Tip #4330 - Who's Behind Your Keyboard?
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Who's
Behind Your Keyboard?
Hello, everyone!
This security article is going to be a little different than some
of the others we've run in the past. Usually, I write about a security
issue that is affecting certain programs or a program that will help
fix a security problem, but today, I'm going to talk about the number
one threat to computer security.
And that is the
person sitting behind the keyboard (including me!)
Now, I don't want
to offend anyone, so I'll start by giving you my story.
One day, I was
putting together a small Web site just for fun. In the process of
doing that, I decided I wanted a small sound effect to play when a
person ran their mouse over one of my images. I figured that would
be simple enough. I could just search the Web for the sound I wanted
to use. Well, that was a bad idea! I downloaded the sound and as soon
as I played it, my computer completely froze. After getting my computer
started back up in Safe Mode, I ran a virus scan and it found three
viruses on my system. Oh no!
If I hadn't downloaded
that sound, this would never have happened. The sound file I downloaded
was not from a site I had ever been to before. It was free and the
file size seemed awfully large for a two second audio clip. Given
all of this, I still downloaded the file. Why? Because I really wanted
that sound, I guess.
The moral of the
story is that sometimes, we all get carried away on the Internet.
We start clicking on things and downloading things we know we shouldn't
trust. This is what gets us all in trouble. I can write a million
warnings about viruses and vulnerabilities, but the only thing that
will truly keep your data safe is good old fashioned common sense!
Here are some
guidelines to follow:
1.) Don't download
items from Web sites you do not trust.
2.) Don't install
things you do not recognize.
3.) If it seems
too good to be true, it probably is.
4.) Ninety-nine
percent of viruses cannot harm you without you clicking OK at some
point.
If you follow
those tips, you will save yourself many, many headaches in the future.
Until next time, stay safe out there, my friends!
~ Gary
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