Internet Security Suites »

Most new computers these days come preloaded with some form of Internet Security, usually McAfee or, *gasp*, Norton.  These are usually in the form of a trial version for up to 15 months with the hopes that, when the trial period is expired you will be so intimidated by the thought of installing a different one that you will just chose to renew.

Granted, it can be a royal pain switching from one Anti-virus / Spyware protection service to another, but sometimes that is exactly what you should do.  If you are not dead-set on continuing to use what was preloaded for you by your PC manufacturer, here are a few other Internet Security Suites that you would do well to at least consider:

• TrustPort – Virtual disk encryption utility and included tools to securely shred your deleted data files.  $55/yr. 1 PC.
• ZoneAlarm – Firewall, privacy controls, anti-virus and parental controls.  $59.95/yr. 3 PCs.
• BitDefender – Lots of tools and power scanners, plus 2 year online data backup.  $79.95/yr. 3 PCs.

Don’t feel that you have to stick with McAffee or Norton just because that is what your PC came loaded with.  You can switch and you might find something better.  All of the products listed above have a fully functional trial so you can test before you buy.

Centralized Storage for Your Business »

So you have 2 PCs or maybe even 10 PCs in your business. Each person has their own files on their PCs and makes changes to those files when necessary. Though, what if you have files that need to be shared by everyone (or even certain people) in the business? What if multiple people need to make changes to a single file? Things can easily get tangled pretty quickly. Causing time wasted by emailing files back and forth and making sure the person received it, etc…  This is where having a network and a NAS comes in handy.

What is NAS? Otherwise known as a Network Attached Storage Drive, a NAS is basically a hard drive that can be accessed anywhere in your business, wirelessly and even remotely. Being able to work on files from home is always nice. :c) With a NAS, data can be centrally stored and set up with permissions for either all or certain users in your business. This way, files may be shared with ease, both instantly and efficiently. Another great thing about a NAS is that it is easily backed up so that your data is safe and your PCs don’t even have to be on overnight.

If you are interested in having either  a network, a NAS drive, or both set up for your business, please send me an email and I will give you all of the details.   

Disable Startup Programs in XP and Vista »

After using your PC for a while you may notice that it seems to take longer and longer to start up. This can be extremely annoying, especially if all you want to do is turn on your PC for a quick peek at your bank account or quickly gather some information from a letter or email. So, something that may take a minute to do, will now take 10 minutes because your PC has to load up all of those programs at startup. Having a quick-start option just for these reasons would be fantastic. Come on Microsoft!!! As of now, I will show you how to minimize those start-up times to get them closer to being acceptable.

1. For XP: Click Start -> Click Run -> Type msconfig -> Press Enter

   For Vista: Click Windows button ->In the search area, Type msconfig -> Press Enter

2. You will notice the System Configuration Utility pop-up.

3. Click on the Startup tab

4. This lists every program that starts up with Windows

5. Very carefully sort through the list. Some of it may not make sense. For example in XP: Apple‘s Quicktime program is actually called “qttask“. To disable this program from starting up, uncheck the box beside “qttask” -> Click Apply -> Restart the computer. To see a better description of each file, expand the width of the “Command” column, up near the Startup tab. I recommend only unchecking one item at a time, to make sure that nothing goes wrong during the next restart. Please be extra careful with this, as some of these files are necessary for either Windows to work correctly or maybe even your corporate software.

If you have any questions, or are hesitant on doing this, please email me and I will gladly help you through the process.

SpyBossPro: The Latest Spyware Threat »

The latest and most annoying piece of spyware released is called SpyBossPro. This piece of software is pretty sneaky and could cause plenty of headaches for the end user. As a piece of spyware, SpyBossPro will actually record your keystrokes (like when you type in your credit card information), record all web sites visited, take screenshots at regular intervals, as well as send all of this information to a predetermined email address. It does all of this in the background, so you will not even know it’s happening.

So please, keep your Anti-Virus programs up to date. They will detect this nasty piece of software if it is on your machine, or trying to enter your machine and save you many headaches in the future.  

Top 10 Security Tips For Your Small Business Part 3 »

4. Scan for Adware at least once per month

Using a program that specifically scans for adware can be a great tool to have for any business. Programs such as Ad-Aware and Spybot-Search and Destroy can search for any registry changes that may be caused by adware or spyware. These programs may be able to find additional adware and spyware that do not show up in your Anti-Virus program. The best part is, both of these programs are absolutely free.

3. Watch for “Click Here for $$$” advertisements on web pages.

If you see an ad that tells you it’s going to give you a ton of money, stay far, far away! About the only prize you can receive from one of these ads is a slow PC full of adware. Not cool!

2. Don’t leave company email open on a public internet kiosk

This may seem like a simple idea, but just the fact that we are a species of habit could make this a major security risk for your business. If you are travelling and need to check your email at a public PC, please make sure to close out of your email when you are finished. Some kiosks will automatically log you off after a certain amount of time, but within that time limit, all of your email is fair game for anyone close by.

1. Don’t make your password “password”

Last, but certainly not least is the rule that you should NEVER make your password “password” or something similar to a default password. I definitely agree that passwords can be the most annoying things in the world to have to remember, but they are very important to keeping your data safe. Taping them to the front of your monitor or hiding them under the keyboard may help you to remember what they are, but isn’t much of a data theft deterrent. Here is a nice write-up that Anthony did about passwords. Check it out.

So with a little common sense and a few pieces of software, you can keep your business and your data more secure!

Click here to see part 1 and here to see part 2.