How do people get this basic information about you?

When you visit another web site, information about you can be retrieved. Basically, information is intercepted and used by others to track your Internet activities.

How do you stop this from happening?

First of all, it is possible to serf the web anonymously and thereby stop leaving a trail for others to find. Note that this is not fool-proof, but it makes it much harder for people to know who you are. There are products called anonymous proxy servers that help protect you. The anonymous proxy server replaces your Internet address for its own. This has the effect of hiding your IP address and making it much harder for people to track you.


How do I get an anonymous proxy server?

There are many vendors who sell anonymous proxy servers. There are also free proxy servers available to you. Two such products are ShadowSurf and Guardster. Guardster (http://www.guardster.com/) offers various services for anonymous and secure access to the web, some paid as well as a free service. ShadowSurf (http://www.shadowsurf.com/) ShadowSurf provides anonymous surfing at their site for free. Go to it and you will find a box to enter a URL that you want no one to track. There are many others, but here are two that are frequently used.

Another interesting product, given the recent news about the Google search engine filtering its findings for the Chinese government, is Anonymizer (http://www.anonymizer.com). This company, among others, recently (Feb 1st, 2006) pressed that it "is developing a new anti-censorship solution that will enable Chinese citizens to safely access the entire Internet filter-free" (http://www.anonymizer.com/consumer/media/press_releases/02012006.html).

Does an anonymous proxy server make you 100% safe?

No. Still, you are much better off if you use such technology.

What other things should I be concerned about when trying to keep my private information private?

Three other items come to mind when trying to keep your information private. First, you can use an encrypted connection to hide your surfing. This article does not go into detail on this, but search the web and you will find a lot of information on this. Secondly, delete cookies after each session. Third, you can configure your browser to remove JavaScript, Java, and active content. This actually leads to limitations, so you need to think about the cost/benefit of this course of action.


Anything else?

Wishing you happy and safe surfing!

Identity thieves employ a variety of methods to gain access to your personal information. They may get information from businesses or other institutions by stealing it; by bribing an employee who has access to records; hacking into records; or conning information out of employees. Once identity thieves have your personal information, they may use it to commit a fraud or theft in your name.

How can you tell if you have become a victim of identity theft? Some signs include unexplained charges or withdrawals from your financial accounts; bills or other mail stop arriving (the thief may have submitted a change of address); a credit application is denied for no apparent reason, or debt collectors begin calling about merchandise or services you didn’t buy.

Your computer can be a goldmine of personal information to an identity thief. To protect yourself and your computer against identity theft consider:

• Updating virus protection software frequently. Consider setting your virus protection software to update automatically. The Windows XP operating system also can be set to check for patches automatically and download them to your computer.
• Not opening files sent to you by strangers, clicking on hyperlinks, or downloading programs from people or companies you don’t know.
• Using a firewall program, especially if you use a high speed Internet connection like cable or DSL that leaves your computer connected to the Internet 24 hours a day.
• Providing your personal or financial information through an organization’s secured website only. While not fool proof, a lock icon on the browser’s status bar or a URL for a website that begins “https:” (the “s” stands for secure), may provide additional security.
• Not storing your financial information on your laptop, unless absolutely necessary.
• Deleting all the personal information stored on a computer before disposing of it. A wipe” utility program to overwrite the entire hard drive is recommended.
• Checking with an anti-fraud education organization such as CardCops (www.cardcops.com). Card Cops runs a web site designed to help consumers determine whether their credit card numbers may have been stolen. They monitor Internet "chat rooms" where identity thieves illicitly trade and sell stolen credit card numbers. CardCops turns the information over to law enforcement authorities, but also allows consumers to access their database to see whether individual card numbers may have been stolen. In the first two months of operation, the site identified more than 100,000 stolen credit cards.

As with any crime, you can not completely control whether you will become a victim, but you can take steps to minimize your risk by remaining diligent and by minimizing outside access to your personal information.

Phishing (pronounced as “fishing”) is defined as the act of sending an email to a recipient falsely claiming to have an established, legitimate business. The intent of the phisher is to scam the recipient into surrendering their private information, and ultimately steal your identity.

It is not at easy as you think to spot an email phishing for information. At first glance, the email may look like it is from a legitimate company. The "From" field of the e-mail may have the .com address of the company mentioned in the e-mail. The clickable link even appears to take you to the company's website, when in fact, it is a fake website built to replicate the legitimate site.

Many of these people are professional criminals. They have spent a lot of time in creating emails that look authentic. Users need to review all emails requesting personal information carefully. When reviewing your email remember that the "From Field" can be easily changed by the sender. While it may look like it is coming from a .com you do business with, looks can be deceiving. Also keep in mind that the phisher will go all out in trying to make their email look as legitimate as possible. They will even copy logos or images from the official site to use in their emails. Finally, they like to include a clickable link that the recipient can follow to conveniently update their information.
A great way to check the legitimacy of the link is to point at the link with your mouse. Then, look in the bottom left hand screen of your computer. The actual website address to which you are being directed will show up for you to view. It is a very quick and easy way to check if you are being directed to a legitimate site.

Finally, follow the golden rule. Never, ever, click the links within the text of the e-mail, and always delete the e-mail immediately. Once you have deleted the e-mail, empty the trash box in your e-mail accounts as well. If you are truly concerned that you are missing an important notice regarding one of your accounts, then type the full URL address of the website into your browser. At least then you can be confident that you are, in fact, being directed to the true and legitimate website.

While a regular backup to floppy, CD, or zip drive will save your files, wouldn’t it be great if you could create an exact copy (a drive image) of your hard disk? That means backups of all your files, programs, and user settings. This would definitely save you time when it came to reloading. Acronis may be able to help.

Acronis True Image 9.0 is a robust disk-imaging utility software that copies the entire contents of your hard drive including data and operating system files, personalized settings, and more, onto another disk or disk partition. Its layout is easy to use and navigate. It also includes wizards which can walk you through both backing up and restoring your computer. Highlighted features include:

• Secure Zone — allows you to save data to a special hidden partition located on your hard drive which would eliminate the need to purchase an extra hard drive.
• PC Cloning — you can upgrade to a new system disk without needing to reinstall the operating system and applications, or configure user settings.
• Acronis Snap Restore - lightening-speed restore of your PC from an image. You can start working in seconds while your system is still being restored.

Acronis provides a free test-drive of its product and a 30-day money back guarantee. When you are ready to purchase, you can either download for $49.99, or if you so desire, order a boxed version for $59.99. With Acronis True Image Home 9.0, you can rest easy that your family pictures, personal documents, tax returns, resumes, and other important information will not be lost forever.

The potential for less is the ideal reason to create a backup of your software and data. How often or how much you need to backup things however, all depends on how you use your computer. If your data is very important or if you use your computer for work, you may need to create a backup of your software on a daily basis, possibly even hourly for some people.

You can use various devices and equipment to backup your data, such as DVD and CD burners, tapes, external hard drives, servers on the Internet, and so on and so forth. Although each one has pros and cons, you should always use more than one backup method if your data is extremely important to you, just to be on the safe side.

When it comes to backing up your data using software, there are five different methods you can use:
1. Full backup - A full backup will create a mirror of your hard drive, every file and folder that you currently have on your computer.
2. Differential backup - A differential backup creates the backup only for files that have been changed or upgraded.
3. Disk image - This will give you the choice of backing up your entire hard drive or just the files that you select.
4. Unattended backup - Using this method, you can set the software that will create the backup to do all of the work, even if you aren’t around.
5. Snapshot backup - A snapshot backup will mirror your hard drive, backing up the images of your files.

When you decide to get a software program to assist you with backing up your files, you should always get a program that best fits your needs. Price is also an important factor, although ease of use and overall reliability should always be the most important factors when it comes to your data.

Most programs are easy to use, so even if you have never backed up your data before, you’ll be able to do it without any problems. All you’ll need to do is load the software then follow the instructions that come up on the screen.

All in all, software backup is the best way to keep your data preserved and ready. Something can happen to your computer at any given time, which is why you should always be on the safe side and back up your data every chance you get.

It's true that there has been some Bluetooth phones
that have been hacked into. Most devices that are
hacked into are normally those that don't have any
type of security at all.

According to Bluetooth specialists, in order to hack
into a Bluetooth device, the hacker must:
1. Force two paired devices to break their
connection.
2. Steal the packets that are used to
resend the pin.
3. Decode the pin.

Of course, the hacker must also be within range of
the device, and using very expensive developer type
equipment. Most specialists recommend that you
have a longer pin, with 8 digits being recommended.

Fundamentals of security
The "pairing process" is one of the most basic levels
of security for Bluetooth devices. Pairing, is
two or more Bluetooth devices that recognize each
other by the profiles they share - in most cases
they both must enter the same pin.

The core specifications for Bluetooth use an
encryption algorithm, which is completely and entirely
secure. Once the devices pair with each other,
they too become entirely secure.

Until they have successfully paired, the Bluetooth
devices won't communicate with each other. Due to
this pairing process and the fact that it is short
range - Bluetooth technology is considered to be
secure.

As the news has indicated, experienced hackers
have developed ways to get around this level of
basic security. There are ways to get around this
threat, as you can install software to prevent
hackers from getting in.

With Bluetooth becoming more and more popular, it's
really no wonder that security is always in
question. As Bluetooth gets bigger and better,
security will always be something that no one
really takes lightly.

If you've been concerned about Bluetooth security
in the past, rest assured that newer devices will
offer bigger and better security. Preventing
hackers from getting in is something every owner
is concerned about - and the manufacturer's are
very aware.

Frequency hopping
Frequency hopping is basically jumping from frequency
to frequency within the ISM radio band. After a
bluetooth device sends or receives a packet, it
and the device (or devices) it's communicating with
hop to another frequency before the next packet is
sent. This scheme offers three advantages:
1. Allows Bluetooth devices to use the
entirety of the available ISM band, while never
transmitting from a fixed frequency for more than a
short period of time. This helps insure that
Bluetooth conforms to the ISM restrictions on the
transmission quantity per frequency.
2. Ensures that any interference won't
last long. Any packet that doesn't arrive safely
to its destination can be resent to the next
frequency.
3. Provides a base level of security as
it's very hard for an eavesdropping device to predict
which frequency the Bluetooth devices will use
next.

The connected devices however, must agree upon the
frequency they will use next. The specification
in Bluetooth ensures this in two ways. First, it
defines a master and slave type relationship between
bluetooth devices. Next, it specifies an algorithm
that uses device specific information when
calculating the frequency hop sequences.

A Bluetooth device that operates in master mode can
communicate with up to seven devices that are set in
slave mode. To each of the slaves, the master
Bluetooth device will send its own unique address
and the value of its own internal clock. The
information sent is then used to calculate the
frequency hop sequences.

Because the master device and each of the slave
devices use the same algorithm with the same initial
input, the connected devices will always arrive
together at the next frequency that they have agreed
upon.

As a replacement for cable technology, it's no
wonder that Bluetooth devices are usually battery
powered, such as wireless mice and battery powered
cell phones. To conserve the power, most devices
operate in low power. This helps to give Bluetooth
devices a range of around 5 - 10 meters.

This range is far enough for wireless communication
but close enough to avoid drawing too much power
from the power source of the device.

Bluetooth is an industry standard communication of
wireless, meaning that it enables the connection
of other devices as well, such as cell phones,
computers, digital cameras, and other types of
electronic devices. The specification of Bluetooth
defines a radio system and a "stack" of protocol
layers and profiles. The highest layer is the
application layer, while the lowest layer is the
radio.

The wireless technology of Bluetooth is positioned
to revolutionize the personal connectivity market
by providing freedom from inconvenient fixed type
lines.

The specification for Bluetooth eliminates the need
for cables by providing a small form factor, low
cost wireless solution that will link computers,
cell phones, and other electronics. Bluetooth
also allows users to connect many ranges of devices
quickly and easily and expands communications
capabilities as well.

The size of the Bluetooth radio is amazing, as a
Bluetooth radio can be built into one or two very
small microchips then integrated into any electronic
device where wireless operations would be an
advantage.

Bluetooth also offers a robust link, which ensures
that normal operating circumstances are not
interrupted by interference from other signals
that are operating in the same frequency band.

Also known for its worldwide operation, Bluetooth
radio operates in the 2.4 GHz frequency band, which
is license free and available to any type of
radio system in the world. No matter where you
are in the world, you count on Bluetooth to work.

Security is also important. Offering advanced
security mechanisms, Bluetooth ensures a high level
of security. Therefore, authentification will
prevent unauthorized acess to important data and
make it very difficult to listen in.

Bluetooth also boasts power optimization. The radio
is power friendly and the software for Bluetooth
is very configurable, limiting the power consumption
of equipment. The radio itself only consumes a
small amount of power from a cellular phone.

What is Spyware?

Butte College (www.bctv.butte.edu/support/spyware.html) offers this definition:

“The term ‘spyware’ is broadly defined as any program that gets into your computer without permission and hides in the background while it makes unwanted changes to your user experience.
Spyware is generally not designed to damage your computer. The damage it does is more a by-product of its main mission, which is to serve you targeted advertisements or make your browser display certain sites or search results.
At present, most spyware targets only the Windows operating system (Internet Explorer).”

To be fair, spyware can be harmless, for example tracking cookies don’t do much. While such things infringe on your privacy, they don't really harm anything. Others, however, are extremely dangerous.

So what do you do about it?

No spyware program seems to do everything, but there are a lot of goods solutions out there that can help. Here is a list of some of the top Spyware tools to look at:


1) Try Ad-Aware 6.0 Professional from LavaSoft (there is also a free version with less functionality)

2) Spybot Search & Destroy from PepiMK Software


3) Xoftspy form Pareto Logic

5) Spyware Guard from Javacool Software is a free program

4) Pest Patrol (now part of Computer Associates by acquisition)

5) McAfee Anti-Spyware

One thing is for certain: you do need to take spyware seriously. For some reason, too many people out there think anti-virus solutions are the end-all solution. They are not.

And, when all else fails?

Finally, as drastic as it seems, if your computer has been infected with a large number of spyware programs, the only solution you may have is backing up your data, and performing a complete reinstall of the operating system.

Whenever this happens to you, it’s always a good thing there’s data recovery. Without data recovery, it wouldn’t be possible to retrieve files, recover information, or simply get back to the data you spent years building.

To recover your data, you’ll need to send it off to a company that specializes in data recovery. They will need to run some tests on it and see what shape it is in, how bad it is damaged, and just what needs to be done to recover your data.

This process will normally take around a week or so, all depending on the problem. It can be quite expensive as well, depending on where you send it. Keep in mind though - the more experience the data recovery technicians have, the higher the price will be.

Those that are more expensive are great if you have the money to spare, for the simple fact that they are experts and are more apt at saving your data and information. The cheaper data recovery companies are great as well, although larger companies and those with extremely important data will want to put their trust in the best that money can buy.

With most cases, companies can rebuild the hard drive, providing the drive isn’t totally corrupted. In cases where the hard drive is totally gone, it will need to be rebuilt, which can take quite a bit of time. No matter what the situation may be, data recovery experts can normally find a solution to recover your data.

At some point in time, everyone will experience some type of hard drive crash or malfunction that will result in the loss of data. When this happens to you, you shouldn’t get all shook up or alarmed, you should instead make sure that you are prepared to always expect the unexpected.

Even though your data can normally be recovered, you should still back up everything on a weekly basis just to be on the safe side. This way, when your hard drive is sent off to be repaired, you’ll have the information you need backed up to keep on going as normal.

To be on the safe side, you should keep your most important documents and files stored on a CD, by using a CD burner and CD-R media. This is by far the cheapest and easiest way to back up your data, and it will keep you more than prepared for when your hard drive malfunctions and crashes when you least expect it.

If you prepare yourself by backing up your data, a hard drive malfunction won’t be as traumatic on you. You should always be prepared, and ready just in case something happens. Computers are the wave of the future - although they aren’t perfect by any means.

With natural disasters, hackers, viruses, or other problems, you won’t have the time to react. Before you know it, your hard drive will be damaged and your data will be gone. Although this can be very frustrating, data recovery can normally bring your information back. All you need to do is take the hard drive to a local specialist, then let them work their magic and show you the power of data recovery.

There are software programs out there that claim to recover lost data, although you should avoid them at all costs. Most of time, these software programs will do your hard drive more bad than good. Even though software may cost a lot less than professional data recovery services, the professional services will guarantee their work. If you turn to software and it only makes things worse - your more or less out of luck, as the software doesn’t guarantee anything.

Anytime your hard drive fails and you seem to have lost your data, you should turn to professional data recovery services immediately. They may cost you a lot of money, although they do the job right the first time. When it comes to your data, you really don’t want to take any chances - especially if you had important documents and files stored on your hard drive.

In order to back up your data and programs in a safe and efficient manner, you’ll need to use some of the more reliable methods, such as external hard drives or servers. Offsite backups are great as well, as the data you backup isn’t left around your office, it is instead entrusted with a company who will ensure that it stays protected.

No matter which method or methods you have decided to use for backing up your data, you’ll be happy to know that they are all easy to use. CD and DVD backups are easy to create, all you need is the software installed on your computer to create the backups with. Servers are easy to use as well, all you have to do is upload your data to a server, then log into the server anytime you need to have access to the data.

All in all, creating backups of your data and information is the perfect way to ensure that you always have it in the event of a disaster. Disasters can happen at any time, which is why you should always back up your data anytime you have something new or something that you haven’t backed up yet.

Will encryption stop people from accessing my information?

Encryption simply makes it harder for people to gain access to important information, like passwords or sensitive information in a file. The first thing you should know about encryption is that the algorithm that is used to encrypt can be simple or more complex and that affects how securely what you have encrypted is protected. Encryption systems have been broken when the method of encryption is understood by hackers and is easy to break.

Why bother to encrypt my email?

It should be noted that email is far less secure than paper mail for two very good reasons: first, electronic data can be accessed easily over an Internet and secondly, electronic data is really simple to copy. There is a very good chance that someone has snooped around in your email despite your best intentions to stop it.

How do I go about encrypting my email?

There are many programs out there that can help you encrypt your email. A very popular one is PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) or its Gnu offshoot GPG.

PGP (http://www.pgpi.org/) self-describes itself this way: This "is a program that gives your electronic mail something that it otherwise doesn't have: Privacy. It does this by encrypting your mail so that nobody but the intended person can read it. When encrypted, the message looks like a meaningless jumble of random characters. PGP has proven itself quite capable of resisting even the most sophisticated forms of analysis aimed at reading the encrypted text."

Why bother to encrypt my files?

The answer to this boils down to what you store on your computer. If you have financial data with important information like social security numbers, email addresses, account numbers and passwords, then you open yourself up to losing very valuable information. Most corporate Internet security employees will attest to the widespread theft of very valuable information. As long as you are connected to the Internet you are vulnerable.

How do I go about encrypting my files?

AxCrypt File Encryption Software (http://axcrypt.sourceforge.net/) Self-described as "Free Personal Privacy and Security for Windows 98/ME/NT/2K/XP with AES-128 File Encryption, Compression and transparent Decrypt and Open in the original application."