Common Mistakes In Securing Data
Local Email: If you use Outlook express, or Outlook your email files are stored locally on your computer and are not kept on the internet. Unfortunately, the email files and your address book are not normally stored under your My Documents folder. This quite commonly results in the email files not being backed up and when a disk failure occurs all email is lost. You can locate where these files are by searching for *.dbx (in the case of outlook express) and *.pst (in the case of Outlook). There are various free backup tools available on the internet and if you drop me an email at I will send you a link to one of these utilities.
Too Little Too Late
Quite often when I ask for a copy of the backup I am handed a usb key as the only backup for a computer. Bottom line – A usb key, no matter how big, is highly unlikely to be able to secure your data. In my opinion, while better than nothing, these devices give a false sense of security. I would liken them to having a bucket of water in the house in case of a fire. Better than nothing but in the end of limited use if a serious fire breaks out.
If you want to ensure that you can recover from a serious computer failure and be able to restore your music, video, pictures, and documents you must invest in a proper external hard disk and use it !
No Recovery DVD’s
One of the most common mistakes is not generating your recovery dvd’s. Most, if not all, computers shipped in the last five years come with this facility but you must generate the dvd’s. Given a set of these DVD’s and a solid backup your chances of recovering from a serious problem are extremely good.
Conclusion: It’s a fact that your trusty hi-tech gizmo will fail in the future. By taking some simple steps now and spending a small amount of money you can significantly reduce the effect that failure has on you. It’s in your hands – Good Luck!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Safeguarding Your Data – Part 1
Most of us, if not all, are guilty of not taking care of our most precious possessions as well as we could. I’m not sure what the reasons are for this but I prefer to think it is due more to our optimistic outlook rather than laziness. The truth, for those of you who can handle it, is that your trusty technical gizmo is destined to fail. How this failure affects you will depend on how well you have prepared for it and in this article I will make some suggestions on how you can lessen the pain when it occurs.
Plan To Fail - Not fail To Plan
Approach the problem of securing your information in a step by step approach.
Step 1 . Make a list of all information you currently have stored on any computer device you own. This should include external usb drives, portable hard drives, and cd’s you may have created.
This is easier said than done as most people now have valuable information stored across multiple devices.
Step 2. Rate the importance of this information to you. Most people will put photos at the top of this list but don’t forget your personal documents and email.
Step 3. Use the two location rule.
Mark the items where you have the information stored on multiple devices. For example if you’ve made copies of your photos to an external hard drive.
Step 4. Make a schedule to secure the information for which there is no backup.
Common Mistakes In Securing Data
Online Email: One of the most common areas where I see massive data loss are online email accounts such as hotmail and google. I’ve seen countless examples of people losing all their email because their email account has been hacked. If you must use online email, I don’t personally recommend it, then you need to be aware that in the event of a hack attack you will lose all mail you have stored on there. My personal recommendation is to get yourself a proper email account and store your email on your computer. At a minimum if you have an online account periodically forward your important emails to another email account preferably with a different provider.
Next month I will expand further on this article.
Plan To Fail - Not fail To Plan
Approach the problem of securing your information in a step by step approach.
Step 1 . Make a list of all information you currently have stored on any computer device you own. This should include external usb drives, portable hard drives, and cd’s you may have created.
This is easier said than done as most people now have valuable information stored across multiple devices.
Step 2. Rate the importance of this information to you. Most people will put photos at the top of this list but don’t forget your personal documents and email.
Step 3. Use the two location rule.
Mark the items where you have the information stored on multiple devices. For example if you’ve made copies of your photos to an external hard drive.
Step 4. Make a schedule to secure the information for which there is no backup.
Common Mistakes In Securing Data
Online Email: One of the most common areas where I see massive data loss are online email accounts such as hotmail and google. I’ve seen countless examples of people losing all their email because their email account has been hacked. If you must use online email, I don’t personally recommend it, then you need to be aware that in the event of a hack attack you will lose all mail you have stored on there. My personal recommendation is to get yourself a proper email account and store your email on your computer. At a minimum if you have an online account periodically forward your important emails to another email account preferably with a different provider.
Next month I will expand further on this article.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Which Computer Suits Me? Part 2
This month’s article continues with the topic of Which Computer Suits Me.
Advantages Of Netbooks
The following are some of the advantages/disadvantages of Netbook computers over their desktop/laptop counterparts.
Speed: Netbooks typically boot and are available for use in less than 2 minutes. A pure Netbook computer does not use traditional hard disk drives and the operating system and data are stored on the build-in non-volatile memory which is quicker and less likely to be damaged than traditional hard disk drives.
Size/Weight: The Netbooks are much smaller and lighter than your traditional laptop. Screen sizes range between 7” and 13” inches and they easily fit in a standard briefcase.
Durability: With no moving parts the Netbook can take much more punishment than a traditional laptop. The Achilles heal is the screen which is exactly the same as a traditional laptop so don’t be mislead into thinking you can throw these units around.
Cost: With prices starting at as low as 250 euro you can get yourself online and browsing quite cheaply. The low cost also makes this unit suitable as a secondary pc around the house to reduce the stress on your main machine.
Maintenance: Netbooks come in two flavours Windows or Linux. The Linux models are virtually impervious to virus attack so if you purchase one you are much less likely to be hit by spyware/virus infections. The caveat with Linux is that Windows based programs will not work under Linux. Linux models are cheaper than the Windows versions.
Disadvantages Of Netbooks
Screen Size: The screen sizes may be too small for those of you with poor eyesight. Even those with good eyesight will find using the 7”-9” models tiring. Expandability: Netbooks use non-volatile memory to store both the operating system and your data and as such you do not have much capacity for storage of your data. You can add an external hard drive if you desire but these cost around 90-120 euro.
Functionality: Netbooks have neither the storage capacity or the processing power to handle large volumes of music or video. Because they are not equipped with either a cd or dvd drive you’ll need to purchase an external CD/DVD player if you want to play or use cd/dvds on your netbook.
Advantages Of Netbooks
The following are some of the advantages/disadvantages of Netbook computers over their desktop/laptop counterparts.
Speed: Netbooks typically boot and are available for use in less than 2 minutes. A pure Netbook computer does not use traditional hard disk drives and the operating system and data are stored on the build-in non-volatile memory which is quicker and less likely to be damaged than traditional hard disk drives.
Size/Weight: The Netbooks are much smaller and lighter than your traditional laptop. Screen sizes range between 7” and 13” inches and they easily fit in a standard briefcase.
Durability: With no moving parts the Netbook can take much more punishment than a traditional laptop. The Achilles heal is the screen which is exactly the same as a traditional laptop so don’t be mislead into thinking you can throw these units around.
Cost: With prices starting at as low as 250 euro you can get yourself online and browsing quite cheaply. The low cost also makes this unit suitable as a secondary pc around the house to reduce the stress on your main machine.
Maintenance: Netbooks come in two flavours Windows or Linux. The Linux models are virtually impervious to virus attack so if you purchase one you are much less likely to be hit by spyware/virus infections. The caveat with Linux is that Windows based programs will not work under Linux. Linux models are cheaper than the Windows versions.
Disadvantages Of Netbooks
Screen Size: The screen sizes may be too small for those of you with poor eyesight. Even those with good eyesight will find using the 7”-9” models tiring. Expandability: Netbooks use non-volatile memory to store both the operating system and your data and as such you do not have much capacity for storage of your data. You can add an external hard drive if you desire but these cost around 90-120 euro.
Functionality: Netbooks have neither the storage capacity or the processing power to handle large volumes of music or video. Because they are not equipped with either a cd or dvd drive you’ll need to purchase an external CD/DVD player if you want to play or use cd/dvds on your netbook.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Which Computer Suits Me? Part One
Around this time of year many of you will be pondering if it’s time to consider replacing your aging or ailing pc. With that in mind the next couple of articles will provides a brief overview of the current crop of technology offers in the marketplace.
Traditional Desktop Computers
Without doubt the best value for money is your standard desktop computer. I seldom see a laptop older than 5 years but desktops seem to go on for ever. Desktop computers outperform and outlive even the highest end laptops and the icing on the cake is that the cost of repair or upgrade is significantly less than their portable cousins. For families the desktop offers the best bang for the buck and reduces the amount of parental monitoring you have to do as the machine can be located in a common area. I do not endorse or recommend laptop computers for teenagers.(I’m not too popular with them as a result!) as they are difficult to monitor, easily broken and oft times abused.
Portable Computers
This group can be divided in three class: Full Laptops, Notebooks, Netbooks, and last but by no means least the Apple IPAD.
Laptops/Notebooks
The range now available is staggering and offer an ever increasing myriad of features. Having said that I’m still not a fan but if you must have one then consider the choices carefully before you shell out your hard earned cash. I regularly see broken laptops and notebooks less than three years old and many have simply failed due to poor manufacture or over use. The most common problems in this range are :Broken or Failed Screens, Broken power connectors/power supplies, and Damaged Hard disks.
Laptops were never intended as a replacement for desktop computers yet most people believe they can be used in the same way. By default they tend to be used more often and suffer significant amounts of wear and tear due to their portability. Prices in this category range from around 300 Euro and up. For a decent laptop with a 15 inch screen you can expect to pay at least 600 Euro. Ensure you purchase a solid Anti-Virus and external backup drive with your laptop and backup regularly. I’ve seen more than my share of tears over lost baby photos
In Next months article I’ll expand further on this topic. Happy Computing!
Traditional Desktop Computers
Without doubt the best value for money is your standard desktop computer. I seldom see a laptop older than 5 years but desktops seem to go on for ever. Desktop computers outperform and outlive even the highest end laptops and the icing on the cake is that the cost of repair or upgrade is significantly less than their portable cousins. For families the desktop offers the best bang for the buck and reduces the amount of parental monitoring you have to do as the machine can be located in a common area. I do not endorse or recommend laptop computers for teenagers.(I’m not too popular with them as a result!) as they are difficult to monitor, easily broken and oft times abused.
Portable Computers
This group can be divided in three class: Full Laptops, Notebooks, Netbooks, and last but by no means least the Apple IPAD.
Laptops/Notebooks
The range now available is staggering and offer an ever increasing myriad of features. Having said that I’m still not a fan but if you must have one then consider the choices carefully before you shell out your hard earned cash. I regularly see broken laptops and notebooks less than three years old and many have simply failed due to poor manufacture or over use. The most common problems in this range are :Broken or Failed Screens, Broken power connectors/power supplies, and Damaged Hard disks.
Laptops were never intended as a replacement for desktop computers yet most people believe they can be used in the same way. By default they tend to be used more often and suffer significant amounts of wear and tear due to their portability. Prices in this category range from around 300 Euro and up. For a decent laptop with a 15 inch screen you can expect to pay at least 600 Euro. Ensure you purchase a solid Anti-Virus and external backup drive with your laptop and backup regularly. I’ve seen more than my share of tears over lost baby photos
In Next months article I’ll expand further on this topic. Happy Computing!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Protect Yourself From Computer Fraud
Time was the major threat to computer users was from viruses which could attack or disable your pc. Today the main threat is from worm viruses or spyware attacks aimed at hitting your wallet. This month article deals with some basic tips to protect yourself from such attacks.
Tip 1 – Selling or Disposing Of A Used Computer
Selling or recycling your computer has the potential to be an extremely dangerous situation in terms of computer fraud and unless you follow the correct procedures you are handing potential criminals a plethora of information about yourself.
Don’t be fooled into believing that your nephew can erase your information for you. He can’t and with the right tools a potential criminal has a 90% chance of recovering enough information about you to cause you serious problems. I’ve recovered up to 75% of the information from broken drives for customers in the past and this is without using advanced repair and forensics. Be under no illusion when it comes to data recovery your information can be recovered and used against you. The same tools used by police forces worldwide to forensically analyze computers are available to the everyday criminal and they will use them against you.
Bottom line : Never, ever sell, transfer or donate your computer with the hard disk installed. The drive should be removed and kept by you or destroyed (Destruction of hard drives is not a do-it-yourself job and you have the potential for fairly serious injury to yourself if you take a hammer to your drive).
If you are selling the machine a new disk should be installed and the operating system and programs re-installed from scratch. The original disk should be kept by you.
Tip 2. Online Buying
Avoid using your credit or laser card like the plague when buying on the internet. Quite apart from the potential to be scammed directly by a fake website you also risk leaving enough information in on the machine for a virus attack to get the details. Information stealing viruses are at epidemic levels on the internet and you won’t even suspect you are infected until it is too late. I know of one case where the customer came across their own details for sale on a hacker’s website. This included their full name, address, and credit card number.
Tip: Use paypal to pay for your online purchases and if the site does not accept paypal get yourself a 3v card at www.3v.com This will limit your exposure to fraud.
Be careful out there they are waiting in the bushes for you!
Tip 1 – Selling or Disposing Of A Used Computer
Selling or recycling your computer has the potential to be an extremely dangerous situation in terms of computer fraud and unless you follow the correct procedures you are handing potential criminals a plethora of information about yourself.
Don’t be fooled into believing that your nephew can erase your information for you. He can’t and with the right tools a potential criminal has a 90% chance of recovering enough information about you to cause you serious problems. I’ve recovered up to 75% of the information from broken drives for customers in the past and this is without using advanced repair and forensics. Be under no illusion when it comes to data recovery your information can be recovered and used against you. The same tools used by police forces worldwide to forensically analyze computers are available to the everyday criminal and they will use them against you.
Bottom line : Never, ever sell, transfer or donate your computer with the hard disk installed. The drive should be removed and kept by you or destroyed (Destruction of hard drives is not a do-it-yourself job and you have the potential for fairly serious injury to yourself if you take a hammer to your drive).
If you are selling the machine a new disk should be installed and the operating system and programs re-installed from scratch. The original disk should be kept by you.
Tip 2. Online Buying
Avoid using your credit or laser card like the plague when buying on the internet. Quite apart from the potential to be scammed directly by a fake website you also risk leaving enough information in on the machine for a virus attack to get the details. Information stealing viruses are at epidemic levels on the internet and you won’t even suspect you are infected until it is too late. I know of one case where the customer came across their own details for sale on a hacker’s website. This included their full name, address, and credit card number.
Tip: Use paypal to pay for your online purchases and if the site does not accept paypal get yourself a 3v card at www.3v.com This will limit your exposure to fraud.
Be careful out there they are waiting in the bushes for you!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Latest Internet Scams
Latest Internet Scams
This month’s article deals with two of the latest internet scams and how you can avoid getting stung by them. Both scams outlined are active and in use within Ireland.
Scam No 1 – Email From Someone You Know In Trouble
This scam is delivered via email and is an attempt to get you to wire money to a relative or friend in trouble. The Subject will be URGENT HELP!!! And will appear to be from someone you know. Here is an extract from one such scam email.
I'm writing this with tears in my eyes, I’m sorry i didn't inform you about my trip, I had a trip to the SPAIN and a bizarre thing happened to me. I was mugged at a gun point last night, it happened at the park of the Hotel were i lodged but thank God i wasn't hurt, all cash, credit card and cell-phone were stolen off me...but luckily for me i still have my life and passports with me, I was able to make contact with the Police and i was directed to the Embassy, but they seems to be taking things too slow.
I need your help so urgently.. My flight leaves pretty soon but i am having problems sorting out the hotel bills I need a quick loan to get things fixed out here, I promise to refund as soon as i get back home.. Please reply asap. So i can tell you what to do and how to get the money to me.
Hope to read from you soon.
Carmel
Action: Delete this email when you receive it and if you recognize the name it is a good idea to let them know that there is a good possibility their pc is infected and needs to be checked by a qualified technician.
Scam No 2 – Unsolicited Phone Call Offering To Fix Your Computer
The caller will claim to be from Microsoft or some other fairly well known computer company and will tell you that your computer has been identified as having a problem, being the source of a virus or some other defect. The caller will offer to connect and repair the machine over the internet. Once connected they will secretly infect the machine with a virus or spyware and then solicit payment.
This scam can result in you paying out hundreds of euro before you realize you’ve been scammed.
Action: Hang up the phone, turn off your computer and seek professional technical assistance immediately as there is a possibility your pc security has been compromised.
Oliver Reidy is a computer technician and has been in the industry since 1981. He can be contacted above for advice and repairs.
This month’s article deals with two of the latest internet scams and how you can avoid getting stung by them. Both scams outlined are active and in use within Ireland.
Scam No 1 – Email From Someone You Know In Trouble
This scam is delivered via email and is an attempt to get you to wire money to a relative or friend in trouble. The Subject will be URGENT HELP!!! And will appear to be from someone you know. Here is an extract from one such scam email.
I'm writing this with tears in my eyes, I’m sorry i didn't inform you about my trip, I had a trip to the SPAIN and a bizarre thing happened to me. I was mugged at a gun point last night, it happened at the park of the Hotel were i lodged but thank God i wasn't hurt, all cash, credit card and cell-phone were stolen off me...but luckily for me i still have my life and passports with me, I was able to make contact with the Police and i was directed to the Embassy, but they seems to be taking things too slow.
I need your help so urgently.. My flight leaves pretty soon but i am having problems sorting out the hotel bills I need a quick loan to get things fixed out here, I promise to refund as soon as i get back home.. Please reply asap. So i can tell you what to do and how to get the money to me.
Hope to read from you soon.
Carmel
Action: Delete this email when you receive it and if you recognize the name it is a good idea to let them know that there is a good possibility their pc is infected and needs to be checked by a qualified technician.
Scam No 2 – Unsolicited Phone Call Offering To Fix Your Computer
The caller will claim to be from Microsoft or some other fairly well known computer company and will tell you that your computer has been identified as having a problem, being the source of a virus or some other defect. The caller will offer to connect and repair the machine over the internet. Once connected they will secretly infect the machine with a virus or spyware and then solicit payment.
This scam can result in you paying out hundreds of euro before you realize you’ve been scammed.
Action: Hang up the phone, turn off your computer and seek professional technical assistance immediately as there is a possibility your pc security has been compromised.
Oliver Reidy is a computer technician and has been in the industry since 1981. He can be contacted above for advice and repairs.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Five Ways To Protect Your PC
This month’s article discusses five ways you can protect your computer from virus or spyware attack and recover in the event that damage occurs. A significant portion of machines that land on my desk for repair suffer from some form of virus or spyware infection. In many cases the owner is unaware of the infection but notices that their machine is slower and behaves abnormally. The authors of Virus and spyware programs are no amateurs when it comes to concealing their activities and will not reveal themselves until they are firmly rooted on your computer. Increasingly the objective is to steal your money in whatever way they can.
Backup Your PC Frequently
There is really no excuse for not securing you information these days. Backup devices are relatively cheap and easily available. I’ve written a series of articles on backing up which you can find on my blog at http://reidyonline.blogspot.com/ Take the time to read them and backup your data.
Generate Your Recovery Media
Most modern computers come with a recovery system which will generate system recovery DVD’s. These DVD’s are invaluable when it comes to restoring the system to a working state after a serious system failure. You will need at most three blank writeable DVD’s and a five pack of blank dvd’s will run you around 6-10 euro. These are available locally at ALDI, LIDL and Tesco. Take the time to generate these dvd’s and keep them safe.
Install A Proved Anti-Virus System
This is the most obvious but least observed step to protecting your pc. Choosing an anti-virus program requires professional advice. I stress the word professional as too often people rely on hearsay and the recommendations of those they deem to have computer expertise. Free versions of anti-virus programs, while better than nothing, are not a solution to virus defence and do not provide full protection from virus attacks.
Avoid Illegal Websites
Teenagers love music and video and will download it from wherever source they can. These can include illegal music sites on the internet. Many contain viruses and spyware and accessing or downloading from them can result in your computer becoming virus or spyware infected.
Exercise Caution When Browsing
We have come to rely on the internet as the source for information but you need to exercise caution when browsing. Virus authors target certain types of sites which include holiday sites, free software sites, and as previously mentioned music sites. I’ve even seen them infect children’s story sites so you must be careful when browsing.
Backup Your PC Frequently
There is really no excuse for not securing you information these days. Backup devices are relatively cheap and easily available. I’ve written a series of articles on backing up which you can find on my blog at http://reidyonline.blogspot.com/ Take the time to read them and backup your data.
Generate Your Recovery Media
Most modern computers come with a recovery system which will generate system recovery DVD’s. These DVD’s are invaluable when it comes to restoring the system to a working state after a serious system failure. You will need at most three blank writeable DVD’s and a five pack of blank dvd’s will run you around 6-10 euro. These are available locally at ALDI, LIDL and Tesco. Take the time to generate these dvd’s and keep them safe.
Install A Proved Anti-Virus System
This is the most obvious but least observed step to protecting your pc. Choosing an anti-virus program requires professional advice. I stress the word professional as too often people rely on hearsay and the recommendations of those they deem to have computer expertise. Free versions of anti-virus programs, while better than nothing, are not a solution to virus defence and do not provide full protection from virus attacks.
Avoid Illegal Websites
Teenagers love music and video and will download it from wherever source they can. These can include illegal music sites on the internet. Many contain viruses and spyware and accessing or downloading from them can result in your computer becoming virus or spyware infected.
Exercise Caution When Browsing
We have come to rely on the internet as the source for information but you need to exercise caution when browsing. Virus authors target certain types of sites which include holiday sites, free software sites, and as previously mentioned music sites. I’ve even seen them infect children’s story sites so you must be careful when browsing.
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