THERE ARE telephone scammers doing the rounds in Ireland and across the world who are trying to cheat people out of money for their computers. Basically, they cripple your computer and demand you pay them to get it back working again.
It’s known as “phishing” and it goes something like this. Out of the blue you get a call from someone who claims to work for a well-known computer company. This person may well not sound Irish and there may even be a team of people involved in the call. They inform you that your computer is at risk and pressure you into giving them remote control access to your PC so that they can “fix the problem”.
Should you co-operate, the technician dials in to your computer and then under the guise of fixing it, manually disables the software on your machine so that it becomes unusable. The sales person tells you this “problem” is worse than they thought but if you really need to use the computer again they have a plan. Just give them money and everything will be alright.
If this seems a little far-fetched bear in mind that these globalised vultures wouldn’t be doing this if they didn’t catch people out on a daily basis.
It would do no harm to check up on anyone you know who may be vulnerable, such as a cherished relative, and mention to them that they should never allow cold callers access to their computer.
You may also find it worth your while to beef up security around the computer so that you can be safe in the knowledge that it is not vulnerable. Thankfully increasing your security and confidence does not need to cost a cent and it’s not much more technically demanding than changing a light bulb.
The first and most important step is to set up a firewall. Most modern systems have one of these automatically enabled but if you need to do it manually, simply type firewall and the type of computer system you’re using into a search engine and follow the instructions.
Most people are aware of the threat of catching a computer virus. A whole industry has sprung up offering to fend off these contagions. Many new computers come pre-loaded with a security vendor’s software which operates freely for the first month or so and then quickly becomes useless as the free trial runs out. It then pesters you with pop-up warnings to pay up or you’ll be a goner.
Fear not, as PC owners may ease their anxieties for free with the relative newcomer to the security scene, Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE). MSE is the bane of security vendors because it’s free, works very well and once installed it updates automatically on a regular basis as new threats emerge.
Find MSE on the Microsoft website, install it and it will provide you with a lot of hassle-free security.
Alternatives include Malwarebytes, Adaware and the innovative Panda Cloud A/V, all of which are available for free.
Then, if you wish to remove the now redundant software, use a free tool like Revo Uninstaller to purge it from your system. Alternatively, you could use Ccleaner or Glary Utilities to deep clean your computer and keep it running safely and efficiently.
If you’re going to make major changes, and especially if you’re doing it for someone else, try creating a “system restore point” in advance.
If there’s a problem it will help take you back to the point just before things went awry. A quick search should explain how it’s done on your computer.
It’s a jungle out there and despite our best efforts, often a sneaky bit of software will make it in under the wire. If you suspect an attack you may want to do a security sweep.
It’s a good precaution anyway as the threat is ever-evolving and a free programme like Spybot Search & Destroy can scan for suspicious programmes (malware) and fix them.
Software changes at dizzying speeds in both minor and major ways. One day your system is safe as houses, the next day a new vulnerability has opened up through no fault of your own.
When you install a new programme on your computer say, for editing photographs or playing music, changes in the background could mean that over time it becomes a security risk.
In this context, a belt-and-braces approach may be the only sensible way to handle the situation.
You can keep across these programme changes very easily with the superb free Secunia Personal Software Inspector.
It automatically checks your programmes to see if they’re up to date. Not only does it then notify you if you’re falling behind but it recommends a one-click solution to the potential issue, leading you directly to the latest download for that piece of software.
But, here’s the clever bit. Secunia rates and ranks your computer against all others in your country and the world to lend you a bit of competitive motivation to maintain your score.
Whether human or software it pays to be aware of the everyday threats to our computers and to know a few defensive moves.
It doesn’t cost anything to ramp up security but it could be very expensive in time and money if something or someone catches you out.
