SPAM

Im sure by now everyone knows about spam...and has beed annoyed by it constantly flooding their inboxes with junk. Just in case you dont know spam is simply junk e-mail. Everything from ads for credit cards and mortages to links to other websites including pornographic and other unwanted material.Spam is becoming more and more of a problem. Unfotunately there is no silver bullet or foolproof way to stop all unwanted spam. But there are 2 main rules to avoid getting spammed in the first place.

Rule #1: NEVER give out your "official" email address to anyone except people you know and trust.

Rule #2: Open a free "alternative" email account such as Hotmail or Yahoo.com that you can use for filling out registration forms, etc.

Special Rule: NEVER click on a spam email to "opt-out" or to be "removed". JUST DELETE IT!!

The first rule has obvious merit. The second rule should be applied when downloading programs or other activities online which require you to give a valid email address for verification, or just for sending friendly emails to questionable sources. If you find that your alternate email account is being spammed it is simple to just delete it and make a new account. The special rule should also always be applied!

>>>><<<<<

If you're already being spammed on your 'official" email account you still have a few options. You can either change your email address or try and fight the spammers with different spam elimination programs.

I suggest simply changing your official email address. Once changed make sure you send your new email address to all your contacts in your address book. And remember to keep this email address a secret from any web sites or other untrusted sources.

If you must keep your original email address there are still options available. You could try using a email filtering program which filters out and deletes unwanted emails based on rules which you create. For example: you could create the rule that if the subject line contains the word "Viagra" ; the email should be deleted. There are many rules you can create such as filtering IP addresses, etc etc. Of course you have to make probably hundreds if not thousands of rules like this to effectively filter out most unwanted junk. This is why this method is far from foolproof. You might also get "false positives" , where your filtering program inadvetantly deletes good emails.

Unfortunately at the present time these are the only viable options for stopping unwanted SPAM from reaching your inbox.

For more info check out these pages:

http://spam.abuse.net/
http://www.cauce.org/
http://www.mindworkshop.com/alchemy/nospam.html
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/spam/index.html

For anti-spam tools check ZDNet Downloads or WebAttack.com

A word of advice: I do NOT suggest paying for an anti-spam program. Try a free program . Sometimes spammers flood your inbox in an attempt to get you to buy some "anti spam" software. Its like the home alarm salesman breaking into houses to boost his sales of alarms! Dont fall for spammers trickery!
And above all NEVER click on a spam. You could easily get a virus or spyware component which will just cause MORE spam.

Last Note: also be sure to regularly update and run your Spyware scanner! Spyware can contain email harvesting programs!

Pop-Up Ads

Pop Ups ads are annoying windows that appear when surfing the internet. Here's an article about them. I use a program called No Ads that
automatically closes all pop-up windows as specified. Also using a browser other than IE such as Mozilla will prompt or not allow pop up ads at
all depending on settings.

Frequent Pop Up ads appearing even while
not connected to the internet can also be a sign of spyware which should be removed.

No Ads

VIRUSES

Viruses are a major problem with computers today that are connected to the internet or receive email. There are many anti-virus software packages available but the main two are Norton Anti-Virus and McAfee AV. Both run around $40 but they do offer FREE virus scans and removal tools via the internet if you don't want to buy a virus scanner. It is recommended to buy one though, and most new PCs come with one of these already installed with a free limited subscription to their respective update service. It is also necessary to update your Virus Scanner since new internet threats arise every day. These subscriptions usually are around $20/year and are also highly recommended for all computers frequently receiving Email or connected to the internet.

A good fully updated Virus Scanner is well worth the money since a virus can cause a totalsystem failure easily. Luckily this is the only thing you need to spend money on other then your ISP (internet service provider) monthly fees. I recommend either McAfee or Norton. Norton has a free online virus scan and I like Housecall as well. (high speed connection recommended for any online scan)

Note: these online scans only detect viruses and do NOT remove them. For FREE virus removal tools go here .

Firewalls

A Firewall is simply a gatekeeper for the internet. It allows or restricts traffic between your PC and the internet. Firewalls are important because
many viruses and especially spyware will attempt to connect to the internet. Read this article on Firewalls for further information. There are two main types of firewalls : Hardware and Software. Firewalls are of main importance to computers connected through broadband/cable or LAN connections as well as all network users connected through a router. Most routers have built in hardware firewalls.

There are many harware/software configurations to choose from:

A SOHO Router is a relatively inexpensive NAT and basic filtering device such as a Netgear, Linksys, Dlink, etc. (Generally characterized by inbound filtering only.)

A Software Firewall is an application installed on the local machine to be protected that offers upper layer protection features such as application control. Some examples are Zone Alarm, Sygate, Outpost, BlackIce, etc.

A Standalone Firewall is a more professional/business-level device that, like a SOHO router, has no other purpose other than to protect the network behind it (it still uses software though - hence the name 'standalone' rather than 'hardware') This type of device is capable of both inbound and outbound filtering, and includes products/packages such as Checkpoint, Cisco PIX, Astaro, Smoothwall, Coyote Linux, Zywall 10, etc.

A DMZ is a setup where you have two firewalls in serial with a public and less trusted network in between them. The area in between the two firewalls is your DMZ. The term 'DMZ' is often confused due to SOHO router companies claiming to have a 'DMZ' configuration option. This marketing ploy does not give a user a true DMZ, but rather just forwards all traffic not already accounted for by other forwarding rules to a specified host. This is not a true DMZ.

The purpose of a DMZ is to have a buffer zone between systems that you allow public access to and your private systems on your internal LAN. In general, systems in the DMZ are not trusted and are allowed very little (if any) access back into your private network so that if a compromise were to take place in your DMZ, the attacker would have an additional (and more secure) layer to cross before getting to your most sensitive assets.

A few good free software firewalls are: Sygate Firewall , Zone Alarm Firewall , Tiny Personal Firewall , and Agnitum Outpost Firewall.

These firewalls all have varying degrees of configuration and protection. I recommend Tiny for the novice user. Outpost has excellent protection and ease of use. Zone Alarm and Syagte are for more advanced users. Personally I use Sygate Pro. The built in logging and backtrace features arevery useful and educational tools.

There are almost no firewalls that are 100% airtight. Get Atelier Web Firewall Tester to test your firewall. This is another reason a good Trojan detection
system is necessary. If you are on a netwok, chances are your router already has a built in hardware firewall.

Sygate Firewall

Zone Alarm Firewall

Tiny Firewall

Firewall Tester

Agnitum Outpost

Privacy

Web sites use small text files stored on your computer for various reasons. Most are useful and some are necessary for certain sites. Some sites use cookies for more secretive practices such as tracking your surfing habits. Here's an article on Cookies . Its a good idea to use a program such as window washer to erase cookies at the end of a surfing session. Even better to use a browser such as Mozilla or Opera which makes all cookies "session-only"; meaning they areerased when closing the browser. Internet Explorer users should check their Privacy settings under Internet Properties. Remember that some sites wont work properly with a privacy setting that's too high.

When you "delete" a file , that file can easily be recovered using specialized software even after you've emptied the recycle bin. OVERWRITE "deleted" files forever with an Eraser utility program like this.

A window washing program is also a very useful utility to have. This will clean all
history of visited websites, erase all stored cookies, clean usage tracks, etc.

Also make sure you check out Privacy.net for more info on cookies , etc.
For total protection use SpyBot- Search and Destroy to do a complete privacy and spyware cleaning.

Spyware

Spyware can be anything from a simple cookie to a registry entry to an executable file similar to a trojan horse type virus. Spyware is simply a way for internet advertising and marketing firms to collect information about peoples interests, surfing habits, etc. Here's a website all about spyware. ALL computers that are connected to the internet should run a spyware scan frequently especially after downloading applications. Click the spywarelink below under more links for even more spyware info. There are many services that will scan and delete spyware from your computer. My favorites are AdAware - from Lavasoft and Spybot - Search & Destroy.Spyware will use up your system resources, take up bandwidth, and cause pop-up ads or banners. It should be noted that Lavasoft Ad-aware is very simple and easy to use while Spybot is much more complex. Spybot also acts as a window washer and will erase all history trails, cookies, temp. internet files, and other usage tracks.

To summarize, use Lavasoft's Ad-Aware for a simple
spyware check; and use Spybot for a total spyware check and privacy cleaning.

Some spyware can also be classified as "scumware" or "crapware" such as phone dialers to party lines, porn, etc. These programs will delete all unwanted CRAPware !!

Trojans/Backdoors

Trojans and Backdoor threats are applications that make use of ingrained system resources to access the internet for numerous purposes without the users knowledge. For more info on Trojans read here. Heres a list of the best Trojan removal tools. It is recommended that people use a Trojan detection prgram IN ADDITION TO an anti-virus scanner for total security. I recommend Agnitum Tauscan because of its ease of use and simplicity
even for beginners. FREE 30 day trial. I just found SWAT-IT and havent tested it yet but it looks good. Anyone who tries it please email me or sign the guestbook with your opinion or any other effective antitrojans.

Tauscan

SWAT-IT!

Packet Sniffer

Packet Sniffer

NetworkActiv Sniffer

Port Scanners

Resources

Microsoft's KNOWLEDGE BASE .

Search the MICROSOFT NEWSGROUPS .

Search Google Groups

TechTV

TEK-TIPS message boards

Computer Maintenance