Black Device Keylogger DOES Exists?

Remember my previous post about the black device? Well, I found websites selling the black device as a keylogger. Here's one http://www.keyghost.com/USB-Keylogger.htm and the appearance is not the same as the black device. However, this proves the device does exists.

In my previous post, I'm skeptical about this black device and saying this black device is not practical to use and I'm still skeptical about it. If I'm a hacker, I'm not going to use this device.

Unless if you want to use it for your own PC, maybe it's possible. Or maybe you want to catch a cheating spouse. This device might prove useful.

So, how do you prevent this keylogger from recording everything that you type? Simple, just check the connection from the keyboard to your PC every time you use it and I think most people will use it for their own PC ( to catch a cheating spouse, lazy workers and such).

Still, I think most hackers will use software keyloggers and it's better if you know how to protect yourself from it.

BTW, if you want to join my 5 day PC Security e-course, you can do so by visiting this link http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day

How To Hack A Wordpress Blog - Wordpress Hack

Did you know that the hackers can easily hack to your Wordpress blog? It's so easy that you'll think twice for not securing your Wordpress blog. However, securing it require a lot of money if you pay someone to do it.

Even $197 to secure your blog is consider cheap. Why do you want to secure your blog?

1. You've put a lot of time in posting your blog posts and it should not be wasted.

2. You provide good contents to your readers and if the hackers hack into your Wordpress blog and alter a few contents, your reputation will go down the drain.

3. Now imagine this, you recommend something to your readers and most of them follow your recommendation. What will happen if the hackers alter a few things on your blog and redirected them to malicious websites? Think about it.

4. The hackers may put malicious links into your blog and McAfee Site Advisor or the search engines will mark it as malicious due to the links.

However, I don't know the exact reasons why the hackers want to do this. Here's a few reasons that I think why they want to hack your blogs:

1. They just love to see people in misery after they hacked into the blog.

2. They want to get your websites traffic and redirected it to somewhere else.

3. They want to steal your source of revenue by changing the Adsense publisher's ID.

4. They just love to hack.

There is a guide book how to secure your Wordpress blog and can save you a few dollars compare to hiring a techie guy.

Try This:

=> Click Here!

Check it out and I'm sure you'll learn a lot on how to secure Wordpress Blog. Remember, you need to protect your investment.

Someone Hacked Your YM ID? Did You Enter Your Login Details to Bogus Websites?

Here's a story that I would like to share with you guys. Yesterday when I was online and messaging my friends through YM, and suddenly I saw one of my friends status had changed to something like "Hi, there, want to chat with me? Add me at AIM: hottygirl1984" and she was not online at that time.

I suspected that someone got her YM ID and password and use it for their own purpose. When I clicked my friend's profile, it took me to a profile which I know was not my friend and it actually link to a porn website.

I immediately contacted my friend and ask her to change her password and she did just that. The comment on her profile immediately disappeared and when I clicked the profile, it doesn't redirect me to the Hottygirl1984's profile.

Now, the question is, how does the hackers can steal her YM username and password?

Remember my previous post about Date My IM? Maybe she typed her login details on similar websites. Never enter your login details to other websites that you don't know. Some of it look authentic but it's not.

So, how do you spot if the website that you're visiting is authentic or not?

Here's how:
From this picture, you can see three circles. The circles are actually the signs that you need to pay attention to as it show that the website you're visiting is a secure website and you can enter your login details safely.

1. The URL of the website will be written https:// instead of the usual http://. The 's' shows that it's a secure website.

2. You will see an image of a padlock at the browser and as far as I know, every browser will show you this image if it's a secure website. But the position of the image will be different. Some browser such as Internet Explorer will show this image after the URL.

3. It's better if you install the McAfee Site Advisor because it will show you if the website is a phishing/bogus website. The colour will then turns to red. In this picture, the colour is green showing that this Yahoo website is authentic.

If the website you're visiting don't have these features, it's a bogus website and NEVER enter your login details.

Any questions? Feel free to email me at wan14my[at]gmail.com and if this is your first time here, subscribe to my RSS feed so you'll not miss future posts.

Would you like to learn how do you protect yourself and your PC from online threats such as this one? Subscribe to my 5-Days PC Security E-course for free!

Black Device Behind Your PC To Steal Sensitive Data? WTH?

Today I received another email saying that I need to be careful when going to Cyber Cafe, or use computer at public places because all my sensitive data might be recorded with a black device connected to the keyboard.

First of all, I don't believe this stuff because I don't think the hackers will be stupid enough to use this device and if this device DOES exists, it is unpractical to steal sensitive information. Here's the reasons why I think this stuff is just a BS. I might be wrong, but this is just my opinion.

1. Hackers nowadays use Keylogger software to steal your sensitive data. Rather than using this device, it is cheaper to use software as you can copy it as many as you can. Now, imagine this, if the hackers want to install this device to 100 PCs, so he needs to buy 100 of this stuff.

Let's say the price is $30 per piece, so it will be $3000 for 100 PCs. It's highly unprofitable. If the hackers use a normal keylogger software, he just need to pay for $23 and he can send it to as many PCs as he wish.

So, which one will you choose, spend $3000 to get the data or just spend $23? You do the math.

2. Aside from the price, how will you bring this thing anywhere? If you want to install it to 50 PCs, you will need to have a bag just to put all the devices inside. But if you use the software keylogger, you just need a USB storage device. Which is easier?

3. If the hackers use the software keyloggers, they just need to install it from their PC and they can install it in U.S even though they are at Australia or somewhere else. But, if they're using this hardware device, they will need to manually install it to the target PC.

4. From the picture, it just looks like a normal PS2 converter and not a storage device. Now, compare that black device picture with this picture:


Picture source: http://www.euronetwork.co.uk/acatalog/13-1040.jpg

Don't you think that black device and this picture look the same? Of course it is! It's the same thing. It's just a normal PS/2 converter.

So, tell me, will you use this black device if you're a hacker? I don't think so. I know I won't.

P.S - Join my 5 day PC Security E-course for Free at http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day and visit my article on Anti Virus Protection - Free Anti-Spyware and Anti-Virus List

Free Sony Ericsson Laptop? I Don't Think So

Today I received an email saying that I will get a free Sony Ericsson laptop if I forward the email to few people on my email contact list.

As you can see the picture on my left, this is the full email that I got. If you search about this email on the internet, you will immediately know it's a hoax. But honestly, even if you don't search it on Google, this is obviously a hoax.

Now, tell me, from all the similar emails like this that you have received, how many of them are really authentic?

I believe none of them are.

If you received this type of email, just ignore it. Trust me, you'll not get the laptop, or phone, or money from Microsoft, or anything from the said parties.

If they really want to give away free stuff, they will advertise it at their websites. They have tons of money and can afford advertising. Remember that.

What Is SearchProtection.exe? - How To Remove Yahoo Search Protection?

Here's the thing. I have Yahoo Search Protection installed in my system. This software prevents any other parties to change the search function to other than Yahoo. I actually set my search function to use Google, but after installing this software. It keeps asking me to change to Yahoo.

This software runs under the process name SearchProtection.Exe and because I use a firewall, so the firewall keep asking me if I want to allow Yahoo Search Protection to change my search function to Yahoo or not. It's annoying really.

What I did to solve this problem?

I remove the Yahoo Search Protection using the Add/Remove Function because I like to use Google more. Even though my homepage is Yahoo, but in term of search engines, I like Google better. I use Yahoo as my homepage because I can get latest updates about the news around the world everytime I open it.

P.S - Subscribe to my RSS feed if this is the first you're here and maybe you want to join my 5-days PC Security E-course at http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day for free.

Are You Using Firefox?

I just take a look at my Google Analytics data and it shows that most of the people that visited this blog were using Firefox. It's shocking actually because I thought most people are using Internet Explorer but apparently it's not, this data shows that Firefox is gaining momentum nowadays and maybe will be able to replace Internet Explorer as the most-used browser.

Here's the full stats:

Firefox - 80.57%
Internet Explorer - 8.13%
Google Chrome - 5.65%
Safari - 2.47%

As you can see, Firefox is the most-used browser for people who visited this blog last month and the difference is huge between Firefox and Internet Explorer.

Safari is the least-used browser as expected because this blog mainly concentrate on Microsoft Windows operating system. Recently, I switched from IE to Firefox due to some problems that I faced when using IE.

So, let's us change to Firefox.

BTW, if this is your first time here, subscribe to my RSS feed so you'll not miss future posts.

Thanks

Date My IM - Another Way to Steal Your MSN Username and Password

I found an interesting post by LiewCF at http://www.liewcf.com/blog/archives/2009/05/date-my-im-steals-your-msn-passwords/

Well, MSN will never ask for your username and password and if you found this kind of website, do not enter your sensitive information. I think it's a phishing website. Be careful

Free Registry Cleaners - Speed Up Your PC

Cleaning your registry can help with optimizing your computer performance. It can speed up your PC and fix errors. A registry is like a brain for a Microsoft Windows. However, after using your PC for a long time and after installing and uninstalling lots of software, the registry contains entries that are not supposed to be there.

Thus, causing the speed of your PC to become very slow. So, how do you remove all the unnecessary entries and regain the old speed?

There is a software that will do exactly that. According to the website, this software will

"will scan for errors related to ActiveX controls, DLL issues, Windows explorer errors, Windows installer issues, Internet Explorer errors, Iexpore and System32 errors, Runtime errors, Outlook and Outlook Express Errors, EXE errors, Svchost errors and a wide variety of other system issues. "

PLUS you can scan your computer for any errors using their free scanner.

Below is the link.

=> Click Here!

P.S - This software has few testimonials from the users who downloaded this program. Check it out.

P.P.S - Subscribe to my feed so you'll not miss any future posts and join my 5-Days PC Security E-course for info on virus protection

Buying Your First Laptop

Having trouble buying your first laptop? You don't know which laptop to buy? My friends sometimes asked to me what laptop they should get.

1. Before buying any laptop, the first thing that you need to know is for what purpose you want to buy the laptop. Is it for work? Games? Spreadsheet? Programming? In my opinion, this is the first thing that you need to know. Then you can choose whether to buy a high-end laptop or a low-end.

So, for example, you need a laptop for gaming. Then, you will find a laptop that has high-performance hardware. Or if you just want the laptop for emailing and surfing the internet, then a laptop with low performance hardware is enough.

Or maybe you want to use the laptop for watching movies, then you will need to find a laptop with good speakers and graphic.

2. What applications that you need inside the laptop? Do you need a high performance laptop to ensure smooth running of the software? Or does a low-end laptop sufficient? Just like the first question, you need to know what applications that you want to install into the laptop.

For example, if you want to install a high-graphic games, you will need a high-end laptop with good graphic card, processor and high RAM. But if you just want to install applications such as the Microsoft Word, simple games, then a laptop with simple graphic card and processor is enough.

3. What brands do you prefer? This is a subjective question. Every one has their own brand that they prefer. It's different for everyone and it's up to you.

So, in conclusion, these are the three questions that you need to ask yourself before buying your first laptop. Hope it helps.

Oh, by the way, if you want to join my e-course, you can do so by visiting this link http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day

Why People Created Malware?

Why people created malware? Is it for their own purpose? For money? For respect?

I think, there are few reasons for people creating malware.

1. For Money

This is obvious, some people create malware for money. They blackmail companies that have weak protection and demand money or the company server will go down.

2. Respect

Is it to gain respect within their own community? It's possible. Maybe one of their friends challenged them to attack a company server and they agreed.

3. To Find a Job at Symantec?

My friend previously suggested to me that maybe it's possible for the malware creator create a malware because they want to find a job at an anti-virus company. It's because they can spot the company software vulnerabilities, hence they create malware to prove it. Is it possible? I don't know about this. We should ask Symantec, Avast, Bitdefender and all the pc protection software company about this. Maybe they can give us some feedback. But this one just ridiculous.

Nowadays, the malware creator has evolved from an individual that want to do it for fun to a company that wanted to gain something from the creation of malicious software.

Thanks to the Hollywood movie, the hackers look awesome and cool, but in reality, it's not easy to create a malware. You need to give your energy and time in order to create one simple malicious software.

If we look at the positive side, we can thank the hackers due to their effort to find vulnerabilities in anti-virus software. This in turn makes the anti-virus software company to update their software.

So, no one can take a rest in a war between the malware creator and the anti-virus company in order to conquer the internet. We, as the users, need to prevent the infection to ensuer our safety while going online.

Join my 5-day PC Security e-course at http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day to learn more.

The April Fool Virus - The Conficker Worm

Recently, an article of mine with the title "The April Fool Virus - The Conficker Worm" has been approved. It's an article on how to remove the Conficker worm. The previous post told you how to detect it. In this post, I'm going to tell you how to remove it.

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The April Fool Virus - The Conficker Worm

The April Fool's Virus is the term used generally to refer The Conficker Worm and it supposes to activate itself during the April Fool. However, it seems like it was not activated for unknown reasons. The public generally use the term virus to refer to malware. Technically, a virus is different from a worm.

Computer worm is software that infects your computer from a host within your network and takes control of it. A worm-controlled computer is called a zombie computer and used to do various malicious purposes such as the DDoS attack. A server might crashes due to the infection.

A virus on the other hand is software that can replicate itself and will infect your files depending on the virus type. It can also make your computer to become slow due to the replications that happen in the background. It doesn't need a program to cling on unlike the worm.

As you can see, both are different and act differently. The Conficker Worm is a malicious software that storms the internet today and was detected on November 2008. It has few variations released by the creator in order to close the vulnerabilities.

It's an ongoing war between the anti-malware society and the creator. The researchers found the domain name trafficconverter.biz inside the code after they reverse engineered the worm. It attempted to download the payload from the domain name. But, because the domain was suspended, it cannot do so. However, the website owner said they're not responsible for the worm and they claimed that they can prove it.

The name "Conficker" comes from the re-arrangement of few words from the domain name.

So far, the malicious software has been successful in attacking French Navy and United Kingdom Ministry of Defense computer networks.

Luckily, there are few removal tools available on the internet for free. Try the Microsoft Malicious Removal Tools or you can use third parties Conficker Removal Tool such as McAfee and Symantec.

It is crucial to remember that knowledge about computer security is something that we cannot ignore nowadays and we need to learn it in order to protect our computer and our privacy.

Azwan Asmat is the author of Chuang Computer Tips - Online threats have become a major computer security issue. Would you like to know the secret of securing your PC from dangerous spyware, adware, and malware programs that can ruin your PC, your finances, and your sanity? Join my 5- Days PC Security E-course for info on virus protection.

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Detect it and remove it from your PC to prevent any problem. Questions? email me at wan14my[at]gmail.com

McAfee Conficker Detection Tool

McAfee released a Conficker Detection tool in order to detect if your computer is infected by Conficker or not. Below is the link:

McAfee Conficker Test

Download this software and run it on your computer. This software can scan other computers in the same network as yours and useful if you own more than one PC in your house.

You can remove the Conficker by downloading Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool. Search it on Google.

Mr.Melih Abdulhayoglu Videos

While I was searching for info on Internet Security, I found videos by Mr.Melih Abdulhayoglu in Youtube. For those who don't know who he is, he is the founder of Comodo, the internet security company.

So, I look at his videos and what I can say is "Wow!". The quality of the information present in the videos is magnificent. I urge you to watch his videos now!. Below is one the videos that I like:

Computer Can Be Turned Against Us



Watch it, learn and apply.

As I always say, prevention is better than cure.

Why Avast! Antivirus Virus Definition Update Frequency Increased Suddenly?

I notice that Avast! is updating its definition more frequently than before. I don't know what happen actually but it might be a sign of increasing threats on the internet or it's just normal updates.

However, if it's true, then you might want to be extra cautious when surfing. I went to check for few threat meters available online and McAfee Threat Meter shows the current threat as Elevated and the definition is:

An unpatched or recently patched vulnerability is present on many systems worldwide but requires user interaction to be exploited.

An existing vulnerability becomes more serious because new exploit code has been published.

There is new malware activity, but it is not widespread.

Elevated is on the second level after Low but before Severe and Critical. But, when I checked the Symantec Threatcon, it shows the risks as Level 1: Normal.

My own opinion, as of right now, we can say that it's in normal or low level but I think not for long. Maybe somewhere, someone is waiting to release something big. Just like the Conficker Worm.

Whatever you do, remember to protect your PC and if you don't know how to do it, just read my blog and subscribe to my 5-Day PC Security E-course and you'll learn everything that you need to know.

Anti Virus Protection - Choosing The Right PC Protection Software

Below is the article that I submitted to Ezinearticles.com about choosing the right PC protection software. Check it out.

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Nowadays, malware and viruses are so powerful and they have become one of the computer security issues worldwide. They can infect our system in many ways and even though we only open a spam email or opening a malicious website, they can get into our system instantly. However, the protection tools have also been upgraded extensively in order to keep up with the viruses.

In order to fight the online threats, it is important for you to know how to choose the right anti-virus for your computer. The program must be easy to install in your system and it should not require an advanced knowledge about computer to install it.

It must also provide you with multiple scanning choices and a real time scanning. Other feature that it must have is it must be constantly updated because new threats are being created everyday. So, if the program does not have any updates for a long time, it's time for you to switch your anti-virus to a better one.

The program must be user-friendly because you don't want to have a hard-to-use program and have a hard learning curve. After each scanning, it should have a report that reports everything and the report must be easy to understand.

Real time protection is also important so it can notify you if you have any viruses in your system and it must be able to quarantine or delete the threats. Finally, one of the most important features that an anti-virus must have is the tech support. If you have the greatest protection software in the world, but do not have a decent tech support, most people will not use it.

Not everyone is a computer expert. So, the tech support is important to help people who don't know much about computer in case a problem arises when using the software.

Want to know the secret of securing your PC from dangerous spyware, adware, and malware programs that can ruin your PC, your finances, and your sanity?!! Visit http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day now!
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So, before installing any antivirus, follow the recommendation first.

Hopefully this blog can provide good PC protection tips for home user.

Anti Virus Protection - How Long Does It Take To Get Infected by Malicious Software?

Here's the question, how long does it take for unprotected Windows to be infected by malicious software?

A week?

5 days?

3 days?

24 hours?

How about 8 seconds?

Yes, 8 seconds before you will get infected. The fastest worm on the Internet, the Sasser. After you get infected by this worm, you don't need to do anything and it will download the malicious software itself. Without you touching it.

So, going online without any protection is like going to battlefield without any weapon. Now, ask yourself. Do you have anti virus , anti spyware and firewall installed in your PC?

If you don't, I think now is the best time for you to join my 5 day PC security E-course here http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day

P.S - Remember, it just take 8 seconds before you will get infected. Join my e-course today!

Firewall - Test Your Firewall For Free

Do you have a firewall installed in your PC? Would you like to see if your firewall can actually monitor the traffic?

Luckily there is a software that can do the testing for you. It's called the LeakTest. Download it and see if your firewall can block it or not. I tried it personally before and in my opinion, it's a good software.

Here's the link : http://www.grc.com/lt/leaktest.htm

However, make sure that you're downloading the software from a trusted website if you're downloading from another website and make sure you have McAfee Site Advisor installed in your system.

BTW, join my e-course in computer security for free here http://www.chuangcomputer.com/5day