Binary Code
Computers and other electronic devices store information as Binary Code (which is a series of 1s and 0s that might look like this: 10101001 01101100 11001010).
Network Topology Map
A Network Topology Map is a diagram of a computer network's components, including network access points and connections between its various parts.
Fake Anti-Virus Software
Fake Anti-Virus Software - also known as 'scareware' - is designed to trick you into buying worthless anti-virus protection that you do not need.
Domain Name System
The Domain Name System (DNS) is like the ‘telephone book’ of the Web – it translates a website's name into its corresponding numerical IP address on the Internet.
Social Engineering
A Phishing e-mail is an attempt to trick the recipient into giving up information, such as account, credit card or password information.
Data Encryption
Data Encryption is the intentional scrambling of information into unreadable form - until it is later converted back into its original form by the intended recipient.
Botnet, or Compromised Computers
A Botnet is a collection of computers compromised by a malware attack that can be controlled remotely (via the Internet) to attack websites, send out spam emails, etc.
Distributed Denial of Service Attack
A Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Attack can use a botnet to force a website, network or other resource to shut down by overloading it with requests for data.
USB Flash Drive
A USB Flash Drive, aka a 'stick drive' or 'thumb drive' is a portable data storage device which connects to a computer's USB port to send and receive data.
Electronic vs. Static Media
Static Media is something like a book, magazine or printed photo, while Electronic or Digital Media (websites, digital photos, etc.) requires power to be viewed.
Administrative Access
A user with Administrative Rights has unrestricted power to create, modify or delete files, folders, settings and programs on a particular computer.
Computer Security Tip of the Week
Scott Aurnou – If your phone or tablet is lost or stolen, remote wiping can prevent whoever has it from getting at your pictures, messages, audio & video files and other data kept on the phone. Learn more about it here.
If you enjoyed this video, you can see more on TheSecurityAdvocate YouTube channel (and subscribe if you like).
When viewed on a mobile device, this email appears to come from ‘LinkedIn Service’
By Scott Aurnou
‘Phishing’ attacks are designed to steal your personal, financial and/or log in information. This can be done in a few ways, including via email or text message (referred to as ‘smishing’). They often contain links to websites that look legitimate but are really there to steal your account log in information or host malware ready to attack your computer. These emails and messages can also be used to lure you into contact with scam artists posing as potential clients or officials offering to release substantial funds to you if only you would be so kind as to give them detailed personal information and/or a sum up front. Phishing attacks are generally designed to make you take action by either frightening or tempting you. Some of them are actually very well crafted. Some not so much. And some border on the ridiculous. Each month at The Security Advocate, we will present a few examples, along with explanations of what to look out for to avoid falling victim to one of the scams.
When viewed on a desktop or laptop computer, the actual sender is revealed as ‘brotmess_1979@nevadageek.net’ – obviously not affiliated with LinkedIn
Computer Security Tip of the Week
Scott Aurnou – Staying with familiar older software may seem easier than moving to something new, but protecting your computer and network can become problematic once the software developer stops issuing security updates to protect it from hackers.
If you enjoyed this video, you can see more on TheSecurityAdvocate YouTube channel (and subscribe if you like).
By Scott Aurnou
Has someone in your contacts list sent you an email like this one with an innocuous-sounding subject line like Review the Documents or Your Documents and a link to an ‘important’ or ‘confidential’ document in Google Docs? If so, hopefully it struck you as a little fishy (because it is). This sort of email is a sign that hackers have likely gotten your contact’s log-in details and are trying to do the same to you by tricking you into clicking on the link.
If you do click on it, you will be taken to a fake Google sign-in webpage that only exists to get you to enter your account name and password. And if you do that, the scam artists behind it will then use your account to send identical emails to all of the people in your email contact list. Even if no one clicks on the links in the emails sent from your account, once the hackers have your log-in information, they can use it to hijack your various Google accounts (Gmail, Google+, Google Drive, YouTube, etc.), access any information you’ve stored there and even pose as you to pull scams on your friends and family (e.g., “I’m stranded in X foreign country. Can you please wire me $_____ so I can get home?”). Yes, some people do fall for those and it can be an expensive mistake.
Read more ›
Computer Security Tip of the Week
If you believe that there may be a chance that the potential electronic evidence contained on a departing employee’s computer or mobile devices could be needed later, computer forensics can be used to preserve it at a fraction of the cost of trying to retrieve it later (when you really need it and it’s much more difficult and expensive to get). Learn more about it here.
If you enjoyed this video, you can see more on TheSecurityAdvocate YouTube channel (and subscribe if you like).
