Alerts &
Vulnerabilities
Summary:
A
collection of reliable sites to confirm the existence of outbreaks
of various viruses and threats to your systems and data.
Purpose:
To
assist in verifying serious outbreaks and vulnerabilities with a short
directory of reliable sites. To reduce the impact serious outbreaks
have on your system.
Alerts
Directory*
Computer
Associates: Threats
Microsoft: Alert
services
Symantec: Threats-
current
Vulnerabilities
US-Cert: News
Advice:
Keep an eye on these sites
regularly, especially if you are relying on the a specific
products for your protection. There are
major companies
that specialize in this arena that have world-wide coverage, experts,
staff, etc. working on these issues 24 hours a day.
For example, this month's report from Norton showed one of our PC's faced 4 threats from 38,727 Norton identified/ known threats, 2,820 Known attacks from 135 Network Events monitored. Also, Norton blocked and identified 12,521 known phishing sites and approved 46,948 known Authenticated Web sites.
In other words, lots was happening out there we needed protection from which shows the value of a quality Internet Security package. An update once a day or week is not adequate to keep your computer protected. And, new outbreaks are happening at an mind numbing amount- minute by minute.
Microsoft
has released updates to their malicious software removal
tool, a new Windows Defender & tons of security updates prior to and since
the
release
of
Vista and Windows 7.
Microsoft states that these "do
not
replace
a
good
anti virus
program". They promise
to
provide
automatic updates at no charge once your software has been authenticated
in Windows
7, XP,
Vista, & Server.
We suggest you to always turn on your Microsoft "Automatic
Update"
feature "on" for above operating systems. A list of patches & updates
is
available
every
month. On Patch Tuesday's, there are frequent updates almost
every week- lately. The most recent
release
of Windows Defender did
not find
any
bad
guys
on
our
systems-
though Norton Utilities certainly
did.
We
feel Microsoft is not trying too hard
protect their software from the continuous intrusion
of
malware.
There seems to be a big patch every week mainly focused on security. All the while, they are tightening
their grip on your computer by integrating security
software more suitable to a network environments by re-using
code from Windows NT in Windows Server, Windows 7 & Vista.
Many
rumors and false alarms get started through the news media and the internet
blogs, chat rooms, etc. Their priorities should be get the facts right
before
alarming the General Public. Many
people hit the panic button unnecessarily causing serious disruptions and loss
of ability to conduct business for several days. If
you keep your systems updated, you can save yourself a lot of grief by knowing
you have the best protection available.
We strongly suggest that if you are serious
about protecting your system you invest in a commercial grade software-
around $.15 a day. Buy from companies that have a long track record in the
computer security business. This is a situation
where shareware or free software providers just do not have
the resources to anticipate and stay on top
of outbreaks.
In comparison to what you money you have invested in equipment,
personal time and software- security protection an Internet Security program is a bargain. If
you have been through a virus or spyware attack, we think you can appreciate
the inconvenience and threat they pose to your privacy and hard work. A retail
store or service company will charge at least $100 to fix a basic virus
or spyware infestation with no guarantee your files can be fully recovered. By
acquiring proper protection and prevention software, you can save yourself
quite a bit of grief and lost time, also.
How
to update your operating system?
Most of us do not update or patch
their own operating system on a regular basis.
We
say "Yes" to
being advised of an update or patch for your key software. See more info
on: Patches.
You have the choice to make it automatic or for your review. We opt for
the review prior to installation, then
we do a
Restore Point prior to the install- just in case.
Action on your part: If you misplace your credit card or suspect it is being misused over the Internet, get it replaced immediately! If not, you could be on the hook for the phantom charges.
Minimizing Threats with software patches: They are always ongoing and more core applications using them to update their software from looming and rapidly breaking threats. For example: Adobe, Nuance, and AutoDesk, Microsoft Software Partners, HP and IBM.
Sources are provided "as is" from linked sites
Windows 7, Vista™- Windows XP™- Windows® are registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries.
