March 2008

Happy Spring!

It's been a long, cold winter, at least here in Nebraska, and we're finally experiencing a few days of warmth since spring has arrived.  Spring is a time for new beginnings:  flowers bloom, trees leaf out and houses get cleaned.  Is it also time for a new beginning for your IT?  Do you need to re-evaluate your goals to determine where you've been and where you're going? 

When evaluating your goals, keep this in mind:  as of June 30th of this year Windows XP will no longer be sold as an operating system. As of April 2009, support on Windows XP will end. If you need assistance in making decisions regarding these deadlines, call us at 402-778-7999, or visit us at our website to see if we can work together to get you where you need to be.

 

Windows Tips & Tricks
 Tweaking Your Vista Desktop
 Cindy Troyer, Vice President OurTech Solutions

Save Keystrokes in Internet Explorer
Here's a shortcut method to reduce the number of keystrokes you must type in the address bar of your internet browser to complete a URL.  For example, to go to the OurTech Solutions web site at http://www.ourtechsolutions.com, simply type in ourtechsolutions in the address bar of your browser.

Now hit Ctrl + Enter together.  You have just saved yourself 15 keystrokes!

More Keystroke combinations:

Ctrl + Enter - Auto-complete *.com address
Shift + Enter - Auto-complete *.net address
Ctrl + Shift + Enter - Auto-complete *.org address

If you add Alt to any of those key combinations, it will auto-complete and open the new address in a new tab as well. Alt+Ctrl+Enter will auto-complete a *.com address in a new tab.

Change Your Start Menu to Small Icons
Windows Vista uses large icons by default in the start menu.  If you like to pin a lot of items in your start menu, it can fill up pretty quickly.  To save space, you can make the icons smaller.

Right click on the start button, select Properties and then click the Customize button.

Now scroll down all the way to the bottom and uncheck the checkbox for "Use large icons."

The Downside of P2P
 Protect Your Network from File Sharing Applications
 Robert Troyer, CEO OurTech Solutions

If your organization is experiencing an increasing number of virus infections a likely source of these infections may be from employee use of File Sharing Applications. File Sharing or Peer-to-Peer (P2P) applications as they are commonly called are generally associated with web sites that allow individuals to share music files, such as Morpheus, LimeWire, or Kazaa to name just a few.

The problem with File Sharing programs like Kazaa is that it is a legal application that the user knowingly and willingly installs. This alone means that it will automatically beat or bypass the majority of general-purpose security defenses such as anti-hacker [firewall] or anti-virus software. If your company does not have a policy prohibiting employees from connecting to a file sharing application you should consider updating existing policies and finding away to monitor your employee web content.

Spyware and adware infiltrate and infest computers in very subtle ways when employees download favorite music or movie files, or while chatting online. Spyware takes advantage of these downloads and creeps into computer systems through these shared files, so that they go unnoticed. Problems are generally only suspected when the computer slows down or when you start to receive vast amounts of unsolicited advertisements, sometimes known as browser hijacking. The best way to find such infestations is to use a spyware scanner that will detect them and enable their removal from the system.

What are the business risks of allowing employees to file share with other unknown parties?

  • Installation of malicious code - When you use file sharing applications, it is difficult, if not impossible, to verify that the source of the files is trustworthy. These applications are often used by attackers to transmit malicious code. Attackers may incorporate spyware, viruses, Trojan horses, or worms into the files. When you download the files, your computer becomes infected.
  • Exposure of sensitive or personal information - By using file sharing applications, you may be giving other users access to personal information. Whether it's because certain directories are accessible or because you provide personal information to what you believe to be a trusted person or organization, unauthorized people may be able to access your financial or medical data, personal documents, sensitive corporate information, or other personal information. Once information has been exposed to unauthorized people, it's difficult to know how many people have accessed it. The availability of this information may increase your risk of identity theft.
  • Susceptibility to attack - Some file sharing applications may ask you to open certain ports on your firewall to transmit the files. However, opening some of these ports may give attackers access to your computer or enable them to attack your computer by taking advantage of any vulnerabilities that may exist in the file sharing application.
  • Denial of service - Downloading files causes a significant amount of traffic over the network and relies on certain processes on your computer. This activity may reduce the availability of certain programs on your computer or may limit your access to the internet.
  • Prosecution - Files shared through file sharing applications may include pirated software, copyrighted material, or pornography. If you download these, even unknowingly, you may be faced with fines or other legal action. If your computer is on a company network and exposes customer information, both you and your company may be liable.

Your business can be exposed to increased risk of network intrusions by allowing the use of these applications. OurTech recommends that these applications be blocked and removed from any device attached to your network to avoid the risks outlined above. OurTech can integrate application blocking on your network to prevent employees from using these applications on your network. Additionally, we can integrate web content monitoring and blocking services to prevent unauthorized access to these sites to minimize your business risks.

A Virus Suitable for Framing
 A Whole New Vehicle for the Trojan Horse.
 Derrald Farnsworth-Livingston, Vice President of Systems, OurTech Solutions

A recent computer Trojan, dubbed as Mocmex, can identify over 100 antivirus programs and disable them as well as the native Windows firewall. It then downloads files from sites on the Internet and then hides itself making it extremely difficult to recognize and remove. It can send personal information including identity and financial information, however, it is currently only stealing online gaming passwords.

So what makes this particular virus special? It is found on digital picture frames made in China and sold at retailers such as Best Buy or Target. Once a user plugs their frame or their storage card from a frame into a computer, it rapidly infects the machine. This new breed of virus exemplifies the extent to which the hackers and virus programmers can reach in delivering viruses. Many specialists believe that this is only the beginning. According to the Consumer Electronics Association, in 2007 more than 2.26 million digital picture frames were sold. That number is only set to increase in the next year. This means that hackers will have an increasing base to which to deploy viruses without having to bypass security and antivirus controls on the Internet.

The new Trojan isn't the only piece of malware found on these devices recently. In October of 2006 a set of Apple iPods were infected with W32.Rajump at the factory. This piece of malware sends information about potential vulnerabilities about the computer system it is infecting back to a server in China.

The good news? Most antivirus programs that are current with definitions should find these viruses and clean them. Before plugging in any device, make sure that the virus definitions are current on your machine by checking the definition date in your antivirus program. If the antivirus program is out of date, be sure to upgrade before you use any device. It doesn’t matter if it’s an iPod, a digital picture frame, or even a storage card, viruses can be transmitted by any of these devices and can cause serious problems.
 
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