or someone you know for the sole purpose of duping you and your friends!

Keep reading to learn what cybercriminals can do with phony accounts. We’ll share things to keep in mind as you decide whether or not to accept a Friend Request.


What Cybercriminals Do with Phony Accounts

Identity theft:
Facebook is a treasure chest of personal information. If you have a private account, when you accept a Friend Request, the information and pictures that were once restricted from public view become visible to your new “friend”. Because cybercriminals understand that a lot of people accept requests without thinking twice, the chances of someone accepting a request from a phony account is very high. Once cybercriminals have this bounty of information and pictures, it makes it all the easier for them to commit identity theft or other forms of crime.


Malicious Links:
Unless a user has set up their privacy setting, whenever they create a post on their own or a friend’s Timeline, it is made public on the News Feed. With a phony account, cybercriminals have the ability to spread malicious links to a substantial number of people. Once the malicious link is published onto a public News Feed, there is a high likelihood that someone will eventually click on the malicious link, where they will be directed to sites compromised by malware or phishing sites designed to trick users into revealing financial credentials.


Stalking:
In case identity theft and distributing malicious links weren’t bad enough, cybercriminals create phony accounts to stalk people. Phony accounts help cybercriminals stay under the radar, as the person they’re stalking are likely to accept the Friend Request without thinking twice.


Keep Your Eyes Open

Check your Friends List:
In the event you receive a Friend Request from someone you’re already friends with, take a few minutes to search for that person in your friends list. Also, sift through the profile to see if there are signs that the account isn’t legitimate. If the Friend Request is from someone you consider an acquaintance, it’s obviously more difficult to determine if the account is legitimate or not. But with a close friend, make sure to get in touch with them if you receive a second Friend request – if it’s a fake, the account needs to be reported to Facebook.


Reproduced from the Zone Alarm blog.

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68. Don't give your mobile batteries a "Memory"

When a notebook’s battery is in its first flush of youth, it should be good for between two and five hours’ use (depending on the notebook itself and how you’re using it). But the implication in the question above is that the questioner has always run the computer on mains power, and that makes a big difference.

Notebook batteries need exercise – they need to be made do some work. Otherwise they become lazy and dispirited, doing the battery equivalent of slumping in the sofa and watching TV all day. A battery that’s never called upon to do any work quickly forgets how to do it.

If your notebook is always run on mains power, that means its battery is kept fully-charged all the time and is never used. Over time, it gets ever more used to this lazy lifestyle until, when you do need it, it can’t muster the energy to do more than a few minutes’ work before giving up. Windows should give you a warning about low battery power a few minutes before the battery runs out, but if the battery is in such a sorry state that it can never manage more than a few minutes, you won’t get that warning: the PC simply switches off.

With a new notebook PC (or a new battery in your notebook), exercise the battery right at the beginning to maximise its lifespan. Charge it fully, then disconnect it from the mains and use it (or leave it sitting) until its battery runs down, then repeat the procedure, and repeat it again. In ideal circumstances, you’d use it on battery power whenever possible thereafter, but whether you do that or not, try to allow the battery to discharge itself fully every few weeks.

If you never use the notebook on battery power, and you sometimes run into the same problem as the questioner, a simple solution would be to remove its battery. This way, the notebook won’t switch on if you haven’t turned on the mains, so there’s no risk of it switching itself off after a few minutes. (It also makes your notebook a good deal lighter to carry around or to place on your lap!)

If you use your Notebook for long periods and wish to keep it on mains power then again, remove the battery until you have finished the extended use then replace the battery.

With replacement notebook batteries often costing upwards of £50, it’s well worth paying some attention to their well-being and eking out the maximum life from them.

That’s even more important for the batteries in tablet computers. Most tablets are not designed to have their batteries replaced – indeed, you’ll rarely see any sign of a battery compartment – so when a tablet’s battery bites the dust, the dust stays bitten!


With thanks to PC Tips for Seniors  

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67. How secure is your own wifi network?

Reproduced from the Zone Alarm blog

It’s easier than ever to set up a wireless network. Plop in a WiFi router and connect to a DSL or cable modem, or if you are one of the lucky ones, with a FiOS box. But before you start online banking, shopping, and surfing the Web, make sure your network is secure from intruders.

　

You may think that your neighbor hopping onto your wireless network to check email is harmless. Actually, there is more at stake than the fact that this unauthorized person may hog up the bandwidth by streaming HD videos. This person, once on your network, can intercept all the data you are sending, trick you into going to a malicious site, and break into computers and other devices you may have connected over the WiFi. Letting someone you don’t know on to your network is essentially letting that person see all the data flowing in and out.

If you have your own WiFi network, it’s important you secure it from unauthorized users and devices by configuring the wireless router appropriately. While specific steps in the management software vary from vendor to vendor, and from router to router, the options are fairly universal and shouldn’t be too hard to find.

Below are some tips on how to enhance your wireless network security.


1. Encrypt with WPA2
When you set up your wireless network, you had the option to turn on encryption. For home networking users, you should turn on encryption (as opposed to running an open network) and you should select WPA2 as the encryption method. WEP is not secure and some of the other methods are generally out of reach for most home users. Even if you didn’t enable WPA2 when you first set up the network, your management software should let you turn it on after the fact.

When you select WPA2, you will be prompted to create a passkey for users to enter when trying to connect to the network. It is important—no, critical—to make sure the password is unique and complex so that outsiders can’t just brute-force or guess a password and hop on to the network. Make sure to select a string of characters that is fairly long and a mix of both numbers and letters. If your passkey is flimsy, then determined attackers will be able to breach your network anyway.

Don’t turn on WPS (WiFi Protected Setup). It doesn’t always work consistently, and its nine-digit PIN is vulnerable to guessing attempts. Once the attacker figures out the PIN for WPS, there is nothing stopping the adversary from accessing any shared data that resides on your wireless network.


2. Change Default Passwords
Many of the routers ship with a default password for the administrator management software. It could be “admin,” or even a blank password, and is quite often printed somewhere in the documentation and available online. Users should immediately change the password for the management interface while setting up the wireless network so that outsiders can’t reach the management interface. If adversaries get access to the management interface, they have full control over your router and you would be in serious trouble.

While you are changing passwords, check to see if the router shipped with any pre-created SSIDs. SSIDs are the names of the wireless networks configured for the router. You should change the passwords for these SSIDs even if you aren’t using them, just in case.


3. Clean up the list of SSID names
Speaking of SSIDs, vendors tend to use very generic names for the SSIDs, such as ‘linksys’ or ‘netgear-wireless.’ Change them from the default to something unique. Attackers can launch man-in-the-middle attacks by using frequently used SSIDs for their rogue wireless hotspots which could be used to trick devices into connecting to that network. Having a different SSID name and password ensures that it will be harder for a person to guess and break in.

It may be just easier to delete all the SSIDs on the router (usually listed under “wireless” on the management software) other than the one you are using. Why increase the potential attack surface? After you have cleaned up your list of SSIDs, hide the name. Some vendors call this cloaking, but the idea is to prevent the SSID from broadcasting to all devices in the vicinity. You can connect by manually entering the name of your network, but other people won’t know that network is there.


4. Regularly Check Who Is Connected
The management software generally has a section called “Device List”, which shows the computer name of all the devices that are connected to the wireless network. It’s a good idea to periodically go in and check to make sure you recognize the names. To prevent unknown devices from ever being able to connect, you can enable Mac Address Filtering. This will require you to know how to get your device’s hardware address (MAC Address) so that you can enter it in the software. It can be a little manual and time-consuming, but it ensures no one will ever be able to get on the network without your knowing about it.

Your router has other advanced features, such as “guest networking”, which you should turn off, and a firewall, which you should turn on. If you aren’t already running a software firewall, turning on the router’s firewall is critical, but it’s not a bad idea to have both to boost your layers of security.

Regularly update your router firmware when they are available, and you’ll have a pretty secure wireless network. It’s worth the time to set it up properly as a closed network will save you tons of headaches down the road.

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66. Watch out for that bogus call from "Microsoft"

Two articles related to the same problem:-

From PC Tips for Seniors www.pcforseniors.co.uk.

Microsoft Telephone Scammer Forced to Hang Up

 Its perpetrator has finally been caught and sentenced.

 Unlike most scams, which start with an email message, this one revolved around an unexpected telephone call. The caller would claim to be working for Microsoft and would try to convince you that your PC was infected by countless viruses. Somehow, without alerting you to these problems, your PC had contacted Microsoft, and Microsoft was kindly phoning you at its own expense to sort them out.

 If you hadn’t already hung up by this point, the caller would try to ‘prove’ his case by directing you to an area of Windows containing a long and worryingly-technical list of items. These, he’d claim, were all the viruses that had infected your PC. If you were convinced by this, you’d be encouraged to hand over remote control of your PC to the caller so that he could ‘fix it’ – but only after parting with payment for this service.

 Now, with a bit of luck, this scam has been shut down. You can read the full story on the BBC’s website at www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-26818745, but the upshot is that the scammer has been caught, sentenced and fined. It’s not much of a sentence (or much of a fine, although the court costs help to inflate it), but it should ensure that he doesn’t do it again.

 Of course, there’s no knowing whether this scam was all the work of one man, or whether there are others still at large and still operating the same racket. In case there are, remember how it works and be sure to hang up if you receive a phone call making similarly outrageous claims.

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Telephone messages from “Windows.”

Earlier this year telephone calls were received purporting to be coming from Windows advising that the computer of the person called was putting out messages that were affecting a large number of other computers. It was requested that the person receiving these calls be talked through putting a programme on their computer to remedy the fault. Persons had agreed and an extortionate amount of money was demanded for this service. This was a scam and computers had to be taken to a computer shop to have the computers repaired.

The calls originated from Liverpool and Cairo in Egypt and could be made from all over the world and with today´s technology appear to have come from a telephone number anywhere else in the world. The British Police in the Liverpool area were aware of this but could only advise people to ignore this scam.

I have recently received again one of these calls. It was made by a man with an Asian accent who said that he was calling from Windows and was in America. My phone showed “Number Privado”.

BEWARE. THEY ARE STILL ABOUT

Do not give these any information ...just put the phone down

 

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Little computer tip in case you did not know The difference between http and https... the little thing that means a lot.

 

The main difference between http:// and  https://


It's all about security - HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transport Protocol.
 The S (big surprise)stands for "Secure". If you visit a website or webpage, and look at the address in the web browser, it will likely begin with the following: http://. This means that the website is talking to your browser using the regular 'unsecure' language. In other words, it is possible for someone to "eavesdrop" on your computer's conversation with the website. If you fill out a form on the website, someone might see the information you send to that site.

This is why you never ever enter your credit card number in a http website!


But if the web address begins with https:// that basically means your computer is talking to the website in a secure code that no one can eavesdrop on. You understand why this is so important, right?

If a website ever asks you to enter your credit card information, you should automatically look to

see if the web address begins with https://

If it doesn't, there's no way you should ever enter sensitive information like a credit card number, PIN, Social Security #, etc.

Be very careful

 

 

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65. Typosquatting: How Spelling Errors Could Lead to Scams

It’s a common enough scenario, and familiar to most: When typing a URL in the Web browser’s address bar, you accidentally mistype the name. You may type ctibank.com instead of citibank.com, gacebook.com instead of facebook.com, or the ever popular gooogle.com instead of google.com.
 The page at the wrong address is an example of typosquatting, where scammers register domains with names that are similar to legitimate sites. The owner of the site benefits from the fact that the user mistyped the name, whether by displaying ads and links, setting up fake storefronts, or tricking users with phishing pages.



At best, it’s just an annoyance. At its worst, it may be malicious. And it’s pretty prevalent. Experts have estimated nearly 80 percent of mistyped URLs wind up on typosquatting sites.


Not Always Bad, But Usually
Of course, some sites may legitimately have addresses that look similar to popular brands. Those are easy to figure out. If you land on goole.com, you will know it’s a site about an English town, and not a typosquatting one. Then there are the pages that seem harmless, such as the ones displaying advertisements or a parked page with a bunch of links. The typosquatting page window.com has links to Windows 7 and Windows 8, but if you don’t click on it and just close the window, no harm done.

While advertisements, offers to sell you the domain, or these parked pages constitute a majority of the typosquatting sites, there is a very real danger associated with these fake pages. Cybercriminals can grab these domains to create fake websites that look similar to the actual site so that users don’t realize right away they’ve landed in the wrong place. This is the perfect setup for a phishing scam, to trick users into entering their login credentials before redirecting them back to the real site. The users don’t realize what happened, and the criminals operating the site now have their information.

Fake sites Wikapedia.com and Twtter.com took the phishing scam another step further, by making the pages look like the real sites and displaying advertisements for contests offering iPads and MacBooks as prizes. Users were prompted to enter their credit card information and other sensitive information as part of the contest to claim their prizes.


Fraudulent Transactions
Scammers may set up an online store to convince visitors to browse and shop for products. If it was a typo domain appl.com, users may not realize they’d just bought junk and not a brand new Mac Book Pro. Or they may see a link for iTunes but wind up signing up for a service that sends prime-rate SMS messages to your cellphone.

Scammers may also be using the sites to drive some clicks to their advertising campaigns. Don’t click.

Criminals may setup sites hosting malware at these sites. This is a bit more unusual, since attackers aren’t going to be able to dispose of the domain and move onto a new one when the address invariably gets blacklisted for hosting malware. There aren’t that many variations of the domain name the attackers can use, so they tend to use other scams instead that will let them use the domain for a longer period of time.


How to Stay Safe
Companies take typosquatting seriously. Apple has in the past gone to the courts regarding appl.com, wwwApple.com, appl-e.com, and apples-stores.com for being too similar to its own domain name. Back in 2012, a United Kingdom watchdog organization fined wikapedia.com and Twtter.com $156,000 each for trying to trick users into thinking they were the real sites. A California judge ruled in favour of Facebook in May last year, awarding the social networking giant close to $2.8 million in damages and control of a little over a hundred domains with misspelled variants of its name.

When typing in the link to a website, pay close attention to what you type. Don’t just hit enter or click on “search” right away—read over what you typed to try to catch that typo at the last minute.

It’s also important to get in the habit of quickly checking the URL to make sure you landed on the page you intended. Sometimes the site may look like the real thing, and that last check can help you from making a big mistake.

Enable safe browsing mode in the Web browser. Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome all have features where they block access to a page suspecting of hosting malware or otherwise malicious. If the site you fat-fingered is malicious, the browser will stop you.

Make sure your security software is up-to-date. If the typosquatting page hosts malware, the antivirus software will most likely detect the danger and block the file from being downloaded onto your computer.

Above all, never, ever, click on links in emails, text, chat messages, or social networking sites. You may not realize the links have a typo when you first look at it. If you type the URL instead of clicking, you will notice the typo, and thus avoid the scam.



(c) Zone Alarm Newsletter
 

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64. How to remove a CD from a closed drive.

Have you ever needed to open your optical drive when the power was off? Maybe the drive quit working but your favorite music CD, game DVD, or BD movie was stuck inside? Or you simply powered down your PC and left the CD in the drive.

This easy trick will get the drive bay open fast! It will work every time on a laptop PC but extra care is needed on a desktop or tower PC.

Difficulty: (Very) Easy

What You Need: A single, reasonably-heavy-duty paperclip

Time Required: Using a paperclip to open your stuck disc drive will probably take less than 5 minutes, start to finish

Here's How:

1. Unfold the paperclip until there is at least 1 to 2 inches (2 to 5 cm) that is perfectly straight.

2. Look closely at your disc drive. Directly under or above the drive bay door (the part that "ejects" the disc) there should be a very small pinhole. On a laptop the pinhole will be right on the face of the CD drive.

Tip: If you have one of those desktop optical drives where a large door flips down before the drive bay ejects, pull that down with your finger and then look for the pinhole.
3. Push the paperclip into the pinhole. On a laptop the CD drive will pop open immediately.

4. On a desktop or tower, directly behind the pinhole, is small gear that when rotated will manually open the drive.

Remove and reinsert the paperclip as often as needed to eject the drive bay enough to grab a hold of it.

5. Slowly pull on the drive bay until it's fully retracted. Take care not to continue to pull when you feel resistance.

6. Remove the disc from the drive.

Slowly push the drive bay back into the drive until closed.

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63. Why You Should Take Your Passwords Seriously

I have touched on this subject in previous articles but make no apologies about repeating it. YOUR PASSWORDS ARE OFTEN YOUR ONLY SECURITY ON SENSITIVE SITES SUCH AS BANKS AND INVESTMENTS. Read the article and take note. Even after banging on about this aspect of security for a long time, my own “very secure” password was compromised on my email account a couple of months ago :-

Unfamiliar messages. Passwords that no longer work. These are just two of the many clues that cybercriminals have gotten a hold of your password and broken into your account.

With the password compromised, the first step is to regain control over the account by changing passwords and checking configuration settings to make sure nothing has changed. However, if the root problem (how the passwords were successfully stolen) is not fixed, then the accounts will just get compromised again and again. That’s why it’s important to take your passwords seriously and to make sure they are strong.

Passwords are immensely valuable, whether they are for email, e-commerce sites, or even “just” a social media platform. Criminals aren’t after your Spotify passwords because they want to see who your favorite artists are. They are banking on the high likelihood that the same password will unlock your email, retail Website, or even your work network. Considering the number of people who re-use their passwords across multiple sites, there is a good chance that someone’s Twitter password is the same as that person’s online banking account.


This is why it’s important to have a unique password for every account and service. If attackers do manage to steal one password, at least the damage is limited to just that site, instead of impacting multiple services. It’s also important to recognize how cybercriminals steal the passwords in the first place and avoid those scams from the start.


How Cybercriminals Steal Passwords
Cybercriminals employ several methods to steal passwords. They can use stealthy malware, tricky social engineering techniques, or just plain brute-force to guess the password. Whichever method they use, the goal is the same: gain access to as many user accounts as possible.


Malware:
All it takes to infect a computer with malware is one person opening a specially crafted attachment, or clicking on a booby-trapped link in a spam message. Cybercriminals send out spam messages promising special deals on luxury goods, offering exclusive details on current events, or the latest gossip on celebrities to trick people into clicking on links. Or they craft emails using basic social engineering tricks to convince users the emails are legitimate, such as pretending to apply for a job, sending delivery notification messages, or even using data mined from social media sites and pretending to be an acquaintance.

The malware likely installs a keylogger component on the computer, which captures every keystroke typed, whether it’s an email message or every single login credential for every single site the user visits. Once the keylogger is installed, the criminals can easily harvest every password ever entered. This is why it is important to keep the security software regularly updated and to scan the computer regularly for malware.


Phishing:
Phishing is a form of social engineering that is very effective. Attackers craft a message that appears to be from a legitimate brand, such as your bank, or well-known sites such as eBay and PayPal, or even a corporate site. When the user clicks on the link, they see a Website which looks like the real thing—maybe the logo on the page is the same. The user thinks it is a real site and enters their login credentials. All the information typed on the bogus site goes directly to the criminals, and the user often has no idea that the password, and now the account, has been compromised.

This is why it is important to be wary of messages in the inbox, to avoid clicking on links in email messages, and to scrutinize all sites to make sure the site is real. Checking the URL carefully is a good way to screen out bad sites, such as www.fcebook.com.


Password Cracking
Cybercriminals may just try to brute-force the password, operating on the assumption that the password is not so complicated. Many users still make the mistake of selecting simple passwords, such as ’123456′ or ‘password.’ If the password is a common word that can be found in the dictionary, or a simple sequence of numbers and letters, there are cracking tools that can figure out the actual password. This is why it is important to select unique passwords that are complex, such as having both lower case and upper case letters, symbols, and numbers. Passwords should also be long, to make it harder to crack.

Attackers will continue to employ various techniques to try to get their hands on user passwords. By employing better password hygiene, users can protect themselves from attack, and to minimize the damage even if the password does get compromised. Passwords aren’t perfect, but unless something better comes along, make sure your passwords are all unique, complex, and long.


Reproduced from the Zone Alarm Blog 

62. More news on Windows 8

A few weeks ago I mentioned that the next version of Windows was expected to be called Windows 8.2 and would probably arrive in October – exactly a year after Windows 8.1 and two years after the original Windows 8. That all seems sensible and logical, but it now also seems to be wrong.

A new version of Windows is indeed on the way, but it’s due to arrive in April. And rather than being called Windows 8.2, it will apparently go by the exotic name of ‘Windows 8.1 Update 1’. From that name and the speed of its arrival, we can surmise that there won’t be a great deal that’s new or notable about it.

For something new (and hopefully notable), we have to wait until April 2015 and the release of what really should be the next version of Windows. Although Microsoft isn’t commenting publicly about it, there’s no doubt that some private commenting has been going on, and the rumours have a ring of truth.

The first rumour is that 2015’s version will be named ‘Windows 9’. The change of name obviously helps to emphasise that this version really is new, but there’s little doubt that Microsoft is keen to shed the name ‘Windows 8’ and its negative associations.

The second rumour is that the Start menu is coming back, and the third is that the new-fangled ‘Modern UI’ apps which currently fill your whole screen will be able to run in ordinary windows on the desktop, just like all the other programs we’ve been using for decades. In essence, then, the rumours hint that Windows 9 will herald a return to a more-familiar Windows.

More generally, they suggest that Microsoft is back-peddling furiously on its earlier plans for Windows. The whole point of Windows 8 was to expand Windows’ reach to encompass tablet computers and other touch-screen PCs, but the plan has misfired badly: most tablet users are choosing an Apple iPad or one of the many Google Android devices, while ordinary PC users have decided that Windows 8 is designed for tablets so it’s no use to them.

This perception of Windows 8 isn’t likely to change between now and April 2015 and that means three wasted years for Microsoft. In that time, Apple and Google have sewn up the market for tablets and smartphones between them, leaving Microsoft with just the dwindling PC market – the same market it had before, but now feeling rather ignored and let-down.

The one ray of hope on Microsoft’s horizon is that no-one is yet competing with Windows on ordinary PCs. Millions of PC users are drumming their fingers and waiting for a version of Windows they feel is designed for them. Windows 9 really has to be that version; the big question is whether Microsoft is willing and able to deliver it.

From PC Tips for Seniors www.pcforseniors.co.uk.

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61. Print your document pages in the correct order

Most printers – especially home inkjets – print onto the side of the paper that faces upwards. So, if you’re printing a multi-page document, the first page emerges face up, then the second page lands on top of it, and so on. At the end, you have a pile of sheets with page 1 on the bottom and the last page on top, and then you have to deal them out from top to bottom to reverse their order. Wouldn’t it be helpful if they could be printed in the correct order – from last page to first page – to save this bother?

Well, in Microsoft Word they can. It just takes a quick change to one of Word’s options and your documents will always be printed this way:

* Word 2013/2010: click the File tab and choose Options. At the left of the window that opens, click Advanced. Scroll down to the ‘Print’ section and tick the box beside Print pages in reverse order, then click OK.

* Word 2007: click the circular Office button and then click Word Options. At the left of the window that opens, click Advanced. Scroll down to the ‘Print’ section and tick the box beside Print pages in reverse order, then click OK.

* Word 2003/2002: choose Tools > Options and select the Print tab in the window that opens. Tick the box beside Reverse print order and then click OK. 

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60. Windows 7, a long goodbye

It’s been with us for over four years now, but Windows 7 is just starting to bid us farewell. Microsoft announced in December 2013 that it’s no longer selling Windows 7 at retail. In other words, you can’t nip into a computer store and buy a boxed copy of Windows 7 to install.

The same announcement also included the news that Windows 7 would cease to be sold with new PCs after October 2014, but apparently that was a mistake. Microsoft is now saying that the date for this is ‘to be determined’.

Whatever the actual dates, the time has come for Windows 7 to bow out. However, like all Windows-related goodbyes, this one will take a long time. If you use Windows 7 and you can’t be tempted away from it by Windows 8, Microsoft is going to continue supporting it and supplying regular updates for it until 2020.

But perhaps that isn’t going to matter. Perhaps you could be tempted away from Windows 7 after all. You may not have been enticed by Windows 8, and you may have turned your nose up at the improvements brought by Windows 8.1, but the word is that Windows 8.2 is going to be a more attractive proposition. Two little snippets have just been leaked by Microsoft insiders:

?The new-style Windows 8 apps, which currently occupy your entire screen when you use them, will be able to run in ordinary windows on the desktop, just like all the other programs we’ve been using for donkey’s years.

?Having brought back the Start button in Windows 8.1, Microsoft will bring back the much-missed Start menu in Windows 8.2.

If these two rumours do turn out to be true, it will be hard to find any reason to stick with Windows 7. The implication is that Windows 8.2 could have everything we know and like about Windows 7, coupled with some clearer thinking about the newer elements of the system.  

From PC Tips for Seniors www.pcforseniors.co.uk.

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59. A Great Application to use with your Kindle

Everywhere I go now there are people sitting on beaches or by the pool or at airports etc. reading their latest book on a Kindle. In a previous article I showed you how to transfer books from your PC to your Kindle using the built-in File Management software on your PC.

All of this is still valid but there is another much easier way to transfer books straight onto a Kindle, and maybe rename them or change the cover picture etc.

I speak here of Kindle books which you may have been given or have downloaded from the Internet, NOT those you purchase from Amazon as the latter are transferred to your Kindle on demand.

There are many types of ebooks out there on the Internet and they have different extensions to their file names. Files with extensions .mobi and .prc are already compatible with the Kindle whilst the other main category is the .epub extension which cannot be used directly.

Now if you search out and download a programme called Calibre, a genuinely free piece of software (although they welcome small contributions to help with their development) which will keep all of your books together, enable editing of their titles or cover pictures, and will also translate books with a .epub extension into a .mobi book allowing it to be read on the Kindle.

Full instructions come with the download of the software and it is simplicity itself to install and use. One of its beauties is that it recognizes when you have your Kindle plugged in to the PC and when you want to send a book to the Kindle you click on its title in Calibre then click on a button at the top which says “Send to Device” and the transfer is done for you.

I have several collections of books by my favourite authors and obviously the titles don’t necessarily follow on from one another. I rename my books so that they display in the correct order. For example, my books by Peter Robinson about Inspector Banks, the detective in Yorkshire, I rename them with the prefix “Banks 01.....”, “Banks 02......” etc.

These titles are then transferred to the Kindle along with the book allowing easy finding of a book in a particular series or genre. 

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