Archive for category My Thoughts
How long can I browse the web with no antivirus protection?
Posted by Daniel Snyder in Computer Security, My Thoughts on August 1, 2010
Maybe you’ve heard of them running a car with no oil to see how long it takes for the engine to seize? (Normally bets are taken and whoever guesses the closest time, wins.) Well how long can I browse the web without any antivirus protection whatsoever (on a PC) before I get infected? Do you really need antivirus protection? The answer to the second question is unequivocally, YES you do. But when it comes to wondering (for sheer curiosity’s sake) how long you could browse the web before becoming infected there is no definitive answer. A lot of infections come from unsafe browsing habits, and this is where we really need to step up and help people learn how to browse the web safer. You simply can’t rely on your antivirus solution to stop any and every threat. For the same reason on the road you don’t just trust every driver to drive safe. You’ve got to stay alert, and use common sense.
Perhaps a tech savvy geek may believe they could safely browse the web for days or even weeks without becoming infected. Perhaps in their arrogance they would claim they are 100% certain they would not click on any malicious links or visit any malicious URLs, they are certain they can not fall for phishing scams and would never mistype a URL and find themselves hijacked. But in real life, with us more humble folk we are ready to admit we can never be 100% certain, some links look so legitimate they may be able to fool even you! Still, there are some valuable tips you can follow to ensure you’re browsing experience is a little more safe, and charged with a bit of internet common sense.
Failure to Update : The Number one Mistake
First and foremost, the number one thing I see people failing to do is update their software. Everything from your Operating System (OS) to Java, Flash and your browser needs to be updated from time to time. Manufacturers release patches to fix vulnerabilities and other security holes which cybercriminals will use to exploit your system. It seems to me a lot of the people I talk with think that because there system appears to be working fine, there is no reason to update it. They even have turned off Windows automatic updates. So quick tip, update everything. Once you’ve ensured your Operating System is updating regularly I highly recommend Filehippo’s update checker. This fantastic little program will scan your system for installed software and let you know what version you are running and whether or not you are up to date. It will then display all the results in your browser with links to safely download the latest version of all the software on your PC. This can really simplify the update process, which by now you understand is an absolute necessity.
Learn about Social Engineering and beware!
Social Engineering is a term used to describe how cybercriminals use clever marketing and disguise their activities in behavior that appears socially popular. By ‘engineering’ you to click their links they essentially con you and manipulate you into falling for their scams. The theory made popular by Kevin Mitnick is that it is easier to trick someone into giving you their password then it is to hack the system. You can read this fantastic article, 9 Dirty Tricks Social Engineers Use to get a little more detail on how you can be aware of and avoid being socially engineered. Facebook has been a popular target of Social Engineers and the type of scams you need to watch for are applications that try to lure you in with lines such as “This person has a crush on you, click here to find out who it is.” Sophos Labs, which tracks cybercrime trends, is seeing Facebook applications that install adware, which cause pop-up ads to appear on a user’s screen. The other danger, according to Cluley, is that installing many of these applications means you give a third-party access to your personal information on your profile.
Keep your Information Private
This is simple, but you’d be surprised how many people share way too much information online. Addresses, phone numbers, social security (social insurance) numbers, and of course passwords. I advise you to have several email addresses as well, one that you use for all trusted sources and at least several others that you can use for web registrations and other things that you are possibly uncertain of. Certainly there are websites that you can trust and share information with, but you can’t trust everyone. Still, limit the information you give as much as possible. Another tip that goes along with this is keeping your vacation plans zipped up, tweeting, facebook status updates etc, about your plan to be out of the country next week is always a bad idea. It really doesn’t matter how much you trust the people you believe your sharing this information with, it can get leaked… and if your address is out there, than you’ve just invited some criminals to come over to your empty house. Be wise with your personal info!
Use Multiple Complex Passwords
There is much that can be said about passwords and, if you don’t yet understand how to create and use a complex password than I hope you’d take some time and read a few of the articles here on this site. The most significant mistake people make with passwords is using the same one on every site. You may be surprised how many people are using guessable passwords on their facebook page and the same password for their bank. Banking websites may generally be somewhat harder to hack because of their security mechanisms, but if you’re using the same password in multiple locations than cybercriminals have a lot of opportunity to gather information on you. They can utilize dictionary attacks, brute force attacks, or even potentially social engineer you for your password.
Practice Safe Email usage
Phishing scams are prolific in spam emails and it is wise to immediately develop the habit of not clicking on links in emails. Criminals send fake emails that are disguised to look like your bank, or your craigslist account. Click on the links in those emails will take you to a fake site setup to look just like the bank site you are familiar with using. When you enter your login details this information can be used by the criminals to steal and transfer funds etc. Instead make it a habit to type in the URL directly into your browser or use bookmarks that you’ve saved. If you are using the latest version of your web browser most of those come with anti-phishing filters as well.
There are many other tips one must learn in order to browse safe, and avoid malware, scareware, phishing attacks and every other threat that exists in cyberspace. Educate yourself, learn to browse safe and use a good antivirus solution such as the ones I suggest in my 2010 Free Antivirus picks. What safe browsing tips do you suggest?
Why do people Pay for Antivirus protection?
Posted by Daniel Snyder in Computer Security, My Thoughts on July 19, 2010
A question has continually been running through my mind. Why do people pay for Antivirus protection? I firmly believe that the average home user has no need to fork out cash for antivirus software. There are reliable and effective antivirus programs out there that when combined with some common sense and some knowledge of safe surfing will be absolutely sufficient at keeping you free of malware. I take myself as a perfect example as I’ve been using AVG Free on my home system for over six years with not a single serious problem. The biggest ‘minor’ issues I’ve had to deal with include tracking cookies.
Best Selling Antivirus in the World
I stumbled across a Norton advertisement the other day in which they describe themselves as the “Best selling antivirus software in the world”. Why is that do you think? I would suspect that because they have successfully marketed their product so well, and pre-loaded ‘free-trial’ versions onto virtually every machine on the planet, that many computer users assume this is their only option for protection. In fact I asked a few people why they are paying for antivirus protection. One individual told me directly “I didn’t know there were other options out there”. Another person let me know that it seemed easier to pay for a product they already had on their computer than to take the time to look for an alternative. WOW! Not just picking on Norton here but running with my primary example, it is an expensive product. That’s a lot of extra cash to just fork out, when a free product such as AVG, Avast or Avira will be relatively just as effective (Read my post on top free antivirus picks for 2010)
Is a Free product an Inferior Product?
I wonder if people feel naturally safer by paying for something? Perhaps there is the subconscious assumption that a free product is an inferior product. This is something I can understand, and it certainly wouldn’t surprise me. But in the case of Antivirus products it just isn’t true. Sure some pay products offer you features you simple won’t find in a free product (they have to give some incentive), but ultimately as I mention above safe browsing and common sense will protect you from the majority of threats anyway.
Clearly effective marketing is driving the economy for antivirus vendors. And those that offer free products obviously don’t have the resources to market their product in the same way. It is therefore up to us, to promote and assist individuals by helping them find and install free, effective, solid antivirus solutions.
So the question provokes thought. How can I motivate my friends and others to stop wasting valuable dollars on software they don’t need. Now I’m not advocating to say paid antivirus protection is wrong, simply promoting my own opinion which states that it is unnecessary. Corporations and other businesses would be unwise to stick with a free antivirus solution. But you at home, if you’re paying for antivirus software there are free alternatives which can save you money.
Maybe you have some of your own thoughts regarding why people are paying for antivirus software. Please let me know with a comment here, I’d be interested in what you have to say.
My biggest blogging mistakes!
Posted by Daniel Snyder in Blogging, My Thoughts, Tips & Advice on July 6, 2010
Can You learn from the mistakes of others?
Wouldn’t that be nice, if we could all just learn from the mistakes of others. I really am new to blogging, after all I’ve only been seriously committed to it for just under three months now. It’s been a steep learning curve, that feels like it will never end (and that is probably a good thing). From the challenges of finding a niche (which I really am still working on), to the overwhelming task of building a brand and generating traffic. I hope I’ve already learned a few things along the way! I am one who tends to only learn from my own mistakes. How I wish I could learn from the mistakes of others. This week, I’ve taken note of what I think are some of the biggest mistakes I’ve made blogging thus far. I imagine that six months from now, I’ll have a whole new list to add to this.
1. Expecting people to agree with my opinions, and see things my way.
I’ve learned really quickly that not everyone is going to see things my way. And that’s got to be okay. I ignorantly went into blogging thinking somehow I would only attract individuals who agreed with my perspective, and wanted to leave agreeable and encouraging comments. Reality check! It’s just not like this, everyone is out there with every point of view, and many just won’t see things your way. I have quickly learned to accept criticism and the opinions of others. Taking it to the extent of including their thoughts in objective articles has proven a valuable response.
2. Rushing an article, and posting too quickly.
Early on I read a lot about the importance of posting, and somehow got sidetracked thinking quantity is better than quality. In my haste to post, I’ve rushed many an article that could have been written far better, with more details, and important information. Often I’ll have a central thought that I want to communicate, but it may not be enough to ‘fill a post’ to the point that I’m satisfied. I’m slowly learning to take my time, and not push out articles. My focus is shifting to quality, and away from quantity. Well thought out articles, that have more than one key point, and include the opinions and input of others are most well received and generate the most comments as well.
3. Self Promoting too much.
I became over zealous about promoting my blog, instead of allowing the quality of the material to do its job. It takes a long time for a blog to really get noticed. I have enjoyed a steady increase in traffic over the past three months, which I anticipate will continue, but I’m recently realizing I must find a balance between time spent promoting and time spent actually investing in my blog. Kiesha Easley from weblogbetter.com wrote an interesting article that I discovered recently entitled Social Media Can Kill Your Blog. In this article Kiesha explains how distracting social media can be, and suggests that “the very thing that can help your blog the most, can also be the very thing that harms it the most. Over-dosing on social media can keep you from completing the most important task, which is producing quality content.”
4. Comparing myself to other bloggers.
This can be discouraging quick. Obviously I look at other bloggers for inspiration and to learn, but comparing myself is a bad idea. I’m not them, and they are not me. What mold am I trying to fit into? I want my blog to be original and to contain original content. Any time in life that you start comparing yourself, you’re going to find someone who does things better than you. That’s just the way it is. Don’t get preoccupied with what everyone else is doing, or concerned with looking and sounding like others. I’ve had to learn (and am still learning) to just be myself on the web. Eventually this will attract people of like mind, who enjoy the way you write, and appreciate what you have to say.
5. Being preoccupied with stats and traffic, and ignoring my goals and vision.
Major distraction are web stats and traffic, and they have done a good job at distracting me from my goals and robbing me of vision. Sure it’s nice to see your site roll over 100 visits in a day for the first time, or the first time you hit 1000 visits, or attaining 100 twitter followers, (I found those were all happy milestones) but once I rolled past them I realized how much wasted time I’d spent looking at statistics, watching numbers, and then falling back into the self-promotion trap. Time I could have spent writing, researching, and investing myself into the growth and development of my blogs content. In the web we live in content is the bottom line, and good content can not be attained by staring at your analytics charts.
6. Not doing enough research.
It’s hard (but not impossible!) to write a totally original article with all new thought. So in most cases my posts include thoughts, opinions or ideas that have already been written about by someone else. In most cases, many other people have written similar articles. If I take my time, and write well my articles will be well thought, and provoke new thought, or bring to light new information that is not seen in other articles. But if I rush my posts, or ignore the information that others present my writing will be overlooked and ignored. For that reason, I’ve learned how important it is to look at and read other similar articles on the topics I like to write about. Computer Security is my primary niche, with social media and blogging tips slightly behind, as such I’ve found blogs and authors who I like up to and who inspire me. These are the guys I research and pay extra attention to when writing posts. I’ll definitely google some related search terms as well, but if another blogger has spent time writing a similar article perhaps I’ll even include a quote from them in my post!
Other Mistakes?
There are A LOT of other blogging mistakes of course and I’m certain these are not the only mistakes I’ve made, they’re just the ones I’ve become aware of thus far. I wonder what mistakes I may be making right now, that I will only discover weeks or months from now? David Airey wrote an interesting article called “seven blog mistakes to avoid”, of the seven the one mistake he mentions which catches my attention and is a good reminder is his mistake #5, “neglecting article headlines”. A great point, as the title of a blog post must catch a readers eye, if it doesn’t they probably won’t read your article at all. With that said, I think I’ll go change the title of this post right now, and then hit publish. Was this post rushed? No, I took my time on this one.
What blogging mistakes have you made?
Twitter Etiquette for bloggers, Part 2
Posted by Daniel Snyder in Blogging, My Thoughts, Promoting Your Blog, social media, Tips & Advice, Twitter on June 30, 2010
My first article on twitter etiquette for bloggers was really well received, I got a lot of feedback with additional input and other schools of thought. The topic in question has been regarding self promotion of our own blog posts on twitter. How often is too often (or not often enough) to tweet about a blog post? Of course we will not arrive at an answer that all bloggers agree with, everyone I talk to has their own thoughts on this.
Self Promotion on Twitter
Why are these people following me?
I agree with what Michael is saying here, after all I often asked myself “why are these people following me?”. Twitter is full of people who just “followback” but don’t really care about you or your tweets. For people like this it’s all about follow numbers. I do wonder how anyone can pay attention to a twitter stream with 10,000+ followers? How can you get to know anyone, or build any kind of social connection? I am looking for the true fans, people who are following me because they are genuinely interested in paying attention to my tweets.
Be Innovative and Non-Spammy
Expand Coverage
The Question of Balance
I also talked with my friends at Software Candy who summarize by declaring the answer to our main question “Like many things in life is subjective and depends on the [individual] and his/her followers. On one hand, by the nature of Twitter, it is easy to miss an important tweet, so it makes sense to tweet repeatedly. On the other hand, repeating it too often may annoy the twitter’s most faithful followers. So this obviously brings the question of balance.”
Well what do you think? Further thought on this topic is welcomed and encouraged. I think my opinions are evolving daily right now, and it is likely that six months from now I will feel different about this question.
I find the topic of “Twitter Etiquette” to be captivating to me. So I would like to write more on this topic. What are your thoughts on Twitterquette? What should I write about next?
Twitter etiquette for bloggers
Posted by Daniel Snyder in Blogging, My Thoughts, Promoting Your Blog, social media, Tips & Advice, Twitter on June 27, 2010
As I spend a lot of time on twitter, my thoughts often wander to proper twitter etiquette. I have questions of my own of course, grey areas where I wonder what the fine line is between attracting more followers and pushing followers away. There are of course some rules of thumb that it would be wise to follow, but for the most part everyone has their own idea of twitter etiquette. Spam on twitter is a growing issue, and I find myself daily reporting someone for spam, or simply blocking them from my stream. What’s frustrating is that many of these people I block are not bots, but real people. Individuals who just can’t seem to respect some basic twitter etiquette. For example, posting twenty (even thirty or forty [I've seen it]) tweets in a row, is ridiculous. As soon as I see that, not only do I completely ignore it, but you get an automatic unfollow from me. I’m done with that person. Twitter is a microblogging platform for a reason, 140 characters, keep your thoughts short. We have blogs for the long ramblings.
What are your thoughts on twitter etiquette?
Recently I’ve been asking myself. How many times is it okay to tweet about a blog post? I have heard it said that the life of the average tweet is about ten minutes. Give or take I suppose depending on how many people someone is following. At peak traffic times, my one twitter stream is more of a raging river, and unless I’m watching closely I’ll probably miss your tweet. So if I tweet about a new blog post I’ve written, and you weren’t there during that ‘ten minute window’ then it’s gone, and you’ll never know. So of course most bloggers re-tweet their blog posts, often with different wordings or excerpts of text. So the question is valid, how often can I tweet about a new post? Every ten minutes? Twice a day for a week? Once every week for a month? I guess there is no proper answer to this question. Since it is impossible to gauge who has seen my tweet, I can’t estimate if I’ve yet become an annoyance to someone.
I asked some bloggers what they thought. Justin Germino from dragonblogger.com says “When promoting one of your articles on Twitter I recommend you promote no less than 3-4 times per day about 4-6 hours apart, this is to ensure that you are reaching all of your audience in the wide variety of time zones. Remember if you have a Twitter following that only about 5% of your following ever see your tweet in real time, and most never scroll through history. So you may tweet the same promotion like 20 times before a person see’s it for the first time.” Justin has also written a post on the same topic in which he queries “Is it spamming to promote content on social media?”
Obviously you need to take these points into consideration, as dragonblogger mentioned being aware of time zones is important. I’m on the west coast in Vancouver, Canada, and I often find myself finishing posts late in the evening, if I tweet them right away it may be one, two or even three AM on the east coast where a lot of my readers and twitter friends are. If I was someone who only tweeted about a blog post once it would likely get lost in the history of twitter never to be seen by anyone.
I feel quite comfortable tweeting about my posts regularly for the first week after they are released, and then periodically after that. The nature of twitter is such that readers can quickly scan posts. I often see tweets that are repeats, if I’m happy with the person I’m following (meaning they generally engage and involve themselves in conversation besides just self-promotion) than it is no trouble for me to overlook the tweet I may have seen three or four times before.
Don’t come off like a robot!
Chris Brogan has a brief and informal twitter etiquette guide that you can read, in it he mentions watching out for ‘robot behavior’, and this I think is the key to success on twitter. Don’t come off like a robot! If you’re tweets are all automated, all self-promotion, and you don’t engage any of your followers or engage with those you follow, don’t be surprised if people pay little to no attention to you. The people I follow the closest (and end up spending time on their blogs) are the ones who engage with me. They participate in conversations apart from just promoting their own blog or product. When people show that they are not totally self absorbed, my interest in them grows. Twitter is a site for social networking, so let’s keep it social. Re-tweeting other peoples tweets is a great compliment and will help to grow their followers. Looking out for others and doing what you can to help others grow their follow list will be beneficial to you. What goes around comes around, this is certainly true of the twittersphere.
What are your thoughts?
There are lots of do’s and do nots when it comes to twitter. What advice to you have to share? Be sure to read part 2 to this post, Twitter Etiquette for bloggers continued…
Focus: it sometimes needs to shift.
Posted by Daniel Snyder in My Thoughts on May 24, 2010
I was recently wasting some time on my favorite iphone game, unblockme, and having some serious difficulty passing a level… one of those ones that nags at you, and you just can’t stop till you get it. The simple object of the game is to free the blocked in red block from the puzzle by sliding it across through the opening.
Constantly moving the other pieces around focused on freeing up that red block was beginning to create some frustration. I was intent on passing this level, and my focus was on nothing else.
I seemed to be unable to figure out the ‘trick’ to this level… Till I realized my FOCUS was on the wrong thing, I needed to shift my concentration from the red block to another piece of the puzzle that was causing all the interference. Once I figured that out, I passed the level in a few second! Yay.
There is a point to this. Life sometimes requires us to shift our focus. We may have a particular objective, or even be clear on our goal, yet resolution may not be possible unless we shift our focus to what surrounds us. I have a tendency to get tunnel vision, I’m sure it’s got its pros and cons. As an example I can be sitting at my computer typing this post, and be completely unaware of my surroundings (perhaps my daughter tries to get my attention and I don’t even hear her till the fifth or sixth time!). Being able to multi-task and focus on more than a single thing at a time is a quality I really need to develop.
What about you? Have you ever had your focus on something that may have seemed right or noble, yet it was distracting you from accomplishing your goals?
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The Blog Engage Community, my thoughts.
Posted by Daniel Snyder in My Thoughts, Site Reviews, social media on July 6, 2010
Blog Engage is different, it was created by Brian in 2007 who goes by the online user name of bbrian017, he’s successfully created an environment that helps bloggers promote one another. Blog Engage as you may guess by its very name is quick to engage you, and does a good job at it too. Members appears interested in one another, and are not simply there serving themselves (submitting their own articles, for their own promotion). Commenting, voting up (or down of course), and engaging with other bloggers is key.
I think one of the keys to the effectiveness of blog engage is the very fact that it is a community for bloggers (only people who can prove they have their own blog). Bloggers generally know how important it is to engage, and are aware that it is a two way street. Commenting on other blog posts, and building relationships with other bloggers is critical. Every blogger hopes to generate more comments on their own site, and more of a social environment. Contributing to other blogs is a key! The Blog Engage Community assists in these connections, and encourages comments and the promotion of others.
Blog Engage is also not an overwhelmingly huge community (yet!), its size is at the moment is actually an asset, it shows that the people who are there are serious about it, and are likely to be interested in others who get serious and involved. As a quick example the first post I submitted to blog engage got published to the front page and was voted up 22 times within the first week! The fact that the avatars of people who voted me up are displayed with the post, is another benefit to building relationship. You can quickly and easily find bloggers who like what you have to say, and likely have things in common with you. Check out their blogs, comment on their posts, and in a short matter of time relationships are being built. Relationships that become mutually beneficial, when individuals begin sharing, promoting, tweeting, and linking to your blog (as you do the same for them). Blog Engage requires a personalized profile and avatar, so there is no hiding behind no name or spam accounts.
It’s a community that rewards you, and does a great job at what it says it does… it engages bloggers. I hope you’ll join! If you do, let me know with a comment here, I’ll intentionally look out for your posts, and look forward to voting you up to the front page on Blog Engage!
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