Tech Scams to Avoid This Holiday

The holiday shopping season is a great time to get tech products at discounted prices, but it also creates a golden opportunity for the Web's scam artists. The FBI, McAfee, the Better Business Bureau and F-Secure are all warning about cybercriminals who will try to take you for a ride this holiday season. Here are their most pertinent warnings and tips for staying safe:

The Infamous Free iPad 

Bogus free iPad offers started popping up immediately after Apple's tablet went on sale, and they've since been banned from Facebook. Still, you might see similar offers around the Web, McAfee says, prompting you to buy other products as a condition of getting the free iPad. By now, you should realize it's too good to be true.

Gift Card Scams 

That free $1,000 gift card offer you saw on Facebook? Bogus, of course. McAfee says that cybercrooks lure people into giving away their personal information or taking quizzes in exchange for these cards, which never arrive. The information is then sold to marketers or used for identity theft.

The FBI also says to use caution when purchasing gift cards through auction sites or classified ads. These can be fraudulent, and you won't get your money back. Buy directly from retailers instead.

Bogus Auctions and Classifieds 

Here's a particularly tricky scheme pointed out by the FBI: On auction and classified sites, fraudsters use their own order forms to get payment details from holiday gift buyers. Then, they charge the victim's credit card and use a stolen credit card to buy the actual item, which is sent directly to the victim. In other words, you'll still get the product, but you might be liable for receiving stolen goods. To avoid this scam, be sure to use legitimate payment services like Paypal instead of providing money directly to the seller.

The feds also warn of a related scam for free or reduced-price shipping offered on auction and classified sites. The fraudsters provide fake shipping labels to the victim, and the product ends up being intercepted in transit, never delivered to its destination.

Malicious websites

For cybercriminals, spamming Google with bogus holiday gift pages is a yearly tradition. These pages could be loaded with malware or payment forms intended to steal your identity. F-Secure has created a list of what it thinks will be the highly targeted search terms this year, including Kinect for Xbox, Call of Duty: Black Ops, Amazon Kindle and Apple iPad.

Visit retailers' websites directly when possible, use Internet security software if you must and always check for "https" in the URL bar before ordering online to ensure that the page is secure.

Wi-Fi Hackers 

Public Wi-Fi networks will get a workout this holiday season as people travel, McAfee notes. This is especially true with Google offering free Wi-Fi on domestic flights from three major airlines. Check out our security tips from Google's free Wi-Fi offer at airports last year, most of which are still relevant in the skies. Number one tip: Avoid shopping and paying bills over a public network.ls over a public network.

Related articles

• Latest McAfee warns of "The 12 scams of Christmas" (helpwithdebtnow.com)
• Bogus iPads Top 12 Scams of Christmas (cultofmac.com)

Originally posted on PCWorld

Smart Online Behavior Prevents Malware

Malware is a term used to describe a broad category of damaging software that includes viruses, worms, trojan horses, rootkits, spyware, and adware. The effects of malware range from brief annoyance to computer crashes and identity theft. Malware is easier to avoid than it is to remove. Avoiding malware involves a two-part strategy. Follow these guidelines for staying safe.

The single biggest factor in preventing a malware infection on your PC is you. You don't need expert knowledge or special training. You just need vigilance to avoid downloading and installing anything you do not understand or trust, no matter how tempting, from the following sources:

From a website: If you are unsure, leave the site and research the software you are being asked to install. If it is OK, you can always come back to site and install it. If it is not OK, you will avoid a malware headache.

From e-mail: Do not trust anything associated with a spam e-mail. Approach e-mail from people you know with caution when the message contains links or attachments. If you are suspicious of what you are being asked to view or install, don't do it.

From physical media: Your friends, family, and associates may unknowingly give you a disc or flash drive with an infected file on it. Don't blindly accept these files; scan them with security software. If you are still unsure, do not accept the files.

From a pop-up window: Some pop-up windows or boxes will attempt to corner you into downloading software or accepting a free "system scan" of some type. Often these pop-ups will employ scare tactics to make you believe you need what they are offering in order to be safe. Close the pop-up without clicking anything inside it (including the X in the corner). Close the window via Windows Task Manager (press Ctrl-Alt-Delete).

From another piece of software: Some programs attempt to install malware as a part of their own installation process. When installing software, pay close attention to the message boxes before clicking Next, OK, or I Agree. Scan the user agreement for anything that suggests malware may be a part of the installation. If you are unsure, cancel the installation, check up on the program, and run the installation again if you determine it is safe.

From illegal file-sharing services: You're on your own if you enter this realm. There is little quality control in the world of illegal software, and it is easy for an attacker to name a piece of malware after a popular movie, album, or program to tempt you into downloading it.

Remove Malware With the Right Software

Chances are that no matter how careful you are, you will be infected some day. That's because malware is designed to sneak onto your computer in ways you can't possibly foresee. Enlist the help of the following software:

An updated operating system: Use Windows Update. Take advantage of its ability to automatically notify you of updates, or better yet, to automatically download and install updates.

An updated browser: No matter which browser you use, keeping it current is vital to preventing infection. Take advantage of your browser's pop-up blocking, download screening, and automatic update features.

Antivirus software: You must run an antivirus program to be safe. Keep it updated, turned on, and schedule a scan to run at least once a month. (Don't run two antivirus programs; they will interfere with one another.)

Anti-malware: Also called anti-spyware, many antivirus applications include an anti-malware component. If yours does not, install and use a standalone anti-malware program that does not conflict with your antivirus program. Keep it updated.


Firewall: If you aren't running a third-party firewall, use Windows Firewall. (Don't run two firewalls at once; they will interfere with one another.)


Spam filter: If your e-mail program is not adequately filtering spam from your in-box, consider additional spam filtering software. If your security software is a security suite, spam filtering may be a feature that you need to switch on.

Identity Theft Misconceptions

A recent survey by Kindsight revealed some misconceptions by internet users what they perceive as identity theft risks.

Anyone living in the modern world can't help but be aware that identity theft is real, and that it's a real problem. But how well do people understand what their own risks are? Not surprisingly, virtually all of those questioned had some understanding of identity theft. However, many had only a limited understanding of just what kinds of behavior put them at risk.

It appears that many consumers still are not entirely sure of what type of activities to avoid, and what they can do to protect their identities online. Five key misconceptions about cybersecurity emerged:

Misconception #1 I’m safe because I never shop online 
Misconception #2 I’m safe because I have anti-virus protection 
Misconception #3 I’m safe because the website is secure 
Misconception #4 I’m safe because it’s easy to recognize fake sites 
Misconception #5 Facebook is safe enough; no need to worry

Cybercriminals are becoming more sophisticated and always looking for new and better ways to steal your identity online.

Optimize Your PC: CCleaner 300

Want to clean and optimize your PC? You've probably heard of CCleaner, arguably the world's most popular tool for doing the job. Developer Piriform just released CCleaner 3.0. 

The big news in this update? A native 64-bit version for use with like editions of Windows. Like the last release, CCleaner clears out temporary files, cleans the Windows Registry, erases browser histories, and so on. Version 3.0 also sports new icons, various interface improvements, better support for Google Chrome and Internet Explorer 9, and newly added support for programs like AVG AntiVirus 10.0, Audacity, LogMeIn Hamachi, BitTorrent, and Windows Game Explorer.

I particularly like the way it intelligently scans for cookies you'd want to keep, like those for Google and Yahoo. In short, the ultimate system-cleaning tool just got better. It's still free, thankfully, though you can purchase a priority-support license for $25.

As with any tool of this kind, I strongly recommend making a full system backup and creating a new system-restore point before using it. Better safe than sorry!

Operating Systems: Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7

• License Type: Free
• Price: Free

Security Tips for PDF users

The good thing about Adobe's PDF format is that nearly everybody uses it--and if you just need to read those documents, it's free. Sadly, the program's very popularity is what attracts the bad guys. Hackers, say the security experts, look for a "target-rich environment," and with tens of millions of users, Acrobat and Reader fit the bill.


So what can you do to stay secure? I wish I had advice that went beyond the conventional wisdom, but I don't. I contacted security experts at Adobe and Symantec, and they both said pretty much the same thing. Marc Fossi, Manager, Research and Development, Symantec Security Response said this:

1. Consumers should make sure to keep their software up-to-date with all the most recent versions and security patches at all times. An easy way to do this is to ensure that applications are configured to retrieve updates automatically whenever there is a live Internet connection.

 2. Using a full security software suite that includes antivirus and intrusion prevention capabilities can also protect against these types of threats.

Sure, Symantec is in the business of selling security software, so naturally they'll tell you to use their product. But in this case, put aside your skepticism and do what the man says. Newer security programs really do filter out lots of malware. And while it may seem utterly obvious, I'll repeat this old chestnut: Don't open attachments from people you don't know.

If you're running version 9 of Reader, you'll be prompted to download a security patch within the next few weeks. Do it.