A new spam we started to see today. “Your AOL Instant Messenger account will be deleted” is actually a spam message and should be deleted. If you hover over the link within the email, you’ll notice it has nothing to do with AOL or Instant messenger.
Your AOL Instant Messenger account will be deleted
January 21st, 2010Spam update – IRS and Facebook
December 8th, 2009The current spam trends we are seeing are refund announcments from the IRS. This an old trick with a new face put on it. The idea is to fill out a form to claim your IRS tax refund, which is not remotely the case. There is never going to be any type of communication from the IRS in regards to your refund or the amount of money you owe.
The other growing trend in spam as of late is social media site phishing scams. Facebook being the largest and most visable target is the most frequently spammed in recent weeks, with requests for password resets and other a-typical notifications coming to your inbox. Facebook never emails users to provide thier username and password for security audits. As always, the best way to be sure is to hover your mouse over the link and if it doesnt start “http://www.facebook.com/” – its probably fake. When in doubt, delete it!
The CDC doesn’t email you.
December 1st, 2009Like most government agencies, the CDC will not email you directly. I’m sure if they ever did have a need, it would be dire and we’d have all heard about it on the media streams before we heard it via email. That being said, there is no registration form for H1N1 shots. Not only is H1N1 season waning, the supplies of vaccines are more abundant then before, so lists to sign up are not needed. This is a new spam that seems to have surfaced today and has begun clogging inboxes. Ignore it, delete it, create a filter to remove it.
Also we have intermittantly been recieving an email that slips the filters from Ally Bank and GMAC bank, these two are spam – so delete away!
As always, any questions, sugguestions or comments let us know!
Current Spam Trends – Weekly update
November 30th, 2009In our ongoing effort to track new spam trends and pass it along to help users avoid opening malicious mail, we will will now be updating our main news feed with observed threats on our networks, filters and gateways. Stay tuned!
Your mailbox has *NOT* been deactivated
November 16th, 2009We are seeing alot of spam that your account has been deactivated, this along with a flood of Verizon wireless emails seem to be the work of Zbot spammers. Verizon wireless would never request that you run a program for your bill, nor would we or any other firm request you download or load anything to disable an account. These messages are carrying a payload and recommend deleting them right away. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions!
26 Years of computer Viruses
November 10th, 2009Today marks the 26th anniversary of the concept of a computer virus. The level of infection and scope of variants were beyond the wildest dreams of the original presentation and concept. There is great article here at wired about it.
60 Minutes discussion of Cyber Security
November 9th, 2009Just a quick note that 60 minutes touched on cyber security last night. While some of the discussion is a little hyped for television, they touch on some very scarey and real issues that we face. No matter what the size of the organization, Security should always be at the forefront of any techinical discussion.
Cybercrime: A secret underground economy
September 17th, 2009The Information Security landscape has changed drastically since the early days of computers. to underscore how serious this threat has become, you can now find articles about it not only on IT news sites but mainstream news as well. CNN has a great article today covering the growing underworld and organisation of computer crime. Check it out here.
Best practices for maintaining your computer
September 14th, 2009
Use these best practices to help maintain and protect the computer you use at work.
1. Install all updates required by your IT department. Not installing updates as required by your IT department can expose your company to viruses and other security risks. Some companies even prevent computers from accessing the network if patches aren’t installed after a set date. Also, find out whether the IT department wants you to install updates on Microsoft Update. If they do, make it a habit of checking Microsoft Update regularly. You’ll save yourself the hassle of the IT department forcing you to install updates when it’s not convenient for you.
2. Install only licensed programs. Make sure that you or your company have a license for any software you install on your work computer. Your company can get sued for having software without a license installed on its computers. For example, installing a program your friend bought could present some problems. Software that you’ve bought a license for is probably fine, but double-check the license to make sure. Sometimes, software bought for home use can not be installed at work as well.
3. Don’t install different versions of software. Even if you prefer the version of software you use at home rather than work, don’t install it on your work computer. You could have incompatibility problems with the software your co-workers are using and with your specific line of business applications. Your IT department may also not be able to make any required updates or provide technical support.
4.Let IT know when hardware isn’t working. Fixing a broken computer yourself could just cause more problems. Your fixes, for example, could make the computer incompatible with the corporate network. Most IT departments have a helpdesk or technical assistance program designed for this type of work. The IT department may have already seen the same problem and have a known fix. Helping your IT department track common computer problems can also help them decide which brand and make of computer to order in the future.
5. Let IT know when you need something. Giving the IT department reasonable requests and adequate time for planning can help them respond to your needs. Otherwise, you may end up with computer software or hardware you didn’t want, which can hinder how effective you are at work.
6. Don’t download programs from Internet sites you don’t trust. By downloading programs that may not be secure, you put all the computers on the network at risk.
7. Be aware of suspicious e-mails. A virus introduced though e-mail may be disguised as a downloadable file. If an e-mail you receive is from someone you don’t know, contains strange text, or otherwise looks suspicious, contact your IT department. If you open it, you could potentially cause problems for you and you co-workers. If it does contain a virus, the IT department can ask other employees in the organization to look for similar e-mails.
8. Use online support resources. Many IT departments have created online internal help sites that could provide an answer to your computer problem. Each day, Help desks typically receive many questions that are already answered at these sites.
This list is provided by Microsoft @ Work. We recommend following it to a T, if your IT deptartment isnt taking care of these issues or enforcing these policies, we recommend looking around for better solution, and we always here to help!
Fall is coming and so are new things for Hermetic!
August 27th, 2009As we move out of summer and into fall, we are working hard to release a slew of new services as well as our first physical product. We’ve been hard at work adjusting our services to reflect the needs and demands of small businesses, and we hope you find the new features a wonderful addition.
Hermetic Networks Sentinel is our new product for deployment in small business. This unique box provides Spam filtering, Anti-virus protection, Intrustion Detection, network monitoring, comprehensive reporting, and numerious other features. stay tuned as we roll it out in September for more information on features, usage and pricing!