The Finney School of Real Life

Educating the Information Age

Feeling Safe Using ADT Monitored Home Alarm Systems

Filed under: Miscellaneous, School of Security — admin at 10:36 am on Thursday, February 25, 2010

There can be only one chance regarding your family’s security. Naturally, you’ll want to do everything you can to advance matters. So we put together this article discussing monitored alarm systems in addition to other essential tips to make your life easier.

Security companies provide monitoring services for your alarm systems. Setting up such equipment stands as the best move to a secure home out there. Of course, some setups provide more reliability. Higher-level setups incorporate sensors, alarms, cameras and control pads to garner excellent effectiveness. The point of this is to eliminate any weak spots that might otherwise mar your home’s safety.

It’s merely a deterrent, not a solution, but you really mustn’t undervalue how big a role proper lighting plays in securing your home. Ask yourself, would an intruder prefer to approach through the shadows or while brightly lit? The answer’s clear, of course. Don’t forget that, far from simply providing you with a opportunity to notice criminals as they approach, they aid any CCTV. And if you add motion detection technology, it gets even better.

ADT security services do a lot more than help safeguard your family from nefarious actions. Do you have old, handicapped, or ailing relations living with you? If you answered yes, you should definitely look into emergency wristbands for their safety. Unattended buildings are prime targets for burglaries. To put thieves off, you can take a number of steps to help safeguard your house when you’re away. The usual indicator is external - a large buildup of forgotten mail and newspapers. A neighbor might take care of this if you ask. Easily duplicated indications of life might be sprinklers and lamps that switch on and off. This lends your apartment a semblance of being inhabited and discourages burglars.

Don’t believe those who attempt to persuade you that nothing can go wrong with home security. You can definitely help yourself, don’t forget. And when your household more secure, you can sleep soundly.

Clean Your Windowpanes with Extension Ladders

Filed under: School of Security, Shopping Management, Universe Of Tools — admin at 11:11 am on Wednesday, January 27, 2010

For general home stripping and care yearly, spring and fall are the 2 seasons attached to it. Ladders are generally utilized when it comes to cleansing gutters and window. For lofty layers, they opt to employ Extension Ladders.


To keep off harms, nuts, flexible joints, bolts, rungs and slack screws must be verified and tightened. Maintaining ladder safety when utilizing one is very fundamental even if the hurts one will suffer are just small ones. Ladders, specifically Extension Ladders gather soil, mud, and grease if they are not stashed away correctly or maintained outdoors. To keep off sliding when climbing, ladders should be clear from grease and sludge.


The thawing of the soil after the winter will leave the ground with much moisture content. The soil will then become soft and tacky. When placed on a muddy surface, ladders will slump and become unstable. Wavy ground or floor likewise makes ladders susceptible to trembling and imbalance. So be sure to put Extension Ladders in hard and flat ground. Go over first to make sure that the locks and braces in your ladder are functioning properly. This should be performed to prevent the ladder from closing down when being utilized.


It is important to recall that ladders in general cannot endure weight for a long time. As they are made for climbing only, they can render sufficient time for the user to go up and settle in a hardier surface. Under no circumstances should ladders be employed as seats. Resting on the ladder for a lengthened time may induce the joints, braces and steps to break. When you want to take a breather, go down and sit on a chair.


It is very essential to use the right kind of ladder for a certain use. Stool ladders and utility ladders are advisable for low elevations while Extension Ladders are favored for reaching lofty points. Fiberglass Extension Ladders are the most preferred type due to their strength.


When you put things on top of the ladder, act slowly if you should move or reassign it. Fend off needless shifts and tugs because they will cause the ladder to lose its balance and sway.


Put the extension ladder cautiously on the surface you are working on so you can keep off tipping over. Asking for help in mounting and supporting Extension Ladders never harm anyone as long as you make sure that the one supporting you knows these safety concerns. Make your cleaning a cinch utilizing Extension Ladders and employing these safety points.

Fake Paypal Emails

Filed under: School of Security — admin at 12:00 am on Wednesday, June 18, 2008

I receive 3 to 5 emails from Paypal asking me to update my details. Some of them are very believable because they look professional with the company’s header. The emails also seem to come from trusted sources such as service@paypal.com.

I will use a fake paypal email here as an example:

——————–

As part of our security measures, we regularly screen activity in the PayPal system. We recently noticed the following issue on your account:

We would like to ensure that your account was not accessed by an unauthorized third party. Your account is our primary concern, we have limited access to sensitive PayPal account features. We understand that this may be an inconvenience but please understand that this temporary limitation is for your protection.
Case ID Number: PP-072-838-560

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_login-submit

For your protection, we have limited access to your account until additional security measures can be completed. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

To review your account and some or all of the information that PayPal used to make its decision to limit your account access, please visit the Resolution Center https://www.paypal.com/. If, after reviewing your account information, you wish to seek further clarification regarding your account access, please contact PayPal by visiting the Help Center and clicking “Contact Us”. We thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. Please understand that this is a security measure intended to help protect you and your account. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Sincerely,
PayPal Account Review Department

PayPal Email ID PP648769005


——————–

As you can see, the email is written professionally and the links seem to come from paypal. The chances of falling into the fraud is high for unsuspecting readers.

How to Detect Fake Emails
1. If you move you mouse over the links in the email, you will have a clue of what is going on. For example, the url https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_login-submit actually points to http://www.google.com/url?sa=p&pref=ig&pval=2&q=http://64.72.193.9:82/login/index.php. If you click on it, you will arrive at a page that looks exactly like paypal.com. Will you be tempted to enter your details?

2. Look at the url in the address box of your toolbar. The url reads http://64.72.193.9:82/login/index.php. Now, it is pretty obvious that you are not in the official PayPal website. Whatever details that you enter will reach the hands of the hacker.

3. Try logging in with a fake password and you will go through. The fake website will not have the actual PayPal database and therefore, cannot verify your identity. Any password that you enter will get you into the admin area.

Who Are The Victims
There are many complains of stolen paypal accounts or credit card numbers everyday. My personal experience tells me that most of the victims are new internet users and aged people. Busy IT professionals also make up a small percentage of it. I believe anyone can be a victim if they are not careful.

Hackers Are Intelligent
Once your paypal email, password and credit card details are obtained, the hacker will make payments using the details provided. Making large payments will be suspicious. So they like to make small payments, perhaps fifty to a few hundred dollars a month so that busy people like you and me will not take notice of that. Your credit card number might already been stolen but you are not aware of it. Checking your monthly bank statement carefully is a good way to detect unauthorized payment.

Prevention Is The Best Cure
What should you do when you realised your paypal account was stolen? Contacting PayPal might help but I am quite pessimistic about it. The thing that annoys me most is that alot of hackers are getting away from their act with no action taken. Perhaps, it just takes too much time and effort to track down the hacker.

I would suggest everyone to learn more about internet security especially if you are running an online business or want to make online payments.

Conclusion
Though Paypal is a great payment system, it is abused by many unethical people. The same could have been done to other payment systems such as 2checkout, moneybrookers…etc. Internet scams are everywhere and anyone with an email should becareful.

Bernard Peh is a great passioner of web technologies and one of the co-founders of Sitecritic.net. He works with experienced web designers and developers for more than 5 years, developing and designing commercial and non-commercial websites. During his free time, he does website reviews, freelance SEO and PHP work.

Winclear :Delete History Search

Filed under: Goings On, Living With Podcasts, School of Security — admin at 2:35 pm on Sunday, May 11, 2008

The main reason behind it is that “PC security” is a broad term which home users and corporate customers understand quite differently. Basically every owner of a PC or laptop wants its data safe, and don’t want uncontrolled activity inside the box like adware pop-ups. But corporate networks care about intrusions and possible loss of data that cost millions of dollars, so they have too much put at stake. The major drawback is the deceleration of the computer system.

More and more parents realize they shouldn’t impose any direct control over their child’s online activity thus trying to find out what their children are doing online. This task finds an easy solution in special keylogger software. Such software monitors computer activity and saves the report in special files so that the parents can later check it out and make conclusions. Keyloggers usually show what applications were used on the controlled computer, what sites a child visited and what he actually wrote to his online pals. There are enhanced search and sorting options, so any suspicious activity can be easily traced. Data loggers, key loggers are just a few programs which harvest info from your computer. Winclear is the only program created specially to auto remove such spywares. Still it is advisable to compare numerous spyware detectors available in the market and choose the one which best fits an individual’s need. That is why every computer owner needs winclear.

Protect With Winclear :How To Clear Google Search History
If you are one of the people who would want to keep an eye on the computer and Internet usage of your children, staff and spouses, what you need is computer spy software. This computer program, also known as keylogger, will provide you with all the information you will need to determine if your mate is cheating, if your children are in contact with dangerous individuals, or if your employees are sharing confidential information with outsiders or are wasting time playing games during office hours. Winclear is the only software which is capable of removing keylogger programs. Additionally browsers use cookies to store login information that you may not want to enter repeatedly. Winclear has been the industry leader in fighting keyloggers for the last 8 years.

Winclear:
This technique includes contaminating a PC with a Trojan horse program. That is the reason why you need Winclear installed onto your computer. Whenever you’re online antispyware is on alert ready to fight the spying tools. Protect your computer security by using Winclear! More about Winclear here: Erase Data.

Is your Network Security and User Access in the Right Balance?

Filed under: School of Security — admin at 8:54 pm on Thursday, May 1, 2008

The whole meaning of networking is to share programs, but granting others to access a computer device reveals an open window for those with foul motives, too. In the early days networks were quite secure because they were closed in systems, and to do any harm you had to get physical access to a server wired to the LAN. Remote access and Internet possibility to hook up has changed that. Broader availableness and less cost of broadband (DSL and cable) connections means that even home computers remain linked up to the Internet round-the-clock, which add the chances for hackers to gain access to computers.

Computer operating systems were originally planned for stand-alone computers only, not networked ones, and security was not an issue. When computer networking became known, applications and operating systems concentrated on easy accessibility rather than security. Because of this earlier focus on accessibility; security are now retrofitted into a lot of hardware systems. Modern operating systems such as Windows XP are planned with security in mind, but they still have to operate using conventional networking protocols, which can result in security problems.

Security versus access. The users want easy access to network resources. Administrators want to remain the network secure. These two goals are at odds, because access and security are always on conflicting ends of the scale; the more you have of one, the less you have of the other.

For business computer networks, the key is to hit a balance so that employees are not annoyed by security measures, while trying to maintain a level of protection that will keep unauthorized individuals from getting access.

Internal network security threats are those that come from within the organization, as opposed to those that come through the Internet. Internal threats include employees who on purpose attempt to nick data or bring in viruses or attacks on the computer network. Other internal threats are posed by outside employees (contract workers, janitorial services and people posing as utility company employees) who have physical access to the LAN computers. Though, many internal threats are unintended. Employees may install or use their own software or hardware for a private purpose, unaware that it poses a security threat to their computers and the complete network.

External security threats are those that come from outside the LAN, typically from the Internet. These threats are the ones we usually think of when we talk about hackers and computer network attacks. Such people can make use of flaws and characteristics of computer operating systems and software applications. They take advantage of the way various network communications protocols work to do a range of things, including the following:
Enter a system and access (read, copy, change or delete) its data.
Break down a system and harm or destroy operating system and application files so they do not work anymore.
Install virus and worms that can spread to other systems across the LAN.
Or use the system to start attacks against other systems or other network.

Huge amount of network security information on this site. Check it out. http://www.networksecurity.infostairs.com

Keeping Your Home Safe While on Vacation

Filed under: School of Security — admin at 10:30 am on Friday, April 4, 2008

A lot of planning goes into making a great vacation. If you’re planning a vacation, be sure to consider the safety of your home while you’re away and create an action plan to keep your home and belongings safe.

Some people prey on homes when they know the owners are out of town or on vacation. There are certain steps you need to take before leaving to make the house look like someone is there at all times. Like the old saying goes, “If there is bait, the fish will grab.” You can relate this saying to the way burglars think. Don’t leave out any bait that would tempt a burglar.

What is the bait that burglars look for? There are several things the burglars pay close attention to at your home. Daily newspapers piling up in the driveway, a continuous dark house, and no cars in the driveway are just a few things that they look for. Your job is to make sure you put a plan of action into place before leaving your house.

Here are five tips to make sure your house is safe.

1) Temporarily cancel newspaper subscription - Most newspapers let you contact them and put a hold on your subscription until you get back. This allows for credits for the days you are gone and the newspapers are not just piling up and going to waste. Another idea is letting your neighbor or someone in neighborhood to get your daily newspapers.

2) Daily Mail - Make sure someone is checking your mail each day in case you have some important documents coming and also the mail is not increasing in your mail box. If someone sees the mail is overloading, they will automatically know you are not at the house.

3) Cars in the Driveway - Never have all vehicles completely gone out of the driveway. Leave your spouse’s car or borrow another family member’s car to leave in the driveway and arrange for the vehicle to moved and repositioned while you’re away. This way the driveway is not a complete ghost town.

4) Lights on in the house - Set up specific lights in the house on a daily timer to come on each evening. You do not want to leave your house continuously dark the entire time you’re out of town. This is a number one giveaway to potential home break-ins.

5) Have someone check daily - Request that a close friend or neighbor checks on your house daily. They can go through the house and check around to make sure there is no harm done to the house. Also if you have any pets, they will be able to feed and water the pets while they are checking on the house.

Safeguarding your home and belongings should be high on your priority list at all times, but even more so when you’re going to be away for any length of time.
Implementing these strategies doesn’t guarantee your home won’t be broken into while you’re away, but it does greatly reduce your chances of a break-in. If you’re going away on a vacation or out of town for an extended period of time, the extra peace of mind knowing that your home is being taken care of is well worth the time put into initiating this type of plan.

Liane Wood is a chartered insurance professional and registered insurance broker specializing in personal and small business insurance. Visit her website at: http://www.insurance-rates.ca