There are ways to insure security though. You can get the Windows Update CD from Microsoft and install that before you get online, You can also get most Antivirus Definitions downloaded and save them to disk, then install those before you go online, (of course you have to be using that Product in the first place), and you can get Anti-Spyware on a disk and do the same. But how many people do that in their excitement to take their new computer out of the box and hook it and see what it will do? Sans Internet Storm Center says those people will have their computer infected with adware or worse in less than 20 minutes! Virgin computers online are an easy target, open to attack. When that person soon realizes their brand new computer is sick, first comes the shock, then the anger, then the question; how do I fix it? If the new computer owner is lucky they can fix it fairly cheaply. It might involve a lot of time listening to elevator music while you’re in the hold queue…. either way it’s no fun.

Education is what’s needed here folks.

In this article I plan on touching on simple easy steps you can take to keep your computer happy and safe.

First let’s talk about your online connection itself. Dialup, Satellite, DSL, whatever you have, make sure they are secure. Call them and ask them. What kind of Security do they employ to keep your Web surfing secure? Most often they have the info at their site, usually in their ‘Privacy Policy”.

Ok, now the Browser part. A touchy subject with many. I use Firefox mostly and Internet Explorer only when I have to. Unless you’ve been living in a hole you know IE has its vulnerabilities. I have nothing against IE folks, it just gets targeted so much because that’s what people use most. Hackers, Spammers, Phishers, and the rest know this and swarm like sharks. Firefox has its problems too since now they are getting noticed and thus are having to work harder too at keeping their browser safe too. Whatever you use, keep it updated. Whatever you use, get some monitoring software, like Bigfix or Winpatrol. Learn how they work and you’ll be a happy web surfer.

While we’re talking about software products, let’s think about what you do online. There are many Products out there that try and cover all aspects of protecting your computer, but it’s hard to write software though to do all that. I’ve found a mixture of products do well for me. Right now I use Win patrol, Sygate Firewall, and Avast Antivirus with Ad-Aware SE to cover my bases, but what works for me may not work for you. So how do you find the right combination…. or if you’re lucky the single product that will do the job? Education. Pure and simple. You have to become educated in what is going on out there on the World Wide Web and be prepared for it. We’re not talking a lot of money either in most cases for this knowledge and help… there are some great products out there that are free! The Web is diverse, with forums, blogs, instant messaging, video conferencing, and of course websites, especially the new XXX ones. Each has its own uniqueness as far as vulnerabilities. Whatever your preference, make sure you’re safe.

Chances are though, you’ll pick up some spyware. It’s hard for the hardware and software suppliers to keep up to the minute patches available, although I’ve seen patches available in less then 3 hours from some suppliers. Hopefully what gets you will be harmless, just annoying. This kind just puts a cookie on your computer and tracks you as you go from website to website, with marketing info as what they are after. But some Spyware can be nasty! They log your keystrokes, and this means your logins, passwords and credit card numbers.

And now for Email.

How the human race ever did without email we may never know. Its one of the greatest convieniences ever and what a timesaver! You don’t need a stamp and there’s no dash to the mailbox in the rain, but as always, along with the good comes the bad. People claim in e-mails simple requests, for example, “They just want to use your bank account to put money in, or will you to open this attachment, and please just click on this URL !” Spammers, Hookers, Phishers, Oh My! My advice, scan anything that is not from someone you know with Anti-virus. Never click on a URL from your Bank, go directly to your bank’s website yourself from your Browser. Check to see if your mail program has an option to warn you if there is anything in the email that may be a virus, like in Outlook Express. It can be inconvenient sometimes, but worth it. Some of the better web based services like Yahoo have a junk mail folder that helps immensely…. I never even open the folder, I just delete the contents everyday.

Remember, you need to become educated if you’re going to be on the Internet. I hope to see in my lifetime the end of Spyware.

About the Author:
Doug Woodall has a website at http://www.spywarebiz.com

There he provides free information and recommended products to combat Spyware.

He is a member of the IWA (International Webmasters Association)

Doug can be reached at spywarebiz@comcast.net

Imagine my surprise when I received a phone call from a friend who told me he’d been the victim of a "spyware" attack that left him shaking at his loss of privacy.

I listened to his horror story with a sympathetic ear, but I felt secure since I carry anti-virus software and a firewall (both by Norton).

At his suggestion - and to my surprise - I ran a program called "Spy Sweeper" and found a veritable minefield of dangerous and harmful programs lurking on my computer.

"Spyware" is software that gets onto your computer and literally "spies" on your activities.

The spying can range from relatively harmless use of cookies tracking you across multiple websites… to extremely dangerous "keystroke loggers" which record passwords, credit cards, and other personal data. That data then gets relayed to the person who put the software on your computer.

Three primary types of spyware exist to complicate your online life, including:

1. "cookies"
2. "adware"
3. malicious programs like "keystroke loggers"

Cookies represent mostly a danger of lost privacy.

In theory, someone could use a "cookie" to track you across multiple sites, combine that data with several databases, and figure out a lot more information about you than would make you comfortable.

"Adware" tracks more than just your movement across sites, it spies on your installed software and computer habits to then serve up advertising, modify websites before you see them, and generally do things without your knowledge with the intention of trying to get you to buy things.

"Keystroke loggers" and other malicious programs exist for one purpose: to cause personal mayhem and financial damage.

Spyware gets on your computer in one of several different ways.

First, it rides along with software you download from the ‘Net and install on your system.

Second, they come as email attachments (much like viruses) and automatically install themselves on your computer when you open the email message.

Third, hackers find an open port on your computer and use the "back door" to install basically anything they want.

And fourth, the more malicious types, like keystroke loggers, can even get installed by someone with direct physical access to your computer such as an employer, suspicious spouse, business competitor, or someone who wants to know exactly what you’re doing.

Now, suppose you carry an up-to-date anti-virus program and a firewall - shouldn’t that represent potent protection?

In a word: NO!

I can personally attest that even the most up-to-date anti- virus programs and firewalls will not (repeat, WILL NOT) catch all the spyware that can infest your computer.

You need a program that specifically scans your system for the tens-of-thousands of existing spyware programs along with the new ones appearing daily.

Check out "Spy Sweeper" from webroot.com - this is the program I used to discover the spyware on my computer.

One thing I noticed, however, is that this program is a memory hog, so once I scanned, I turned it off and then use it 2-3 times a week… not the best strategy, but I want to give you the "whole" picture.

I also got the following recommendations from numerous subscribers about 2 programs to specifically help identify and remove spyware from your system (PC):

1. "Ad Aware" from lavasoft.de
2. "Spybot Search & Destroy" from safer-networking.org

The overwhelmingly recommended firewall suggested by readers was Zone Alarm Pro from Zone Labs => http://www.ebookfire.com/zonealarm.html

The bottom line seems pretty simple (but lengthy) if you want to protect yourself against this growing threat.

~ Keep your anti-virus program current
~ Install a firewall
~ Carefully screen software before installing it
~ Scan for specifically for spyware weekly
~ Stay current on this growing threat.

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com

About the Author:

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist (http://www.TheNetReporter.com) and is the author of several best-selling ebooks, information products and software programs.

Simple "Traffic Machine" brings Thousands of NEW visitors to your website for weeks, even months… without spending a dime on advertising! ==> Turn Words Into Traffic

The Internet is a vast International Network of people and businesses – and a place where people can make a fairly decent living. However, it is also a place where certain unsavory characters can freely roam – to take your dollars and run. Scams – the human mind can be either pure or devious – and it is the devious mind that you have to look out for and be aware of at all time.

The easy marks to a scam are those that are new, inexperienced, or those that are desperately looking for a way to make some money, that the swindler will usually target. Emotional hype and false sincerity are their ticket to a scam. Some are obvious, but others are not. Now, I mean no insult if you have been scammed – Why – been there and done that. Don’t be embarrassed or ashamed – be aware– and vow to be ever vigilant in your choices. And remember to reassure yourself, that next time – if, heaven forbid, you should encounter another scam, you will definitely handle it differently.

Affiliate Scams

What constitutes an affiliate scam?

1. No contact information

2. Commissions to high — (I know what you are saying – but the commission looks so good? Are you sure?) Research – people do no remain silent when they have been scammed on the Internet.

3. Your emails go unanswered.

4. Worse of all – your affiliate checks bounce.

Work-At-Home Scams

Work-At-Home scammers will gear their sights to the Mom, who wants to work at home, or the individual who lost their job, or the individual who wants to supplement their income from an on-line venture. If you’re looking for a work-at-home position remember these warning signs:

1. If you have to pay to get access to the site or database to make money – could be a scam.

2. If you receive an email – before joining – that says something on the order of “No BS – this is a legitimate offer!” Stay clear – it is BS!

3. If you’re not been paid – strong indicator you have been scammed.

4. They change rules and pay days (to, of course, to string you along and avoid paying you).

Well, I can say I haven’t encountered an affiliate scam, however, I’ve been hit with a work-at-home scam. It was my first initial attempt at finding work on the Internet before going into affiliate marketing. Anyway, I remember sending an email asking a question regarding, of all things, being paid. I received no response. So, I sent another email, stating that I could not access the link to their website and I was getting a 404 Error, and I was wondering if they could fix it. Yes, devious – but wanted to know if they would reply. And yes, they did. I knew then, it was a scam.

Report Your Scams

The Internet may be a vast network of International players, but the word scam travels quickly and people listen. If you think the telephone was a good communication tool, well, the Internet is just as good – and sometimes faster if you know where to go.

If you have been scammed and wish to prevent the scammers from getting richer and any new victims from getting poorer – use the list below – and report it.

However, please do not take this responsibility lightly — if you are wronged, or treated badly — but not scammed, do not report it. And remember — a scam occurs when a program or a business misrepresents or makes promises that they do not keep.

Report A Scam (http://www.homebasedbusinessreviews.com/reportascam.html)– You will report information here if you believe a program or business opportunity is misrepresenting itself or making promises that are not being kept.

Fraud.org (http://www.fraud.org) — This is a site where you can report different types of scams: Telemarketing scams, Elder scams, Internet Fraud, Scams Against Businesses.

Rip-Off Report (http://www.rip-offreport.com) — Rip-off Report is a consumer-to-consumer site, which is seen by over 2,892,077,866 people.

Better Business Bureau (http://www.bbb.org) — Never forget the Better Business Bureau — when you file a complaint — they will contact the organization to try and resolve the issue for you.

Web Assured (http://www.webassured.com)– You can file a complaint, as well as, look at their watch list. Companies are placed on their watch list when they blatantly disregard Internet standards.

Federal Trade Commission – (http://www.ftc.gov)

ScamWatch (http://www.scamwatch.gov.au/content/scams/scams.asp)– Scam Watch covers scams from financial to investments, pyramid schemes and miracle cure.

ScamBusters (http://www.scambusters.org) To conclude, when beginning work on the Internet, you will encounter obvious scams, and not so obvious scams. The key is research, and as always, Buyer Beware. If your gut gets an uneasy knot in it and, if you hear yourself saying, "This is just too good to be true?" — Take note, it probably is.

Vickie J Scanlon has a BBA degree in Administrative Management and Marketing. She left the corporate world as an Reports Programmer, to begin her journey as an Internet marketer.

Visit her site at: http://www.myaffiliateplace.biz for free tools, articles, ebooks, and how to info, income opportunities, affiliate opportunities, or check her blog for additional insights to the Affiliate Business – http://myaffiliateplace.blogspot.com

1. Geek Superhero http://www.deprice.com/geeksuperhero.htm

Geek Superhero watches your computer for changes, immediately notifying you when a change is made to confirm you want to keep or reject the change. This saves you from lots of headaches. (A "Computer Setting Firewall" is an excellent description.)

2. CleverCrypt Enhanced http://www.deprice.com/clevercryptenhanced.htm

Using the latest developments in information security, CleverCrypt has been designed to use the best encryption technology legally available. The product uses 4 encryption layers to protect your data. Using just one of CleverCrypt’s encryption layers it has been mathematically calculated that the famous "DES Cracker" machine, if sped up several thousand times, would still take over 149 trillion years to crack a CleverCrypt secure drive. And that’s if your using just one of CleverCrypt’s four layers.

3. Clean Disk Security http://www.deprice.com/cleandisksecurity.htm

Clean Disk Security gives you secure file deletion, making sure that deleted files cannot be undeleted again. Deleting a file normally just removes the file’s directory entry, but the data itself remains on the disk. This program completely eliminates the contents of deleted files. The highly acclaimed Gutmann disk cleaning method is now available as an option. This program can also clean the Window’s swap file, and can optionally clean unneeded temporary files from your hard disk, such as your Internet browser cache, files in your system’s Recycle Bin, and can clear the "recent files" list.

4. Cryptainer PE http://www.deprice.com/cryptainerpe.htm

Phenomenally easy to use, Cryptainer PE’s encryption works on all versions of Microsoft Windows and works with all known file types. You can protect your files and folders and ensure total privacy with Cryptainer PE. Simply drag and drop the files and folders you want to hide and voila! your files are hidden. With Cryptainer PE you can hide the very existence of your confidential files and folders. Additionally, Cryptainer PE allows you to send encrypted email files. The recipient need not have a copy of Cryptainer PE installed to decrypt the files.

5. Desktop Armor http://www.deprice.com/desktoparmor.htm

Desktop Armor watches dozens and dozens of important settings on your computer and warns you if any program has changed them. This catches many of the changes a virus, worm, or trojan program will make to your computer and lets you immediately fix them back! Plus Desktop Armor includes a lot of other useful features like a Popup blocker, checks to help you avoid Phishing scams and much more.

David D. Deprice reviews top encryption and security solutions at http://www.deprice.com

Long gone are the days that we could feel secure and know for certain that we had privacy. With the digital age upon us we can no longer be so sure that our privacy is secure. Recently Google has admitted their organisation holds user data indefinitely. This causes concerns as now we know Google has information on us that we do not want anyone to know about.

We can simply blame this all on the big corporate companies; they seem to be a very good escape goat however, this is not the case; your privacy is totally up to you. Certificates ensure that all the data that is transferred between you and the internet is secure and encrypted. Recently in New Zealand there was a short certificate outage on a banks website. During this outage only one out of 300 users took this security warning seriously.

This is a rather large concern, as many users on the internet have the same belief that their data is safe and secure. By the end of 2005 it is estimated identity fraud will cause up to 5 trillion dollars world wide. We, the users of the internet must keep ourselves safe, secure and pay attention to those security warnings. I have compiled some good tools and tricks that will help keep you much more anonymous and secure.

1) Get rid of the internet explorer:

First and foremost Microsoft Internet Explorer is the highest risk to your internet experience. Not only is the most popular internet browser, but is also the most popular for attacks from Viruses and Spyware. Internet explorer is also too integrated with the windows operating system. Have you ever wondered how a dialler or online casino got onto your desktop?

I personally recommend Opera; they have a nice clean browser. The usability is easy and best of all, it uses tabbed browsing.

2) Protect your Connection.

Make sure you have an active firewall operating; Firewalls stop intruders from entering your connection and causing havoc. Hackers can easily gain access to an unprotected network and steal private information.

With the release of SP2 for Windows XP, Microsoft have incorporated a free personal Firewall. If you have broadband your router should have an inbuilt Firewall, and make sure this is enabled, Zonealarm also offer a free Firewall. You must always do what you can to protect yourself.

3) Don’t share those files:

One of the most common security flaws besides running Windows XP, is having File sharing enabled. To disable File Sharing please do the following:

Click Start Menu, select settings.

Click on Network Connections.

Right-click on the Local Area Connection icon and on the menu that appears, choose Properties.

In the General tab under “This connection uses the following items”, highlight “File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks”. (If File and Printer Sharing is not listed, then file sharing has not been setup). You may skip the rest of these instructions.

Click Uninstall.

When you are asked if you are sure you want to Uninstall File and Printer Sharing Click Yes.

You may now close the Local Area Connection Properties window.

You must restart for your computer for the effects to work.

3) Hide your IP address:

Your IP address is just like your phone number, it links directly back to you. There are many reasons you may wish to hide your IP address. Preferable you do not want to be tracked around the web, it’s just as bad as having a GPS in your mobile phone.

I have found a great tool that gives free anonymous surfing: Primedius. This tool is free for a limited time. I don’t guarantee this service but I believe it performs to basic anonymous web-surfing standards.

4)Check those certificates:

Your internet connection is not secure, the data that travels between you and the site you may be browsing may pass through over 25 other computers. If you are sending very confidential information such as credit card payments, make sure the address starts with an https. Also check that the padlock on your browser is locked, and is valid for the specific site. This will ensure that you have a 128 bit encrypted connection with the website.

If you want secure email you may also have your emails encrypted too. A good free vendor is Hushmail. Your email security is more at risk than your web browsing; you must ensure your emails are safe.

5) Kill the spyware

Spyware are little programmes that can easily be picked up by surfing any website or downloading files. Spyware can pickup information from where you surf to your credit card details, this information then can be sold.

Microsoft has released a beta version of their upcoming anti spyware removal tool. This too works well, and I highly recommend this tool. Zonealarm also offer a free online spyware detector.

The information I have passed to you should be seriously considered. The internet is a very unsecure environment; you must ensure your data is safe from outside prying eyes. Make sure you are careful with any transaction you make. Never fool for any kind of email promotion, anyone who tries to sell to you through spam advertising is not trustworthy. Also make sure to check the links from anything you click on, I have found numerous fake Paypal sites that try to steal your login and password.

Remember… it is up to you!

Copyright 2005 Private Mail Services

Steve is the owner and operator for Private Mail Services. http://www.private-services.com We endeavour to keep your personal life totally safe and private.

© Private Mail Services 2005
http://www.private-services.com

Nowadays more and more people are using a computer. A lot of them use it at their work place, but an increasing number of computer users have also discovered the need to have a computer at home. At the same time the number of Internet surfers increased. This is a good thing because people are realizing the advantages offered by the world of technology. As soon as they discover this, they start using computers and the Internet more and more, but at the same time not considering the threats that are coming in from all sides. They should know that if you don’t protect yourself, nobody will. These threats are now coming from everywhere and they are growing in number and complexity. First threats of this kind were the viruses. At first, viruses were not that harmful. They were designed to perform a simple task, like flashing a single message onto the user’s computer screen. Also the spread rate was slow, because not many people were connected to the Internet. But now the majority of viruses are programs intentionally written to obstruct with, or harm other programs or computer systems. And they are spreading very fast.

Many companies and people have had a lot of troubles because of these viruses. And so the need for antivirus software was born. At first one very simple antivirus appeared and this was enough. Now, as the threat is growing antivirus software are becoming a lot more complex. Some of them have also included a firewall so to better protect the users. In order to increase the competition, other antivirus software producers have also come up with a wonderful idea: to offer free scan online. This was a big help for people that are frequently using a computer mostly for their personal use, meaning it is not attached to a network and uses the Internet only from time to time. Now, they don’t have to spend a lot of money to buy antivirus software that will be used very rarely.

Most of these antivirus programs have to be bought in order for you to use them at their full capacity. Also you have the option to test a so called “free trial version”. These trial versions include all or most of the software’s features, and are available to be checked out by the user for a short period of time, usually 30 days. After these 30 days, the program can no longer be used. Other antivirus software producers use another method; they offer a free trial version that you can keep forever. But it is not fully operational, meaning some of the options of the program cannot be used as they are not activated. After you have tried a program and you consider it is fit for your need, then you’ll have to buy it to protect your computer at its full capacity.

Lately, viruses are mostly spread through e-mails because this is the most common use of the Internet. Also, e-mail viruses are easier to develop. E-mail viruses make use of the ability of having macros or scripts implanted in word documents, spreadsheets, HTML pages, and are programmed to run when the document is opened. But how does an e-mail virus works? When an e-mail with an infected document or program is received, the user unknowingly opens a document/program, which in turn executes a code to open the e-mail directory and to send a copy of itself as an e-mail attachment to a certain number of addresses. Some of the recipients of the e-mail open its attachment and the process repeats itself.

This is where the antivirus program comes in. This program is set to check all incoming and outgoing messages and their attachments. If an e-mail is detected to have a document or program infected with a virus the program offers several possibilities to deal with the threat: delete the e-mail, put it in quarantine or try to disinfect it. Most of the times, these choices are left to the user’s decision. It is up to the user to set the program in such manner to best fit his needs. But not all viruses are coming by e-mail. A few of them use security errors in the operating system or your Internet browser to be launched automatically. But if you keep your antivirus and all the other programs updated, there will be a small chance of being infected via this route.

Nowadays, most viruses are spread in the form of e-mail attachments. This is because some of the worst recent viruses relay on recipients that throw away common sense and launch a deadly e-mail attachment. Commonly the attachments are with extensions that include .bat, .com, .exe, .pif, .scr, and .vbs. Sometimes to avoid the filters of antivirus software, virus creators enclose their malicious code in a .zip or .rar archive file. The file might even have a password to full antivirus programs that scan inside archives. And obviously, the password is included in the message as an image for the convenience of the naive user. As a simple but reliable rule, you should never open an attachment that you didn’t expect to receive, even if it came from someone you know. Also, make sure your e-mail software is configured so it will not automatically open attachments.

Another common way of spreading viruses is file sharing. Many viruses spread themselves throughout open network shares. You can protect your computer not sharing files or directories over the network. But if you don’t have a choice and you have to share your files, you are still able to reduce the risk of being infected by installing antivirus software and keeping it updated. Other ways to become infected with viruses are downloading files or software from the Internet, instant messaging or even web pages.

If the file you are downloading or the computer you are downloading it from is infected with a virus, there is a big chance that your computer will also become infected with the virus. As for the instant messaging, the major risk comes from accepting files from other users on the network. This risk can be minimized by configuring your antivirus software to scan all incoming files and also configure your other programs not to automatically accept files, and not to automatically execute the files you accept. Certain viruses are known to infect web servers. If you visit a website from an infected server, your computer could be infected with the same virus, but this is a very rare method of infection.

There are many different threats that are targeting the computers. Although they are very different, all of them are popularly called viruses. A virus by definition is a self-replicating file, not considering whether it is malicious or not. Another type of the so called viruses are worms; they circulate mainly through e-mail but also spread through a network. A worm is aware he is located in a network and uses it for replicating itself. Trojan horses (or trojans) are mostly used to insert some remote tools into a system in order to give the attacker free access to that system, without the user’s knowledge. Most Trojan horses cannot replicate automatically.

With the increased number of Internet users, the existing threats are also raising as now there are many more computers to attack and more people that don’t know to stay away from these threats. But the antivirus software producers are making it easier for us. There is a lot of antivirus software which cover a lot of threats. All we have to do is install one.

Mike Ber is the owner of the Canadian Domain Name Portal called http://www.Every.ca He is also a contributing author to Canadian Computer Magazine and http://www.Developer.ca website.

IPv6, Introduction

The high rate at wich the internet continualy evolves forced the Internet Engineering Task Force(IETF) to find IP solutions to handle the grouth. Designed to handle the fast paced growth of the Internet, the IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) is the new version that will replace the widely used IPv4(Internet Protocol version 4) which is already obsolete.

IPv6, Primary Benefits

Two primary advantages of IPv6 are the support for stateless address auto configuration and the address space that is much larger. Other benefits of the new IPv6 are that the security is natively defined in the protocol, the simple Plug and Play (thanks to stateless auto configuration), the IP mobility is optimized.

Network Security and IPv6

First, we need to understand the meaning of "network security", in order to understand it’s relationship with IPv6. On the internet the concept of security has usually focused on data security, authentification and data privacy. In the latest years the network security has been expanded.

Avoiding single points of failure while building the networks helps making them reliable when problems occur in a localized section. This way the network security has expanded and it now makes the Internet able to resist in the face of natural disasters or physical attacks.

Allowing a much simpler emergency response networks deployment, IPv6 offers great benefits in both areas. With superior data security, IPv6 allows us to to have more robust networks.

Data Security

The Internet Protocol security(IPsec) provides <> support for data encryption, user authentificaton and data integrity. IPv6 has support for IPsec and is expected that this way Internet Protocol security will be much widely available on the IPv6 end-nodes.

Conclusion

With the support for IPsec, IPv6 should create wider availability of end-node implementations. IPv6 will make the deployment and implementation of emergency networks easier with the included stateless address auto configuration. In short, IPv6 will make out lives safer an more secure.

The fastest and easiest "what is my ip" service to find out your IPv6 or IPv4 address, http://www.whatismyipv6.net

So called phishers try to catch the information about the account numbers and passwords of internet users. They deceive people with faked emails and websites that resembles exactly the originals of well known banks or electronic payment systems. They make people surrender their passwords and account numbers – and afterwards they clear their accounts.

This is a peril for internet merchants, affiliates and webmasters, because they often display email addresses on websites, ads or articles. Phishers may pick easily addresses from these sources.

Phishers try to worry you!

They write you stories as follows:

There have been unusual transactions on your account.

Your account is going to be suspended soon, because it lacks validation.

The database crashed down and has to be restored.

They have lost some email addresses and they need to update their database.

A case has been reported how they try to dupe the internet users. The g has been replaced with a q in the URL of citigroup. Thus the URL www.citigroup.com has been altered in www.citiqroup.com

They urge users to act immediately

The next step is that they urge their victims to act. They offer a link to a website, where people can type in their confidential information. If the people submit the demanded information, they open unvoluntarily the doors to a modern kind of thieves. The accounts of the victims can be looted within a few minutes.

How to protect your money?

Be aware: The serious and well known financial service companies never ask people by email for confidential information. I cite from an email by PayPal that I have received after reporting an ominous email to them: “PayPal and its representatives will NEVER ask you to reveal your password. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this policy. If anyone claiming to work for PayPal asks for your password under any circumstances, by email or by phone, please refuse and immediately contact us via webform..”

This is the most important rule to protect your account!

Other financial services follow a policy similar to PayPal.

People may report to the financial services unusual emails. The more they know about such incidents, the better they can track them in order to find out some patterns about the abusers.

If the people feel uneasy about their accounts, they can check them through the web browser. They should type in manually the website address of the financial service into their browser. They can check matters there safely. But they never may type their confidential information in a form that has been sent by email!

It’s recommendable to change the password of electronic accounts from time to time.

By the way: I do not use my email address of the Pay Pal Account in any public statements. I use different email addresses there.

The origin of the word Phishing

The new internet term Phishing origins probably from the word Fishing. Phishing has been extracted from the word combination “password harvesting fishing”.

Further background information

More background information about actual kinds of abuse is available at the website www.scambusters.org It’s worthwhile to have a look what is going on in the world wide web.

Lil Waldner is a business economist. She is experienced in project management and marketing. She has worked as editor of newspapers and she has written booklets and essays with economic and public issues. Visit her web site: AGM Home Business

I’m in the Anti-Spyware business, and I’m doing a lot of advertising to promote my website, but here I am online and on the phone, giving my personal information to…..who? Strangers basically, Geez! The majority of identity thefts occur thru contractors employing people in entry-level jobs that have not been properly screened. Not even Hackers,Phishers or Dumpster Divers account for as many! The ideal location for a Identity stealer would be in a out sourced agency that fails to use adequate screening processes.

I’ve read many articles lately that state we need stricter guidelines and procedures to insure we have proper security as consumers. A set of universal rules that would be adhered to by all. To even think of the enormous complexity of this project staggers the mind!

So here I am, I want to take a advertisement out at a prestigious magazine that is published in a traditional print paper and online. I may have to deal with people online and on the phone.I give my name, address, phone number, and……my credit card number! EGAD, what am I doing?

Then my common sense and education about matters such as these kicks in and I rationalize that these companies would not be in business if they couldn’t keep their customers happy. But,accidents happen.

So you see my dilemma. I know computer security and Spyware, and the vulnerabilities and strengths when dealing online. Its just a little new to me to trust, when I know the ramifications to me personally if my Identity were to be used for ill-gotten gain.

I know after all these years of being a, OK I admit it, a slightly paranoid online user, that I need to make myself a little vunerable so I can better succeed in my online business.

Ive been where the people who contact me asking for help are; a place in their minds of anger, frustration and helplessness.

But then as I said earlier, common sense and education about Spyware wins over and I take a deep breath and go on.

The California Attorney General has a excellent website for Identity Theft at http://caag.state.ca.us/idtheft/

About the Author:

Doug Woodall has a website at http://www.spywarebiz.com

There he provides free information and recommended products to combat Spyware.

He also runs the SpywareBiz Blog at http://learningfolder.com/Blogs/297/

He is a member of the IWA (International Webmasters Association)

Doug can be reached at spywarebiz@comcast.net

Article edited for proper content by Wendy McCallum

I am the victim of an internet scam. It is very hard to write that sentence, but it’s necessary in order to warn my fellow clowns, magicians and other entertainers, and to prevent them from being taken for $2,800.00 like I was. Here is what happened to me, and how you can avoid it.

I run the clown-ministry.com web site, and I perform as a clown at both ministry and secular events. Due to the popularity of the clown-ministry.com web site (do a search on Google .com for ‘clown’ and it’s the 7th site listed, for example) I’m easily found by people — for both good and bad reasons. For instance, last year my wife Ellen and I taught clowning for a week at the Seventh Day Adventists’ national Camporee — we’re not Adventists, and don’t know many people who are, but we were found by them & hired primarily due to the popularity of the web site. We’ve been invited to perform in clown at a conference in Canada, performed at company picnics, etc. well out of our neck of the wood, and so on. Please understand that this isn’t bragging; it’s setting the stage for what happened in the scam.

We were contacted via e-mail by someone purportedly from Cincinnati, Ohio, who wanted to fly my wife & I to Cincinnati to perform at a birthday party. Since we’d had similar things happen in the past, that didn’t set off any alarms in my head. In addition, I knew that there are entertainers such as Jennifer Lopez who will sing "Happy Birthday" at your party, for a fee of $50,000.00; I’m no J Lo, and my singing is atrocious, but I charge a lot less as well

I did an internet search on that person (I’m not using the name he gave, since there’s a criminal investigation as well as FBI investigation going on — no joke), and found someone by that name in Cincinnati, Ohio, a "regional celebrity" so to speak. So, it didn’t seem incredulous that he would have the money to hire us as well as pay round trip air fare. It’s now obvious that it was merely someone using that person’s name to "hook" us.

At that point, my wife & I were still inclined to think of this as a prank, but even so we replied to the email with a quotation for our services, politely and professionally. We were joking with each other that this had to be a prank; after all, why would someone hire us when there are hundreds of clowns in the Cincinnati area? Unless it was someone with money to burn who wanted to buy "bragging rights," it made no sense. So we forgot about it, until the person replied back, hiring us.

We still considered it a joke, until we received a check in the mail, for $2,800.00. MUCH more that we had quoted our services for! We thought that, maybe, the excess was to pay for round trip air fare and accommodations, but even so that was far too much. We e-mailed the person back, explaining that we had received $2,800.00 via check. His response is what should have tipped us off to the scam.

He replied that, since he was out of the country on a business trip, he had his personal assistant send the checks out for the party, and the assistant had made a mistake, combining with our check one for $2,300.00 for the photographer from the United Kingdom that he was flying in to photograph the party. Would we be so kind as to send him those funds via Western Union?

Like an idiot, I said "yes." The check had been deposited and cleared (I thought), and I didn’t want to hold onto money that didn’t belong to me. So, I went to the local Western Union office and sent $2,300.00 to an individual in the United Kingdom. This didn’t set off any red flags (although it should have) since it seemed like the type of silly mistake I’ve seen people do before. What happened next, though, set off every red flag in my head, and then some.

Days later, I received another email from the man supposedly from Cincinnati. According to him, his mother had an advanced form of lung cancer, and needed an immediate operation. He wanted me to send the remaining money to his mother’s doctor in Nigeria and he would reschedule the party later. When I heard the word ‘Nigeria’ I had icicles running up and down my spine. Nigeria is famous, in the internet world, for being home to the most prolific scam of all time. You’ve likely received spam email about it. In a nutshell, it involves the widow of some minister or rich person, who is trying to smuggle their immense fortune out of the country before it’s seized by her dead husband’s adversaries; in exchange for letting them use your bank account, they will give you (various amounts of money, if not enough to make you filthy rich, at least enough to make you dingy). Of course, no money comes out, but these people proceed to rob your bank account of every penny.

So, when I heard that, fear clutched at my heart. Besides, why would someone rich enough to hire me (and fly a photographer in from the UK) need my money? The answer is, he didn’t; he was just trying to bilk me of more money before his ruse was exposed.

You see, when I initially deposited the $2,800.00 check, it appeared to clear; it was then several more days before he requested the $2,300 to his photographer, and nearly a week (from the time I deposited the check) until I complied with that. 11 days after the check was initially deposited, it came back ‘funds denied.’ The bank then debited $2,800.00 from my checking account — which didn’t contain that much, of course. So, I’m out $2,800.00, the crook (or his accomplice in the UK) received $2,300.00. What’s the moral of the story?

The purpose of this is two-fold: to warn my fellow clowns, and to point out the red flags that I should have seen, and what I should have done.

1. Bogus email address: there are many ‘free’ email sites available, where anyone can set up a free email account. Spammers, and many others use these to hide behind. Never trust information coming from a ‘free’ account.
2. Depositing the check: I should have deposited the check, and then waited 2 weeks to ensure that it had cleared. I had seen people selling items on ebay.com who warn people paying by personal check that they would not ship items until 2 weeks after the check was deposited, just to prevent this problem. In my case, they used an internet service (qchex.com) instead of a personal check, but the same time period applies.
3. Sending money back: I should have offered to send the money back to the original person after 2 weeks, or destroyed the check and asked them to re-send the correct amount.
4. Nigeria!: need I say more? Sending money to Nigeria is a Bad Idea.

So, that’s where it lies. I’m out $2,800.00, and in danger of losing my house due to the actions of this criminal. Jesus Christ orders His followers to "pray for those who despitefully use you" (Matthew 5:44). It’s difficult, but I’m praying. Thank you for listening — be sure to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Tom Raymond, aka. Raynbow the magic clown, is a professional clown and underemployed computer geek, webmaster of http://www.clown-ministry.com/ the largest clown resource site on the web. His personal site can be found at http://www.clown-ministry.com/raynbow/