OpenDNS FamilyShield
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Aug 29, 2010
For the past couple of years, PCS has been configuring our customer’s networking environments to utilize the OpenDNS service 
for both its stability and speed, and now there’s another reason to get on the OpenDNS bandwagon: FamilyShield.
Kids get into all sorts of things they shouldn’t get into online and parents want to protect their kids from what’s “out there.” In June, OpenDNS introduced the FamilyShield service that is..
..the absolute simplest and most straightforward way for parents to protect kids from the bad stuff online.
By configuring your home computers and/or home router with the following FamilyShield DNS numbers:
208.67.222.123
208.67.220.123
…your home network will block pornographic content, including OpenDNS’s “Pornography,” “Tasteless,” and “Sexuality” categories, in addition to proxies and anonymizers (which can render filtering useless). The service also blocks phishing and some malware.
OpenDNS provides instructions on configuring 18 different brands of routers to take advantage of this service. If you would like assistance in securing your home network, please feel free to tap PCS by using our Contact Form on this web site and a technician will be with you shortly.
From 8 To 12
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Aug 29, 2010
The days of wimpy, eight-letter passwords are now gone. The 12-character era of online password security has now begun.
The bad news: Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology utilized a cluster of graphics cards to crack eight-character passwords in less than two hours.
The good news: The researchers discovered that the same process would take 17,134 years to crack a 12-character password.
The article “How To Create a ‘Super Password’ by CNN’s John D. Sutter, outlines the issue very well and explains the how’s, why’s and what-to-do’s to insure that your online identity is secure as possible behind a good password.
Snipping Tool
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Aug 29, 2010
There is a little-known utility that is lurking in the Accessories area on all Windows Vista and 7 operating systems that we at PCS use on a daily basis, but no one seems to be aware of: the Snipping Tool.
The Snipping Tool can be used to capture a screen shot, or snip, of any object on your screen and then annotate, save, or share the image.
The mouse can be utilized to capture any of the following types of snips:
Free-form Snip: Draw an irregular line around an object
Rectangular Snip: Draw a precise line by dragging the cursor around an object to form a rectangle.
Window Snip: Select a window, such as a browser window or dialog box, that you want to capture
Full-screen Snip: Capture the entire screen when you select this type of snip.
After the snip is captured, it is automatically copied to the mark-up window where you can annotate, save or share the snip.
Personally, I use this tool in my day-to-day communications with clients via email. It is invaluable in allowing me to illustrate a concept, problem or solution with a program by taking a “snip” of my screen and then pasting that snip in a quick email.
I know a few clients are in the habit of emailing a screen capture by hitting the Print Screen (PrtScn) key on their keyboards, pasting the capture in Word, editing the capture and then mailing the document as an attachment. Hopefully this tool will make that process a lot easier for some folks.
AV Vendors See 19%
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Aug 9, 2010
According to a recent report by security firm Cyveillance, anti-virus software vendors detect an average of 19% of all malware attacks. What may be even more disturbing is that after 30 days of the malware attack being “in the wild,” the percentage only jumps up to 61.7%.
Per the findings reported:
Cyveillance tested thirteen popular AV solutions to determine their detection rate over a 30 day period and found that popular solutions only detect an average of 18.9% of new malware attacks. By day eight, AV solutions average a 45.7% detection rate. This rises to 56.6% on day 15, 60.3% by day 22, and 61.7% after 30 days.
Server Outtage
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Jul 23, 2010
UPDATE: Servers resumed normally operation at 8:15AM CST. Thank you for your patience in allowing PCS to resolve this matter.
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Our web and email servers are currently experiencing an outtage. We are working hard to remedy and will update this post when the problem has been reolved. Thank you.
Shortcut Vulnerability
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Jul 21, 2010
UPDATE: On August 2nd, Microsoft released an emergency update that addresses this bug and provides a fix. If you haven’t automatically updated your Microsoft OS, please do so now by visiting http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com.
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Last week, Microsoft confirmed that there is a nasty new exploit out there that often uses infected USB flash drives to take advantage of a vulnerability in Windows shortcut files (.lnk extension files). This attack can allows the bad guys to hijack your computer.
The only way to protect against it is to edit the registry to disable display of shortcuts and turn off the WebClient service. A patch is not yet available, and when it is, there won’t be one for XP SP2 since extended support for it ended this month. All the more reason to upgrade to SP3 ASAP.
The reason that this rootkit exploit is so nasty is that the infection occurs automatically when plugging up a compromised USB key. Sophos has a great video demonstrating the infection on a secure Windows 7 PC here…
Windows Shortcut Vulnerability with Rootkit
YES Needs Your Help
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Jul 16, 2010
Long-time customer and friends of PCS, Youth Encouragement Services, sustained damage on Thursday from bullet fire. Fortunately, no one was injured, but damage is estimated at $2000 and YES runs on a very tight budget.
Youth Encouragement Services (YES) strives to enrich the lives of children in inner city Nashville by encouraging them to reach their full potential. Through daily programs such as tutoring, summer camp, a basketball league, job skills training, and other recreational and cultural activities, low-income children are given a positive alternative to the streets and opportunities for a bright future.
If you or your business has the ability, please make a donation to assist in offsetting the cost of this incident. YES does great work and any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
No More Win2K Support
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Jul 13, 2010
Along with discontinuing support for Windows XP Service Pack 2 (as mentioned in a previous post), July 13th also marks the official end of support for all versions of Windows 2000, including the 2000 Server product.
What this means is that not only will Microsoft no longer provide assistance for those companies and organizations running Windows 2000 Server, but there will no longer be any updates or security patches released for the aging OS.
If you or your business still utilizes this once-great (but admittedly aged) server operating system, please allow PCS the opportunity to consult with you and provide assistance in updating your networking environment today. We’re ready to help.
XP SP2 Ends July 13
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Jun 23, 2010
Microsoft is officially ending its support of WindowsXP Service Pack 2 on July 13th, and if you’re running Windows XP and not rockin’ SP3 yet, you’re asking for a world of hurt.
In new research spearheaded from IT services vendor Softchoice, companies who choose not to update their SP2 systems to SP3 could..
..create unnecessary security risks as hackers continue to look for vulnerabilities knowing that software updates will no longer be forthcoming from Microsoft
Over the next couple of weeks PCS will be contacting customers to insure that all XP systems are patched with the latest service pack. If you are unsure if you have the latest/greatest service pack for XP, please drop us a line and let PCS get your computing environment up to spec as soon as possible.
Rogue Facebook App
Posted by Brian Gallutia on Jun 17, 2010
Christina Warren over at mashable.com warns us of a rogue Facebook application that has the potential to trick you into handing over your Facebook profile access.
According to the online security firm Sophos:
[The rogue application's video link] redirects users to a Facebook Page that then prompts users to allow an application called “Teacher nearly kills 13 year old boy. SHOCKING!” access their profile information and permission to post on their wall.
As of this writing it is unknown if Facebook has taken it upon themselves to shut down access to this application, but if you are one of the many that has loaded it, remove the app from your profile and double-check your account’s security settings to insure that your profile adheres to the privacy policies that you wish to maintain.
