A False Sense of Network Security

Let me start by making a bold statement right up front and then explaining myself. The bold statement is that you have a false sense of security about the safety of your network; that includes all the data within that network and every online aspect of all business dealings and transactions you and everyone in your organization does.

If you doubt me, answer this question: "If our network is protected by a top antivirus program and we have a high-end firewall in place, why is it that we routinely get malware infections throughout the organization that need to be cleaned up and removed by the guys in IT?"

All it takes is one employee to click one link on one phishing email and your network is hacked-plain and simple. Seriously, don't you think the large corporations you hear about that get hacked have a Firewall, anti-virus software and the Best IT Guys? Of course they do. And they also have untrained gullible employees who fall for the many cyberheist schemes that are sent their way daily.

Probably one of the most harmful aspect of a person's mindset or attitude toward a business or organization is having a false sense of security. But this is not just a subjective thing I am talking about. A false sense of security, from a business viewpoint, translates directly to your network security and that affects the daily functionality of your organization and runs as deep as your bank accounts.

"If your organization has not yet fallen victim to a cyberheist, it is not because your network is invulnerable, it is because you have been lucky. It is only because you have not yet been targeted..."

Cybercrime is a growing problem for businesses small and large, non-profit organizations, churches and government agencies. Cybercrime is no longer just a lone hacker typing away in a dark basement trying to gain access to a protected network for fun. Cybercrime today is big business, organized and funded by substantial resources all aimed at stealing money and data from legitimate organizations.

The cybercrime problem is beyond the scope of your anti-virus software, beyond the protection of your network firewall and beyond just about any other preventative measure you've taken, if all your employees are not thoroughly trained to deal with the sophisticated Internet scams and phishing emails that are coming their way on a daily basis.

The weak link in many of these attacks are the individuals who are not knowledgeable about the tricks cyber hackers use such as phishing and spoofing. Internet security training, until now, has not been an essential part of many organization's knowledge base. But as the potential risks and heightened financial losses mount, Internet security training has become a necessity for businesses and individuals.

Jamie Sene

Jamie Sene has over 20 years' experience in marketing and transactional sales from working in the private sector, public companies and his own businesses; he has a broad and proven track record both in marketing and sales. Jamie started his business career in sales in his early twenties, selling in various direct sales and telesales companies. This is where he learned the fundamentals of selling. Later on Jamie got deeply into sales management, becoming Vice President of Sales for a national consulting firm. After years of successful selling Jamie moved over into marketing where he established and successfully ran marketing departments for several publically held international companies (SmartForce, SmartCertify, Skillsoft, FleetMatics). Today, he works as a freelance marketer. If you want to find out how many of your employees easily fall for these types of network intrusion scams, go to this website and set up a free phishing test of your employees: http://www.knowbe4.com

Basic Network Safety That No One Should Neglect

Isn't life grand? Most everyone is somehow able to move into this new century with technology sitting in their laps... It's a new found crush for misunderstanding simple things. What I mean by that is when you were little, one touch told you not to paw at the stove. As a teenager, one car accident may have put seat belts on your mind. Now you have a wireless network at home! What will it take to consider networking safely?

Think of all the strange and forgotten information in your computer - some of it, not surprisingly, you've forgotten about. Sure you delete your cookies and wipe the Internet History clean from time to time. You ask your computer not to remember passwords too, but you're still a target in two possible ways that are as easy to fix as not touching hot things and putting on a seat belt.

Briefly, wireless networks consist of three things: The signals, the broadcaster and the receiver. Your Internet connection is the signal. Your modem feeds into the router which acts as the broadcaster. The network adapter in your computer is then the receiver. With those items, you can surf the Internet without inhibitions; and with no passwords or hurdles for novice hackers to stumble on, they can surf your computer without inhibition.

The open door, even for modest hackers, is that broadcaster. It says, "here I am!" Your receiver is tuned in to it. Other receivers can be tuned in to it from beyond your walls. Once on the same router, they can query for other computers (that's YOU) on that router. Your defense is simple but certainly not fool-proof for real professional cyber evil-doers. When you set up your wireless network, 9 times out of 10, you're asked to create a password so that users may sign on - it's often called a WEP.

This is not a busy-task to waste your time. If a casual user with an infected computer shares your router, your computer too will share in the joy of infection with zero hacking required on the part of the casual user. They were just looking for a free ride that you offered by NOT creating that WEP. You don't need a hard word but definitely don't use an easy word that creates the 'key'...

The computers in the router and in your lap will most likely do the rest. This is a one-time procedure UNLESS your router is reset. To reset the router is to force it to forget everything it knew. All your Internet Settings and magic high speed Internet access numbers will have to be re-entered. A router is reset internally or externally by pushing a button generally on the back. It's labeled too.

Internal settings can be accessed by entering the IP of the gateway which will soon be common knowledge. If you've not placed a password there, anyone can change anything - especially that computer-savvy kid coming home from school who always messes your stuff up as a thank you for room and board. Change the default password to avoid the thanks. And in extreme cases, you can physically HIDE the router to keep that reset button from being pushed thereby defeating all your modest counter measures!

The strongest reason to employ any simple safety here is to eliminate neighborly free-rides from machines that may be infected. Like buckling up, ten seconds setting a router with passwords can save you a lot of grief.

Bryan Applegate spends his time with Dinarius, Inc. repairing networks that were never secured. While the money's good, there's other things in life like teaching. Other free lessons and advice can be found at Dinarius.com

Computer Security 101- Quiz 1

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Steps You Need to Take to Protect Your Children From Online Predators

Stories of cyber creeps are plenty. Every now and then we come across incidents where questionable people have lured children in to divulging sensitive information to unknown people, of meeting perverts online and getting violated, the list could go on. As a parent, you are surely worried about the acquaintances your children make online. A nameless and faceless cyber world can pose serious threat to those who do not tread on its turf cautiously. If you are complacent, chances are that you will end up in trouble in the cyber world let alone the inexperienced teenagers or your ten year old!

Education is power! Tell your children why it is important to be cautious in the internet. Share with them stories and published guidelines on how to behave in the cyber world. Ask them never to divulge sensitive information like social security numbers, telephone numbers, contact address, etc. to unknown people.

Teach them. Teach them how to behave in the cyber world. Tell them what to do and what not to. Tell them how to talk and what to do in order to avoid unwanted attention. Ask them to follow internet etiquette diligently - this could mean the difference between security and total violation of safety.

Guide them. Sit with them and guide them how to access internet - the messages and language that may lead to questionable situations. Show them the websites that they should stay away from and why. Help them understand the best way to enjoy internet without compromising security and peace of mind.

Prevent them. Often teaching and guidance may not go all the way. In such a situation, use prevention.

o Bar the websites that you think may lead to unwanted situations. Most internet service providers give parental control options. Allow only certain websites and define the websites that you do not want your children to visit. Various anti-virus software also provide the option of blocking websites that may have adult content or are hosted in insecure web locations. Make full use of those features.

o Give them internet time only for a specific period and during specific hours of the day. Do not let them access the internet all the time. Do not share the password for internet connection

o Do not share passwords for areas in your computer that are protected for confidential reasons. Kids do not need to know that. In fact if need be prevent access to all those areas in your computer.

Observe them. Although no child would like their parents sneaking behind their backs, but initially it is a good idea to keep an eye on the websites that your children are regularly visiting. See if there is any website that you think may cause trouble. Discuss with them your concern. Children often understand if they are treated like adults.

Teach your children to enjoy the fruits of technological advances responsibly. As long as you are in a safe and secured environment, you will enjoy your online experience more. Treading on tough, murky areas is neither comfortable nor desirable.

Gregg Hall is an author living on the Emerald Coast of Florida. Now that you know a little more about computer security be sure that you get quality computer accessories by going to http://www.nsearch.com

Free Security Software

Free Wireless Security Tools
Links to free tools to test, secure and monitor your wireless network(s)

Free Personal Firewall Software
Links to free personal firewall software applications

Free Antivirus & Virus Removal Software
Links to free antivirus software applications and tools to help you clean and remove existing infections.

Free Miscellaneous Security Software
Free tools, utilities and software for various aspects of network security testing and implementation

Free Email Spam Blocking Software
Free software applications to help you block and prevent email spam as well as determining the source of the spam

Free Spyware Removal and Blocking Software
Links to free software to remove spyware and adware from your computer and to help block unscrupulous vendors from placing such software on your computer

Free Pop-Up and Messenger Spam Blocking Software
Free software to block pop-up and pop-under ads and Windows Messenger Spam

Free Vulnerability Scanning Software
Links to free vulnerability scanning and security assessment tools

Free Intrusion Detection (IDS) Software
Links to free intrusion detection (ids) programs, tools and scripts to help you monitor your network for attempted intrusions or attacks

Free Packet Sniffer Software
Free tools and software to perform capture and analysis of network packet traffic

Free Port Scanner Software
Free software and utilities to scan for open ports on your computer system to help you secure it

Free Encryption Software
Links to free software to encrypt your files or hide files within other files like bitmap or jpg images.

Free Enumeration Tools
Free tools to enumerate accounts, devices and other aspects of a target machine or network

Free Network Monitoring Software
Links to free utilities and tools to help monitor network activity and performance

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Foundstone FPort

FPort is a free utility available from Foundstone, a division of McAfee, which you can use to identify unknown, open ports and their associated applications
An FPort scan reports all open TCP/IP and UDP ports and maps them to the owning application. Similar information can be gathered using the 'netstat -an' command, but FPort also maps the ports to running processes with the PID, process name and path. Fport can be used to quickly identify unknown, open ports and their associated applications for troubleshooting or forensic investigations.What Are The Operating System Requirements?:
Fport requires Windows NT4, Windows 2000 or Windows XP to run.Command Line Parameter Switches:
To fine-tune or filter the FPort scan results, there are a few command line switches that can be used: /? usage help /p sort by port /a sort by application /i sort by pid /ap sort by application path You can download a copy of this free utility from Foundstone at this link: if(zSbL

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Why Children Are a Prime Target for Identity Theft

As parents we most often carefully monitor our child's websites, emails, cell phone and text messages because we are concerned. Many times it is a concern for our child's safety. We worry about them being approached inappropriately online. We are concerned about sexual predators. But have we considered that our children may also be in a different kind of danger --the danger of identity theft?

Children are the perfect target for identity theft. They have a spotless credit record and because they are not using their credit it may go undetected for several years. They grow up and suddenly there discover their credit records are blemished. Can the information that we share about our children, whether it is online, to a school or medical professional allow the opportunity for identity theft? In 2005 the Federal Trade Commission reported that over half a million children were victims of identity theft. These cases include: the use of a child's Social Security Number being used illegally for income tax purposes and obtaining credit in a child's name. It's easy enough to do; just the other day one of my own children received a credit card offer in the mail. What if that fell into the wrong hands?

How can you protect your child from identity theft? The National Cyber Security Alliance calls social networking sites "billboards in cyberspace." Would you post on a billboard your child's personal information, such a social security number? To protect your child from identity theft you can take the following steps:

Limit access to your profile, photographs, blogs and other online sources. Limit access to your child's social security number. You can refuse to provide it to schools and medical providers. Educational or health benefits can not be denied based on keeping your information private. Keep a safe spot in your home for important documents. This can be a lock box or file cabinet with a lock on it.

When someone request your child's SSN know the reason for doing so. Ask for copies of the bank account statement or other verifying documents if they claim that they are setting up a savings account or other investment opportunity for your child. Note, in the event a family member or friend wants to create an investment or savings fund for your child establish the account yourself and note that deposits can be made by specific individuals on the account. This keeps your child's social security number private.

Do not carry important documents in your purse.

Do not provide your children with their SSN or Birth Certificate until they are older.

Destroy and/or shred any and all documents of a personal nature including credit card offers, medical claim forms (after paid) and any other document you do not need to keep. Invest in a scanner and scan the documents into your computer, save it to a disc and keep it under lock and key. Be sure to use your computer's parental controls, including spyware and anti virus software, not only for to protect your child's information but yours also.

Ask questions and distrust any website or telephone call that asks for your child's social security number. Make sure that any request for your child's SSN is valid, relevant and necessary before providing it.

Thoroughness and vigilance are absolutely necessary to protect your child from identity theft. In most cases, identity theft to children is committed by friends or family members, however more and more instances occur as a result of information posted on the internet; whether by yourself or your child. Don't worry about what people will think of you. Those that understand will see you as a concerned parent who is being very aware of the real world and its dangers, and one not only protects their child's future financial well being, but also sets the example to other parents by teaching them how to protect their children from identity theft.

Lisa Carey is a contributing author for Identity Theft Secrets: prevention and protection. You can get tips on Identity theft protection, software, and monitoring your credit as well as learn more about the secrets used by identity thieves at the Identity Theft Secrets blog.

How many administrators do you need for Data centers?

Data centers are staffed with IT pros to care and feed the servers. Data centers need a lot of attention, ranging from hardware maintenance to backup, disaster recovery, and monitoring. Think of your company. How many people are allocated to manage your servers? Depending on how optimized your IT center is, the ratio of person-toservers can be anywhere from 1:10 to 1:100. With that ratio, Microsoft would need 35,000 server managers. Hiring that many server administrators would be hard, considering that Microsoft employs roughly 95,000 people already.

To address this demand, Azure was designed to use as much automation as possible, using a strategy called lights-out operations. This strategy seeks to centralize and automate as much of the work as possible by reducing complexity and variability. The result is a person-to-servers ratio closer to 1:30,000 or higher.

Microsoft is achieving this level of automation mostly by using its own off-the-shelf software. Microsoft is literally eating its own dog food. It�s using System Center Operations Manager and all the related products to oversee and automate the management of the underlying machines. It�s built custom automation scripts and profiles, much like any customer would do.

One key strategy in effectively managing a massive number of servers is to provision them with identical hardware. In traditional data centers where we�ve worked, each year brought the latest and greatest of server technology, resulting in a wide variety of technology and hardware diversity. We even gave each server a distinct name, such as Protoss, Patty, and Zelda. With this many servers, you can�t name them; you have to number them. Not just by server, but by rack, room, and facility. Diversity is usually a great thing, but not when you�re managing millions of boxes.

The hardware in each Azure server is optimized for power, cost, density, and management. The optimization process drives exactly which motherboard, chipset, and every other component needs to be in the server; this is truly bang for your buck in action. Then that server recipe is kept for a specific lifecycle, only moving to a new bill of materials when there are significant advantages to doing so.

Source of Information : Manning Azure in Action 2010