Make your wireless network Invisible and Impenetrable even if they know your wireless key.
Setup a WPA2 key All of the other encryption types are easily hacked.
Turn MAC Address Filtering on and add the wireless mac address of all of the computers in your home that access your network wirelessly. This will prevent any computer from connecting to your network unless you specifically allow them to.
Disable SSID Broadcasting If you can’t see it, you cant connect to it without knowing the name of the SSID.
Is your email account safe? Ever wonder how hackers hack into yahoo email accounts? Sarah Palin, the republican candidate for vice president just had her yahoo account hacked.This article is intended to increase the awareness of the security vulnerabilities of Web based email security.
The most common and easiest way a web based email account is hacked is by using the Secret Question. A hacker will click on “I forgot my password” Enter your user name. All he needs to know is your Birthday and zip code, and the answer to your secret question. Like what high school did you go to? All it takes is about 20 minutes of searching the internet and some clever social engineering and your email account can be hacked. I encourage websites to stop using the so called “secret question” and start using something more secure. I encourage users to test their own security of the accounts they have. When you sign up for accounts make sure no one can ever find the answer to you secret question even if you have to make up a jibberish answer and write it down. How secret is your secret question?
Spyware
Many users are infected with spyware and don’t even know it. Spyware can be used to record your keystrokes and send them to the hacker. 3 Programs that I would recommend to protect your self from spyware are PC Tools spyware doctor, Spybot Search and Destroy and Ad Aware 2008.
What can a hacker use your email account for?
Sending emails to friends and family- a common scam that is being done is after a hacker gains access to your email account is they send an email to your friends and family saying that you are stranded and need money.
Accessing all of your other accounts- Hackers can gain access to your bank account and all of your other email accounts just by knowing your email password. In the process of password recovery an email with your user name and password will be sent to your email account or a link to reset your password.
Forget about downloading Music and Movies from Limewire, Some hackers are downloading peoples taxes, containing their all of the personal information necessary to commit Identity theft.
I thought it was pretty common knowledge not to share your personal documents on LimeWire but I guess not, as proved by this fox news report.
The moral of the story is NEVER choose My Documents as your shared folder, also prevent limewire from automatically searching for files when it installs.
Forget about expensive fingerprint scanners. Make Your Face Your Password. The future of computer security is Facial Recognition. Did you know that you can add facial recognition to your computer for free? Lemon Screen provides Free facial recognition software that uses a webcam to authenticate users to their computers. Future laptops will have facial recognition built in, but why spend more money on your laptop than you need to when you can get it for free? Lemon Screen was originally introduced as Banana Security. Unlocking your computer is simple because Lemon screen actively monitors faces in front of the computer, so as soon as you sit down your computer will be unlocked automatically. You can download Lemon Screen Free at Key Lemon
Something every Ethical Hacker should be able to do is spoof his MAC address. Network security professionals use switch port security with sticky mac addresses, meaning if your mac address doesn’t match, you’re not getting in. This can prove to be a false sense of security for network security specialists because hackers can sniff packets and spoof the MAC address needed to get access to the network.
MAC stands for Media Access Control Address and it is a HEX number that is hard encoded in your Network Interface Card. Changing your MAC address is as simple as changing a few Registry settings. However if your not comfortable working with the registry Technitium Mac Address Changer allows you to change your MAC address for Free. (They don’t charge for just changing a registry value!) You Can Download MAC Address Changer for free at Technitium
Another Reason to change your MAC address is to remain anonymous. Many people believe that if they spoof their IP address by using proxies they can remain anonymous. Unfortunately your MAC address is also recorded
Yes, Microsoft hires hackers, and they have launched their official blog called Hackers @ Microsoft. These are ethical hackers hired by Microsoft to search for vulnerability’s in their software before other hackers can. The blog focuses on security and how to prevent exploits.
In other news, Microsoft has also launched a new ethical hacker game called Hello Secure World. Designed with virtual labs, hands on labs, tutorials, videos, and you can play attack/defender games to learn about security exploits. It appears that the character you play as is a monkey wearing a brown hat named Mr. Corbin. “Welcome To Security Sector 7″
1. Always Use Protection: Prevent spyware from being installed on your computer by using programs such as Spybot, Spyware Blaster, and Advanced Windows Care 2 to immunize your computer from already known threats. Remember to update and immunize often. Free powerful Virus Protection can be obtained by using Avira Personal and Spyware Doctor Starter edition. Remember you can never have enough protection.
2. Turn off File sharing: Unless you purposely want to share your files or printers with others on the network, turn this feature off. I recommend shutting this feature off when you use your computer in a public area.
3. Remove Spyware: Schedule a daily scan with Spyware Doctor (Free with google pack) Set it to automatically update.
4. Use Firefox: I have noticed with other browsers that Active X infections happen a lot. Firefox is more secure.
5. Enable and configure your Firewall:
6.Disable Hidden Accounts: If you’re still using XP make sure the administrator account is disabled
7. Create and use a Strong password for each account: Rainbow tables have made it simple to crack passwords. So protect your self by using a strong password. Create passwords that are between 8-14 characters. Use a combination of Uppercase, Lowercase, Numbers and Symbols. Here is an example NycDjM1xM@$t3r
8. Secure your wireless Network:
9. Encrypt private data
10. Scan Incoming Files: If you use Limewire or a Bit torrent to download files, Scan all files before you open them. If the file is a ZIP, RAR or any other compressed format make sure to unzip the contents before scanning. These files are known as packed and sometimes can’t be detected until unpacked. Simply right click on the folder and scan.
Every time you sign up for a an online account they require you to provide a secret question? What city were you born in? Whats your mothers maiden name?
The purpose to the secret question is to provide a backdoor into your account if you happen to forget your password. I guess this is a good idea in theory, but it makes it really simple for hackers to gain access to your accounts. Most of this information can be found in public records. If your not sure what your public records are, it’s a database that companies use to verify your identity. Also every website seems to be using the same set of secret questions.
The problem is that this is very poor security. You are only as secure as the weakest link in the system. So even if you have a really strong password it won’t matter because it won’t take long for a hacker to figure out your secret question. When forced to provide an answer to a secret question simply put in jibberish and forget about it.
In the digital age where your entire life can be turned upside down by a hacker it’s a good time to evaluate how safe your password really is. Don’t believe me? If I wanted access to your bank account it would be a lot easier for me to get into your email account first. Once I did that I could request a new password from the bank to your email. I could also gain access to all of your other accounts.
Keeping your accounts secure.
1. Don’t use your passwords on public wireless networks. Hackers can capture the data on public networks and retrieve passwords if they are not encrypted. 2. Don’t use your passwords on public computers. Probably 80% of computers are infected with some sort of virus or Spyware. Spyware can record your passwords and send them to hackers, who in turn sell the logins and credit cards for cash. 3. Use Anti Virus and Anti Spyware software. Make sure your computer is clean. I would recommend using Avira, Spyware Doctor, Malwarebytes and Spybot Search and Destroy. Be sure to enable immuziation on spybot every time you update. 4. Don’t use the same password for every account. If I was standing over your shoulder and caught a glimpse of your passwords or got lucky with a key logger I would now have access to all of your accounts.
5. Use a password Manager Like ScarabayDon’t put all of your passwords in a word file. Instead use a password manager like scarabay which is encrpted with a password. Scarabay also has several other features such as Drag and Drop passwords in Astrick form. So you don’t have to worry about typing them and having a keylogger retrive them or someone standing over your shoulder. It also includes a password generator and on on screen keyboard(once again to protect against keyloggers)
6. Change your passwords often. Like once every 3 months. The longer a password has been around the longer a chance there is of it getting compromised.
7. Create Strong passwords. Weak passwords can easily be cracked by rainbow tables. Strong passwords should include a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. The password should be around 8-14 characters, the longer the better. Check how strong your current password is with microsoft’s password checker.
Using a WEP key is like using a bathroom lock that you can open with a butter knife. It will keep out the accidental walk-ins but not someone who wants to get in.
Many people would be suprised at just how insecure wireless security is. This Lifehacker articleshows you several ways to crack a WEP key. It’s so easy an amatuer can do it.The author states that this article is not intended to show people how to hack into others networks but instead show you just how easy to crack a WEP key is and why you shouldn’t use one.
It should also be noted that WPA isn’t much safer and that the most secure encryption method is currently WPA2. Always use a key even if you have your SSID hidden, and you have MAC filtering turned on.
