The network administrator an a company ran a normal web activity report of all the enterprise’s users and found that the employees were logging thousands of hits per day on a single site that had nothing to do with the business. What was found was not that the employees were slacking while at work, rather the network was infected with spyware that was tracking the surfers’ activity then sending the information back to the web site for a third part to review and use, all without the employees’ knowledge.

Spyware can and will slow a computer’s bandwidth as well as cause the network to gradual decrease its speed. Many companies are beginning to worry about spyware because it has become so easy to get and install into unknowing users’ computers. Most employees do not know that by clicking on a pop up or web site or by downloading free files such as a screen saver they are letting spyware into the system.

There are numerous programs available to find and delete these malicious spyware applications. Taking preventative measures against spyware will save networks much more time and money than if they wait to remove the spyware after it is already installed and doing its work. Users cannot think they are safe surfing the internet without spyware protection. It is necessary for personal and business network computers to find and use an anti-spyware program that will not only scan for current infection but also protect your computer while you are online.

The above mentioned business used Wavecrest’s Cyfin monitoring program to solve their problems and detect any unusual activity occurring. Wavecrest includes a Cyblock filter so while employees are online the software is protecting against future spyware invasions. For more information on how Wavecrest’s security works visit their site at wavecrest.net.

Mitch Johnson is a successful freelance author that writes regularly for http://www.1st-in-eliminate-spyware.com, a site that focuses exclusively on spyware removal software, as well as tips on how to prevent spyware from popping up on your computer. This site articles on has spyware guard, http://www.1st-in-spyware-detection.com/ as well as spyware scanner, http://www.1st-in-spyware-removal-tools.com/

Go ahead; mention computer security to the average small business owner. See how fast his hand covers his wallet. This is because most people see security as an expense. The average small business owner immediately thinks about the costs to implement something, not necessarily how it will help his business.

Of course, this reaction varies on the number of security incidents the small business owner has experienced. It is amazingly easy to convince a client to install a backup system after he has lost his entire customer database.

So what do we do? Nothing in the business world exists in a vacuum. Especially security, we need to look at security as an enhancement to the business. Not just as an expense.

Security can be a somewhat vague concept. So let us break it down into segments and define what it really means.

Physical security is the actual measures you take to protect your premises and equipment. It could be putting locks on your doors or hiring a security guard to control access to your building.

Information security means taking actions to safeguard your data, both electronic and printed. This consists of adopting security policies and imposing an electronic authentication and control system on yourself and your employees.

All of this enhances productivity by creating an environment that functions smoothly.

Clearly defined security practices are necessary to avoid over control. These practices can greatly enhance the productivity of your employees by reducing down time.

Security professionals need to balance the need for securing the network against the possibility of hindering productivity. In the real world, security can be too tight.

All it takes is one virus to demonstrate how security vulnerabilities can destroy productivity.

Another of the benefits to implementing a quality security program is the increased ability to control costs.

In the planning stages, you need to gather information on all of your vulnerabilities and assets. A good inventory plan will be necessary to complete this stage. Once finished, it will assist you with managing your resources.

A through business survey will identify areas of your business that need improvement and areas that perform especially well. Knowing these strengths and weaknesses will allow you to allocate funds with more certainty.

Growing a business is not just about getting new customers or keeping the ones you have. It is also about managing your resources and controlling costs. Asset management is a big part of this.

How much control do you have over your business? Are you spending money in places you shouldn’t? How do you know?

Look at security and inventory control as a means of enhancing or managing your cash flow. Almost 40% of small businesses fail every year because of cash flow! Will one of them be yours?

As a small business owner you must, yes must, accept that computer security is necessary in this day and age. Failure to implement a strong security program leaves your business open to exploitation and compromise.

Right now, go online or to the yellow pages and find an IT consultant to assist you with securing your business. Do it now!

Parrott Writing Services, a San Antonio Texas company specializing in web content, ghostwriting, website optimization, online/offline ad copy and technical writing to small businesses.

http://www.rickparrott.com

Send an email to: EBOOK@sasecure.net for a FREE electronic copy of my eBook on Computer Security!

Spyware is one of the biggest threats to your privacy and the security of your data. Here’s a series of helpful questions and answers that can help you remove and minimize future spyware from your computer.

Spyware comes in various forms, but basically it is a program or piece of information on your computer that either sends data about you or your computer habits to someone else on the Internet. This can be a company that is collecting data, or a thief seeking to steal access to your computer or data like bank information on it. Spyware can also be a program that places unwanted ads on your computer. Cookies can be considered spyware. They are little piece of information placed in your web browser to track your web habits. This is useful sometimes as a web site can see you have visited it before and let you on without a registration process. Cookies are also used to keep track of your progress through a web store. They are also used to customize website ads to your likes and dislikes.

Spyware is bad because for one it can hog precious system resources like memory and hard disk space. It can also compromise your privacy, providing outsiders with information about your computer habits. If a spyware program installs a keylogger it can capture your keystrokes and send it to a third party. This can potentially expose your user IDs and passwords to thieves. Some spyware are trojans which allows someone to log into your computer remotely and use it for their own purposes like sending spam or launching malicious attacks on other computers on the Internet, making it look like you are at fault.

There are several techniques how spyware get’s on your computer. Sometimes they arrive as an automatic download from a website you are surfing. Typically this happens a lot on porn sites. Sometimes if you download a free or illegal piece of software, they are embedded in the installation process. Or spyware can get on your computer via an email attachment that you shouldn’t have opened.

Sometimes a spyware program is very obvious and it can be deleted manually. It adds itself to your menu bar and be found listed in your Add/Remove Programs list in your Windows Control Panel. Click START, (then if you have Win95/98/Me click Settings) then Control Panel then Add/Remove Programs and look for a program that you don’t recognize. Sometimes its obvious….like "XXX dialer" or something like that. Just use the Add/Remove Programs features to remove it. Sometimes its not as evident and you have to go diving into the registry and delete entries and also search for specific files on your hard drive and remove them. There are good list of spyware removal techniques that can be found on the internet.

There are a few things you can do to stop spyware. Don’t download programs by companies you are not familiar with. Avoid shareware and freeware. Don’t download illegal pirated software. Set your browser security to high. One Internet Explorer, click Tools > Internet Options > then the Security tab and move the slider to MEDIUM or preferably HIGH. The only problem with this is it may block access to some websites you want to see. Ultimately your best bet is to get an anti-spyware program and scan your system regularly.

Mike Stewart and his company http://www.Freespamfilter.nl provide Free Anti Virus - Spyware remover - Adware removal - Pop Up Blockers and Spam Filters at their website http://www.Freespamfilter.nl

As more and more people are becoming comfortable using their computers at school, home or in the office it’s only a matter of time before they encounter a computer virus. Here are our top 10 steps to protect you from computer viruses.

Use a high quality anti-virus program. There are many different anti-virus computers programs on the market some of them are better than others. Look to reputable computer magazines or websites for ratings to help you find the one that matches your needs.

Always use your anti-virus software. Make sure your anti-virus software is always turned on and scanning, incoming and outgoing email messages, and any software programs you run.

Keep your antivirus programs up to date. Most programs come with a yearly subscription make sure you take advantage of the updates. More advanced programs allow you to schedule updates or full system scans for “off hours” like 2AM when you aren’t likely to be using your computer.

Keep your computer up to date. From time to time operating systems fall victim to security holes or issue updates. Make sure you check periodically to make sure you are running stable up to date versions of your software.

Backup your data regularly. Most windows computer users keep their documents in the “My documents” folder. This makes it easy to back up all of your important documents. Make weekly or monthly copies to CD or USB drives.

If you use floppy disks or USB drives on public computers like your school computer lab, Kinko’s, or even digital photo printing store make sure you scan them for viruses. Public computers are notorious for not being up to date and properly protected.

Be wary of email attachments. Treat any email attachment as potentially dangerous. Never open attachments from people you weren’t expecting. Also be careful of attachments from people you know but weren’t expecting. Many computer viruses replicate themselves by reading the contacts from an infected computer.

Use text email if possible. While HTML email is prettier and allows you more control over formatting it also can carry computer viruses. If you use text based email the only way to get a virus is by opening an attachment.

Use downloaded freeware and shareware files or software with caution. Try to download them from popular reputable sources that scan the programs before they are uploaded. To make sure you are safe scan the program before you install it on your computer.

Be wary of links in IM or instant messaging software. Don’t accept invitations from people you don’t know and never click a link from someone you don’t trust, they can easily redirect you to another website that will try to install a virus on your computer system.

© Computers.6ln.com, All Rights Reserved.

This article was written by Jim Faller of http://computers.6ln.com a website with information about viruses, spyware, adware, backups, data recovery and computer security.

I have had to fix hundreds of computers over the past several years and most of them could have been easily avoided by using antivirus software and making sure everything was up to date. This is not hard to do you just need to learn to make it a part of your routine.

Best Antivirus Software

Viruses are little executable programs that run on your computer, normally without you knowing and can cause an immense amount of damage to so little that you don’t even notice. The best way to guard yourself is to not go on the internet, or even better don’t own a computer. If that isn’t a viable option for you then you are going to need a virus scanner. Most people are going to suggest Norton or McAfee but I have found these to be lacking. I have found in many instances that AVG virus scanner actually will detect more viruses than Norton will. AVG is completely free and can be found by searching through Google. Make sure you update your virus definitions on a regular basis, a minimum of once a week, I suggest every morning. This will ensure that you have the latest up to date virus list so that you are protected and also if you have one of those viruses you can clean and remove it.

Email a Virus Without Even Knowing

Next watch out for email attachments. If you do not know the person who sent the email, don’t open it. Most new viruses spread by extracting your email address from other computers and sending you an email with the virus as an attachment.

Downloads From Sites

Some web sites request that you download an ActiveX DLL or Java Applet or some other piece of software in order to use a certain function on their web site. You need to be careful when deciding whether to download it or not. There are a few rules I follow to make sure that I don’t download something I should. If you are on an adult site do not download anything unless you absolutely have to. Make sure that the site/company has a good reputation; this can normally be done by searching Google.

Downloading From P2P

If you are downloading from a peer-to-peer program like Kazaa, Bearshare, WinMX or any other P2P program you are at your own risk. Most computers that I’ve seen that have this software on it end up having plenty of viruses and spyware. Now, this is not due to the P2P software itself but is due to the files that you are downloading through it. If you must have a P2P program, please make sure that your virus definitions are up to date at all times.

Don’t Rely On Automatic Update

On of the worse things you can do is to rely on the automatic update that come with the antivirus that you have. This will normally not send you an update notification until a few days after there is an update that you can get. Any antivirus software that I’ve seen allows you to manually download any updates that are available.

When Should I Scan My Computer

I leave my computer running 24/7 and if you do the same I would suggest scheduling a time somewhere around 2:00am. This allows the scan to run when no one is on it and will catch anything might have gotten by the automatic scan for one reason or another. If you turn your computer off at night, I suggest a scan right when you turn it on for the first time that day.

Conclusion

You will probably still get a virus from time to time but it should be a lot less frequent and will normally be something minor that you will get. Also if you need up getting a virus it will normally be caught within 24 hours which will reduce the amount of destruction that it can cause your computer and to others.

I am an all around big Geek with too much time on my hands. My main services are web design/development and PC repair. I’ve been doing both of these for the past 5 years and consider myself pretty good at what I do but, more importnantly, I love it. Webcyte Design

Stopping spyware and adware is not a difficult task if people just simply take the time to be careful. To make it even easier, however, I have created a simple 3 step guideline to stop spyware and adware from infesting and slowing down your computer. Following these 3 simple steps will greatly improve your internet experience and all in all will make your computer very happy.

The 3 simple steps are…

1. Only trust certain websites
2. Always assume no
3. Get anti spyware software

Let’s examine each step individually.

Only Trust Certain Websites

One common problem with people is that they are too trusting. In the real world where with your family and friends, this is always a good thing. However, in the internet, this is a very bad idea.

Let’s make an analogy here. Let’s say you go to New York Park and a man walks up to you asking if he can borrow $10. Ten dollars is not much, but he doesn’t just want the green, he wants your credit card number. You obviously say no and walk away, right? You can’t trust a man that you have never seen in your life with something as valuable as your credit card, can you?

The same can be said on the internet. There is probably one website to every human being on this planet, and we all know not everyone on this planet is trust worthy and safe. How can we then say that every website is safe? It’s simply not true.

When a website asks if they can install something on your computer, it’s just like the man in the park asking for your credit card number. You may not be able to see the parallel right away, but think about it. You may have your bank statements downloaded on your computer, a picture of your children, several passwords, and maybe even personal emails. Spyware and adware not only slow down your computer, but it actually spies on you and steals your personal information.

How do you know what websites to trust and which to not? It’s very simple. How do you know who to trust in the real world? Between a clean, well dressed man or woman on Wall Street and a man in shaggy clothes who looks to be in bad health in a ghetto, you’d obviously choose the well dress one on Wall Street, right? Maybe you know of this website from some other people you trust, so you can inherit the trust from others. Maybe it’s a big name website or owned by a big name like Yahoo, Google, or Microsoft.

All of these websites you could trust because you know of them personally already. That’s not to say you can’t trust more websites, though. Such websites need to gain your trust though, either by helping you personally, not asking for personal identifiable information, or not asking you to install anything on your computer.

Always Assume No

So let’s say you are surfing the web and you are on a website you’re not sure if you can trust yet or not. Out of no where it asks “Such and such as requested to install an ActiveX control…blah blah blah” Too often people think “Oh, it’s just one thing, I’ll click ok.”

This is the biggest mistake on the internet ever. Just like the man in the park, why would you say “Ok”? Do you know this website, has it gained your trust? How can you just say yes out of nowhere? You have to let it gain your trust first.

Let’s say you go to Yahoo! Games and it asks to install something. You should know of Yahoo, and you know that you are trying to play a game, so you can draw your conclusion that you can safely install something.

Get Anti Spyware Software

One sure fire way to make sure you stop spyware and not get any is to get anti spyware software. It is the best way that, even if you accidentally click “yes”, it will still block it so you know you are 100% safe. It will catch anything.

Following these steps should help you out on your journey on the internet and keep you safe. Following these basic guidelines will become second nature to you after a while and you will always be safe. Be sure to send these guidelines around to your friends as well, to help keep them safe and keeping you safe as well when they need to use your computer. Good luck on your journey!

Stephen Craton is a computer expert and has helped countless people across the world with computer related issues. His most recent site shows you how to rid your computer of harmful spyware by using simple software programs at http://www.adware-removers.net.

Before authentication methods can be discussed, authentication should be defined. So basically we are deciding whether someone or something is, who or what it is declared to be.

In both private situations and in public Internet usage, authentication is commonly done through the use of logon passwords. Recognition and remembrance of the password is assumed to guarantee that the user is authentic. The Achilles’ heel in this system is that transaction passwords can often be stolen, accidentally revealed, or forgotten.

For this reason, Internet business and many other transactions require a sturdier authentication approach. The use of digital certificates issued and verified by a Certificate Authority (CA) as part of a public key infrastructure may become the norm in processing authentication on the Internet.

There are three methods by which a human can authenticate themselves:

1. Something about the user is recognized as unique

2. Something the user possesses is unique

3. Something the user knows (a password or PIN) is unique

Also, a combination of methods is used, e.g., a bank card and a PIN, in which case the term "two-factor authentication" can be used.

In the law enforcement world, fingerprints have been used as the most authoritative method of authentication, but recent ourt cases have doubted their reliability (as have retinal and fingerprint scans).

In the computer environment, cryptographic methods have been developed which are currently very reliable if the user’s key has not been compromised.

There are two ways of restricting access to online documents: either by the browser hostname, or by asking for a username and password. Using the browser hostname can restrict the use of documents within a company or group of individuals. However if the people who are allowed to access the documents are in different locations, or the server administrator needs to be able to control access on an individual basis, it is possible to require a username and password before being allowed access to a document. This is called user authentication.

Configuring user authentication requires creating a file containing the usernames and passwords and then telling the server what sectors are to be protected and which users are allowed (after entering a valid password) to access them.

The directives to create the protected area can be placed in an .htaccess file in the directory concerned, or in a section in the access.conf file.

To allow a directory to be restricted within an .htaccess file, one must verify that the access.conf file allows user authentication to be set up in an .htaccess file. This is controlled by the AuthConfig override. The access.conf file should include AllowOverride AuthConfig to allow the authentication directives to be used in an .htaccess file.

To restrict a directory to any user listed in the users file just created, one can create an .htaccess file containing:

AuthName "restricted stuff"

AuthType Basic

AuthUserFile /usr/local/etc/httpd/users

require valid-user

These are but a few online authentication methods because, unfortunately, people still do not trust the Worldwide Web for the safety of their money transactions. With increased trust in the safety of online processing comes benefits for the business owner which include greater profitability and improved business/customer relationships. And benefits for the consumer with more convenient bill payment processing and account access.

Reggie Andersen is a home business office advocate. He recommends persistence and a healthy work environment including a strict schedule, good ethics, fast bandwidth Bandwidth Resources and verifiable authentication methods (For more authentication resources, see: Authentication Methods)

Safe web surfing on the Internet continues to get harder every day. Even though you can’t eliminate all of the risks, there are ways you can reduce some of the danger.

Anything you download from the Internet is a threat but a few software types are particularly known for including spyware and adware. With these safe web surfing tips and common sense you can avoid a lot of common problems.

Any file-sharing program is a big problem because the files come from several computers. The first safe web surfing tip is stay away from file-sharing programs all together because this is a major source of computer problems today.

Another good safe web surfing tip is beware of any product that claims to be free. It’s not always the case, but it is very possible that the publisher generates revenue from pop up ads while you are on the Internet. There is a reason it’s free and it’s not a good one.

Again it’s not always the case, but many porn and gambling sites are also known to use pop up, spyware and adware programs. Be aware that this is a big potential problem if you visit these kinds of web sites.

Another helpful safe web surfing tip is go into Microsoft’s windowsupdate.com site regularly to update your system with the latest security patches.

It’s also not enough nowadays just to run and keep your anti-virus programs up to date. Spyware and Adware are now ahead of viruses as the number one danger facing computer users today. So you need to arm yourself with spyware protection software and keep it updated.

Most spyware sites offer you the ability to download and remove spyware free to get rid of the spyware and adware that you already have on your computer.

Some of you might ask with the ability to download and remove spyware free why you would need anything else. But free spyware programs actually give you a false sense of security and should be a wake-up-call instead of a solution.

Most spyware programs reinstall automatically in a matter of minutes from being cleaned from your computer with free scans. Hackers have figured out that most people will just use free scans.

But once you are protected with spyware protection software you are no longer an ideal target for them because the software eliminates the malicious programs.

The tips above can never guarantee safe web surfing but they can help you become aware of some common problem areas. Be cautious and install spyware protection software so you are able to enjoy safe web surfing again.

Copyright © 2005 Spyware Information.com All Rights Reserved.

This article is provided by http://www.spyware-information.com where you will find free spyware cleaners, downloads, removal software, computer firewalls and valuable tips. For regularly updated articles about adware, spyware and protection from identity theft go to http://spyware-information.com/articles_1.html

If you are looking for safer online shopping you may want to consider a virtual credit card. It takes away a lot of the risk of personal information and credit card numbers falling into the hands of thieves.

A virtual credit card offers you the option of shopping online with a disposable credit card number that are single-use credit card numbers, which expire within one or two months.

The security benefit of using a virtual credit card for online shopping is your normal bank account is not affected if an online scam artist happens to get your account number.

There’s no value to hackers because you use a different, random card number every time you shop online. A virtual credit card number is only good on the Web site where you made your purchase.

With identity theft and email phising scams rising at an alarming level it’s a good way to keep your sensitive information private. Even if a scammer does somehow acquire your virtual credit card number, the disposable credit card number expires quickly so it’s not an ideal target for them.

The major credit card companies all offer prepaid virtual credit cards and the amount is limited to how much you apply to the card. You are protected just like a regular credit card if they are lost or stolen.

MasterCard calls them MasterCard gift cards and Visa calls them virtual Visa gift cards. You can use them anywhere MasterCard and Visa are accepted.

There are some instances when paying with a virtual credit card won’t work. You can’t pick up theater tickets; confirm airline, hotel or rental car reservations with a virtual credit card. These credit card numbers don’t exist off the Web so they don’t work for these things.

But if you are using the disposable credit card numbers for buying products online the security benefits are well worth it. If you are looking for safer online shopping consider a virtual credit card.

Copyright © 2005 Spyware Information.com All Rights Reserved.

This article is provided by http://www.spyware-information.com where you will find free spyware cleaners, downloads, removal software, computer firewalls and valuable tips. For regularly updated articles about adware, spyware and protection from identity theft go to http://spyware-information.com/articles_1.html

In the fight against privacy invasions by spyware the TrekEight company announced in 2004 that their software designed to find and eliminate spyware, SpywareNuker, has reached 6 million users. Most commonly used for advertising and marketing purposes, spyware gets into your computer and tracks your computer and internet usage information. With this knowledge the intruder targets product specific ads to you based on you online purchases and sites visited.

On a more dangerous note spyware has the capability to find, record and send or sell to third parties you credit card and social security numbers as well as passwords, bank accounts and other private information. Officials from TrekEight have said that spyware can be annoying and even threatening but with the help of SpywareNuker computer users are able to and have taken advantage of the opportunity to protect themselves.

SpywareNuker gives users who suspect they have spyware a free spyware and adware scan. After the scan, questionable files are compiled in a list for the user to review along with descriptions. The user can choose to utilize SpywareNuker to remove the infected file if they do not wish to do so themselves. Technical officials for SpywareNuker have said the program was designed to be easy to use while continuing to provide ultimate protection for users. For beginners and advanced computer users, SpywareNuker will be satisfying and easy to navigate.

Mitch Johnson is a successful freelance author that writes regularly for http://www.1st-in-spyware.com/, a site that focuses exclusively on spyware removal software, as well as tips on how to prevent spyware from popping up on your computer. This site articles on has spyware guard, http://www.easy-spyware-killer.info/ as well as spyware scanner, http://www.easy-remove-spyware.info/