On top of all that, it seems like every week we are scrambling to make sure our credit cards are secure after hearing about yet another large retailer that has had their customer data compromised. So, how can we enjoy all the benefits and convenience the online world has to offer while keeping our data and accounts safely out of the clutches of grasping greedy hackers who don’t care how much heartache or chaos they leave in their wake as they plow through the lives of innocent web surfers? 

This article is the first in a series where I will be sharing some basic steps for staying safe online. If you think you are immune from cyber-crime, you might want to think again. Take a look at this eye-opening Infographic by GO-Gulf

There are things we all need to be doing to protect ourselves as much as possible as well as to make it easier to recover in the event there is an unexpected problem. It isn’t enough to simply “hope” nothing goes wrong. It’s important to take action now so we can avoid regret later.

So, what are some of these actions? In upcoming articles I’ll be talking about each of these in more detail.

• Use strong unique passwords for every single account you have
• Scan your computer regularly for malicious programs such as spyware and keyloggers
• Learn how to spot social engineering scams
• Protect your data from loss and theft

Have you ever been “hacked” online? You are not alone. What steps have you taken to prevent the same thing from happening again? I’d love to hear from you. please leave a comment below and let me know your experiences, or post your questions and I’ll do my best to answer them.

Until next time, stay safe!

Since WordPress is such a popular site building platform, hackers love it too. Wordpress sites are very susceptible to attack by both bots and humans, so it is absolutely essential that you implement security measures on your WordPress website.

This morning, we received an email from the folks over at wpmudev. They have a brand new WordPress security video series that we wanted to share with you. The first video in the series is an overview of why it is important to have good security systems on your WordPress site. Other videos will cover specific topics in more detail.

Unfortunately, we cannot embed the videos to share them here on our site. To view the wpmudev WordPress Security Essentials videos, visit their YouTube Channel here.

If you are a WordPress developer, we highly recommend you check wpmudev out. They have a lot of great information. They also offer a membership program which gives you access to themes, plugins and other great tools to make your websites really zing.

So, are you using good security measures on your site? What are your favorite tools or techniques to keep hackers at bay? Leave your comments below.

This is NOT a good idea.

We have had more than a few clients come to us for help when their “new” computer didn’t work very well. When a computer is purchased second-hand through a friend, at a pawn shop or through the classified ads, you have no idea what kind of condition it may be in. More often than not, the machine will have problems including viruses, malware, or even failing hardware. What seems to be a “good deal” often winds up costing you extra time, money and frustration.

If you really are interested in getting a good used computer, avoid buying from people or places you aren’t absolutely sure about.  Instead, you should check with a reputable local computer dealer who  may sell refurbished systems. Some large online companies such as Dell Computer, may sell refurbished systems with a limited warranty. Be sure to compare apples to apples however when looking at new systems vs. used. You should consider the hardware, the operating system and other software which may (or may not) come pre-installed on an older system.  Also, the amount of memory (both RAM and ROM) in the system can make a big difference in its performance.

Have you ever purchased a used system? What was your experience? You may have something to share that can help other people make a good buying decision.

photo credit: Neubie

We find this funny looking symbol (or some form of it) everywhere online. What does it mean? It stands for RSS or “Really Simple Syndication”. In a nutshell, When you see this symbol on a website it usually means you can have some kind of content from that site delivered directly to you. This means you do not have to keep visiting the site over  and over to see if there have been any updates.

If you subscribe to a site’s RSS feed, you will instantly be notified when new content is added to the site. You can opt to have these updates delivered to your e-mail or you can receive them via a special piece of software called an RSS reader. One very popular (and free) RSS reader is Google Reader but there are many others.

Why subscribe to RSS?

If you like to keep informed on a specific topic, using RSS is the easiest way to keep track of all your favorite online resources. Once you subscribe to a site’s RSS feed, you can check your e-mail or RSS reader each day to catch up on any new information from your favorite site(s). Using RSS can save you a lot of time especially if you like to read more than a couple of websites.  Using RSS means you don’t have to take the time to visit each individual site you subscribe to. Using your RSS reader, you can see at a glance what the new content is on each site. You can then decide if the content is something you want to read.

The following video will help to illustrate how RSS works and how easy it is to subscribe.

Now that you know how to use RSS, you can put your knowledge into practice by subscribing to our RSS feed. Enjoy!

photo credit: HiMY SYeD / photopia

Recently, I had a major client who lost their server to a power surge.  You guessed it – they had not run an adequate system backup in a very long time.

I will be the first to admit, it is so easy to put off doing regular data backups. I think many people simply don’t understand how devastating a complete loss of data can be.  Besides that, we all believe it will never happen to us. If you are the owner of a business, do you really want to lose all your customer records, inventory information, or financial information? Do you volunteer to keep the books for a professional organization or community club?

Do you keep your family tree history which you have poured your heart and soul  (not to mention  countless precious hours) into on your PC?  If any of these situations (or something similar) applies to you, you need to back up your files on a regular basis.

So, how do you go about this??  My personal recommendation is to use an online backup service such as  Carbonite or Mozy. Either of these will  provide a good option for individuals or a small to medium sized business. Mozy is compatible with both Windows and Mac systems and it uses fewer system resources. Carbonite is compatible with Windows and now Mac systems, is user friendly and many find it works more smoothly for them. Carbonite does require more system resources however.

Other Options

Another option for doing automatic backups of your data is to purchase your own external hard drive and use one of the many programs available on the market which will schedule and perform your backups. You can also manually backup your files as long as you actually remember to do it! You can use CD ROM, SD cards, USB drives, or some other similar media. The major drawbacks to doing your backups in this manner are:

• Not remembering to do the backups consistently
• Not keeping the backups safe and secure.

If you simply keep your backup data in a desk drawer or somewhere else on-site, they are not really safe. Disasters such as house fires, theft, water damage and electrical storms are all too common and can quickly wipe out your system and your data backups all at the same time.

Remember These Things

When you are considering the best way to backup your data the important factors to keep in mind are :

• Make sure you back up all appropriate files
• Do your data  backups regularly. Automatic systems are usually best to ensure consistency.
• Keep your backups in a safe place. Off site is preferable.

Most importantly, set up some kind of data backup system – anything is better than nothing at all – and do it today..   Here’s hoping you will never be singing the backup blues!

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photo credit: lyrandian