Articles in Category: Security

How to Choose Good Security Questions

Security questions are a cornerstone of much internet security. I’ll look at what they are, how they fail, why you should avoid them, and what to do if you can’t.

Crank Your Password Strength Up to 11!

The results are in for last year’s most common passwords. The implications are depressing, but important.

How to Keep Information on a Shared Computer Private

When using a shared computer, it’s too easy for others to see your data or history. If you must use a shared computer, you need to protect yourself.

What Can a Technician with Remote Access Do?

Several current scams center around gaining remote access to your computer, often in the guise of fixing problems. There’s no way to know what was done, but we do know one thing: it’s a trap!

Is Online Banking Safe?

You can bank online safely, as long as you know what to look for and what steps to take.

Why Do People Think a Phone is More Secure than Email?

Even though digital communications are generally safer than their old analog counterparts, many people still mistrust them.

Can My School Tell I’m Using Tor?

Your school (or whoever provides your internet connection) can see what you’re connecting to. Do they? There’s no way to know.

What Happened to TrueCrypt and What Do I Use Instead?

The TrueCrypt project was suddenly and without warning shut down. I’ll look at a little of the history and what you should use instead.

I Run Anti-virus Software. Why Do I Still Sometimes Get Infected?

It seems like even the most up-to-date anti-malware package isn’t always enough. It’s frustrating, because you’d think it would be.

Which Files Were Affected by a Hack or Malware?

After a hack or malware infection, you’ll want to know you’ve cleaned up the resulting mess. The news is not good.

Can My Mobile Provider Track What I Do Online?

Your mobile provider is indeed your ISP when you use their data services, and that means they can see a lot of your activity.

How Can I Recover My Current Account Password

Trying to recover the existing password for an online account is usually an exercise in frustration. There’s one possible straw to grasp at.

Is an Up-to-Date Browser Secure on an Out-of-Date OS?

An up-to-date web browser is important, but it’s not the whole picture, by far.

How Can I Tell If a Download is Safe?

Checking whether a download is safe before you download it is nearly impossible. Your best defense is your own skepticism, plus anti-malware tools to scan what you choose to download.

The State of Passwords in 2019

Password are here to stay, at least for a while longer. Until they die, here’s quick review of how to make sure yours are as secure as possible.

How Do I Get Rid of Ask.com?

You should be able to remove any toolbars or browser settings that have been added to your computer.

Do I Need a New Email Address if Mine’s Involved in a Breach?

If you discover that your email address is part of a breach, you probably do not need to change it. But there are steps to take to protect yourself.

Password Checkup: A Recommended Chrome Browser Extension

Password Checkup is a browser extension that tells you if the password you’re using has been discovered by hackers.

Two-factor Might Be Hackable? USE IT ANYWAY!

Another scare about two-factor authentication perhaps being hackable? DO NOT let that stop you from using it.

How Do I Get Rid Of “overseer.exe”?

Overseer.exe can be left behind after an uninstall of Avast Free Anti-virus. Deleting it is a two-step process.

How Do I Keep My Kids Safe from Internet Garbage?

There’s a lot of garbage on the internet, and it’s difficult to prevent your children from seeing it. There are tools to help and steps to take.

How Can an Employer Recover Information I’ve Erased?

As much as you might wish it otherwise, it’s just not practical to try and hide your computer activity from your employer.

Use BitLocker to Bypass Potential Self-Encrypting Drive Vulnerabilities

Headlines to the contrary, it’s BitLocker to the rescue to protect yourself from some vulnerabilities discovered in drives providing hardware-based encryption.

How Can I Use a Password Manager for My Security Questions?

Password vaults are good at keeping track of passwords, but not answers to security questions. There is a technique you can use to help.

Don’t Lose Your Phone: Here’s What Can Happen (and How to Prepare)

Given how much we’ve come to rely on them, are you prepared to lose your mobile device?

BoxCryptor: Secure Your Data in the Cloud

Many online cloud storage providers encrypt your data — which means they can decrypt it themselves. BoxCryptor is a great solution to ensure that your online data remains private, regardless of how it’s stored.

How Can I Send a Document to Someone Securely?

Email is a fairly insecure media. There are many things that can go wrong when email gets delivered, and protecting yourself can be difficult.

What Can a Website I Visit Tell About Me?

Websites can collect a fair amount of information about you. Let’s look at what every website sees.

Can My ISP See What I’m Doing If I Use a Virtual Machine (VM)?

A VM doesn’t get you any additional privacy from your ISP… although it might be a convenience as part of a more complete solution.

VeraCrypt: Free Open Source Industrial Strength Encryption

VeraCrypt provides a solution for encrypting sensitive data — everything from portable, mountable volumes to entire hard disks.

How to Tell if Your Email, Computer, or Facebook Has Been Hacked

Unless a password’s been changed, it’s difficult for a typical user to tell if their computer or account has been hacked.

Download Your Facebook and Google Data

It’s a worthwhile exercise to download the data made available by Google and Facebook, if only to realize exactly what information is being kept.

I’ve Lost All My Passwords, What Do I Do?

Losing access to your password vault can be a major inconvenience. Fortunately, that’s all it needs to be, and there are ways to prevent even that.

How Do Websites Store Passwords Securely?

Effective website security is difficult, and often an afterthought. Not all sites or services store passwords securely.

How Did I Get Advertising About the Contents of an Email?

Sophisticated targeted ads can sometimes seem creepy. Here I explore how a few techniques work, and one I can’t explain at all.

What Is “Privilege Escalation” on a CPU?

Privilege is a fundamental concept in modern operating system design. We’ll explore what privilege means as used by the CPU when software runs.

What Do I Need to Do About Spectre and Meltdown?

Spectre and Meltdown sound scary. Here’s what you need to do, which is hopefully what you’re doing anyway, along with an attempt at an analogy.

How Do I Back Up LastPass?

It’s important to back up LastPass, because unexpected things happen. What you do with that backup, however, is critical.

Enable Two-Factor Authentication in LastPass

Your LastPass password vault is full of exceptionally important data. Add additional security with two-factor authentication.

Why Do Password-strength Meters Give Different Results?

Password-strength meters don’t always agree. My take is to avoid them completely.

What the Equifax Breach Means to You

One of the largest data breaches in history has left many wondering what to do next.

Why Don’t Anti-malware Tools Work Better?

It’s possible to get malware, even with anti-malware tools installed. Why the heck is that true?

How Can I Tell If a Website is Safe?

We’re often enticed or directed to websites we’ve never been to before. We’ll look at a couple of tools to help identify safe websites.

Does a Lapsed Anti-malware Tool Leave an Open Door for Malware?

Letting your anti-malware subscription lapse is never a good idea. I’ll look at why that is, and available alternatives.

How Do I Know If My Computer Has Been Compromised?

You can’t rely on yourself as a malware detector. Learn how to be a malware avoider.

I’ve Been Told My Computer Has a Virus, But My Anti-Malware Program Doesn’t Remove It. What Do I Do?

Making sure your anti-virus program and its definition database are up-to-date is the best way to make sure it can recognize and remove viruses.

What’s the Difference Between a “Trojan Horse”, a “Worm”, and a “Virus”?

There are many different terms that relate to software with malicious intent. Ultimately, however, there’s only one you really need to know, and several things you need to do.

Google Remembers More than You Realize

Wherein we consider how much information we “give away” in our daily lives online.

Why Microsoft’s Response to the Windows Defender Zero Day was Spot-On

Microsoft’s response to the recent Windows Defender zero-day vulnerability was an example of how the system is supposed to work.