Facebook scams are at an all time high. I know I usually get at least one friend request from someone pretending to be one of my established Facebook friends every week. This excellent article from Scambusters gives you plenty of information on how not to become a victim, and how to lessen the chance someone would ever want to spoof your Facebook account by hiding your friends list from everyone but yourself. I highly recommend you implement that recommendation immediately.
Sans Ouch! Newsletter – Lessons From WannaCry (Latest Ransomware Attack)
The latest Ouch! newsletter has great information regarding the recent WannaCry ransomware attack, and how to make sure you are as prepared as possible to not be a victim of this, or any of the next generation variants that will eventually show up. Unfortunately, the “bad guys” are making too much money to stop.
Cyberattacks Are Here to Stay…Unfortunately
You have been hearing about the scary cyberattack causing all types of problems on a global scale in the news. The good news is if you are using a currently supported operating system (Windows 7 or higher) you are protected. If you use Malwarebytes Premium you would have been protected regardless of whether or not your operating system was still supported. Companies and individuals running unsupported or unpatched operating systems are the real targets of these crooks. Microsoft in an unprecedented move, even released a patch for XP and Vista operating systems to stem the ransomware’s impact. I’m afraid it’s going to get worse before it gets better. Remember: keep your operating system updated. If you are not already using Malwarebytes Premium, now may be the time to start. This is just the beginning of the new norm. Please contact us if you have any questions about your security status/risk.
Sans Ouch! Newsletter – Securing Today’s Online Kids
The latest Ouch! newsletter has great information regarding how to help children be safe and secure online. Good communication and education are the keys to achieving this goal.
WordPress Websites Are Under Attack; Make Sure You Aren’t Part of the Problem
Unpatched home routers are being used to attack WordPress websites across the Internet. Wordfence, a WordPress website security company, has documented the problem in detail, and developed a simple tool to test your home router to see if it’s vulnerable. It contains detailed information on how to interpret the results. The main thing to keep in mind is that if the router is owned by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), you will probably have to contact them. If you own your own router, you will need to deal with any issues discovered. As always, if you need help with this or any other issue, we are here to help.
Your Privacy On The Internet
There has been a lot in the news recently about Congress repealing privacy laws that will allow Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to sell their subscriber’s usage data to interested third parties. The first thing to know is that the laws that have been repealed, were actually never enacted! We the people, are in the same boat we were in before the repeal made the news. I think we can all agree that any loss of privacy is a step in the wrong direction, and something that we all need to try and hold our elected representatives accountable for.
The good news is that there is no need to go subscribe to a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service, at least not at this time. The data ISPs collect is not broken down to the individual level. It’s very broad and generic. For example, they are not selling the fact that Bill was on msn.com at 10 am on Monday morning, however the fact that 20% of NC internet users access msn.com daily is data that advertisers will pay good money to find out. Continue accessing the Internet with confidence, at least for now.
Sans Ouch! Newsletter – Passwords/Passphrases
The latest Ouch! newsletter has great information regarding how to create complex passwords/passphrases that are easily remembered and hard for crooks to hack. Short or “normal word”passwords are typically the weakest link in account security. Following the recommendations in this article will help your accounts safe.
Social Engineering Video
It doesn’t matter how much security you put into place, we the end user tend to be the weakest link when the “bad guys” take advantage of our human nature through social engineering. They determine the best ways to get you to make a hasty decision without thinking of the security consequences. I recommend watching this Sans video that will explain the concept of social engineering in more detail. Always remember, when in doubt, contact us before clicking on something, or dialing that number to a fake tech support company. Unfortunately, this is becoming more common place with each passing day.
Sans Ouch! Newsletter – Securely Using Mobile Apps
The latest Ouch! newsletter has great information regarding how to safely and securely use apps on mobile devices. Apple devices have a more vetted system to prevent malicious apps, but even they have trouble keeping them out of the Apple app store. Android devices are open source, and the thing that makes them so popular, are also what makes their app store more vulnerable to malicious apps. The tips shared will definitely help keep your devices safer. Click here to read the newsletter.
Malwarebytes Partnership
I’ve always been a big believer in the Malwarebytes company and product. I’m proud to announce that FACS, LLC is now partnering with Malwarebytes to better service our clients. I look forward to the new opportunities this provides for both our company and our clients.
I realize version 3 has had some “bumps in the road” with the real time protection unexpectedly cutting itself off, but the latest build update seems to finally have addressed that quirk. I have been impressed with the responsiveness Malwarebytes has shown to this critical issue. If you are experiencing this problem, you should uninstall your current version, and download the latest version of the software from the Malwarebytes website. If you are still having a problem, please contact us for assistance.