Hi -
Unlike
Caesar and March 15 (re. Shakespeare's Julius Caesar and the Ides of
March), we always have to be on guard. First viruses, now spyware, adware and
the most beguiling of all, phishing. If you don't know what it is, please read
on.
Have you
ever received an email from a bank , like Citibank or Bank of America, or a
service like PayPal, asking you to update your information online. The logos,
language, and everything about it looks official, except you do not have an
account with them. These emails did not come from reputable people and surely
not from the alleged sources. It is all phony attempt to bait you to reveal
confidential information. It is called phishing. Phoney Fishing. Dont' take the
bait. Ever. Call your bank or service group if you get an email like it asking
for your confidential data.
Next
level, your IT professional has to be on board, fighting for you.
I think
we've closed two of the biggest holes on our computers -- a virtual network
computing program (free from AT&T London labs) and Amazon.com's web rating
tool, Alexa. Both have been removed. We frequently upgrade the Windows XP
Operating Systems. We have also installed a beta program from Microsoft,
AntiSpyware. All of our machines were infected; I recently
wrote up the initial results on this homepage. If you have suggestions or
ideas to pass along to all our friends, I'll write it up on the website and
give you attribution (a link to your web site?). For sure, we'll all say "Thank
you."
I do
wonder outloud, "What will take to change the hearts of those who send out
viruses, adware, spyware, trojans, phishing emails, and the like?"
In the
interim, we are thankful for those "White Hat" folks who help us all build
suitable online defenses. Many of you will remember
our entire episode about it.
By the
way, if you use Microsoft Office, they've set up
a special
discount for all our viewers and visitors to SmallBusinessSchool
either to buy or update your software. We use Office and Outlook
and recommend both. Take a look; and you know, we welcome your feedback.
These are
the four links above:
1. Episode:
/webapp/sbs/800/803/homepage.jsp
2.
Microsoft's AntiSpyware program:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx
3.
My overview of spyware on one of our homepages:
/webapp/sbs/800/811/home4.jsp
4.
The Office discount:
http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/sbs
We are
always interested in your feedback about each episode of the television show or
your recommendations regarding the website! Thanks. |
