Tech, Food, News, Life - Blog - Michael's Piece of the Web » security

Spyware repair

Michael — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 23:57:41 +0000

I’ve long talked about the Michael’s Guide section of my site. It includes some instructions and tips on how to help you fix your own computer including an extensive section on viruses and spyware.

While I still believe that a lot of systems can be cleaned by end users, I’ve recently come upon a few systems that were so badly infected that there is no way that the average user could fix them short of reformatting the hard disk (which would result in data loss.)

If you feel you are in this situation, please contact me and I’d be glad to quote you a price on fixing your system. I’ll remove any spyware and viruses, install software to prevent future infections, update Windows with all current patches and updates and more. My prices are reasonable because I consider this a service to the computing community as a whole since infected computers on the internet hurt everyone.

Generate Secure Passwords

Michael — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 03:34:51 +0000

I just updated Michael’s Guide to Choosing Passwords with a new service from Steve Gibson’s (of the Security Now podcast) site.

The following is an excerpt from Michael’s Guide to Choosing Passwords…
A good place to go for a totally random password is GRC’s Password Generator (www.grc.com/pass). This website generates a totally secure, unique and random password everytime you refresh the page. It will generate a 63 character password. If you need a shorter one, just grab as many characters as you need.

Another take on password security

Michael — Sun, 11 Sep 2005 04:33:35 +0000

Never let it be said that I don’t give fair time to those who have differing opinions. In this C|Net article shows that at least one security expert at Microsoft thinks that writing down your passwords is a good thing because people know how to keep written documents secret. It’s an interesting theory, but I still stand by my opinion that you should not write down passwords.

You can read my opinion on the matter in Michael’s Guide to Choosing Passwords.

2 New Michael’s Guides Available Now!

Michael — Wed, 07 Sep 2005 20:46:29 +0000

While the blog part of my site was down, Michael’s Guide was growing. I’ve created 2 new guides.

Michael’s Guide to Wireless Security will help you learn how to better secure your wireless networks. It’s amazing how many people just plug in their router and never set up any security.

Michael’s Guide to Choosing Passwords is a short guide on how to pick better passwords. Your passwords is are the keys to your life. Don’t leave doors unlocked because you chose a weak password.

Check them out today in Michael’s Guides

What I listen to – Security Now

Michael — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 15:53:32 +0000

So, I said the last one was the last podcast featuring Leo Laporte. Well, I just realized there was one more. It’s a brand new one and there’s only been one episode so far. We’ll see how good it is as time goes one.

This podcast is about computer security. It features Leo along with Steve Gibson from grc.com. I’ve mentioned Steve’s site in previous posts.

Their feed is http://feeds.feedburner.com/securitynow

Secure your computer the NSA way

Michael — Mon, 22 Aug 2005 16:16:38 +0000

The NSA (National Security Agency, the government’s top secret decryption and code breaking agency) has released guidelines on how to secure your computer. They have versions for most major operating systems.

It’s pretty thorough and worth a read if you’re worried about computer security (and you should be!).

Take a look at it on the NSA’s site.

Spyware problem getting bigger and bigger

Michael — Tue, 12 Jul 2005 16:40:42 +0000

Most of you probbaly already know what a problem spyware is, but here’s an article that attempts to quantify the magnitude of the problem. remember that I’ve posted some info to help you avoid it and remove it in Michael’s Guide.