Subscribe in a readerSmartphones can be used to spy on you
Phones have become quite sophisticated devices recently, hence the term “smartphone”. They can connect to the internet, download programs, and keep track of your life. All useful features.
Phones can also be used to spy on you, as some people in United Arab Emirates discovered. In this case a network carrier (Etisalat) sent their customers an update that installs on their BlackBerry phones. They told their customers that the update was “required for service enhancements.”
What they didn’t tell their customers is that the update contains spyware made by a company called SS8 Networks. This spyware sent information to their company using the phone (which incidentally drained their batteries from uploading so much data).
It’s still unclear what this spyware actually does, or why it was installed on their customers’ phones. You can read more information on this incident here.
In theory phone spyware could activate the phone’s microphone and/or camera and send information to another site. Or it could intercept SMS’s and phone calls. And so many phones these days also GPS receivers in them so spyware could also theoretically keep track of your location. This is all scary stuff.
There isn’t much we can do about this threat at the moment, if your life or work involves privacy then consider using an old phone with limited features instead of today’s smartphones.
Threatening SMS Scam
Some people have been receiving threatening SMS’s on their phones. The messages include death threats and it seems they’re a part of a money laundering scam. A typical message is:
I am about to kill you. If you want to live, contact (hbko@pobox.sk) to get information on what you will have to do to live. If you ignore this message, you will die!
This particular SMS came from the number 856 207 580 237.
If you reply and contact the sender they ask you for money (up to $10,000). They use all the typical scam tactics like asking you to pay a legal fee and a processing fee.
Investigators have tracked the senders to Laos and Slovakia. Hopefully the senders are caught soon.
If you receive an SMS like the one above don’t reply to it. You can either delete it or report it to a local authority if you’re concerned (e.g. your local police). Remember that it’s just a scam.
Recovering Compromised Facebook Accounts
Accounts are often hacked, including Facebook accounts. Too many times people fall for scam emails telling them to (urgently) click on a link and type in their password. Too many times people don’t know how to tell the difference between the real Facebook login page and one made by a scammer (read here for some hints).
And when an account does become compromised and hacked, the scammers usually use it to send out spam. Then it can be difficult for people like you to get that account back.
Facebook has given this problem some thought and added a way to recover a compromised account. They will send you an email and ask you to verify your account. Then on their web site they’ll ask you some security questions and ask you to change your password.
There’s more info here.
Koobface worm using Twitter to spread
A new worm (a kind of malware similar to a virus) is being spread using Twitter. It appears as tweet that says:
My home video
If you click on the link it takes you to a video page and asks you to download a new codec. I’ve written about the dangers of installing new codecs, read about it here.
So don’t click on these Twitter messages.
GFI Backup
GFI Backup is a simple backup program for Windows. It has enough features for most home users, and it’s free. If you haven’t thought about your own backup strategy this would be a decent program to start with (for Windows users).
For more backup tips read here.
Hacking Wireless Networks
A while back I wrote about wireless network security, click here to see the article. Basically you have 4 ways to set up a wireless network (at home or at the office):
- No wireless security
- WEP
- WPA
- WPA2
No wireless security means just that, anyone can connect to it and use your internet. If you’re wondering why this is a problem have a quick read of this article.
WEP is a very old security system. It doesn’t work.
WPA and WPA2 are still good, as long as you use a long (20 character) password. Read here to learn more about WPA.
Below is a tutorial video that has step by step instructions on how to hack into a WEP protected network. The point is: it’s easy to hack into a wireless network protected with WEP. WEP doesn’t work.
Privacy In Web Browsing
When you visit a web site then later visit another web site, your web browser keeps a history of these sites. You can see this history by going to your browser’s menu and clicking on History.
In the past this history was private because it exists only on your PC. But recently it’s been proven that it’s possible for web sites to get a peek into your browser history. This could be a privacy concern for some people. Here’s how it works.
Some people have come up with some clever code they can place on their site. It basically asks your browser if you’ve visited a particular site before. For a demonstration click here and click on the Get Started link in the centre. Don’t worry, nothing bad will happen, it’s just a demonstration.
So how does this affect you?
You just need to be aware that privacy on the internet is fairly limited these days. If you have something to hide (for whatever reason) or you’d just like a bit more privacy, there are steps you can take to prevent this. It’s a bit technical for beginners but with a bit of effort it’s achievable.
- Some browsers now have a “privacy” mode. For example, Google Chrome calls it “incognito”. Privacy mode doesn’t keep track of which sites you’ve been to.
- You can use Firefox and install something called the “NoScript addon”. This will block the code I mentioned above.
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