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The Most Infamous Computer Hacks & Hackers in History

myhosting.com — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 10:00:20 +0000

The invention of the computer brought much good and innovation; however, there are always those that like to go against the grain – cue the computer hacker! Below is a list of some of the most notorious computer hacks and hackers in history; men that have used the power of the computer to wreak havoc in one way or another.

#1
THE HACKER: Onel de Guzman
THE HACK: The ILOVEYOU computer worm distributed through e-mail
THE RESULT: More than 50 million reported infections across the world with billions of dollars in damage and overwritten files.

On May 4, 2000 much of the world woke to an e-mail in their inbox with the subject line “ILOVEYOU: A Love Letter for You.” What looked innocent enough was actually an extremely malicious computer worm, created by Onel de Guzman, that when opened, would ransack your system, overwriting important files on workstations and accessible servers.

Worse yet, the worm would send a copy of itself to the first 50 contacts in the victims address book, which allowed the worm to spread across the entire world in just one day, infecting more than 50 million computers in total, including units within the pentagon and CIA.

Although ILOVEYOU caused approximately $5.5 billion in damages, because it was written specifically for Outlook, the damages were only incurred by those running Microsoft Windows operating system – imagine the damage if the worm could affect other operating systems!

IMAGE SOURCE: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P6lBSQGjLa4/TarmDqqR1sI/AAAAAAAAAtU/NUSVMVNqyBY/s1600/pict121.jpg

#2
THE HACKER: Jonathan James
THE HACK: Accessed vital DTRA and NASA computer servers “for fun”
THE RESULT: 10 military computers were hacked which led to an overhaul of government security systems and $41,000 in damages.

Jonathan James, also known as c0mrade, is one of the most interesting hackers in history because he not only targeted some of the most major government agencies but also because he was only 16 at the time of his arrest – making him the first juvenile to be imprisoned for hacking!

Motivated simply by the challenge of seeing what he could pull off, James created a backdoor into a Defense Threat Reduction Agency server that was responsible for monitoring the threat of weapons of mass destruction, as well as, he intercepted over 3,000 messages between DTRA employees and gained control of passwords to at least 10 military computers. He also worked his way into the very NASA server that controlled the physical environment (temperature and humidity) of the International Space Station. Although he didn’t aim to do any harm, his ability to infiltrate NASA’s mainframe forced a $41,000 shut down of their system and an overhaul of security systems.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.listshere.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/jonathan-james.jpg

#3
THE HACKER: TiGER-M@TE
The HACK: InMotion/Web Hosting Hub Defacement
THE RESULT: Over 700,000 websites were hacked and defaced.

Having already been successful in hacking and defacing the Google Bangladesh website, a crafty Bangladeshi hacker known as TiGER-M@TE managed to access the entire data center of the InMotion Web Hosting network, accessing and defacing over 700,000 websites and sub-directories in the process. More specifically, TiGER-M@TE replaced the index.php file on each site, which, in turn, altered each site’s home page, making each site a billboard of his exploits that read, HACKED: Server hacked by TiGER-M@TE — #Bangladeshi Hacker..

In a rather non-apologetic statement, TiGER-M@TE’s response to the incident boasted, “I hack 700,000 websites in one shot, this may be a new world Record.”

IMAGE SOURCE: http://blastmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/hack.png

#4
THE HACKER: Gary McKinnon
THE HACK: Accessed vital U.S. Military and NASA computer servers
THE RESULT: He accessed 97 NASA computers and deleted operating files that caused an additional 2,000 military computers to fail.

For as many times as NASA has been hacked, you’d think that they’d have a better security system in place, however, in their defense, they’re the target of the most talented hackers on the planet – Gary McKinnon is no exception. Having been described by a prosecutor as the “biggest military hacker of all time,” McKinnon is an infamous British hacker with Asperger’s Syndrome that managed to crack the code of NASA’s computer system while in search of evidence supporting the existence of UFOs. It is said that he hacked 97 NASA computers and deleted operating files that caused the failure of over 2,000 military computers before he was arrested in 2002.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01498/Gary_McKinnon_1498748c.jpg

#5
THE HACKER: Vladimir Levin
THE HACK: Intercepted Citibank’s dial-up wire transfer accounts
THE RESULT: $11 million intercepted, $10 million never recovered

Throughout the 90s Vladimir Levin dabbled in many computer hacking schemes but his most notable (by a long shot) was when he successfully tapped into the dial-up wire transfers between Citibank and their most valued corporate customers, intercepting the signal and transferring the funds into various foreign accounts in the process. Before he was arrested in 1995, Levin successfully stole roughly $10.7 million from Citibank, however, when all was said and done, of all the money that was taken, only $400,000 was ever recovered and returned – meaning Levin pirated his way to over $10 million in plunder!

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.axban.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Vladimir-Levin.jpg

#6
THE HACKER: Anonymous
THE HACK: HostGator cPanel
THE RESULT: 200 servers hacked to re-direct visitors to malicious third-party site where Trojan virus was then planted

In 2006 an anonymous hacker managed to gain access to more than 200 HostGator system servers and all of their subsequent client sites through a an non-secured section of the host’s cPanel. By exploiting an “unpatched VML security hole” within Internet Explorer, the hacker was able to redirect all incoming traffic to a third-party website that would then infect the web surfers’ computers with a malicious Trojan viruses.

To further complicate the issue, even after HostGator identified the problem and eradicated all of the malicious code, the hack would automatically regenerate; causing the host company to have to repeat the correctional process, until it was ultimately forced to reconfigure all of its 200 servers.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.hostgatorsecretrevealed.com/images/2008/1210-5.jpg

#7
THE HACKER: Robert Morris
THE HACK: The invention of the first computer worm
THE RESULT: Over 6,000 computers were rendered useless

Although he is now a respected professor at MIT, Robert Morris’ most notable notoriety comes from inventing the first computer worm that was not so creatively named the Morris worm. Initially launched from MIT in 1988, to test how many computers were connected to the Internet, his worm proved to be a success, depending on whom you ask. Rending over 6,000 computers completely useless and causing nearly a half-million dollars in damages, Morris’ worm landed him the honor of being the first individual to be tried under the American Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://cryptome.org/eyeball/hacker/pict124.jpg

#8
THE HACKER: Kevin Poulsen
THE HACK: Accessed FBI databases and jammed media phone lines
THE RESULT: He won a Porsche 944 S2 and was featured on TV

Working under the pseudonym Dark Dante, Kevin Poulsen is a black hat hacker that has weaseled his way into the FBI’s investigative databases and wiretap information – but that wasn’t his grand opus. Although he has been dubbed “the Hannibal Lecter of computer crime,” his most notable crime wasn’t cannibalism, it was hacking phone lines, twice.

ONE: When KIIS-FM in Los Angeles was going to give away a brand new Porsche 944 S2 to the 102nd caller, Poulsen managed to hack into the station’s phone system and successfully blocked all incoming callers but himself to ensure that he would be that caller.

TWO: After winning the Porsche, he was forced into hiding but struck again as a result of his face being plastered on the TV screen during an episode of Unsolved Mysteries. During the show the phone lines not so mysteriously jammed – of course, it was Poulsen’s work. It bought him some time but not enough as he was eventually charged with wire, mail and computer fraud, as well as, money laundering.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.axban.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Kevin-Poulsen.jpg

#9
THE HACKER: Anonymous
THE HACK: Spread of Malware via a NetworkSolutions.com widget
THE RESULT: It is suspected that anywhere from 500,000 to 5 million domains were infiltrated and infected with the Malware

In 2010, a group of Chinese hackers remotely hacked into the NetworkSolutions.com servers and managed to spread vicious Malware through the use of a fraudulent customer service pop-up widget on the host’s many domains. Although the fake widget looked innocent enough, it appeared on many of the host’s parked domains and sites that were under construction and, in turn, added banner ads to the affected sites and attempted to install Malware via the Internet browser. Experts have estimated that anywhere between 500,000 and 5 million Network Solutions domains were involved in the outbreak.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.webhostingquery.com/wp-content/themes/couponpress/thumbs/networksolutionsthumb.png

#10
THE HACKER: Joseph Thomas Colon
THE HACK: Accessed classified FBI and government employee passwords
THE RESULT: He gained access to the passwords of 38,000 government employees and sparked the spending of $600 million in security upgrades

The first disgruntled employee to land on our list is Joseph Thomas Colon, a former U.S. government consultant that was able to hack into classified government servers on his way to accessing the passwords of over 38,000 government employees – some as high up as the director of the FBI. The best part is that two free computer hacking programs that Colon downloaded off of the Internet inflicted the majority of the damage! Of course, this obviously showed chinks in the FBI’s computer security armor, therefore, the entire network came to a halt and nearly $600 million was invested to upgrade the digital security and to install 30,000 new desktop computers.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.popfi.com/wp-content/uploads/FBI-seal.png

#11
THE HACKER: Mark Zuckerberg
THE HACK: Accessed Harvard University’s private student database
THE RESULT: The invention of Facebook

In 2003 Mark Zuckerberg hacked into the protected areas of Harvard University’s computer network and used private dormitory ID photos to craft a picture comparing program called Facemash. Because the site received 22,000 page views within the first few hours and was using unauthorized data, Harvard officials investigated the source to found that it was the work of Zuckerberg. Of course, it may not be the biggest computer hack in history in terms of size and numbers but Mark Zuckerberg’s hack of the Harvard University student database is certainly one of the most infamous. Why? Well, because without it, we wouldn’t have Facebook.

IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/mark-zuckerberg.jpg

RESULTING LEGISLATION:

Thanks to hacks like these and countless others, the government and private businesses alike have taken great notice in increasing cyber security threats and are therefore acting accordingly.

For example, in Nevada, a law was passed that requires all businesses to encrypt personally-identifiable customer data that is transmitted electronically, including names and credit card numbers. Further, Massachusetts requires any business that collects information about its state’s residents to encrypt the sensitive data stored on any laptop or other portable device — more than 40 states have enacted similar laws pertaining to cyber security.

In the end, each law that has already been established or that is currently under review is in an attempt to maximize the protection of our privacy and our sensitive private data, as well as, minimize the successes of the average hacker. With some basic front-line defense, the hope is that stories like the ones above can be a thing of the past.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this review of some of the most notorious hacks and hackers in history. Above all, we hope you’ve learned a lesson; computer security is of the utmost importance so make sure that your computer, your host, your server and your Internet connection are all fully secure!

Blog VPS: WordPress, MovableType and More!

Tim Attwood — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 14:00:52 +0000

Power bloggers may find that shared hosting is not handling the requirements of their blog visitors or e-commerce customers. For these bloggers, consolidating all websites and blogs onto a blog VPS will provide improved performance and decreased downtime. VPS hosting offers several advantages over shared hosting. In many cases, WordPress VPS hosting offers the advantages of dedicated hosting without the expense. Power bloggers may want to consider VPS rather than shared hosting, even if they choose the smallest available package at first. With only a few posts, power bloggers may obtain more traffic than they dreamed possible, and they will want to have the resources to handle it.

The VPS Advantage: Customization, Privacy and Resources

One advantage of blog VPS hosting over shared hosting is customization. VPS servers are nearly as customizable as dedicated hosting, which makes VPS the ideal solution for users who need customization without the power associated with dedicated servers. Servers that use Plesk or cPanel will allow for numerous software packages, including WordPress, to be installed.

VPS provides users with their own unique IP address. Unique IP addresses provide increased stability and reliability for a website. If another hosting account on the same server is hacked, blocked or becomes blacklisted, then that problem will not affect a VPS with its own unique IP address.

VPS hosting offers privacy. VPS servers offer the same degree of privacy as using a distinct physical computer that can be separately rebooted. With VPS, users often get root access with full administrative rights, allowing users to have full control over the server and over content hosted on the server. Because VPS accounts are insulated from one another, VPS minimizes access for both customers and hackers. If someone attacks an account on the same server, then your account will still be safe with VPS.

VPS provides dedicated resources. VPS allows for dedicated CPU, RAM, bandwidth and disk space. A fixed number of VPS servers will be offered on a physical node at any one time, and servers can be rebooted or updated remotely without affecting the other VPS hosting accounts on the same server hardware. Bloggers may consider VPS with “bursting” resources, which will accommodate additional CPU time and memory to VPS packages when they are both in need and available. This will provide additional computing power without upgrading to a higher VPS package.

With VPS, no single user will run away with all of the bandwidth capacity because all resources will be regulated. When users need more resources, VPS resources are scalable. Clients can transfer applications and files to a more robust VPS solution or even to a dedicated server solution without disruption in service. VPS will also provide lower latency and faster upload times for even the most high-traffic blogs.

Multi-Site, Multi-Blog Hosting

VPS allows bloggers to host multiple sites on their servers, including WordPress, Movable ype and CMS-based sites like Drupal and Joomla. This flexibility is especially important for entrepreneurs who want to transition to e-commerce, for instance. Having the ability to utilize multiple software platforms on one server allows bloggers to expand their offerings without compromising quality.

WordPress VPS is also ideal for hosting WordPress multisite networks. Since WordPress 3.0, the software has had the capability to run multiple blogs, even those from multiple domains, on one website. However, when those blogs are confined to a shared hosting platform, that platform may not be able to handle the traffic requirements of the multisite network. In those cases, upgrading to VPS is crucial to successful operation.

VPS Control Panels

Bloggers may choose a cPanel or Plesk interface for easy server management. cPanel is designed to transform standalone servers into one-stop point-and-click hosting platforms. cPanel is known for its ease of use, but Plesk has the ability to support both Windows and Linux-based operating systems, allowing hosting providers to utilize the same control panel for both Windows VPS and Linux VPS systems. Both Plesk and cPanel offer you the ability to get up and running more quickly, especially if you aren’t an experienced system administrator.

The slower speed of shared hosting could cause power bloggers to miss out on valuable sales and on visitors if the site loads slowly or does not work to its optimum capacity. With VPS, bloggers will have the resources that they need to take advantage of traffic and to convert traffic to dollars. When bloggers start to manage hundreds of blogs at a time or have traffic that gobbles up the bandwidth of a shared host, bloggers will want to upgrade to a VPS.

myhosting.com Takes your VPS Security Seriously with Proactive Security Patching!

Jeremy Adams — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 21:33:01 +0000

myhosting.com is dedicated to ensuring high quality of service and security and for this reason, we take a very proactive approach to maintaining the software we provide to our clients!

In the past 24 hours, our team patched a high-severity WHMCS security issue for all myhosting.com VPS administrators with WHMCS!

As soon as a fix was identified for the issue found on Dec 1st within WHMCS our team was ready and ensured all of our customers the security and peace of mind of a patched and secure VPS server.

The security issue was found and originally posted on the WHMCS forums at the below link:
http://forum.whmcs.com/showthread.php?t=43462

Optimizing your Online Store with eCommerce VPS

Tim Attwood — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Powering an eCommerce store has now become par for the course for any company that wants to ensure they are at the top of their game and stay competitive in their market. Not only having a regularly updated website but a reliable portal for your customers to buy goods and services online is expected. This means many potential customers will be motivated to seek other options if they discover that your store is slow, ungainly, or simply not available.

Setting up an eCommerce store solution or shopping now requires minimal investment of both time and funds, and the first question you to ask about your eCommerice option isn’t if you should have one, but how you should host it.

Hosting Your Store

When it comes to eCommerce hosting, you will be faced with three basic choices, each of which offers a different set of benefits. The cheapest option is what is known as shared hosting, where your cart or store resides on the same shared server as countless others. Shared web hosting is cost-effective, but there are no controls in place for memory usage or disk I/O management, which means the speed of response from your store is dependent on how many other people are using the server and how they are using it. In addition, you will not be able to customize your piece of the shared server. At the other end of the eCommerce hosting spectrum is dedicated hosting solution where your cart is the sole resident of a server. Not surprisingly, these servers are far more expensive, and while they do offer increased performance they are not quickly scalable if your needs change.

The third open choice available for eCommerce hosting is a virtual private server (VPS) option. The benefit of a VPS is that is balances price with performance, and also allows you to increase the amount of server space you are renting. In addition, you will typically be able to run under whatever OS you prefer and any apps or programs you install will have no effect on other users.

Getting Your Store Up to Speed

Once you’ve decided on an eCommerce VPS server or other hosting option, you’ll have to choose what kind of cart or shopping platform best suits your needs. There are a range of options available online; from open source eCommerce options like osCommerce, a free solution that has been providing online business support for 10 years; Zen Cart, which is also open source and is focused on giving users easy set-up and simple, intuitive functionality; and Magneto eCommerce, which is a for-pay solution that includes access to a wide variety of store extensions and add-ons as well as on-demand training.

You may also wish to consider leveraging the power of an eCommerce VPS server to run multiple stores by installing a control panel such as Plesk or cPanel. Both of these popular options are compatible with a large number of shopping cart and store solutions, and give you the power to multiple stores from a single interface and track details regarding the performance of each one.

The key to making the most of an eCommerce solution in today’s marketplace lies in ensuring that it is optimized to perform and can deliver a consistent experience for customers. By using a VPS hosting solution in combination with a simple-to-use piece of store or cart software, you can make sure that customers always find what they are looking for and can always make their purchase, without having to worry about lost orders or slow response times from your hosting provider.

Forum Hosting: Creating a community with phpBB or vBulletin

Tim Attwood — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 13:00:01 +0000

One of the most powerful ways to interact with an online community is through the use of moderated and standards-compliant forums, which allow a wide range of users to post messages, share thoughts, and collaborate on ideas. If your community is looking for a new place to call home, or if your current forum software is no longer able to deliver the kind of performance you need, you may want to consider an upgrade to a more powerful bulletin board application. In combination with a reliable hosting provider, the right forum hosting tools can ensure that no post goes unread and that every user gets a chance to have their say.

The first thing you will need to consider when you begin the process of hosting an online forum or bulletin board is which app will provide the best utility. A number of popular options exist on the market such as phpBB, vBulletin, Vanilla and others. Choosing one will depend on the needs of your community, as well as the type of hosting that you prefer.

phpBB: Free and Open-Source

phpBB is a free and flat-forum bulletin board software that includes a wide variety of user-created modifications along with style and image packages which allow you to customize your forum experience. The phpBB community forum is active in both forwarding innovations for the forum software and quick to respond to user concerns. Organizations such as Debian, Activision, and the Mozilla add-on forums all use this software. phpBB forum hosting can be done either on a shared web server or on a virtual private server.

vBulletin: The Latest and Greatest

vBulletin is one of the most popular pieces of forum and bulletin board software currently on the market, but it does come with a price tag attached. vBulletin’s Forum Classic 4.0 costs just under $200 for the purchase of a new license and $175 for an upgrade. The price does come with a wealth of features, including a CMS that is built for large communities that allows content to be easily created and then cross-published between websites. A redesigned UI with version 4.0, improved search features and free support from vBulletin for the life of the product all make vBulletin hosting a viable option if your community is large or is growing rapidly.

Vanilla, but not “Plain”

Forums powered by Vanilla are customizable, standards-compliant, and are driven by the open source code of version 2.0.17.10, released in May of 2011. Over 495,000 sites use Vanilla forums for their hosting, and data from any other hosting platform can be migrated to the app. It is also possible to embed Vanilla into any site with a single line of code, allowing you to take your forum anywhere, and ensure that you never lose contact.

In addition to choosing what forum software is best for your community, you will also need to determine if your needs can be met by simple shared hosting or if you will require a virtual private server for your forums or bulletin board. Shared hosting is a great place to start for communities that are small or just finding their feet – forum hosting can be done under a shared hosting solution. If your community has a large number of users or those that post images or video frequently, you may wish to consider the move to a virtual private server. Some forum software, such as vBulletin, is also intensive enough that trying to run it under a shared hosting solution may not be viable. vBulletin hosting on a virtual private server will give you access to a set of specified resources and allow your forum or bulletin board to respond more quickly to user requests.

Forums and bulletins can both provide powerful options to keep a community together and evolving over time. What kind of software package and hosting you need will depend both on the features you want, the price you are willing to pay, and the kind of resources you require.

Movember Donations at myhosting.com!

Jeremy Adams — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 20:27:29 +0000

Employees at SoftCom Inc. (parent company of myhosting.com) are growing mo’s and collecting donations in support of prostate cancer research!

Throughout November, you can signup for myhosting.com services and purchase donations during signup! Not only that, do so and we’ll match your donation! Those needing a charity receipt can donate through our official SoftCom Employee Movember Donation page.

Stay tuned for Movember Pics and more and keep track of your favourite SoftCom Mo!

Domain Name Security: Protecting your Brand

Tim Attwood — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 13:00:02 +0000

One of the most important digital aspects of your business that you can protect is your domain name. With it, you are able to effectively brand your business and ensure that both customers and those with potential business interests can find you online, and you can tailor your SEO and organic link building to take into account the domain name – or names – that you have chosen. Unfortunately, maintaining control of your domain name and ensuring that only appropriate information is disclosed on the WHOIS listing of domain name owners is becoming increasingly difficult, but there are several ways you can help ensure that your domain name remains in the right hands and that you do not fall victim to any type of scam.

Preventing WHOIS Piracy with WHOIS Privacy and Domain Locking

The first line of defense in protecting your domain name is what is known as WHOIS Privacy. WHOIS directories allow anyone with Internet access and a desire to do so to find out who owns a domain, as well as obtain email address and phone number information. According to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), anyone who owns or manages a domain must make this information available publicly on WHOIS directories. Also known as Contact Privacy, WHOIS Privacy is a service that many domain name registrars will offer clients in order to help keep their details confidential. Typically, you will buy a domain name and protection from the same provider, who will then replace your WHOIS information with the information of a forwarding service. This will prevent your real phone number and email address from going public and possibly be used by those looking commit fraud or simply looking to increase their spam mailing lists. In some cases, these providers will be willing to provide your information to outside parties at the first hint of legal action, while others will take steps to ensure that even your payments to them are confidential and cannot be traced.

Another way to help protect your domain name and prevent any changes from being made to it is with the use of domain locking. A domain lock is also known as a registrar lock and is a status code set on your domain name by your registrar. When a domain lock is in place, you will be unable to modify your domain name, transfer your domain name or delete your domain name, but will be able to renew it as required. This lock ensures that no one is able to steal your domain name, and that you will be unable to change your domain name, even if prompted to do so as a part of a scam. In most cases, having a domain lock will not interfere with the operation of your website.

The Importance of Staying Up-To-Date

It’s also crucial that you do not let your domain contact information lapse, and that you notify your domain registrar with any changes in your email address, phone number or physical address of your company. If your domain registrar cannot contact you regarding matters of domain security and domain name registration, you may find yourself with reduced or no access to your domain. While your contact information may not be made public if you have paid for contact privacy, ensuring that your registrar has your correct information is essential.

One other easy way to protect your domain name and your brand is to always know who you are using as your domain name registrar. Companies that sell domain names will often change the names they use, and many have similarly themed names. This means that you will be receiving emails from companies other than the one that supplies your domain registration and security, perhaps trying to lure you away at renewal time. Once you provide them with enough information or access to your domain, they will be able to supplant your current provider or take control of your domain. By making sure that you always know who your registrar is and responding only to them, you will be able to minimize the number of potential security breaches.

Your domain name speaks to your brands, and was likely carefully chosen for maximum effect. Losing control of your domain could mean damage to your website or a significant cost to recover the name if it is taken by another company. Simple steps like WHOIS privacy, domain locking and staying in contact with your registrar can go a long way to ensuring that your domain always remains firmly in your control and that your customers and clients can easily find you online.

Google Adwords: A Beginner’s Guide

George Saleh — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 13:00:34 +0000

If you read my last post, then you know about the Google Adwords Promotional coupons myhosting.com is now offering to our customers. But unlike most other companies, we don’t plan to just throw you a coupon code and leave you in the dark abyss of subpar advertising. To help get new advertisers started, myhosting.com will be writing some helpful articles on how to manage your Adwords account. Today, we will talk about playing it safe with Pre-pay, and we’ll also cover some basic Adwords terms.

Pre-pay

myhosting.com realizes that most advertisers are wary of spending too much on Google Adwords, especially since there is no guaranteed return. That’s why we highly recommend starting your campaign with Pre-pay enabled. Pre-pay means that Adwords will only show your ads if you pay them first. It offers the most control, and it’s a good solution for new advertisers. Once you enabled Pre-pay, be sure to go to the billing tab on your account, and submit a payment equal to your Adwords credit. That way, Adwords will only spend money equal to the amount you pay, so you won’t have to worry about massive charges.

Basic Terms

Before you can successfully run a campaign, you should familiarize yourself with some basic advertising terms. Below is a list of the most important ones:

Keyword: One of the most crucial parts of a good advertising campaign is keywords. A keyword is a word or phrase that triggers your ad when people search for it. If ”camera” was a keyword, and someone searched for “waterproof camera” then your ad would trigger, and might pop up. Bad keyword lists can show your ads to the wrong viewers, so knowing some keyword basics can take your campaigns a long way.

Campaign: Your Adwords account can have many campaigns. Each campaign can target a different location, and a different language. You may have a campaign targeting English speakers in the U.S, and another one targeting French speakers in Canada. There are hundreds of ways to customize campaigns to suite your needs, and knowing the components of a campaign will help you target the right audience for your website.

Adgroup: Every campaign can also have many adgroups. An adgroup is a collection of keywords, and ads that appear when those keywords are triggered. Every one of your products should have its own adgroup, with keywords and ads made specifically for that product. Creating adgroups is simple, and having several well themed adgroups will ensure that the right audience sees your ads.

Ad: Your ads appear on the search results page when a search query matches one of your keywords. Ads have a headline, and two lines of text. They also need to direct the visitor to a page when an ad is clicked. The page the visitor is directed to is called a landing page, and the URL of the landing page is called the destination URL. Writing compelling ads is a skill you’ll need to master if you want potential visitors to click on your ads.

Impression: An impression means that your ad has appeared on Google’s search results page, or on the content network, which we will discuss later. Impressions are an important metric to track, they tell you if your ads are appearing where you want them. Remember that impressions themselves don’t mean much, and if your ad has many impressions and very few clicks, you need to optimize your campaign.

Click: A click means, obviously, that someone has clicked on your ad. Clicks are a good metric to follow, but they need support to mean anything. If you are getting very few clicks, you aren’t showing your ads to the right audience. Lots of clicks and few conversions might mean your landing page isn’t effective. Experiment with different ads and landing pages until you get a good amount of clicks and conversions.

Conversion: An absolute necessity for every serious advertiser. A conversion means that somebody has performed an action that you want, such as having bought a product, or filled out a form. You must decide which pages on your website will be conversion pages, then place the tracking code. Conversion tracking should always be an integral part of a campaign.

Those are just the most basic of Adwords terms. Remember, Adwords can’t just be set up and left in a corner, you have to keep learning, keep tweaking, and only then will you have an effective account. Next time, we will talk about some more advanced settings you should know to run a successful account.

Getting Started with Google Adwords credits from myhosting.com

George Saleh — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 13:00:04 +0000

A fellow PPC advertiser once said that Google Adwords is like a sharp tool. If used correctly, it will produce great results, and stay reliable as long as needed. But when used ignorantly, with no preparation, the only result will be intense pain and frustration. Here at myhosting.com, we try to avoid giving our customers intense pain and frustration, so we’re cautiously announcing our Google Adwords Promotional Coupons.

What exactly is Google Adwords?
Adwords is an online advertising program that shows your ads when users search for related products. If you could use more visitors on your website (and who couldn’t?) then Adwords is the perfect way to do it. Adwords works on a pay-per-click basis, when someone sees your ad and clicks on it, they are taken to a specific page on your site. The great thing about Adwords is the control offered, you get to write the ads, you get to choose keywords, and you get to create the perfect budget for your campaign.

But that sounds complicated!
Well, to be honest, it is. Adwords is a large, complex system, and you’re almost guaranteed to have some sort of competition. Luckily, Google has resources that can teach you the basics of Adwords. The AdWords Beginner’s Guide is the place to go if you want to get started. There, you can learn how to find effective keywords, write eye-catching advertisements, the best way to optimize your campaigns, and more. We won’t lie, it can take quite a few hours to understand, but the reward will be worth the effort.

Well, it seems risky…
Indeed, Adwords can cost hundreds of dollars, and it isn’t right for everyone. That’s where myhosting.com can help you out. We’re offering all our customers $25, $50 and $75 Adwords coupons, for free! This means you get to experiment with in Adwords! This credit will only work with a new account, so just make an Adwords account, then go to your billing tab to apply your promotional code! To get started, just log into your Control Panel and navigate to the Google Adwords area to collect your unique code.

What if I have questions?
The Adwords beginner’s Guide can’t cover everything, but there are two useful resources to help you with Adwords. The Adwords Learning Center is made for professionals trying to pass the four Adwords exams. It’s very text-heavy, but it covers everything about Adwords, so if you need specifics, that’s the place to go. The Adwords help Forum is where you can post questions, there is an active community of professionals that will usually respond within a day.

This looks great, but I don’t have time to learn everything.
Even if you’re too busy to learn everything you need to use Adwords, our coupons can still help you! There are thousands of professional advertisers who can manage your account for you, for a small fee. The Google Partner Search can help you find those professionals. Just use the link, enter the required info, and when you find someone to set up your campaign, remember to give them your coupon code! Make sure you read the Third party guide to make sure your advertising partner is following advertising guidelines.

Adwords is a great way to get your website out of the depths of internet obscurity, and myhosting.com wants to help you do it. Get your free Google Adwords credits, and sign up with Adwords today!

myhosting.com offers Free Google AdWords Credits to Web Hosting Customers

Tim Attwood — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 15:49:08 +0000

In an effort to continually improve our hosting offering and provide customers with business tools to help make them successful, myhosting.com has partnered with Google to offer all shared Web hosting and virtual private server (VPS) clients free Google AdWords credits when they register a new account with Google.

myhosting.com clients can receive up to $75 in free AdWords advertising with their shared Web hosting or VPS hosting account. This promotional offer for free AdWords advertising is available to new and existing customers at myhosting.com. All Web hosting customers will be able to retrieve their promotional AdWords credits from their control panel.

Advertising is an important yet often overlooked part of business. That’s why myhosting.com is providing free AdWords advertising credits along with resources to help users create a successful self-managed advertising campaign. We have always offered customers scalable hosting services, valuable features and add-ons to improve the customer experience. With our promotional AdWords credits, we are also giving customers the tools and information they need to launch a successful advertising campaign that will help our customers generate more business.

Google AdWords is the leading pay per click (PPC) advertising platform reaching more than 80 percent of Web users through search results and partner sites in the Google advertising network. Because advertisers only pay when their ad receives a click through, it’s one of the most economical ways to create a self-managed keyword advertising campaign.

AdWords credits are one example of how we go further to offer Web hosting services and add-ons that benefit our customers and their businesses. AdWords credits are a practical way for small businesses to generate free publicity for their website and jumpstart page views and traffic without a designated advertising budget.

Personal Website and Basic account holders can claim a $25 AdWords credit, Business and Premium shared hosting accounts are eligible for a $50 AdWords credit, while eCommerce and Professional Hosting customers and VPS Hosting account holders are eligible for $75 in advertising credits. This offer is valid with new AdWords accounts, and all advertising services are subject to a $5 activation fee. Credits must be used within 15 days of account creation. Visit myhosting.com to sign up for a Web hosting account and claim free AdWords credits.

For more information, please visit our Google Adwords page.