Transcript Hikmat Leeds Kashmir Muslim Professionals Association Internet and Email Common Risks and Remedies For Hikmat by Abdul Karim 29th February 2004 © Biztech Solutions, 2004

Hikmat
Leeds Kashmir Muslim Professionals Association
Internet and Email
Common Risks and Remedies
For Hikmat
by
Abdul Karim
29th February 2004
© Biztech Solutions, 2004
Contents
Some Risks
Some Remedies
“Best Practice”
Any Questions?
Some Risks…
 Quality

of Information
Is it genuine?
• Hoax websites and emails abound
• The “sender” of an email is not always the person
it is coming from!
• Beware of the “chain-letter” emails
• Is the person you are chatting to really who they
say they are?

Unsuitable Material
• Pornography, Racism, Other Extremisms

Transient Content
• Here today, gone tomorrow
…Some Risks…
 Annoyances



Unsolicited junk email
Pop-up Adverts on Internet
Spyware (aka pestware and malware)
•
•
•
•
Records your internet browsing habits
Solicits pop-up adverts
Opens up your computer for hacking
Uses up your Internet bandwidth
…Some Risks…

Viruses


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Permanent damage to computer (BIOS corruption)
Damage to computer operating system
Damage to your data, e.g. randomly changing figures
in a spreadsheet
Sending your personal files to others in the address
book
Open up your PC for remote control by hackers
Sending viruses to other people
…Some Risks…
 Financial





Risks
Auto diallers can dial premium rate numbers
Theft of credit card/bank details (most banks
will cover loss to promote online trade)
Ordering something on-line that never turns
up
Repair cost of virus damaged PC
Becoming victim of a scam
…Some Risks
 Legal





and Other Risks
Breach of employer’s/ISP acceptable use
policy
Risk to privacy by email/internet monitoring
Identity theft
Libellous emails
Prosecution for viewing/distributing illegal
content
Some Remedies…
 Spyware



Detectors
Designed to search and destroy spyware or
adware, e.g. Ad-Aware
Will only work with known spyware programs
Will need to use the latest program to detect
the latest products
…Some Remedies…
 Anti-virus




software
Used to detect and remove viruses
Needs to be updated regularly to be effective
Can delete infected system files which will
interfere with the operation of the computer
Slows down the system
…Some Remedies…
 Internet


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Content/Email Filtering
Commercial software is available to provide
different levels of web/email filtering, e.g.
NetNanny, CyberPatrol, etc
Can use IE’s built-in Content Control with
password to create a list of approved sites
(almost foolproof, except for hijacked
websites)
Nothing is 100% foolproof
…Some Remedies…
 Firewall



Stops your PC being hacked from the Internet
by blocking unsolicited incoming traffic
Slows down PC performance
Can interfere with some communications
programs
…Some Remedies
 Pop-up

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Blockers/Stoppers/Killers
This type of software will stop most pop-up
advertising windows appearing during internet
browsing
Can interfere with some websites using this
feature but easy to over-ride
Best Practice…
Abide by your employer’s/ISP’s Acceptable Use Policy
for Internet and Email
 Always make regular backups of your work on the PC
 Remember, unless your email is encrypted then it will be
readable at every stop from start to finish
 Beware of hoax virus warning emails that ask you to take
actions such as delete files from your PC or forward the
email to everyone in your address book.
 Regularly scan your PC for Adware/Pestware etc using
latest version of software such as AdAware

…Best Practice…



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Keep your anti-virus program up to date – it’s only as
effective as the last update
Ensure your Windows operating system is up to date by
downloading directly from Microsoft.
Use Firewall software to keep out uninvited guests
(hackers can break into your PC and use it if it is not
properly secured)
Use internet content control or other suitable filtering
software to protect children from accessing
inappropriate content
Create a secondary email address (e.g. with Yahoo) for
registering on websites and subscribing to mailing lists
…Best Practice…




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Use complex passwords, e.g. combination of
lowercase and uppercase letters plus numbers
Always log out or lock your PC if leaving it unattended
in an open area
If you do any on-line shopping then consider getting a
separate credit card with a small credit limit
Regularly purge out temporary internet and history files
from your browser
Never open any unsolicited/unexpected email
attachments – even if they appear to be from a trusted
source. Turn off Preview Pane in Outlook/Outlook
Express to prevent activating viruses inadvertently
…Best Practice





Never provide your personal or financial details
on a web page that is not secure (look for the
small padlock security symbol)
Never respond to junk email even if it gives the
option to de-register from the mailing list
Never apply Windows patches or updates sent
through email
Never send confidential/sensitive information
via email, e.g. credit card details
Never say you haven’t been warned!
Remember Internet’s 4 Us
 Unreliable
 Unpredictable
 Unregulated
 Unaccountable
Special Offer
 All
Hikmat members entitled to one free
on-site Annual Service to clean up their
PC, courtesy of Biztech Solutions
 Alternatively, you can request a free
CDROM with free versions of Pop-up
Stopper, AVG Anti-virus, ZoneAlarm
Firewall, and Adaware
Any Questions?