WyzGuys Tech Talk

So you think your computer or network security has been breached.  What next?

Your computer support staff may have brought this to your attention already, but if not you need to make them aware as quickly as possible.  Avoid the obvious urge to wipe the hard drives and start over!  You need to preserve the compromised computers or servers for a forensic analysis.  This is work that is best performed by a qualified computer security or forensics professional.

Signs that you may ...

Because it is National Cyber Security Awareness Month, it is a great time to take a look at how you monitor cyber threats in your business operations.  Some of the things to be on guard for are:

• SPAM – not the tasty meat product manufactured in Austin Minnesota, but the rubbish the comes into your email inbox.  Did you know that SPAM is one of the top two methods used by cyber-criminals to get around your firewall and defeat your computer ...

The month of October is the tenth anniversary of National Cyber Security Awareness Month.  (NCSAM)  This is a great time to take a look at your business practices regarding computer security, network security, web site security, and data protection.  A great place to start is the StaySafeOnline.org website provided by the National Cyber Security Alliance. 

On this web site you can find tips on how to:

• Assess your risks
• Monitor threats
• Report cyber attacks
• Implement a security plan ...

It is Community Education season again at WyzGuys, and I am teaching at 9 districts this year.  The first class offering is The Secrets of Windows 8.

Who moved my cheese! Windows 8 is Microsoft’s newest operating system and represents an entirely new look on the desktop. It is completely optimized for the touch screen monitor or tablet. What happened to the Start Menu? We will compare the differences and similarities between the new Windows 8 system and Windows 7, ...

The numerous security problems and vulnerabilities of the Windows operating system are well known.  In the last two years, we have seen successful exploits written for the supposedly invulnerable Apple platform.  Now there is news of a Trojan horse written for the Linux operating system.  Named “Hand of Thief,” this exploit works against 15 of the most popular distributions including Ubuntu, Debian, and Fedora.

Most Linux users tend to be experienced, savvy,and most importantly, wary computer professionals.  But Linux is beginning ...

Windows XP was released in 2001, and at 12 years old is long in the tooth.  Microsoft will officially discontinue support for Windows XP in April 2014.  At that point in time, all security updates for what has been a security nightmare will cease.  Any new vulnerabilities that are discovered, and new threats that are developed to exploit them will remain unpatched.  It’s time to move on.

Sure, you wisely skipped the disappointing and troublesome Windows Vista.  But you have missed ...

Those of us who own or manage a business know that you can’t run your business without a good General Liability insurance policy to cover you in the event something bad happens to a co-worker or client.  Some of us also need to have Errors and Omissions insurance or Malpractice insurance.

All of us need to at Cyber-insurance to the mix.  Every day I read about another company who has suffered a serious financial loss at the hands of cyber-criminals, who ...

A nine-person Californian escrow firm lost $1.5 million in three electronic transfers in December 2012 and January 2013, and has subsequently been closed down by state regulators. The culprit?  A remote access Trojan horse program that was installed on the computer that they used for online banking.  The money disappeared into Russia and China, and only the Russian transaction has been recovered so far.

You can read the entire sad story on Sophos, but the important takeaways follow.

First, while ...