Greetings from EagleTech Computer Service!
Here are some topics we will be covering in this edition :
- What Username and Password should you use?
- Australian CrimTrac to stop cyber scams
- Remote Service is really catching on...
- I am grateful for each of you!!
It's funny how we Northwesterners look forward to the rains of Winter being over and the warm Summer days, and then as the dog days of Summer linger a bit too long we circle back and look forward to cooler and moister days, well... here we go into the change of weather that Fall and Winter brings.
With changes to weather we are reminded of change in general, and certainly in the world of computing the changes seem to come at us with blinding speed. I'll do my best to adapt with every change of season in the realm of computing and keep you functioning and enjoying your computers.
Tom Sparks
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What username and password should you use?
It seems that almost daily, and certainly weekly we hear of yet another company or bank or credit card hacking scam and we wonder when/if it will hit us and how we can avoid it. When it comes to avoiding being hacked there is one thing we can do to help avoid the discomfort that comes from being hacked. It has to do with how we handle our usernames and passwords.
Too many people use their email address or first underscore last name as a username to make it easy to remember. Well, that also makes a hacker’s job easy.
Here's the deal: Your username is part of a security access system and should be considered a critical security access code. When you see “username” think “code name.” Your email address is not a very good code name.
We recommend that your username never be associated to your personal information like first or last name, email address or phone number. Here are some good examples of strong code names: BlackJack, SilentHammer, LandShark, NinjaSmoke.
Be creative and develop usernames that are just as unique as your passwords.
How long should your passwords be?
The internet is flooded with guides on strong password development, but you must always plan for a worst-case scenario. For example, a rogue Russian network of hackers decides to penetrate all your access points within the world wide web. They are armed with a super computer that can "brute force" access all your personal and financial information. A brute force attack can not be stopped. However, it can be delayed for 40-plus years with the right passwords.
Most super computers can run every character on a keyboard 500 times a second, allowing it to run thousands of combinations of characters per minute. So using a # or $ in your password doesn't really make a difference when a computer is running all characters 500 times a second. It’s not the complexity of a password that makes it hard to crack; it’s the length of the password. The more characters in a password, the longer it will take for a super computer to run through all the possible combinations of characters.
I recommend a 24-character or more password, and at the very least 12 characters. Sounds crazy, but here are some examples to decrease the stress of it all: HarleyDavidsonStarbucks!!!, FireEarthWindWater4Life!#!. Long passwords with a combination of uppercase and special characters increases possible combinations exponentially, therefore taking a super computer upwards to 40 years to run all possible combinations.
Here's the bottom line: Strong usernames combined with long passwords will increase the security of your online life exponentially.
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One-stop shop for cybercrime set up in Australia:
Summary: Internet users in Australia will soon to be able to report a cybercrime to the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network that is being setup by police information agency Crimtrac.
Reporting cybercrime could become as easy as clicking a mouse under a government program to be unveiled soon.
The national police information agency Crimtrac is putting the final touches to the scheme known as the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN).
Cybercrime is said to affect around 5.4 million Australians each year at a cost of AU$1 billion.
Criminals are becoming more sophisticated and using global networks.
CrimTrac CEO Doug Smith told a parliamentary inquiry on Friday the new ACORN scheme, to be launched "shortly", would complement the work already done by the agency.
The agency holds, on behalf of all police forces, the national fingerprint and DNA collections, an 8.7 million-record police report database and national child offender records.
ACORN will enable people to securely report cybercrime through a website.
The types of matters that could be reported include: strange texts, emails, or phone calls, being tricked into giving personal or banking information, a computer virus attack, or cyberbullying.
It will also be possible to report the discovery of illegal, banned, or "objectionable" material online.
Police will determine which matters to investigate, with the Australian Crime Commission providing support with intelligence gathering.
Consideration is also being given to a "tech crime offenders registry".
While I am not aware of such an agency being developed for US citizens I am sure one is in the planning stage and will soon be released to the public. The plague of fraud in this area must be dealt with and such approaches should go a long ways towards helping. I will notify you when such an approach is available in our country.
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Remote Service is really catching on:
As many of you are already aware, I am using the remote software TeamViewer for more and more service for each of you, my clients. It has become a great way to obtain quicker and less expensive service for my clients and I see it only increasing in use as time goes by.
Of course there will always be those times where an onsite visit will be preferred or necessary but in those cases where I can assist you via TeamViewer and the Internet it saves time, gasoline costs, wear and tear on my service vehicle and service fees for you.
Generally I am providing this service in the morning and early evening hours so if this is an approach that appeals to you please download TeamViewer at www.teamviewer.com, install their Basic and Personal use approach and then give me a call.
The fee structure is based on 15 minutes increments, with each 15 minutes costing only $10 and payment is requested via check or credit card when the service time reaches at least 30 minutes.
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I am Grateful for each of you!
I want to take a moment to express how much I appreciate each of you as my clients and the many referrals you send my way. It is such a great honor to have you share my services with your friends and family members.
I literally have no advertising expenses thanks to each of you. As a result I'm able to keep my service fees far lower than the general market and will always do so because of this. Every time you refer me to someone you help to guarantee that service will be available and available at a great hourly rate.
As we head into the holiday season I'm so very thankful for each of you and I hope your times with friends and family are enhanced via your computer and the many fun social networks that are available.
Enjoy!
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Best of success to you in all your computing.
I’m here to assist you when you need it. As just a reminder... my onsite residential fee is $40 per hour and for the commercial setting it is $50 per hour. For those times when working remotely with your computer over the Internet is a good option then the cost savings to you are substantial since I only need to charge on a "15 minute" increment instead of the full hour fee for an onsite visit. This means just $10 per 15 minutes. Once again...for any clients you send my way, who use my services for an hour or more, I'd be happy to credit you with $10 of free computer service at your next call. Do let me know if you send folks my way and I'll keep notes on that as a credit for my next visit to you, and don't feel embarrassed to remind me you would like that credit when I visit.
Thanks so much!
Your Computer Technician
Tom Sparks
503-577-4201
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