The main objective of phishing attacks and phishing emails are to deceive or trick an individual user by making him/her think that the source of the mail is authentic. Phishing attacks are meant to steal people of their private and confidential data. There have been numerous instances, where individuals and employees of leading enterprises have reported that phishing mails appear sanguine at first glance. Furthermore, most of them have a compelling content, that urges the reader to part with their personal data or click on the links provided that leads to fictitious websites. These mails generally ask the readers to reply immediately via mail, reply to a phone request or visit an unknown URL.However, if analysed carefully every phishing mail offers clear clues that can let a user know that the link and message is not authentic. Any URL links to web portals that are sent via phishing mails generally opens a web page that though appears like an original brand name, but has certain aesthetic or syntax errors that clearly prove its fraudulence. Ebay, leading banks, Alibaba and other online e-cash and e-commerce sites are common targets and have suffered largely owing to phishing attacks. All these negative impacts needs to be dealt effectively and needs efficient phishing awareness programs.Features of a Phishing MailToday innovative phishing awareness solutions help in educating a layman and employees know more about the features of a Phishing mail. Such emails most often make use of emotional triggers and force users to respond on impulse. Research has revealed that the possible indicators of phishing e-mails comprise of the following:* Improper grammar* Spelling errors* The email address not matching with the enterprise name* Using the name of a real company but providing an incorrect email - address* Forced attempts to prove its authenticity, by making use of words such as "Official"* Has unsolicited request for personal informationIn the recent past, though there has been several standard solutions for phishing protection, most of them have been only addressing the "people risk" aspect of a phishing attack. Furthermore, one of the recent trends that gained prominence is the "incident based reactive approach" that analysis the risk and impacts of phishing based on a particular incident. Esteemed solution providers today provide high-end anti phishing software that helps in updating individuals and employees about the negative impacts of social engineering attacks. Features of this software include the following:* Enables an enterprise in analysing the potential phishing attacks* Provides flexible reporting and includes them back into an organization's chief performance-indicator framework* Provides a detailed "road map" solution focusing on the security awareness and training within an enterprise* Assists in identifying weakness within people, method and technology links* Helps in prioritizing remediation attempts through useful benchmarking and maturity analysis* Helps in increasing employee awareness and expertise to safeguard crucial informationData and network security are two crucial elements that every organization needs to focus on for smooth day-to-day functioning. Advanced phishing protection solution helps an enterprise to attain the same seamlessly and helps in the efficient transfer of data.
Category: antivirus
How Can You Prepare For The Next Conficker Worm?
So just like many IT professionals you fell fowl of the conficker worm? I am sure every IT professional has a plan for disaster should it ever occur but the conficker worm bit us all in the backside - why? Well, the truth is that not only was this a clever infection that outwitted most antivirus programs but it also took advantage of our lack of preparation when it comes to being fully prepared against malicious attack.Here is a checklist that hopefully will enlighten you and also help you prepare against future problems:1. Do not use simple passwords.This is a simple mistake to make for IT professionals and users alike. Choosing 'password' as your password is inviting trouble. Many hackers and malicious coders will take advantage here. You should have a minimum complexity for your passwords.2. Do not simplify your network share permissions.If you are an IT professional you should know what this means. It means basically do not use the 'everyone' group in your network shares. You should tighten it up and use specific domain groups and only use the minimum required permissions or hackers will again take advantage of this lapse in security.3. Use a good antivirus program.More importantly keep it up to date! If you use a client/server program then this is fairly easy to do but make sure all visitors to your network have adequate protection also.4. Keep your network patched with updates.Antivirus programs are designed to keep attacks out, not necessarily to deal with it once on board. Remember this and keep all of your software including your operating system bang up to date with the latest patches. This could be server updates or client security updates. Microsoft have since developed patches to cover up the weakness in their system that the conficker worm took advantage of, who knows what else is lurking? Guys, keep it patched.5. Prepare for the worst.You may never be able to keep all infections out so be prepared with good up to date images of your machines. Also make sure that all data is backed up properly and you are prepared for disaster with a quick recover should the worst occur.In conclusion do not become lazy when it comes to a good disaster recovery plan. Make sure you use antivirus and it is up to date, make sure your servers and your client computers are all up to date. Ensure you use strong passwords and minimal network shares. If you have images and copies of your software and data backups you are on your way to being prepared for when the next generation of conficker worm or it's equivalent comes looking for trouble.
Do Antivirus Programs Provide Absolute Security to Your Website or Computer?
Most of us believe that by installing antivirus program on the computer we are safe from the threats of viruses, malware, Trojans and other cyber threats. It is of no doubt that we get substantial protection from antivirus software but the question is whether it is enough to protect us from all types of threats especially when security gets compromised. This has to be examined and ascertained in the light of certain facts and reports. This article lets you know whether the antivirus program on your system effectively protects you from all kind of threats or not. Recent malware attacks on PCs have highlighted the Microsoft vulnerabilities and weaknesses of security programs in protecting systems from exploit-based attacks. According to the findings of a leading security and testing firm, many antivirus programs failed to protect systems from attacks that exploited vulnerabilities available in the XML Core services in the Microsoft and Internet Explorer 8.0. In this study, 13 antivirus suites were tested for their ability to provide effective security. However, both the Microsoft programs XML Core and IE 8 were patched and expected to be protected from antivirus programs, only four of the thirteen suits were found to be effective. Only these four programs offered complete security against vulnerabilities. The remaining programs were however effective but the degree of protection was not as accurate as it was in the other four programs. Protection was dependent upon how the threat has been executed with respect to the vulnerability. A chunk of the antivirus suites proved less efficient because the attacks were executed via HTTP. Some others failed to provide the optimal security because of the HTTPS that was used to execute the attack. Even the Microsoft's Security Essential antivirus program failed to provide effective security in the above mentioned cases. After the careful observation of the cases, the researcher came out with certain conclusions as follows: The users of antivirus software should stop assuming that antivirus programs offer absolute security and that their 'unpatched' systems enjoy stronger security. The system remains open for virus attack in case of vulnerability. If your system is unpatched then it might become prone to virus attacks irrespective of the antivirus software it is installed with. The authors of viruses and malware design the attack taking cues from the strengths and weaknesses of the antivirus program. They study the weakness in detail and develop the malicious program in a way that it uses that weakness to get easy access to the system. There is no denying the fact that antivirus programs are effective in spotting the threats that are developed by using techniques such as Javascript and Unicode. Yet some other techniques can definitely find loop holes in the security program. These threats can disable the security veil and get easy access to the system or website. The above mentioned discussion reveals that although most of the antivirus programs can provide us the first layer of security to prevent threats but they are still not strong enough to make the system impregnable to the various threats and exploits.
What is Cyber Virus And How Can it Affect Your Computer?
Is your computer hit by some kind of cyber virus? Have you found your computer frequently crashed down or run slower and slower? Wondering why your computer is acting so weird after you installed some free software? As a primary computer user, maybe you are feeling headache with the problem of your computer, but please don't worry because reading this article will help you understand virus better. A general instruction of cyber virus Virus is a computer program designed by intentional cyber hackers that can sneak into user's computer and infect other programs by modifying them in such a way as to include a copy of itself. It's a kind of code that damage or erase data, files, or software programs in your computer. Virus can reproduce and spread itself through Internet when users download infected file or click on malicious code on illegal sites or pages. Once the virus is embedded into your computer, it will immediately start to damage or destroy your system and mess up your computer. What's worse, it can be controlled by the hackers remotely so that it has the ability to steal your personal information or confidential data and then transfer them to the hackers behind for illegal purpose. The common categories of cyber viruses 1). Screen locking malware This kind of malware usually locks your computer immediately once they get in. What you see is that your computer screen has been totally occupied by a page pretending to be warning from local police department of government and with a scaring message stating your online activities have been detected as illegal movements thus you need to follow its instruction which guides you send a certain payment of fine by online transfer otherwise you will face a serious law issue then probably be put in jail really soon and your computer will continue to be locked until the payment is done. If you have been the one to believe this notice is from real government department and actually have paid the fine, I may say you have unfortunately became a fool to believe such a scam malware because this scaring message from so-called local department of police is definitely a scam aiming at robbing money as much as possible from timid people who has a guilty conscience. I bet you still can't get your computer unlock even you have paid the fine online. The most typical one is the Fake FBI virus which is rather popular all over the world recently, for more information about it please click here. Hackers created and updated them all the time to acquire their dirty money and achieve their immoral targets. 2). Trojan horse virus Trojan horse virus, usually is called Trojans for short, is defined as a type of virus that masquerades as a system file or helpful program with the purpose of granting a hacker unauthorized access to a computer. It's one kind of really tough and nasty virus that can cause critical damage to your computer. This kind of virus acts rather trickily in your computer and it's very difficult to be found out and removed from the system. One typical feature that departs it from normal computer virus is that Trojan virus does not attempt to inject themselves into other files like a computer virus. Trojan horses can make copies of themselves, steal information, or harm their host computer systems. Many Trojan viruses rely on drive-by downloads or install via online games or internet driven applications in order to reach target computers. Once your computer is infected by Trojan virus, it will attack your programs and files, block the internet visit, and make your system crash down. So this virus should be removed immediately before it wreaks chaos. Definitely it will bring nightmare to computer users who have unfortunately got this devil within their computers. 3). Fake antivirus This kind of virus is recognized as a horrible fake antivirus that pretends to scan your computer thoroughly acting like an authentic and powerful anti-virus software. Usually the interface of this fake program is just similar to the real anti-virus program. It aims at luring computer victims to purchase its full version which is definitely a scam. Once the fake program is installed, the virus can update itself and invade your computer deeply with other threats such as malware and spyware. After scanning, the rogue program displays that your computer maintains many virus infected items needed to be deleted soon. In fact, all fake security warnings are just false information that cheats unknown users for their money. The fake security program is a malware infection itself, so even the full edition of the fake program is never possible to detect and remove any type of computer viruses and other security threats. Don't ever trust such a fake security scanning program which is designed to attack your computer and violate your privacy aggressively. The virus can records your computer data and browser history to gather your precious information for remote hackers by design. In such an urgent situation, you need to uninstall such a nasty rogue program completely and promptly. Some tips to help you protect your computer from virus infection 1???Be cautious when clicking unknown links from sites that you are not familiar with because it can point your browser to download threats or visit malicious web site. 2???Do not download unknown free software or shareware that have not been widely proven to be trustful. 3???Avoid opening unknown attachments from spam emails because it may contain Trojan virus or other malicious programs. 4???Update your Windows system in time or else your system will be vulnerable. 5) Keep the firewall defender running so it can protect your system to some extent. 6) Make sure there is a password protecting your WIFI network which can help to avoid hacker's attack.
Reimage – One Stop Windows PC Repair
You've no doubt read various reviews before from software companies touting their latest and greatest Windows registry repair tools but maybe give Reimage a little more time than just a passing glance the next time your PC starts playing up.Why? Because Reimage is a very different type of Windows repair program, in fact there is nothing else around quite like it!Reimage offers an online repair of your Windows PC operating system but without affecting any of your data, installed programs, email etc.It will identify and remove spam, Trojans, viruses and completely replace any damaged Windows system files with new Windows components from its own collection of up to date reference files stored in a central online location.It does not require you to have your Windows installation disk or license key to hand when performing a repair, all it requires is a PC running Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7, a broadband Internet connection and to complete the repair, a Reimage license key.A free scan tool is available allowing you to do a quick analysis of your PCs present condition detailing the state of your PC and areas of concern such as recent crashes, viruses, lack of memory or hard disk drive space, missing DLLs etc.If you decide to give Reimage a try you can do so safe in the knowledge that they offer a 30 day money back guarantee and there is a facility to undo any changes should you so desire.During a repair of your PC, Reimage will repair any damage caused by Trojans, spyware and viruses and eradicate any adware, spyware, key loggers, pop-ups etc. which all cause your PC to perform poorly and make time spent with your computer a slow and painful one.Reimage offers a fast, fully automated professional repair that is even used by the professionals as a highly effective repair device to increase profits and turnaround time.One major benefit that you should consider when weighing up whether or not to give Reimage a try - this software will actually repair the damage done to a PC by a virus unlike other anti-virus software which will remove the virus but won't correct the damage that has already been done.Running the program is simplicity itself - all you have to do is opt for a free scan, let Reimage do its analysing and then enter your purchased license key to let Reimage complete its repair.Now, we should also mention what Reimage will not fix.It cannot fix any hardware related issues but it will inform you of any recommendations regarding your PCs memory and hard disk space and alerting you to CPU temperature etc.Also remember that Reimage is a Windows operating system repair tool and will not correct problems associated with any other installed third party programs.
Speed up Your PC by Removing Any Viruses From it
In our work we often come up with a question like how does a virus will affect your computer performance? Viruses carry a lot of negative effects for a computer and these effects can even lead to a crash down of the entire system of a computer thus leaving it useless for future use.Virus infections can be termed as one of most dangerous situations regarding computers and in business sector it can be considered as a nightmare. Viruses are the most threatening and most feared aspect in cyber world and there are numerous reasons to this.One of the effects of a virus on computer performance can be realized when a file that you have tried to open has stopped responding to your mouse clicks? There cannot be an obvious and apparent reason for not opening up of the file that had been saved correctly by the user, but a computer professional will definitely come to know that this is a result of virus infection in computer and it will not work until the system has been cleaned up from the virus infection.A virus affects the computer in many other ways and the extent of damage to the computer depends upon the type of virus that a computer has been infected with. Once talking of the basic virus and their effects, we must bear in mind that foremost effect on computer is its reduced performance. Viruses infect program files of the computer which in turn cause a missing link while the computer tries to operate.At times data on the systems starts disappearing and it causes extreme danger for the user personal information. A User will feel helpless in such a situation until and unless he looks for a reliable antivirus. System free memory is reduced by the virus thus leaving the system with very less operating resources. It can also happen that the user is even unable to delete old data or store some new data on his system.Those who maintain their important official work on their systems and do not keep a proper back up with them must remain very much vigilant for any signs of an infected file. This is a huge risk and it demands that the user must get his files and data protected by using a registered antivirus.Mostly we come across a situation of getting wrong properties of a file or folder. The file has been infected by the virus and it will not open up the data unless it is cleaned from the virus.How does a virus will affect your computer performance is dependent on the kind of virus that has infected the system and precautionary measures that have been taken by the user. There is no virus that cannot be treated but it requires a well developed antivirus to be active and ready to identify infected files attacking the system.