Just because you typed in a password before accessing Gmail doesn’t mean you are the only one who reads your email.
It is a well-known fact that Gmail reads the contents of your email messages in order to determine which AdSense ads should be displayed.
Don’t believe me? Check this out.
Sarah Palin’s hacked Yahoo! Mail account is old news. But the sheer simplicity of the method used to gain access should still be of concern to every computer user.
Almost everyone knows a strong password is important. (Check out how to make an ultra-strong password in three steps.) However, even if you have a strong password, there are other ways to gain access to your accounts.
As Palin found out this past summer, the weakest link in account security isn’t the password itself, it’s the password reset mechanism. Many online accounts will allow users to reset their password by answering a few security questions. If a hacker answers those questions correctly, they can reset your password and gain complete access to your account.
Herbert Thompson, a writer at Scientific American, wrote an article detailing how he broke into an acquaintance’s online banking account using information that was freely available online. His first-hand account of strong-arming his way into sensitive financial information (with his friend’s permission, of course) made me question the security of all my online accounts. If it only took him a couple of hours to figure it out, how long would it take a professional hacker?
This could happen to you. Find out how to protect yourself from this security loop-hole.
I recently read an interesting article by “security guru” Bruce Schneier (with more interesting comments) discussing tourist scams.
Its’ not just tourists that get scammed though. Scammers and phishers are everywhere, in real life, and on the internet, trying to find a way to separate you from your money.
Recently I have noticed a wave of SMS (text) messages asking for money. The other day I got one claiming to be my girlfriend - the writer said they had lost their wallet and phone and could I please transfer $1000 to such and such a bank account.
Another day I was having dinner with a friend who’s father called. My friend’s dad was worried sick - he had gotten a text message from someone claiming to be his son, asking for money because he was in trouble with corrupt cops. My friend laughed, screaming over the din of the convivial hotpot restaurant, that he was perfectly ok.
Aside from SMS scams, there are lots of other kinds of scams. Check out the email above, which is an obvious part of a phishing scam. First of all, you should notice that the URL or Link doesn’t point to HSBC.com, but rather to “accountmaintenance.com” - and aside from that, you should know that no bank would ever send you an email like this. But, if for some reason you think they might be telling the truth, remember the golden rule: always login to the bank the same way - type their address into the location bar of your browser.
This could Watch out for SMS scams, email scams, phishing scams, and read more, more, and more.
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Don’t let the title scare you! It’s actually quite easy.
So, you have an SSH account somewhere (you may not even know it, but if you have a web page or a blog, most likely your host provides you with an SSH account) and you want to browse the web through a proxy… Well it took me a while to figure it out, but I have a quick solution for Windows, Mac and Linux.
Basically, here’s what happens:
Google just proved that it’s never too late to introduce great features.
I have been using Gmail to send myself notes and to do’s forever. I just write myself an email and save it as a draft. MailCloak even lets me keep my drafts encrypted… but now Google has finally added tasks to Gmail, so I’ll be upgrading my habits accordingly.
The good news:
Google tasks is fast, easy, and powerful.
Features include multiple lists, pop-out windows, useful tool-tips, integration with calendar, keyboard navigation, and probably a lot more I have’nt even found yet!
The bad news:
It takes a lot of screen real estate. And it’s not always easy to find.
Also, surprisingly, there’s no integration with email or google apps other then calendar, but maybe that’s a good thing. A to do list is a to do list (K.I.S.S.).
That’s it. This is a small feature, so I’m gonna keep this review short.
Using a strong password is an important part of keeping your information secure. Even if you encrypt your data and email, using an easy-to-guess or machine-guessable encryption password makes encryption a completely moot point.
Creating a strong password doesn’t have to be hard. Making a strong password really is as simple as 1, 2, 3. Check it out.
My computer is every hacker’s dream: chock-full of personal information that can be used in deliciously evil ways. Stored on my hard drive are electronic copies of my passport, previous tax returns, and a plethora of other files that contain sensitive information. If accessed, this information would allow someone to easily steal my identity or worse.
Thankfully, I encrypt those files (meaning the only person who has access to them is me). I am the only person that knows the encryption password (sometimes called a passphrase) used to decrypt my files for viewing. Without the password, the files cannot be accessed.
Hackers and personal information aside, let’s pretend the files I encrypted contain incriminating information. Hypothetically speaking, could someone use the law to force me to divulge my encryption password so they could access my files?
Recently, all of the big email providers in the consumer arena, including Yahoo! Mail, Gmail, and MSN Live Mail have begun to offer “security solutions”. Google Apps, Microsoft’s Live Admin Mail, Bluetie and Rackspace also offer business security solutions for both small and large enterprises.
But what are these solutions, and how does our new product, MailCloak, differ from them? In this blog post Sarah Yu, Global Web Security Systems’ (gWebs) marketing executive, interviews gWebs CTO and lead programmer Jin Anderson to discuss what’s happening in the email security space and how MailCloak differs from the security solutions already offered by these providers. I have translated this post from the original Chinese.
“Let’s take the metaphor of snail-mail. The username and password authentication system is a lot like the key to a mailbox. If this key is copied or stolen, all the mail inside can be stolen and read. But MailCloak is like a steel envelope. It will protect the message even if an intruder guesses or steals your login credentials.”
You probably know that Google’s Gmail allows you to access Gmail email from any internet connected-computer, but you may not know that Gmail also allows you to check any of your other email accounts, from any internet computer.
That’s right, Gmail will work as a POP3/IMAP/SMTP mail client, allowing you to check your other email accounts with Gmail!
Translation: you can use Gmail to check your ISP (like Verizon) email account, your business email account, or whatever email accounts you currently use that doesn’t have webmail, or doesn’t have webmail that’s as easy to use as Gmail. You can use Gmail to check your home email accounts when you’re away from home, and you can even use Gmail to check multiple accounts – up to five.
Using Gmail will also allow you to gWebs MailCloak to protect almost any email address out there – just add an address to your Gmail account, and your account will now support MailCloak!
So here’s the quick and dirty on how to get ‘er done!
1) Create a Gmail Account & sign in.
2) Go to your account settings and click “Add an account.”
3) Gmail has account settings for most major ISP’s already in their database, so all you have to do is give them your login information.
4) We suggest using colored labels to identify accounts.
5) Sending mail from a POP account within gmail is easy too! Just click on your email address (or think link that says “change” right next to it) when composing mail, and select the account you wish to send from.
Some of you tech-savvy geeks are saying “Got’er done, kthxbye!” right now, but if your’re still scratching your head, read on after the break for a super-detailed walk through of the whole process!
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