Advertisements I recently spoke with a local organization about how to stay safe online. While answering the group’s myriad questions and seeing the interest in this topic, I wanted to share the same thoughts on privacy with you. Staying safe online is becoming more difficult because bad actors are devising new ways to skirt the …
Category Archives: Security
Review – Alarm.com Home Security and Automation System
Advertisements Before I go into the review, I want to first introduce myself. My name is Joel McLaughlin and I am a good friend of Chris and have followed him for years. I am a Senior System Administrator for a company I’d rather not divulge at this time; and a co-host of the iTechGear Weekly …
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Ransomware Prevention & Defense – Part 3: macOS Recovery
Advertisements Getting hit by ransomware is perhaps the biggest bummer ever. Everybody gets a virus now and again. Things get intense as you worry about your identity getting stolen and your bank accounts getting drained; but ransomware is a completely different deal. Despite the fact that many ransomware links look very realistic, nothing is more …
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Ransomware Prevention & Defense – Part 2: Windows Recovery
Advertisements When you’re hit by ransomware, the first thing many folks think of is – CRAP! My pictures/videos/school work/data! What am I going to do?! To be honest, there’s not much you CAN do – IF you haven’t prepared. In order to prepare for the worst, you need to take the steps I’ve outlined in …
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Ransomware Prevention & Defense – Part 1: Prevention
Advertisements Over the weekend, a very good friend of mine told me how someone they knew fell victim to a ransomware attack. The victim was an acquaintance of his; and this acquaintance got scammed not once, but twice by the same thieves. When the initial attack hit, my friend’s friend – we’ll call him Ben …
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Microsoft Releases Additional Patches
Advertisements Meltdown and Spectre patches have been rereleased and they don’t crash AMD machines any more! During january’s Patch Tuesday, Microsoft released patches for both Meltdown and Spectre. They worked, too. Well, for Intel processors, anyway. AMD processors didn’t have as great an experience. Some AMD based computers ended up getting bricked. Once the reports …
The Day After the [Patches] Before
Advertisements My office implemented both Meltdown and Spectre patches over the weekend… In the previous weeks, both the Meltdown and Spectre processor vulnerabilities have been making a great deal of news. At my office – a financial firm – a Windows shop running Windows 7 (like most of the business world), implemented Windows based patches …
Dok Malware is the Disease that Ailes You
Advertisements Currently, there is NO cure… Malware – and specifically ransomware – is probably the most compelling reason I know of to completely abandon personal computing. Depending on where you are, what bug(s) you get, and how badly it affects you, I can totally understand the urge some people must feel to leave the computer …
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Advanced Password Manager
Advertisements Keep your PII (personally identifying information) safe and private with this important Windows utility. In an age where nearly EVERYONE is getting hacked, it’s important to keep all of your sensitive information, private. This is increasingly difficult, as most nearly every privacy utility out on the market concentrates on nearly the same things – web …
Government Cracks the iPhone 5c
Advertisements The FBI was successful in jailbreaking, uh, I mean, cracking that iPhone 5c they have… Before I get into it, let me say, this is (probably) the best possible outcome of this whole crazy mess. Early Monday evening, Chicago Time, the Department of Justice announced that its efforts to crack the iPhone 5c …