CompuClever Blog

Hack, Hack

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Yes it is cold and flu season. But we are referring here to another kind of viral risk – online hacking. It has again crept into the news and hit some of us right in the pocketbook. We explore two recent hacks that have had an impact on the financial security of millions of users. While not much information is released as to how these attacks occur – perhaps so as to not promote further offenses – we can focus on the effects of these attacks and what can be done to protect ourselves. A counter measure to these breaches is the onset of new technological security advances. It can be a challenge for us to keep up with it all but we endeavour to understand it and explore the options.

There have been two recent hack attacks: one that compromised Yahoo mail users and another that targeted Target credit and debit card information. We will begin by looking at the Yahoo attack and provide some password recommendations.

Yahoo Hack

On Jan 30th Yahoo, the second largest email provider with 273 million accounts, confirmed an attack and announced that malicious computer software was able to access a list of Yahoo Mail accounts’ usernames and passwords. Although details were not provided they point the finger at a third-party database compromise. The statement was made:

Security attacks are unfortunately becoming a more regular occurrence. Recently, we identified a coordinated effort to gain unauthorized access to Yahoo Mail accounts. Upon discovery, we took immediate action to protect our users, prompting them to reset passwords on impacted accounts[1].

This type of cyber crime has been considerably more prominent in recent years. Identity theft can put your financial earnings at risk should an intruder gain access. Hackers focus on theft of passwords as people frequently use the same password for multiple accounts and these stolen credentials may provide access to one’s finances.

Recommendation:
You need good passwords and effective management of passwords. Some tips we have provided here are as follows:

  1. Create a password that is both easy to remember and that is difficult to guess. There are many tricks to this including memory hooks (using the first letters of a popular saying or rhyme), number substitutions (using “1” for the letter “l” or “!” for “I”), and personal formulas (including a birthday with a phrase for example)[2].
  2. Use different passwords. Although it can be difficult to recall numerous passwords you do not want to use the same password for your banking as you do to log into Facebook. If a single password is compromised it could lead to loss of finances. When creating passwords you can use memory hooks associated with the site or service. For example, for a banking password you could use a combination of initials and letters that are meaningful and still difficult to guess or to hack. If your name was Jane Smith you could have: “tlpwttb@nkJ5” using the memory hook of “this little pig went to the bank” and J5 for the initials.
  3. Create passwords that use a combination of letters, numbers, and that are long enough – at least 8 characters. Ideally you should have 12 character long passwords… but of course, you still have to rely on memory.
  4. Change your password when you feel it has been compromised. You need to be careful not to share out your passwords or have them written down somewhere. If you must keep them in a Word file or spreadsheet, name the file something that does not have the word “password” in it.
  5. Keep your password private! Do we need to spell it out? Don’t share it or print it out and leave it next to the computer. Let’s look at an example. Marko uses the password: “w3Lc0m3!HERE”. This is a good password with a memory hook “welcome here”, it uses numbers and symbols, and 12 characters long. However if this was broadcasted on national television during the pre-game show of Super Bowl 48, you can bet it was compromised and needed to be reset[3].

One final point… many people feel that they are safe as they have an anti-virus application running on their system. There is a false sense of security that can come from feeling completely safe and protected by having an anti-virus tool. It would be a bit like having a very secure PC system complete with firewall and anti-virus protection and then emailing your credit card details to someone. Also, keep in mind that your information can be made available as described in the hack examples provided in this article.

Target Hack

If you feel safe with the anti-piracy system you have set up – and granted, you are less of a target for attackers – consider how much time and money large corporations put into their protection systems. Yet, we continue to hear of online violations. Wouldn’t you think that those that have been the victims of an attack would have greater immunity?

Credit: Target

In 2005, Target was among a list of retailers that suffered an attack that resulted in the theft of millions of credit card numbers. In that attack, Target was reported to get off easy as only a limited number of credit cards were stolen. On Jan 30th of this year, another Target cyber attack was made known to the public.

What Was Stolen: The heist began in November 27th. For two weeks 40 million customer credit and debit cards were stolen from the company’s point of sale system. This data was unencrypted and it took until December 15th before the intruder’s presence was detected. There were also 70 million customers who had personal data stolen including names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses. Some of these were the same victims of the credit and debit card theft. In all 11 gigabytes of data was sent to a system in Russia.

Who Is At Fault? One question comes to the forefront – who is to blame? Surely these established retailers have secure systems in place and what about the standards that they need to adhere to?

The security measures that Target and other companies implement to protect consumer data have long been known to be inadequate. Instead of overhauling a poor system that never worked, however, the card industry and retailers have colluded in perpetuating a myth that they’re doing something to protect customer data — all to stave off regulation and expensive fixes[4].

If proven to have not properly secured its network, Target will have to pay out millions in fines to card companies.

Authentication: Have you ever wondered what happens when you pass your credit or debit card to purchase some groceries? For small business, the transaction goes to a third-party processor to determine whether to send it for authorization. Larger organizations typically use their own processor in such a manner that the information from these transactions travels from the store to a specific destination on the corporation’s network and then once processed it goes off to the proper destination for authorization. The Payment Card Industry (PCI) standard does not require the company to encrypt this data when transmitting over their own private network – only if having to travel via the public internet. The focal point for companies like Target is to secure the passing of information on their private network.

Target was likely using such a secure channel within its network to transmit unencrypted card data. But that wasn’t good enough. The attackers simply adapted by employing a RAM scraper to grab the data in the point-of-sale device’s memory, where it was not secured[5].

PCI DSS: There is a Payment Card Industry standard in place known as PCI DSS created specifically for organizations that handle cardholder information for major debit, credit, ATM, POS, and other credit and financial transaction cards. This standard stipulates explicit requirements that companies dealing with payment card transactions adhere to proper firewall, anti-virus, and most importantly, data encryption when storing or transferring financial data via a public network.

Despite this being in place, the Target hack occurred. Post-breach investigations show that hacked companies are frequently not in compliance. And, what about the blame game – remember Yahoo blaming a third-party database? With the standards in place, companies are required to obtain regular security audits from third-party businesses. Even if a company manages to gain a level of compliance, it could be that these third –party audits are riddled with inaccuracies and system vulnerabilities are available to hackers.

The challenge with implementation of security standards is that these measures are costly for organizations to implement and can potentially result in a longer transaction time which would adversely affect sales and frustrate customers. So what solutions are being offered to you so that you can better prepare yourself?

New Advances

There are new counter-measures and novel technologies hitting the market to address these issues and, rest assured, you are going to be hearing more about them. We will introduce three of these and we will point out their shortcomings and make one recommendation – with the others we will simply say “watch and wait”.

Password Managers: There are a whole host of password managers hitting the market to address being able to help organize and remember your passwords for you. They work by encrypting the password and storing it on your system in a local database. Many have automatic form filling capabilities to fill in the user and password credentials for you. A good password manager is capable of detecting a site that is fraudulent and using phishing techniques (designed to gain personal data or credentials), or other form of cyber attack.

Shortcomings: While these applications are convenient, users are at risk if their computer is left on or their device is stolen. Password managers typically use a master password but again, this requires the user to come up with a good password that cannot be hacked or easily guessed and in some cases, these master passwords are not encrypted and vulnerable to cyber attacks. In some cases, accessing unencrypted passwords can be extracted when the data is swapped to memory of the user’s hard drive. We recommend looking into all the functions and capabilities of a password manager before trying one.

Recommendation: At first we thought it would be a challenge for us to suggest a Password Manager application as there is a lot at stake. We soon found that one stands out: RoboForm (http://www.roboform.com/). This program includes support for all types of platform such as Windows, Mac, and mobile devices. It is not a free solution but it is under $20 and you get a single license that is good for all your computing needs including all your computers and mobile devices. While it does not have phishing capability – you will have to rely on the security provided by your browser for this – it does have automatic form filler and encryption technology.

Biometrics: This is also known as biometric authentication and it is likely something you have seen in several movies. It involves identification of human traits or characteristics such as fingerprint, iris recognition, face recognition, voice, and much more[6]. Ease of use is likely the greatest advantage to this form of authentication.

Shortcomings: While it may seem very sci-fi and high-tech, biometric devices can be compromised with what is known as replay attacks and forgeries. An example would be stealing electronic versions of your fingerprints. There are other concerns as well. It was reported that a Mercedes owner had a finger cut off to gain access to the vehicle[7]. Another drawback is being able to change the biometric data in the case of compromise.

There is considerable potential to this system and we will see more of this form of security. Some predict that by 2016, 30% of companies will be using some form of biometric security. The bottom line is that it should be used with a Personal Identification Number (PIN) or password so as to have a two-part authentication.

New Smart Cards: The latest in smart card technology can be found with credit and debit cards that use the EMV standard; EMV stands for Europay, MasterCard, and Visa. These cards are also known as IC cards or integrated circuit cards. Companies such as Visa, MasterCard, American Express, J Smart, and Discover/Diners Club International are beginning to implement these. The early reports suggest that there is a reduction of fraudulent infractions and improved security. You do have to remember a PIN and authentication is further enhanced with cryptographic algorithms. Transactions are reported to take less time than our existing credit card authentication.

Shortcomings: There are vulnerabilities to this EMV card technology including harvesting PIN’s and cloning magnetic stripes. If you are interested, go to this Wikipedia page to find out more. Since June 2012, EMV has been introduced into the US but it appears to be in its infancy and there are those that remain skeptical about the ability for merchants to update their systems and support this so consumers can use smart cards to do their transactions.

Recommendation:

Some of these new technologies seem a bit daunting when you first encounter them. What we suggest is to simply be familiar with them and be aware as they are more adopted into our daily computing and banking practices. Once the dust settles with the emergence of any new technology we are more likely to safely venture forward where others have previously experienced pitfalls. One thing to take from this article is to get a handle on your passwords and keep your online banking as secure as you are able with proper password protection.

We hope this article and the information provided here have brought you up to speed on potential security risks and what is being made available to counter these cyber threats. We will continue to introduce new technologies in a manner that is not beyond the reach of average, everyday computer users.

[1] Important update for Yahoo Mail useres
[2] http://idtheft.about.com
[3] ZDNet.com
[4] Wired.com
[5] Wired.com
[6] Wikipedia.org/wiki/biometrics
[7] http://news.bbc.co.uk

Looking back and moving forward

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During the year 2013 we covered a wide range of topics and moving forward we think there are many suggestions and recommendations that can be used in dealing with PC issues you may be facing right now.  So, we embark on a two-part adventure: to review the best of our articles and to highlight what PC tips and tricks you can take advantage of immediately.  What better way to step up to the plate when asked: What is your New Year’s resolution?  We hope it’s to take charge of your computing needs so that your PC works for you! This summary of our top PC stories for us is a celebration of a year’s correspondences to you our readership.

The following topics include our top stories that we find will give you an upper edge on PC good practices and regular use:

Security & Privacy

Digital security – updates and trends
Edward Snowden hit the news this past year and opened up a whole can of worms in relation to surveillance and the reams of digital information that is readily available.  Our information article broached the subject of the digital universe and our level of exposure to surveillance.  We have become participants and are increasingly more involved in the creation of digital information that can be accessed from online means.  We need to ask the question: With the amount of focus directed at gathering digital information can we feel that our private data – including financial data such as credit card information – is in fact secure? Read the full article…

How to protect your privacy
Not only did we reference Edward Snowden but also major companies like Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and Target and how each have used technology to track and monitor activity.  In our How To article we provided five steps to being more PC secure.  We looked at: 1) How to make your web browser more secure, 2) email security, 3) data encryption, 4) virtual private networking, and 5) clean up.  The last item is likely the most important – no one can access what is not there to begin with. Read the full article…

Backup Your PC

Are you ready for Cloud Storage?
There has been considerable attention given to “cloud” storage and we delved into this topic with both feet.  The beauty of this topic is that we have, in other articles, made reference to backing up data to another location and cloud storage is one method of backup of items.  We would suggest backing up items that are difficult to replace; a backup copy of family pictures for example would be ideal to store “in the cloud”.

Cloud Storage: In basics terms, this is a method of storing data on servers that are made publicly available through an Internet connection (in the cloud) rather than having the data stored locally on your PC.

We covered the basics of cloud storage including: reasons to use cloud storage (sharing files or backing up data), cost, size, access and more. Read the full article…

Choosing an online storage solution
We also looked at some of the free cloud storage that is made available to anyone.  All of these are starting places and any of these storage offerings may suffice for one’s basic needs.  Cloud storage can be used as a means of preventing data loss – although by itself it is not sufficient enough in our minds.  We find the best use of this technology is to take advantage of the ability to share files. While we outline several cloud storage providers we give the thumbs up to Dropbox as our top pick. Read the full article…

A free local PC backup solution
We brought up the importance of backing up your PC in several articles.  The act of backing up your data is a daunting task when considering the numerous files we create and modify on a daily basis.  Even making the attempt to manually synchronize files is something we would not do.  A viable alternative is to use a free synchronization tool called SyncToy.

Our article on this subject contained a lot of information that we were able to present in one file.  It included the following: 1) what data to backup, 2) when, why, and where to backup, and 3) how to use SyncToy.  The third area offers step-by-step instructions with screenshots.  Read the full article…

Clean Your PC

Too much junk? Keep your PC lean and clean
The creation of free space.  Hand-in-hand with removing items from your hard drive to is the need to effectively deal with the accumulation of junk files.  In our first article we systematically look at:

  • Potential symptoms: slow startup time, slow launch of programs, computer crashes, freezes, etc.
  • Cause and effect: unwanted files remaining on your system, uninstalled remnants, orphaned registry items, and more.
  • Solution: clean and uninstall. Read the full article…

The Clean and Uninstaller Tools
The companion article covers the steps on backing up, using the PC Clean Maestro Clean Tool and the Uninstaller.  Not rocket science by any means… just a good, effective management regime. Read the full article…

Speeding up Your PC

Understanding defragmentation and optimization
Likely the most technical articles we have written were on the subject of hard disk drives and optimizing them with the Disk Defrag tool.  Despite the complexity of the subject manner we feel this article is a very good synopsis of the process involving fragmentation of data and its impact on hard drive performance.

Fragmentation: is a condition which occurs when files are stored in scattered sections throughout the disk.  This is a result of frequently creating, deleting, and modifying files. Read the full article…

How to Defrag Your Hard Drives
Fragmentation can be a bottleneck to system performance. If you are experiencing slowdowns in opening applications and overall responsiveness along with a shortage of overall disk space, you need to look at the Best Practices section and the steps to defrag your system.  For those of you suffering from a bogged down system, you will be impressed by the performance gains. Read the full article…

Guard Your PC from Foistware

Understanding Foistware
Funny how the little things can be completely annoying and such a pain in your side!  We introduced “foistware” (also known as crapware).  The fact is many beginner users find themselves experiencing these fraudulent little annoyances all too easily.  In our first article we looked at what you can expect to see including changes to your PC such as a hijacked browser home page, extra browser toolbars, flashing ads, and more.  The result is a slower PC; slower performance and a system that has been customized to use a homepage and search engine that you do not want to use.  Often this points you to sites with advertisements and warnings that your PC has errors or you need to backup your PC. Read the full article…

Remove Foistware and restore your PC
With our previous article we looked at identifying the intruder and pointing out detection and some hints for prevention.  This article follows up on removal and restoration.  Getting your PC back to how it was before the foistware invasion occurred is fundamental to a decent solution.  After all, your PC was hijacked and you want it to be returned in good working order. Read the full article…

We have enjoyed providing articles that are packed full of useful tips and tricks to get your PC operating in a manner that best reflects how it first performed when you first began using it.  We will continue to introduce new technologies in a manner that is not beyond the reach of average, everyday computer users.

Sitting Down with a Good eBook

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The holidays are upon us.  At this time of the year we tend to find ourselves overdoing it when it comes to consumption and the ever-growing amount of items we have.  When it comes to books, some of us are running out of room on our bookshelves and boxing up the extras.  Then there’s the amount of trees used to create books.  One way of being more space conscious and eco-friendly is to go electronic.  You may be surprised to know that there are vast amounts of digitized books available.  We’re going to examine the popularity of eBooks, describe in brief just what they are and what you need to know, and we are going to introduce CompuClever’s Ultra eBook Reader.  Finally we will provide a list of free resources to whet your appetite for eBook reading if you haven’t already taken up this convenient and easy pastime.

Popularity:  Just how popular are eBooks?  Amazon announced[1] that it sells more eBooks than traditional printed hardcover or paperbacks.  In some cases authors are able to have their written work published in an eBook when they are unable to have it published to hard copy.  There are even websites that are dedicated to cataloging and making eBooks available to the general public.

What are eBooks and eBook readers? Let’s take a step back and talk about some of the basic concepts and items you need to know.  The term “eBook” comes from “electronic book” and can also be referred to as a digital book.  It is in fact a book-length publication that has been digitized to be viewed on an eBook reader, the software that is installed on your computer device to view and read the eBook.  This means that any previous or new publication can be found in an eBook form; although, of course, not all books have been, or could be, digitized.  What’s more… some publications can only be found in eBook form and have not been hard-printed.  There are commercially produced and distributed eBooks that are meant to be read on dedicated eBook readers.  However free alternatives are readily available and even borrowing eBook items from the library is now possible.

We highly recommend that you try out the CompuClever application Ultra eBook Reader.  There are numerous advantages including:

  • You can easily open 12 of the most popular eBook formats.
  • Multiple view layouts such as: single page, two page, and book view.
  • Ability to bookmark, convert, and print your eBooks.
  • Designed for your PC, laptop, or tablet.

Plus there is the added advantage of knowing the makers of the software are trustworthy and offer an outstanding support service.  Check out: http://www.ultraebookreader.com/

The Devices:  Mobile devices are in the hands of the many.  eBooks can be read by more devices than just your PC.  You can view them on your laptop, tablet, mobile phone, smartphone… you get the picture.

eBook Formats:  Just as a Word doc has a particular format and a certain extension that signifies the the type of file it is (“.docx” for example), so too are there designated formats for eBooks.  Leading the list of the many formats are: ePub, MOBI, PDF, AZW, LIT, and ODF.  Some of these, like the Amazon format AZW, are exclusively used for the Amazon “Kindle” books.  While we won’t go into the intricacies of eBook formats and the many formats available we will say that one item to be aware of is that some eBooks can be…

“… protected by a digital rights management (DRM) wrapper. The DRM, which is used as an anti-piracy tool to protect authors, can prevent you from opening an e-book file even if the format is compatible with your reader.“[2]

It is also useful for you to know the formats that are supported by your eBook reader.  For a list of the formats supported by Ultra eBook Reader go to this page.

Advantages

There are numerous advantages to eBook reading.  Here is our list:

  1. Space:  Top of the list and perhaps tied with the number two item, is being able to save on space associated with hard copy books.  Having books collect dust on a bookshelf is not an ideal situation.  On top of this, finding an eBook on your PC or tablet is a lot easier than digging through boxes or trying to find it on a shelf.  There are even advantages here when reading in bed or when in transit.  With eBooks you are only limited by the capacity of your device and it’s quite feasible to have thousands of eBooks on hand.
  2. Mobility:  If you are traveling, what could be easier?  You can have thousands of eBooks at your finger tips and not take up any extra space or weight.  You won’t have to pick just one book to travel with or have to worry about excess luggage weight and space.  You can also read in dark places and in most any situation such as when waiting in line.
  3. Publication: Some publications go out of print while eBooks, once in electronic form, do not have any limitation with respect to copying and distribution.  Also, you can get an eBook immediately rather than having to go to the library during specific hours, visit the bookstore, or wait for delivery.
  4. Cost:  Many eBooks are free and there are other paid options as well.  Scribd, one of the major players in document sharing and downloading companies actually offers a subscription based model with a monthly fee (much like Netflix), in exchange for unlimited access to all books they have for download.  Of course there are some upfront costs but if you already have a laptop or tablet or mobile device, you will find that the electronic form is more affordable in many cases.  As for free… all works of fiction from before the year 1900 are in the public domain and most libraries lend current eBook titles for limited times. The reality is, eBooks can be printed for less than the price of new hard copy books.  For students, there is a very real potential to reduce education costs of publications and having the information in electronic form would be very useful when it comes to studying and writing papers.
  5. Reduced reliance of physical materials:  Yes, you need to have a laptop of mobile device to begin.  If you already have one then you are on your way to saving trees and the energy that goes into the making and distribution of books.  This is especially relevant for more disposable publications such as magazines and newspaper.  Imagine if these items were in electronic form for the most part and deleted rather than stacking up in landfills or recycle plants.
  6. Borrowing eBooks:  As mentioned, libraries can lend out digital publications and this means having these items available with no restriction in terms of library hours.  For students this is a major advantage.
  7. Loss or damage:  eBooks can be replaced with little effort.  Hard copy publications are susceptible to wear and tear, fading, water / fire damage, and of course dogs and small children with the single intent of shredding.  Depending on the DRM (Digital Rights Management) policy, you may be able to backup your digital publication or even recover it without cost from the distributor.

DRM – Digital Rights Management

One important consideration to be aware of when acquiring eBooks is some are protected with a DRM wrapper.  That is to say some formats can be protected by a digital rights management (DRM) anti-piracy tool which has been put in place by some publishers and copyright holders.  While the intent is to protect “intellectual property” there are those that believe there is no evidence to support this and it simply inconveniences the legitimate customers.

Due to the controversial aspects of this technology, CompuClever has simply chosen to not support eBooks that come with a DRM wrapper. These items need to have the required authentication (think of it as a type of encryption). The good news is, there is a plethora of available eBooks that do not use a DRM wrapper and many of these are free.

Free eBooks

There are many eBook sites available and some offer free publications and others include both free and paid items.  We have taken a look to see if these sites are legitimate according to a reliable website security scan (we use www.urlvoid.com).  Here, in no particular order, is a list to get you started:

eBook Sites
Gutenberg.org This site has offers over 42,000 free eBooks and a link to 100,000 more free eBooks.  You can “choose among free ePub books, free Kindle books, download them or read them online.”  They also accept donations – one way to help with the effort of digitizing more books.
The Online Books Page Hosted by the University of Pennsylvania library, this is a simple site that claims to list over 1 million free books.
Scribd Scribd is the world’s largest digital library, where readers can discover books and written works of all kinds on the Web or any mobile device and publishers and authors can find a voracious audience for their work.
Kobobooks This one also claims to have over 1 million free books.  It also has copies for sale at reasonable rates.

For those adventurous and keen readers check out this site, which provides 20 of the best websites to download free eBooks with screenshots and links.

We fully appreciate that hard copy books have a certain appeal and some people will not substitute them for a digital version.  We also fully believe that real books will not simply disappear as a result of eBook popularity.  It is our feeling that eBooks offer a viable alternative and can be used in conjunction with owning and reading actual books.  We hope we have provided you some new insights about eBook reading.  We will continue to introduce new technologies in a manner that is not beyond the reach of average, everyday computer users.

[1]Amazon.com Press Release
[2]The 6 Most Popular eBook Formats To Know About

Due to the controversial aspects of this technology, CompuClever has simply chosen to not support eBooks that come with a DRM wrapper. These items need to have the required authentication (think of it as a type of encryption). The good news is, there is a plethora of available eBooks that do not use a DRM wrapper and many of these are free.

Can’t open an important file?

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Synopsis:  This month’s article addresses a commonly experienced occurrence – not being able to open a file.  We will begin with some basic questions that need to be answered in order to prevent opening the wrong type of file.  It’s unfortunate that in today’s cyber world there are so many pitfalls to maintaining a healthy and secure PC but caution is a must when downloading, installing, or opening files on your computer.  After that we will look at how to deal with the problem of opening files using PC TuneUp Maestro.  There are tools that can help you in several instances including being able to recommend a free program, when one is available, that can open and view the file.

So let’s begin by first examining the particulars.

The first question to ask is: Where is the file located? It could be that you are trying to open a file from one of the following:

  • A website
  • An email attachment
  • Your PC

Website:  If you are attempting to open a file that is on a website, it is possible that the site itself could be potentially dangerous as determined by the Windows security zone.  To see more about this go to the Microsoft website. [1] [2]

When to trust a website:

Microsoft lists[3] a number of signs that are good indication that a website is unsafe. A website might not be trustworthy if:

  • It is referred to you through an e‑mail message.
  • It offers objectionable content, such as pornography or illegal materials.
  • It makes offers that seem too good to be true (could be a possible scam or the sale of illegal or pirated products).
  • You are lured to the site by a bait and switch scheme, in which the product or service is not what you were expecting.
  • You are asked for a credit card as a verification of identity or for personal information that does not seem necessary.
  • You are asked to provide a credit card number without proof that the transaction is secure.

When in doubt use caution!  You can copy and paste the URL (the website address) of the website and check it out here to see if it is a known offender: http://www.urlvoid.com/.

  1. Go to URLVoid.com and type in the website address in the field provided.  Alternatively, you can copy and paste the URL address.
  2. Press the Enter key or select Submit to find the results.

The results include an overall “Blacklist Status” and a “Website Blacklist Report”.  There are also valuable articles on PC security including malicious and fraudulent activities to keep you up-to-date on potential PC threats.

As for email attachments and with files on your PC we need to look closer at what is happening.

Do you know where this file came from? If it is from a trusted source, continue.  If not, take a closer look at where it came from.  If it is an email attachment from an unknown source you do not have to open it.  If it was downloaded or installed on your PC from the Internet see if you can identify the manufacturer and if it is a trusted source.  Sometimes all it takes is to do an online search for the file name.  If there is any suspicion that this came from a questionable source – do not open the file.  It could lead to a PC infection of a virus or other form of malware which could have serious consequences in terms of PC performance and function.

Next question: Are you receiving any error messages? In some instances opening a file can result in you receiving a notice that a virus has been detected.  If this is the case you can research and install a good anti-malware program to both clean and protect you from virus and malware attacks.  In other cases, and in fact in most cases, you will notice an error message as seen here.  This means your PC is unable to open the file and the rest of this article deals with how to solve this issue.

Can Your PC Open the File?

It could well be the cause for not being able to open the file is that your PC simply cannot perform the desired action.  There could be several reasons why this is happening including: the file is corrupt, the filename has been altered, or the correct program to open the file is not installed.  If the file is corrupt or altered in some way you will need to attempt to get a good copy of the file and delete the faulty one.

In most cases there will be one of two reasons you are having issues.  It could be the file is incorrectly registered in the system registry or it could be that your PC does not have the right program to open and run the file.  The correctly associated program is referred to as the host application.  You can use the Open File tool in PC TuneUp Maestro to solve this state of affairs.  Here’s how.

  1. Launch PC TuneUp Maestro and in the left panel menu, click Open File.
  2. Enter a file extension or locate and select the file.  You can either type in the file extension in the text box or use the Select File button to locate and select the file.
  3. Begin the scan.
Open File tool - a handy function offered by PC TuneUp Maestro

When the scan is complete, the results are displayed.  In some cases errors are detected and you can view the results and select the items you want to fix.  For example, it could be that the file type is improperly registered in the system registry.

Bottom line… The majority of the scanned issues for Open File can be corrected.  You can use the Smart Scan or a registry scan – the onboard tools available with PC TuneUp Maestro.  Or, as we have instructed here, you can use the Open File tool directly which works very well if the answer lies in not having the right software to open the file.  An added bonus with the Open File function scan is that it will recommend a free file viewer (if one exists), for the file format of interest and this information is presented at the end of the Open File wizard.  The Open File Wizard contains a database of over 5,000 unique file extensions.

We hope this information will provide the easy solution that will alleviate the frustration of not being able to open a file.  We will continue to introduce solutions and provide instruction in a manner that is not beyond the reach of average, everyday computer users.

 

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[2] How to use security zones in Internet Explorer
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SyncToy – A free tool for PC backup

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Synopsis:  In some of our previous articles we have advised our readers to perform a backup of files for a variety of good reasons including to avoid loss or destruction of data file and to better organize files so as to reduce clutter and free hard drive space.  We have also recommended Microsoft’s Sync Toy and have encouraged users to run this free tool when doing backup procedures.  In this article we are going to go in to some depth on how to use this technology.  While we do not benefit from others using this program, we do feel its merits are to be shared.  There are some terms and actions that require explanation and instruction.  Once you get familiar with this program you can be backing up files on a regular basis and you’ll be impressed by just how fast and easy it is.

What to Backup:

When thinking about backing up your PC we suggest you visualize types of computer files in three categories: system files, application files, and other files (including your personal data).  System files are those items that are critical to your PC for it to run and operate as you expect it to.  These files are part of the operating system and they are typically hidden and are not meant to be modified, moved, deleted, or tampered with.

System File Backup:  For all versions of Windows you can make use of the Backup & Restore tool available with PC Tuneup Maestro.  This is a way to backup system files quickly and easily and by doing so you can restore your system to a previous date when it was working before a change was made.

Keep in mind this is not a method of backing up your personal files – it restores your PC based on an earlier configuration of your system files.  Here’s how you can do it:

  1. From the Fix & Clean page, click the BackUp & Restore link.
  2. Click the Create a Restore Point button.
  3. In the dialog that appears, enter in a description and click Create.
  4. Click OK in the confirmation dialog.

Application files include all the programs that you have installed on your computer.  Most often, with a healthy computer you do not have to re-install programs.  In the rare event that something happens to your computer you can re-install from your original CD discs or you can go online to the software manufacture and download and install the program again.  Having your license code previously written down may save you some time but in most cases you can contact the manufacturer and they can pass the license to you.

Personal files most often make up the bulk of your PC files in terms of space required, items you interact with directly, and data that changes on a frequent basis (new files added, files deleted, renamed items, items modified, etc.).  These are the files that we are going to focus on here more specifically.  This is where a good program like SyncToy will save you a lot of time and give you the sense of security that comes from knowing you are not going to lose recent data.

When, Why and Where to Backup:

Let’s look at some of the basics to good backup management.

When:  With creating a System Restore point you want to have a Restore point created before making significant changes to your PC.  With PC TuneUp Maestro, there is an automatic restore point creation built-in when you apply certain functions.  You can see it happen during the process.  This includes registry cleanup and defragmentation of the registry or the hard drive.  It is these types of system changes that warrant having a Restore point created.

With personal data files you need to do regular backups even if this is on a monthly basis.  Think of it as building up a wealth of some sort (in this case, new and modified documents and media files all represent time and effort and in some cases cannot be replicated easily or at all).  Once you build up wealth to a certain point you want to bank it so it is safe.

Why:  As just stated backing up your files provides a sense of keeping your digital “wealth” safe.  There is also the added benefit of being able to better organize hard drive space.  If you take advantage of virtual storage (like Dropbox for instance), as well as storing on an external hard drive, you can free up space on your computer.  The added benefit to this is that your PC has a greater chance of operating at optimum speed rather than having to wade through fragmented data files.  In some cases you need to create enough free space in order to defragment your PC.  Finally, duplication and backup is good practice in the case of hard drive failure as well as destruction or theft of your PC or laptop.

Where:  We recommend using an external hard drive for personal files.  With files that require duplication, as they are of considerable value when you consider having to replace them, we recommend having two copies: a combination of your PC and either external hard drive or cloud storage (we have given the thumbs up for Dropbox).  As stated above, if you are struggling for disk space on your computer, you may want to consider removing personal data files from your PC and storing them on two external hard drives (one to backup the other).  Or, you can use a combination of cloud storage and an external hard drive.  The downside is that you may not have much free space for cloud storage and it fills up fast.  If you have a lot of files (like most of us do), we recommend taking on the additional cost of a second external hard drive and keeping two copies of your personal data files.  The good news is that external hard drives have really come down in cost and they have very large capacity of storage.

How To Use SyncToy

If you decide on cloud storage and external hard drive(s) or some combination of these, you can use SyncToy even if the files are not directly stored on your PC.  For example, you can hook your USB key and your external hard drive and use SyncToy to backup and synchronize.  Once you have connected external storage devices you can create a folder pair to sync the original files to the backup location.

Note: In this way you can choose to create files directly to a USB key (for example) and backup to an external hard drive.  Keep in mind, in most cases you will be backing up from your hard drive (where your personal files are located), to a backup destination source.

After creating a folder pair, it is only a matter of choosing the type of synchronization and then running a preview before proceeding with the backup.

Let’s take a look at the SyncToy user interface.  As can be seen here it is fairly straightforward.

Folder pairs are listed in the left pane.  You can select one and see the Left and Right folders that you created in this pairing along with the file path where the files reside (for example: “F:\Docs\From Laptop”).  Below this, the type of synchronization action that you originally selected is identified.  You have the ability to change the action using the link that is provided.  Next, there are options to choose from; the ones that you have selected (typically by default) are listed.  Finally there are three action buttons relating to folder pairs and two on the right to perform the backup.

Folder Pairs: To begin you will be starting with a blank window and you need to create folder pairs.  When you first start you can think of this as having a folder that contains all the files you want to backup on the left and the target folder (originally just an empty folder you have created) on the right.  Now do the following:

  1. Click the Create New Folder Pair button.
  2. In the dialog that opens, locate and select the folder in both the left (source) and right (destination) folders.  Use the Browse buttons to more easily locate the folders.
  3. Click the Next button.

Note: At this time we are only introducing left to right, source to destination, pairing.  There are some synchronization actions that provide the option to have files duplicated both ways so that both folders contain the same data.  The following section will describe this in more detail.

Sync Type: The next step of the folder creation is to choose the synchronization action type.  Here is what you see:

  1. Choose one the action types listed on the left.  You can select one to get a short explanation.  (We recommend “Echo” to begin.)
  2. Click Next when you are done.
  3. Choose a name for your folder pair (for example, “BU – My Pics”) and you are done.

Recommendation:  For our purposes… let’s simplify.  We are referring to backing up data.  In the case of backing up from a source destination to an external hard drive you would want to use the “Echo” action.  With this action all copying happens from left to right including changes to any files that are renamed and deleted.  What you get is an exact duplicate.  You would not be modifying the files in the source folder in any way in this situation.  If you are duplicating from one external hard drive to another (you would have to plug in both drives to your PC with available USB ports), you would still use the Echo option.  That way you get two identical backups.

For the Synchronization action type… you would use this when you have two existing folders with, for example, music and you want to easily make both of these folders contain the same files.  The shortcoming of this is that you need both folders to be fairly similar – deletion occurs in both directions to achieve a mirror of the other.  It is better to do some manual organization first.

With Contribute, you would have a backup folder on the right constantly building up all the files you ever had on the left regardless of what items you have deleted in the left (source) folder.  This is a backup for people who do not want to permanently delete their files stored in the backup location.  As the description says… there are no deletions.  You could use this option but we recommend that you have a lot of storage space.

With all these actions you can use the “More information” link to get a more complete description in the available help file.

Preview and Run:

With a folder pair created you can now perform a backup.  Do the following:

  • 1. Select the folder pair listed in the left pane.
  • 2. Click the Preview button.  You will now see something like the following:

  • 3. Review the items in the list and clear any items you do not want to duplicate (for example, maybe there is an item you want to delete in the left folder or it is a temporary file).
  • 4. When you are ready click Run.
  • 5. Review the results and click Close.

You are done!  We are quite sure you will be surprised at how fast the preview and run works.

In Summary:

Backing up data and file is one of those tasks that can be a painful experience if attempted manually.  With the onset of the computer age, our valuable items – photos, music, family video, and more – are stored digitally.  The thought of losing these or having them stolen or destroyed in some way is motive enough to backup these irreplaceable items.  Having the means to do this quickly and easily is the only real obstacle to performing this task.

We hope this information will provide the easy solution that will get you well on your way to regular backups.  We will continue to introduce and research available technologies explained in a manner that is not beyond the reach of average, everyday computer users.