Newsletter Archives

• Your ‘free’ VPN may actually be a malware bot

  Posted on June 10, 2024 at 02:45 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.24 • 2024-06-10

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  Law-enforcement authorities, coordinating the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and similar agencies in Germany, Singapore, and Thailand, have arrested the leaders of a worldwide botnet that relied on people downloading and installing software to create “free” virtual private networks (VPNs).

  Before the arrests were announced on May 29, 2024, more than 19 million infected computers in some 190 countries were being used by hackers for credit-card fraud, Dark Web operations, and a lot else. Jailing the so-called 911 S5 organizers and shutting them down dismantled what FBI director Christopher Wray described as “likely the world’s largest botnet ever.”

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.24.0, 2024-06-10).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Public Defender AVG Secure, botnet, CyberGhost, DewVPN, ExpressVPN, Hotspot Shield, IVPN, MaskVPN, Mullvad, Newsletters, NordVPN, PAirVPN, PaladinVPN, PersonalVPN, Private Internet Access, ProtonVPN, ProxyGate, Security, ShieldVPN, ShineVPN, Surfshark, VPNs, Windscribe Pro

• Why do computers want my location?

  Posted on November 27, 2023 at 02:44 CST by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PRIVACY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  On a regular basis, my phone and computers ask whether they can use my location.

  iPhone apps, in particular, often generate multiple requests. To be fair, these annoying prompts are meant to alert you to the fact that the apps want your location for one reason or another.

  But why do these apps need location information? Are they spying on you?

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.48.0, 2023-11-27).

  Privacy Location Services, Location Tracking, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Privacy, VPNs

• Spying or helpful? You decide.

  Posted on November 27, 2023 at 02:42 CST by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PRIVACY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Years ago, my girlfriend had her first baby.

  Suddenly, I found myself sitting in front of my computer, searching only for baby bottles, baby clothes — everything baby-related.

  Milliseconds later (at least it seemed that fast), I was receiving mail for everything baby-related. Clearly, my online activity was being tracked, but I was missing the prominent online notices explaining how I could opt out.

  Then something really weird happened. That baby got a bit older. When he became a toddler, the marketing machine made sure I heard about the perfect baby pull-up pants. He hit kindergarten and I learned about all the books he needed to read.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.48.0, 2023-11-27).

  Privacy Ad Blockers, Newsletters, Notifications, Patch Lady Posts, Privacy, VPNs, Web Browsers, Websites, Windows notifications

• MS-DEFCON 4: Installing just the updates

  Posted on June 27, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.26.1 • 2023-06-27

  

  By Susan Bradley

  If you recall, earlier this month Microsoft released an update that needed some additional steps — manually adding registry keys — to fully protect your machine.

  My position on this matter has been that I did not recommend taking the additional steps unless you knew that you or your firm was specifically being targeted. Microsoft’s notes indicated that it would be releasing a future update that would not require manual intervention — and that if you did not install it, you might experience side effects.

  Microsoft did not provide any hints about which side effects. Helpful, don’t you think?

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (20.26.1, 2023-06-27).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, Kerberos, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 4, Netlogon, VPNs

• What’s hijacking this PC’s broadband connection?

  Posted on December 13, 2020 at 21:10 CST by Fred Langa • Comment in the Forums

  LANGALIST

  By Fred Langa

  A subscriber’s PC auto-connects to an unwanted, unknown, and very slow network — and nothing will set it right.

  That included running Norton AV, resetting the network, changing ISPs, swapping routers, and even using different PCs — but no luck. So the machine’s owner suspected an active hack. Is it?

  Plus: What’s the best tool for definitively checking any single file for malware?

  Read the full story in AskWoody Plus Newsletter 17.49.0 (2020-12-14).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList Anti-malware, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Slow broadband, VPNs, Web connections

• Is there a DNS Blackhole in your future?

  Posted on August 9, 2020 at 23:05 CDT by Tracey Capen • Comment in the Forums

  PRIVACY

  By Richard Hay

  Managing your online security and privacy is a never-ending battle.

  There is a variety of tools for this task, but each has its limitations. So I decided to experiment with a somewhat lesser-known technique called DNS Blackholes. Here’s my report on a journey of discovery.

  Read the full story in AskWoody Plus Newsletter 17.31.0 (2020-08-10).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Privacy Anonymous mode, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, DNS Blackholes, Personal DNS, Raspberry Pi, VPNs

• Security basics for small-business websites

  Posted on May 25, 2020 at 01:00 CDT by Tracey Capen • Comment in the Forums

  WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT

  By Nathan Segal

  Your company website is truly the digital front door to your business. It’s often potential customers’ first impression.

  If you’re building an online presence, security is a top priority; here are some tips for keeping both your website and your business safe.

  Read the full story in AskWoody Plus Newsletter 17.20.0 (2020-05-25).

  Web Development AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Digital assets, VPNs, Web hosting, Website security