Verizon, the world’s leading cellphone service company has now decided it’s going to take back what it has told its loyal subscribers. The Unlimited Data plan that everyone was supposedly grandfathered into are going to be no more. Verizon’s current CFO Fran Shammo, said the company plans to force its existing unlimited data plan customers to move to a tiered offering this summer in an effort to drive more data revenue for the wireless carrier. 

Many Verizon customers are completely outraged with this as Verizon has nickel and dimed its customers to death the last year or so. First they put a charge in place “for the convenience” of being able to pay their bill online (Something no one else does), then they just within the last month put a $30 per phone line charge for upgrading your phone in place (this used to be a $30 discount which was intended as a benefit to keep you coming back to Verizon and renewing your contract), and now they want to do away with their Unlimited data customers plans (which all unlimited data plan customers were told they were grandfathered into once Verizon even spoke of tiered plans on their network).

Sounds to me like Verizon may be losing a lot of customers as this may be the straw to break the camel’s back…

To read more click here.

There have been a rise in malicious updates in the past few months. It has  gotten so out of hand that the FBI has published warnings to not update your computers or any unsigned software updates on any untrusted network. Basically the little pop-ups that you get that claims there is a newer version of the software you are using, even the Windows updates, are not safe to do until you get home or to a network that you can trust.

This has been made possible by recently popular tool called evilgrade created by infobytesec. They have released this with over 60 modules that can that can be used to update different software. Some the software vulnerable to this attack are: Teamviewer, CCleaner, Java, Apple update, WinAmp, Virtualbox, VMWare, Skype and many more in their README. 

There are a few ways to mitigate your risk. First turn off automatic updates, this will prevent any malicious updates from installing without prompting you first. Second, if you have to update on an untrusted network you can check to see if the update is signed, not all companies do this which make the attack very effective. If the update is not signed or you cannot find the signature you can go to the manufactures website and see what the latest version is. If you version is behind the latest you can update or download the lasted software from the vendor and install it to become up-to-date. Lastly, only install updates on a trusted network like your home.

Have you ever wanted to know what Internet activities have taken place on you computer. There are many reasons for wanting to do this including: parental control, employee auditing, or maybe even finding a page that you found but cannot find again. There are many way to this from just checking your browsing history to using a 3rd party forensics program. 

I will be covering Browser Forensic Tool. This tool allows you to scan all common browser histories and archived histories on your computer. This will allow you to see exactly what browsing has been done in the past. It scans your history, searchs, cookies, and other app data to see where and what browsers have been where on the Internet.

Browser Forensic Tool is very easy to use. You just select the type of scan that you want to do by profiles like: anonymous, geek, porn, and many more. The profiles contain different keywords to search for, and you can add any keywords to any profile list. These can allow you to organize you scans. Browser Forensic Tool is available from Unremote.org or by clicking here.

Adobe’s various software offerings have been targets for hackers for a long time. Once again hackers have found exploits within the ever popular Flash platform. Hackers have just found a new exploit within Flash that allows hackers to take control of the user’s PC without their permission.

The report given by Adobe on the issue says that this exploit if caused by users click on a link within an email sent to them that once clicked downloads and installs the malware.

Adobe outlined six versions that they know the exploit works on and is encouraging those users to update to the newest version to prevent hackers from gaining access to their PC through this exploit. While Adobe does offer tools to help you determine what version of Flash you are running, if you are not sure you would be best to go to their website and download the most current version at the link below.

If you want to download the current version of Flash click here.

If you would like to read more click here.

TaintDroid is an amazing tool to check out what your installed apps are sending and to where.Right now TaintDroid is not for everyone. It is in it developmental stage. However for application developers and rooted users of a Nexus S or a Nexus One this tool can be easily used. This tool can be easily incorporated to Android Development Kit. You can easily and safely test any application in a virtualized 2.3 Android operating system.

Two colleges, Penn State and Duke University both work together to target the most popular 30 apps on the market place for testing. Of the 30 apps 15 of them leaked GPS information to remote advertisement servers. The way it work is after installing TaintDroid, you run a program and then if the program sends anything over the network TaintDroid displays a notification in your notification area.

The best way to check this out is to go to their website and watch the demo video. It will give you a good example of how TanitDroid is used and a good understanding of the functionality. TaintDroid is open source and has no support other than their website and forum board.

A lot of users come into our shop with virus problems and one of the most common ways of getting a virus is by clicking on the wrong link. It also seems like every one of these clients have the same question, “How am I supposed to know what’s safe to click on?” The short answer is that you won’t KNOW that something is safe to click on. There are some steps you can take however to help protect you.

One way to help ensure you are on a safe site is by looking for the little lock symbol near you address bar an ensuring that your surfing using SSL. Don’t know what SSL is? You really don’t need the details; you just need to know that if you have it, the website is operating on a secured connection between you and the computer you are connecting to. This is one good step if you are doing some online shopping. 

There are also a few browser add-ons that can help you determine whether a link in the search results is safe to click. Some antivirus programs also include such add-ons so they would be a good place to check.

If you’re interested in reading more click here.

Last year Motorola introduced the Lapdock.  This is a docking system for you phone for a computer. Dual-Core phones be docked and perform as a fully functional computer. The Motorola Atrix came out with Lapdock but one thing was lacking, a mouse. This s important because some website require you to use a mouse for full use of the website. This s where Google came in. With the merger of Google and Motorola came the technology for Webtop.

Webtop was thought up in 2009 in a Motorola lab in Sunnyvale California. It embeds a full functioning Firefox browser in the phone for when it is docked it is seen from the websites as a computer instead of as a phone. You can use a mouse and you will not be redirected to the mobile version of the site.

Since then they have been tested by CIO's in some of the top fortune 500 companies. They said that it was an amazing experience  however it would be a lot better if it had a Citrix. Citrix is an enterprise software that allows you to applications such as Office on a server. Then you phone could sign on to the server and use the applications. All of this and more could be coming soon to a phone near you. 

One of the Nation’s leading retailers is beginning a new online payment method. Wal-Mart has just implemented a way for its online customers to purchase goods on their website and then opt to come pay in cash at the store for the order.

Wal-Marts new program called “Pay With cash” gives its users the ability to browse the online stores, choose their products, then go pay for them in store using cash. In the past it was very difficult for people that did not have a credit card to use online shopping as an option. Now with Wal-Marts new payment option this is no longer the case. 

After users have made payment for their items within 48 hours they have the option to have the items shipped to the store or shipped to another address.

Should other online retailers pickup this option for payment, and I am sure they will…people may soon be able to browse online for some items they want, go to the store for their groceries, and pay for that purchase at the same time.

If you would like to read more click here.

Everyone loves the way their phones can navigate places for them, tell you what items are, give you times for events, etc. Now Google is working to bring that technology to your eyewear. Much like the futuristic scenes in many movies where the character looks around and a computer is analyzing everything they look at; Google’s new glasses are aiming to do the very same thing.

Google’s glasses will be able to set appointments for you and remind you about them, give you directions to somewhere you would like to go whether while walking or driving, or even help you meet up with friends using intergraded features of Google’s social media tool Google+.

While this futuristic technology seems far-fetched it was only a matter of time before Google, or another company invented a better, more hands free method of interacting with everyday life. This new design is meant to easily integrate into someone’s life and give them more readily available access to the Internet’s resource’s than ever before.

If you wwant to see a short clip of this cool new technology click here.

Google is finally releasing their cloud drive storage. It is widely rumored to be available next week. Google Drive will provide all users with about 5GB of storage. It is rumored to give an additional 20GB of storage $5 dollars a year.

There is already a desktop application created by a Google partner for Google drive. The app will be available to Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices. Also the domain drive.google.com exists however nothing is there except a text file and a little evidence that Google Drive will be available for mobile devices.

The great thing Google Drive is that it already has a massive user base. This will be easy to persuade users to use Google for their cloud storage needs. Google Drive will also integrate into existing Google products. Other Featured rumored to be included are file syncing. This means when you update a file it replicated the changes across all devices it is saved on. There are still many more feature to be seen, so be on the lookout next week for Google Drive.

A new device called “The PowerPot” has been designed to allow users to charge USB devices via a regulated USB cable. While this device is not computer/networking related it is a very interesting invention that could come in handy for those that enjoy going camping.

This product could be used to Power a user’s cell phone, GPS, batteries, etc. While this is not useful in everyday life it will provide campers/hikers the ability to charge devices they may need or just wish to use while camping without actually having access to an electrical socket. 

Another advantage campers or hikes would have with this interesting gadget is that it can be used to cook in as well.

If you’re interested in reading more about this interesting new invention click here. Be sure to check out the video as well it’s pretty interesting.

There is a lot of free alternatives to the default Windows Explorer. Just to clarify Windows Explorer is what you see while you are browsing files, Internet Explorer get you to the Internet. One of the alternatives is Cubic Explorer. Cubic Explorer look rather similar to Windows Explorer except it add a few neat features like: tabbed browsing, more viewing options and more quick navigation buttons.

The next alternative browser is Explorer++, this browser also adds tabbed browsing as well as more viewing options. It is different by:adding easy-to-remember keyboard shortcuts, customizable user interface, drag-and-drop support  even with Windows Explorer, many advanced features including file merging and splitting, and this application is completely portable.

Adobe, one of the world’s leading software companies has come out with a way to keep their popular Flash software usable in a changing world. Flash was purchased by Adobe in 2005 and continues to have a strong presence on the Internet. Many web developers however are pushing for standardization as the web is currently written in many different languages.

Adobe still has a very large following but since HTML5 came out man developers have moved on and begun developing with the new platform. Adobe has been in the process of having a toolkit developed in order to keep developers using its platform but allow them to convert their creations over to the newer formats easily once they have been created using Flash.

If you’re interested in reading more on this topic click here.

Many people now use some sort of device that has an Android operating system on it. If you have one of these devices chances are that you are familiar with apps from the market or as it is known now as Google Play.

Most apps you will get are free. A good majority of these apps can be trusted, however they come with advertising. Any permissions that the app requires the advertisements are privileged to as well. This means that if your app has the permission to see contacts or read messages the advertisement may collect this data as well. Advertisements also aide in draining your battery, this is more of a nuisance than a privacy risk.

The current and only solution to mitigate these threats are to not download any apps that contain advertisements. The problem lies in the libraries. The ad libraries are combined with the application libraries, and in some cases the ad libraries have a dynamic-code loading capability that is often abused by malware to escape detection. There needs to be an isolation of libraries to more easily control our information.

Do you have the same password for many locations, or do you wirte down passwords to help remember them?

LastPass is a password manager that can keep track off any passwords that you use online. It can generate and length and complexity of password that you would need. It is very user friendly. This can take the hassle out of your online security.

Lastpass stores all of your passwords in an encrypted database. Your passwords are encrypted with your "LastPass" password. Lastpass never records this password so do not forget it.Also for more security you can easily set-up many different types of 2-factor authentication including Google Authenitcator or Yubikey verification.

Google has been making many different changes lately. Some changes are great others are not. Google has made changes in their search engine, Gmail, and now their Privacy Policy. There are a number of users however that are very much against these policy changes but why? 

Opponents to Google’s new policy change claim that the new policy’s conflict with old policy’s already agreed upon by its users and as such should not be allowed to take place. There are a number of problems with this though. First problem is that every time a user uses one of Google’s services they are agreeing to the new Policy changes and everything that goes along with it. Many users love Google’s free services but do not like the new policy as they feel it is an invasion of their privacy rights.

Google gave a lot of notice before they made the policy changes so it is not like its users did not have time to find different service providers if they do not agree with the new policy they just chose not to.

Several groups are in the process of suing Google over these changes and some are even pushing for a class action suit.

If you are interested in reading more click here.

Google is now making some updates to their popular email system. Gmail now offers increased spam blocking protection. Historically Gmail has had a reasonable amount of spam protection and only allowed in items that the user normally signed up for. Gmails new Spam system is going to deliver mails marked as spam (that fail their new standards, old email spam protection still will block the true spam emails) and allow the user to see why they marked it as spam. It will then allow you to unmark the item as spam or keep it as such.

This new feature is going to allow Gmails users more flexibility and greater usability of their popular service.

If interested in reading more click here.

Google, the world’s leading search engine and arguably one of the world’s leading technology company is going to be making some drastic changes to the way their search engine works. Google has decided to update their search engine to stay on top of their game. Google normally makes changes in the way their search engine performs and what it uses to pull up websites within its searches but this time is completely redesigning their system.

Many people feel that these changes are going to favor websites of companies that pay Google money for advertising more so than those that do not. Google however claims this is not the case and says that they are just trying to make their server results more relevant to what its users are actually searching for.

To read more on this click here.

The title says it all…well…not really. While Windows 8 is getting some new features many are saying the “refresh” and “reset” features are new to Windows 8. While the names are new the basic concept is not.

In Windows 8 they will offer a feature call “refresh” which will bring your computer back to a like new state without having to be reactivated. While calling this feature “refresh” an making it more available to end users, it is not entirely new. The refresh option does essentially what a restore point of your computer would do if you were to create one when you got your computer completely setup. The one feature that has changed however is the fact that with this “new” feature you can use this functionality at any time and it will keep everything on your computer; programs, files, etc. all intact.

The reset feature in Windows 8 is going to be the same thing as a fresh installation of Windows. It will clear everything out and you will have to re-enter your product key and activate Windows once again when this is complete.

To read more click here.

Google Docs is now offering Real Time collaboration with their popular Google Docs software. Google Docs which became popular for its web based productivity tools now allows users to see edits other users of the documents are making in real time, a feature that wasn’t previously offered.

Google Docs, while not offering the same amount of features that are in the ever popular Microsoft Office suite does offer one clear advantage, cloud storage. While this is not always a good thing, say when you’re out and about and do not have an internet connection, it does have its benefits.

Google Docs does offer many of the most commonly used basic features such as, bold font, italicized text, bulleted lists, and colored fonts. The other benefit is that these features are all now available on the Google Docs application for Android! 

If you’re interested in reading more click here.

Exciting news huh? Well, unfortunately for those of you tuning in from a Windows XP machine, no, Microsoft did not extend XP’s support any further. XP is set to die in August of 2014; this means that Microsoft will no longer give updates to the already out dated operating system. What they did extend was support for Windows Vista and Windows 7. 

So what does all this news mean? Well at this point it means that if you get that Windows 7 upgrade in now you will have at least 8 more years of support from Microsoft. This support is what keeps your operating system secure. If you hang on to Windows XP past its extended support date you risk serious security problems. Taking bets now on how quickly XP will be overrun with Malware, spyware, etc! That’s right; it’s a pretty safe bet that as soon as support ends hackers will be working overtime trying to get around the unsupported operating system.

Now is the time to get that upgrade in! We’ve been saying this for a long time and time is starting to run out. In some cases depending on your computer it may be more cost effective to replace your computer altogether while you’re in the process.

If you would like some prices for a new computer or are curious what the process is on upgrading your computer don’t hesitate to call us!

If you're interested in reading more click here.

That’s right one of the worlds most loved mobile apps is going to Facebook. Angry Birds which first debuted in on iOS devices in December of 2009 is now making the move to one of the world’s leading websites. 

The new version of Angry Birds is going to offer social network goers some more features not included on the Mobile or other Internet platforms. Angry Birds on Facebook will offer power-ups to allow players to beef up their arsenal against the competition. While Angry Birds is free to play however, the power ups are not. Power-ups can be purchased at the rate of 20 per 1$.

There are some users that are not to terribly happy with the new version however. Many people are saying that this should have been designed on HTML5 code rather than Adobes Flash Player 11. Guess it goes to show that Adobes not entirely out of the game yet…

If you are interested in playing the game you can check it out here.

If you just want to read more about the new game click here.

A new study out is showing that you are far more likely to get a virus emailed to you in the morning hours than any other time of day. Many users around the world login to their computers first thing in the morning and review any emails they may have missed during the evening as well as those just coming in. 

According to a study by “Trustware” the time frame from 8 AM EST to 9 AM EST is the most likely time to come across an infection in your email.  According to Trustware, the amount of viruses being sent to users also begins to rise in August and peaks in September. 

The study also finds that Franchises are also one of the more likely targets due to the fact that if they are able to break into one location it is likely that multiple locations use similar IT configurations.

If you’re interested in reading more about the study click here.

Android is becoming more secure. Apple being known for their very locked down operating system is soon to not be the only “secure” device out there for consumers to choose. While no device is entirely secure, Android is starting to take steps to ensure its users that the software available from legitimate sources is just that, legitimate. 

In the past there have been many malicious programs introduced that can cause everything from privacy issues, identity theft, or fraudulent charges to the phone users phone bill. Google is now taking some initiative to help secure the Market. While Android remains open source meaning anyone can create an application for the Market for users to download, Google has begun scanning all applications and running them in a virtual environment to watch them for malicious intent. Google is not only monitoring new applications uploaded but is also monitoring those already in existence.

It is nice to see that Google is taking security a bit more seriously but not actually locking down their software entirely. With Android being open source it allows its users/developers a very fertile ground for development and advances. With that openness comes security risks though that needs to be monitored. Keep up the good work Google!

To read more on the topic click here.

Many people realize nowadays that being on the internet is a very public place. Most people however do not know just how public it is. The fact is that if you like many others on the Internet do not take steps to make yourself less exposed on the Internet, it is very easy for someone with a little bit of knowledge to see what you’re doing online, where you’re at, and in some cases who you are. While your everyday Joe does not possess this knowledge there are many people out there that either know how to find this information out, or know someone that does. At any rate it is a good practice to make this information as difficult to come by as possible.

The first major step in the right direction is, if you use Internet Explorer, make sure to set your browser to delete all after each browsing session. Yes, delete your history, cookies, passwords, page form data, etc….I know it is really convenient to have all this available at the click of your mouse but with that convenience comes risk.

The next step, use the “In-Private” browsing function. This function is designed to make your browsing more private…

The third step, if you really need to be private, use a proxy to browse the web. While you need to be careful and know that the server you are using to browse through is legitimate, with the proper configuration it becomes more difficult to track back your browsing to you specifically.

The last step you can take is to use a program like Tor. Tor allows you to use encrypted connections to make your browsing more secure. Tor also offers the proxy service talked about above.

All in all it is very important that you protect your online activities. Not only to protect you from the onslaught of advertisements you can get from browsers using your cookies, but, also to keep you protected from privacy invasion and the possibility of identity theft.

To read more click here.