Surfing the web no longer a solo activity. Facebook
, Twitter
, and other social networks have quickly become an integral part of the online culture, and with them comes an array of serious threats to your privacy. In this article, I’ll identify some of the key dangers of social networking and offer a few easy steps that you can take to stay safe online. Social networking is built on the idea of sharing information openly and fostering a sense of community. Unfortunately, an online network of individuals who actively share their experiences and seek connections with other like-minded people can be easy prey for hackers engaged in social engineering and phishing attacks. It’s important to be aware of the threats and to use discretion in all of your online interactions.
Take Care Before You Share Online
For starters, even in an open community of sharing, you should observe commonsense boundaries. As President Obama warned students in his September address to schools, “be careful what you post on Facebook
. Whatever you do, it will be pulled up again later somewhere in your life.” The core truth of that statement can be applied to any social networking site, and possibly to the Internet as a whole. As a general rule, refrain from posting things online that you will regret later. The odds are good that someone, someday, will stumble across it, and it may come back to haunt you— especially if you are planning to run for public office. If you think that abstaining from posting embarrassing or inflammatory comments online ruins the fun, you’re playing a dangerous game. Remember who your friends are, and know that a friend of a friend can be an enemy.
Don’t Lose Sight of Who Your Friends Are
When you write a Twitter
tweet or post a Facebook
status update, you have to keep your audience in mind. More and more these days, we hear stories about people who forgot that their boss was part of their network and then said things online that resulted in their being reprimanded or even fired. The adverse consequences of posting inappropriate on line comments have become so commonplace—at least anecdotally—that they have earned an entry in the Urban Dictionary: Facebook fired
. Even announcing something as seemingly innocuous as “I’m bored” in a status up - date during work hours can have dire consequences if the wrong people see it. With services like Twitter, and with the recent changes to Facebook that permit any interested party to view and search your updates, you really have no way to hide.
Recognize the Visibility of Your Posts
You’ve thought it through, and you want to shout to the world how you feel about having to work overtime and during a weekend that you had earmarked for recreational activities. You have checked and double checked, and you’ve determined that your boss is not in your network, so you let loose on the keyboard and speak your mind. Unfortunately, you’re not home free (figuratively speaking) just yet. Being outside of your network, your boss can’t see your post directly, but if a Facebook 
friend who is connected with your boss comments on your status update—even just to say “I sympathize”— your boss may be able to click on the link through the friend and see your post. Go ahead, be social. Share your trials and tribulations with your growing network of adoring followers. But for your own safety, keep one essential rule in mind: Never post anything online that you wouldn’t be comfortable having everyone you know see—because eventually they probably will see it.
Define the Parameters of Your Privacy
Marrying privacy and social networking may seem terribly unintuitive. How can you be social and open, and yet protect your privacy? Well, just because you are choosing to share some information with a select group of people does not necessarily mean that you want to share everything with everyone, or that you are indifferent about whether the information you share is visible to all. Facebook, in particular, has drawn unwanted attention in connection with various privacy concerns. If you have used Facebook for a while, you may have noticed advertisements that incorporate your friends’ names or photos associated with them. Facebook does provide privacy controls for you to customize the types of information available to thirdparty applications. If you look at the Facebook Ads tab of the privacy controls, though, you’ll notice that it doesn’t give you any way to opt out of the internal Facebook Ads. Instead, it states (alarmingly) that “Facebook strives to create relevant and interesting advertisements to you and your friends.”
Approach Tattletale Quizzes With Caution
For many users, one of the primary attractions of Facebook
is the virtually endless selection of games and quizzes. And part of their allure is their social aspect. In the advergames, you compete against your friends; through the quizzes, you learn more about them while being briefl y entertained. The ACLU exposed problems with how much information these quizzes and games share, however. Typically, when a Facebook user initiates a game or quiz, a notice pops up to declare that interacting with the application requires opening access to information; the notice also provides the user the opportunity to opt out and cancel, or to allow the access to continue. The permission page clearly informs the user up front that allowing “access will let [the application] pull your profile information, photos, your friends’ info, and other content that it requires to work.” Under the circumstances, you may wonder (as the ACLU has) why a game or quiz application would “require” access to your friends’ information in order to work.
Facebook Policy Concerns in Canada
Facebook’s privacy policies have run afoul of the Canadian government, too. Canada’s Privacy Commissioner has determined that those policies and practices violate Canadian privacy regulations, and has recommended various changes Facebook should make to comply with them. One of the commissioner’s biggest concerns involves the permanence of accounts and account data. Facebook offers users a way to disable or deactivate an account, but it doesn’t seem to provide a method for completely deleting an account. Photos and status updates might be available long after a user has shut down a Facebook profile. And like the ACLU, the Canadian government is unhappy about the amount of user information that Facebook shares with thirdparty application providers.
Exercise the Privacy Controls You Have
Although the concerns of the ACLU and the Canadian government run a little deeper, Facebook does offer privacy controls for restricting or denying access to information. Since Facebook is a social networking site designed for sharing information, many of the settings are open by default. It is up to you to access the Privacy Settings and configure the options as you see fit. For each available setting, you can choose to share information with Everyone, with My Networks and Friends, with Friends of Friends, or with Only Friends; if you prefer, you can customize the settings to finetune access further.
Beware of Hijacking and Phishing Scams
By its very nature, social networking is all about socializing, which means that users are more than usually disposed to let their guard down and share information. They come to the network to expand their professional connections, reestablish contact with old friends, and communicate in real time with pals and peers. And for predatory bad guys, launching social-engineering and phishing attacks in this convivial environment is like shooting fish in a barrel. Most people know not to respond to e-mail requests from exiled Nigerian royalty promising millions of dollars in return for help smuggling the money out of the country. (Anyone who doesn’t know better probably shouldn’t be on the Internet; such people are a danger to themselves and to others.) But what if a good friend from high school whom you haven’t seen in 18 years sends you a message on Facebook explaining how her wallet was stolen and her car broke down, and asks you to wire money to help her get home? You might be less suspicious than you should be. Attackers have figured out that family and friends are easy prey for sob stories of this type. Using other attacks or methods, they gain access to a Facebook account and hijack it. They change the password so that the legitimate owner can’t get back in, and then they proceed to reach out to the friends of the hijacked account and attempt to extort money such a Facebook message or e-mail plea, pick up the phone and call the person directly to confirm its legitimacy.
Don’t Let a Tiny URL Fool You
Another threat that has emerged recently as a result of social networking is the tiny-URL attack. Some URLs are very long and don’t work well in e-mail or in blog posts, creating a need for URLshortening services. In particular, Twitter, with its 140-character limit, has made the use of URL shortening services such as Bit.ly a virtual necessity. Unfortunately, attackers can exploit a shortened URL to lure users into accessing malicious Web sites. Since the shortened URL consists of a random collection of characters that are unrelated to the actual URL, users cannot easily determine whether it is legitimate or phony. TweetDeck, a very popular application for sending messages in Twitter, provides a ‘Show preview information for short URLs’ option, which offers some protection.
The preview window supplies details about the shortened URL, including the actual long URL that the link leads to. If you aren’t using TweetDeck for Twitter, or if you need to deal with shortened URLs on other sites and services, maintain a healthy dose of skepticism about what might lie behind the obfuscated address that a message points to.
Source: PC World
Google Chrome is a browser that combines a minimal design with sophisticated technology to make the web faster, safer, and easier. It has one box for everything: Type in the address bar and get suggestions for both search and web pages. Will give you thumbnails of your top sites; Access your favorite pages instantly with lightning speed from any new tab.
Google Chrome is an open source web browser developed by Google. Its software architecture was engineered from scratch (using components from other open source software including WebKit and Mozilla Firefox) to cater for the changing needs of users and acknowledging that today most web sites aren't web pages but web applications. Design goals include stability, speed, security and a clean, simple and efficient user interface.
Download this portable browser at Here.
mIRC is a popular Internet Relay Chat client used by millions of people, and thousands of organizations, to communicate, share, play and work with each other on IRC networks around the world. Serving the Internet community for over a decade, mIRC has evolved into a powerful, reliable and fun piece of technology.
It has a clean, practical interface that is highly configurable and supports features such as buddy lists, file transfers, multi-server connections, SSL encryption, proxy support, UTF-8 display, customizable sounds, spoken messages, tray notifications, message logging, and more.
This version of mIRC (v6.34) is a small though important update to the previous version and has been released primarily to resolve an important issue with ‘if’ statements being processed incorrectly in the scripting language. Several other small issues have also been fixed in this release. Although this is a minor update, it includes important changes and is a highly recommended download.
Download this nice net app at Here.
This patch is designed only for all versions of WIndows XP SP3. By increasing the number of TCP/IP connections allowed at one time, your internet speeds up, especially when you are downloading stuff or playing online games.
I recommend you to set the limitation to 500 to 600. Before applying the patcher, remember to unplug internet connections and restart computer to make sure the TCP/IP file is not in use.
Download this patcher at
Here.
Internet Explorer has been in a features arms race with Firefox for a while. More and more people are switching to Firefox because of its speed and stability. A big reason people still use Internet Explorer is it is the first browser that a new user will see so they become familiar with it.. If Internet Explorer did not ship with Windows it would not have the amount of users it does.
If that new user wants to use Internet Explorer but wants to give their browsing a speed boost. Here are a few tips.
If you Don't Need a Proxy Don't Use One.
A proxy server is used if you have a slow connection. If you have a high speed connection you usually don't need it. Here is how you remove it. Go to tools and select Internet Options. In the Internet Options click on the Connections tab and press the LAN settings. Just remove all of the check marks, click on OK.
Get Rid of 3rd Party Toolbars
Some software companies have learned that there is money to be made by installing their software branded toolbar. The problem with these toolbars is when installed they take up bandwidth and computer resources while you browse the internet. To remove the toolbars you don't need, just identify the toolbar and remove it for add/remove programs. If it is not listed in add/remove programs it may be spyware. You will then need to scan your computer with your favorite spyware/malware software.
Increase the Amount of Connections Internet Explorer uses.
By default Internet Explorer only uses 10 simultaneous connections to download content from a webpage. Here is how you can increase the amount of connections. Open notepad and paste the code below in it.
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionInternet Settings]
"MaxConnectionsPerServer"=dword:00000020
"MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server"=dword:0000020
Save the file by clicking save as, change Save as type to All Files, name the file IEfaster.reg.
Now, merge that registry setting to registry by double clicking file IEfaster.reg and Click Yes on the dialog that appear. Restart your computer and done.
So there you have it. With these few changes you can really change the performance of Internet Explorer. If you want a completely better experience give Firefox a try. You won't be disappointed.
BeTwin is a software that enables two to five users to share the computing power of a single computer, i.e. the Host PC. It creates a virtual PC station for each user to simultaneously and independently operate in each station, similar to the user operating on the Host PC. It makes use of the pre-emptive multitasking feature of the Windows operating system to fully utilize the unused processing power in processors and enables users to run the same or different applications simultaneously and independently to create and edit documents, and to share peripherals, for example, CD-ROM, printers and other hardware installed on the Host PC.
All users can also surf the Internet and access emails at the same time using only one modem, one telephone line, one ISP account and even share network access with unique customized desktop and network login.
BeTwin runs and displays information directly from DOS, Windows and Java applications of the Host PC without requiring any compression or decompression of the displayed information, thereby providing a multi-user platform for additional users to be added to a Host PC.
BeTwin provides cost benefits by reducing the user’s initial investment, cost of upgrading and cost of maintenance and service. The process of installation is quick and simple. By installing the video card into the Host PC, connecting the Universal Serial Bus keyboard, mouse, speaker and monitor and installing the BeTwin software, an additional user is added.
Btw, you can download BeTwin at Here.
With Super Bluetooth Hack v1.07, you can hack other mobile phones. Once connected to a another phone via bluetooth you can call many functions, such as:
- Read his messages
- Read his contacts
- Change profile
- Play his ringtone even if phone is on silent
- Play his songs(in his phone)
- Restart the phone
- Switch off the phone
- Restore factory settings
- Change ringing volume
- And many more..
Wanna call from his phone? Yes, you can! It includes all call functions like hold etc.
Notes:
- When connecting devices use a code 0000
- At start of program on smartphones do not forget to turn on bluetooth before start of the application
Download this mobile hacks tools at Here.
Like Meebo, AirTalkr offers a web based instant messenger that lets you stay connected with your buddies on Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, Windows Live and other popular IM services.
But there’re a couple of reasons why you may want to give AirTalkr a shot.
Unlike Meebo which is available only for the browser, you can also install AirTalkr IM on your desktop using Adobe AIR runtime. AirTalkr can run on Windows and Mac.
The other useful feature in AirTalkr is something called AirCards. You can view the latest photos that your buddies have uploaded on Flickr, read their most recent blog entries and Twitter tweets right inside AirTalkr.
More Info can be got at here.
Microsoft® Silverlight™ is a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering the next generation of .NET based media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web.
Silverlight offers a flexible programming model that supports AJAX, VB, C#, Python, and Ruby, and integrates with existing Web applications. Silverlight supports fast, cost-effective delivery of high-quality video to all major browsers running on the Mac OS or Windows.
Deliver media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web that incorporate video, animation, interactivity, and stunning user interfaces. Seamless, fast installation for users, thanks to a small, on-demand, easy-to-install plug-in that is under 2 megabytes (MB) in size and works with all leading browsers.
Consistent experiences between Windows-based and Macintosh computers without any additional installation requirements. Create richer, more compelling Web experiences that take greater advantage of the client for increased performance.
Stunning vector-based graphics, media, text, animation, and overlays that enable seamless integration of graphics and effects into any existing Web application. Enhance existing standards/AJAX-based applications with richer graphics and media, and improve their performance and capabilities by using Silverlight.
Download Microsoft Silverlight 1.0 at here or here.
Here is a simple way to boost your Cable/DSL speed, just copy the ENTIRE BOLD text in the "quote" box below to Notepad, then save them as *.reg files, ie "DslBoost.reg".
Then all you have to do to modify/restore is double-click the *.reg file!!
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters]
"GlobalMaxTcpWindowSize"=dword:0000ffff
It has worked wonders with me as it increased my speed from 5.0mbps all the way to 9.9mbps or sometimes a whole damn lot more like once it hit 15.7mbps youve got to try it!!
If u want to test your speed before and after the hack, goto this link for a free test of speed.
In my machine this hack has worked well, but I haven't tried for other machines. If this hack don't work for your machine, just simple doing the "undo registry" like thats above. Here is entry for undoing this hack:
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters]
"GlobalMaxTcpWindowSize"=dword:00007fff
Remember that its for Cable/DSL
only and not for crazy Dial-up!!
Note:
Some people confuse "Servic es" and change it to "Services". DON'T do this because it makes the hack not work!! Also, it took me a while to find out where I saved this so please thank me for this!!!
BTW: PLEASE make sure the "Hide extensions for known file types" option is unchecked........this will enable you to change the file type from *.txt to *.reg and activate the hack.
