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How To Protect Your Files From Malware

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Protect Your Files From Malware and Viruses

Backing up your files is the best way to protect your files and data. Once you have a great backup system installed, you’ve already taken the most important step in protecting your computer – but there are threats beyond data loss that you can prepare for.

How To Protect Your Files From Malware

Malware (short for malicious software) is software that is developed to disrupt or damage a computer system. It can appear in a number of ways and can be used to gather private information, delete data or even lock people out of their own files. According to Kaspersky Labs, there are more than 200,000 new malware threats per day!

One such malware, Cryptolocker, has been making the internet rounds over the past several weeks. The software is called “ransomware”, as it encrypts the files on infected computers so users can’t access them. When someone tries to open a file on a computer infected with this malware, they are alerted that they must pay $300 for their files to be unencrypted so they can access them. Deleting the malware or refusing to pay the ransom will leave their files encrypted.

As a trusted partner in data protection, Carbonite Backup wants to ensure that our customers are aware of these threats and know how to prevent them from infecting their computers and servers. Here are some tips that can help you avoid malware and other types of viruses to protect your files:

  • Be an email skeptic: Malware is often spread through email links or attachments. Don’t open attachments or click on links from people or companies you’re not familiar with.
  • Free software – too good to be true?: Downloading free software is tempting, but it may include spyware and other malicious content. Only download software from trusted vendors.
  • Down with the pop-ups: Block pop-up windows and don’t click on links or buttons within them.
  • Bump up your browser security: Go into your web browser settings and make sure your security settings are set to medium or higher.
  • Beware of illegal downloads: While it’s tempting to watch a movie that’s still in theatres on your computer, many files shared on illegal file-sharing sites have pieces of malware attached to them.

These are just a few tips that can help you avoid the headaches to protect your files and other negative effects of malware. Need more information on backup software? Contact Us or Open a Support Ticket, we are here to help.

Reprinted from an article

Panda antivirus problems

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Panda antivirus software labels itself as malware

Affected users were warned not to reboot their machines

An antivirus program labeled itself as malware, causing some computers it was running on to stop working.

Panda antivirus software labels itself as malware

After an update, essential components in two Panda Security antivirus programs became corrupted, leading them to be mistakenly identified as malign and quarantined.

Panda said a fix had been released and warned that rebooting affected systems could exacerbate the issue.

Steps to Fix You Computer: http://www.pandasecurity.com/uk/homeusers/support/card?id=100045

It asked those affected to get in touch so it could help fix their machines.

One security expert noted the irony. “People’s first response is to turn [their computer] off and back on again, but in this case, it seems like the wrong thing to do,” said Prof Alan Woodward, of Surrey University.

The “last thing” people would expect to cause their computers to break down was its security software, he said.

Corrupted files

Panda Security said that the signature file in both its PCOP and its Retail 2015 packages became corrupted.

Read the Full Story at: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-31851125

Experts Offer Tips To Avoid Hackers

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Tips to avoid hackers and viruses

Tips To Avoid Hackers and Viruses
Cybersecurity is critical for businesses of all sizes. These 18 tips can help you secure your computers and mobile devices from malicious actors.
Read more

My First Computer Build, Any Advice or tips?
This is going to be my first build, I just wanted some professional advice, opinions, and help. I am only 16 years old and trying to build a gaming computer. This is going to be the build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/9HyRwP. First: Is it going to be cool …
Read more on Tom’s Hardware Guide

Eight tips for improving battery life on your MacBook
Another tip is not to leave your computer constantly plugged in and charging. Even when using it at home or at work, if it is fully charged, unplug it and let the battery run down really low before charging it again. This is supposed to delay or …
Read more on CNET

Bank Account Stealing Malware Returns

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Malicious software used to steal millions from bank accounts has re-emerged a month after US authorities broke up a major hacker network using the scheme, security researchers say.

Bank Account Stealing Malware Returns

The security firm Malcovery said it identified a new trojan based on the Gameover Zeus malware, which officials said infected up to one million computers in 12 countries, and was blamed in the theft of more than $100 million.

“This discovery indicates that the criminals responsible for Gameover’s distribution do not intend to give up on this botnet even after suffering one of the most expansive botnet takeovers/takedowns in history,”.

By infecting large numbers of computers, the cybercriminals were able to control the devices to steal passwords and send out emails to further spread the infection.

The news came as the Department of Justice said it had made progress in rooting out the malware infections.

In a status report filed in court, officials said that “all or nearly all of the active computers infected with Gameover Zeus have been liberated from the criminals’ control and are now communicating exclusively with the substitute server established pursuant to a court order.”

A blog post by the security firm Emsisoft said the new variant may be harder to combat because it is using “an evasive technique that allows the botnet to hide its distributive phishing sites behind a constantly shuffling list of infected, proxy computers.”

Gameover Zeus, which first appeared in September 2011, stole bank information and other confidential details from victims.

The FBI blamed the Gameover Zeus botnet for the theft of more than $100 million, obtained by using the stolen bank data and then “emptying the victims’ bank accounts and diverting the money to themselves.”

The June crackdown also targeted another computer virus, dubbed “Cryptolocker,” which appeared in September 2013.

Russian Evgeniy Mikhailovich Bogachev, 30, an alleged administrator of the network, was charged in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with 14 counts including conspiracy, computer hacking, bank fraud, and money laundering in the Gameover Zeus and Cryptoblocker schemes.

Originally from: http://news.yahoo.com/bank-stealing-malware-returns-us-crackdown-193233883.html

End Of Free Windows 7 Support Coming Soon

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Microsoft is warning customers that the end is soon coming for free Windows 7 support. Microsoft will end free mainstream support for Windows 7 on January 13, 2015.

End Of Free Windows 7 Support Coming Soon

This covers all versions of Windows 7, Mary Jo Foley points out.

The end of support generally means no more updated features or performance improvements, unless you are covered by extra “extended support.”

UPDATED: Microsoft has promised to provide security patches even after it ends mainstream support, through 2020. What is ending is design changes, warranty claims, and no-charge incident support.

This move will mostly affect consumers. Businesses that pay for extended support for Windows 7, as most of them do, will get all updates for another five years, until January 14, 2020.

That’s important because many businesses are right now in the process of upgrading their old Windows XP PCs, but they’re moving to Windows 7, not Windows 8.

There’s some speculation that, given the popularity of Windows 7, Microsoft might change its mind as the date nears and continue to support it a bit longer as it did for Windows XP. All told, Microsoft supported XP for about 13 years.

That kind of extension doesn’t seem likely at this point. Remember, Windows 8 basically includes a full version of Windows 7, called Desktop mode. With Windows 8.1, it’s possible to run a Windows 8 machine in Desktop mode and almost avoid the new-and-confusing Windows 8 part of the OS.

And Microsoft really needs to nudge consumers into buying Windows 8 machines. More Windows 8 machines mean more developers will want to write software for Windows 8, which will make more people want to buy it.

By the way, Microsoft also set the end-of-life of mainstream support for Windows 8 (including the latest version, Windows 8.1), for January 9, 2018.

This is another hint that Microsoft should have its next version of Windows ready in 2015, code-named “Threshold” (sometimes referred to as Windows 9).

If Microsoft plays its cards right, Windows 9 will be to the unloved Windows 8 what Windows 7 was to Vista, which InfoWorld ranked No. 2 on its list of the 25 biggest tech flops (also PCWorld’s “Biggest Tech Disappointment” of 2007.)

Here’s the chart from Microsoft’s Lifecycle Support page.

Eset Tool to Create a Bootable Antivirus Rescue key

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ESET SysRescue Live Creator is a handy tool for creating a bootable antivirus rescue CD or USB key.

Create a Bootable Antivirus Rescue CD or USB key

There’s no shortage of competition in this area, of course, but Live Creator has one or two useful touches that you might appreciate.

This starts with the download itself. There’s no bulky ISO here, just a single 8.8MB executable that is ready to run whenever you like.

The program opens with a simple wizard, asking if you’d like to create a bootable CD or USB key. Conveniently, there’s also an option to use a previously downloaded ISO image. (We wondered if this could work with any ISO, as a general way to create bootable USB’s, but sadly not. It’s strictly ESET-only.)

ESET SysRescue Live Creator then downloads its bootable image (a 324MB ISO), and prepares your CD or USB immediately afterward. In another thoughtful touch, you’re given an option to create another CD/ USB or save the ISO for reuse later.

Booting ESET’s rescue environment reveals more welcome extras in tools to check your RAM and system drive for defects. Hardware issues can cause odd malware-like problems, so it’s worth trying these if you can’t find anything else.

The ESET SysRescue tool is the real star here, of course, and it has more options than some similar tools. You’re able to download the latest virus signatures and check your system with various scan types. The core antivirus engine gets mixed results with the independent labs — AVTEST’s April results found it had an above-average 100 percent detection rate for known threats, a below-par 93 percent for zero-day attacks — but there’s more than enough power here to be useful.

When it’s all done, you can keep the USB key around for reuse later. But if you need it for something else, ESET SysRescue Live Creator is also able to wipe the drive in seconds. Just connect the drive, start the program again and click “Erase existing SysRescue USB”: another useful feature that you won’t always find elsewhere.

Article Originally from: http://betanews.com