AMERICANS 'MISJUDGE ONLINE RISKS' ACCORDING TO BBC NEWS

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/technology/3708260.stm, © BBC MMIV

“A survey found that 90% of those asked could remember when Ms Jackson suffered her ‘wardrobe malfunction’. But only 60% recalled when they last updated anti-virus, firewall and operating system software on their PC. The survey, by a US security group, found people were getting more worried about computer security but some vastly under-estimated how at risk they were.”  

SECURITY GUIDELINES - Keep your computer secure in three easy steps:

 (1) Use passphrases and keep them secret

The first step to secure the information on your computer is to have a passphrase to access it (whether a desktop, a laptop or a PDA; especially if it is a portable device, since these can be lost or stolen), to protect sensitive information stored on it, e.g., personal or patient. For guidelines how to choose your passphrase, how often to change it, etc. see:

http://www.dent.umich.edu/informatics/about/desktop/passphrase.html

(2) Avoid computer viruses

• Do not open questionable email messages or attachments, even from people that you know. Delete any messages with attachments that seem suspicious.

• Install and run a virus protection program on your computer. Free antivirus software is available for members of the U of M community, and is available at

http://www.itd.umich.edu/virusbusters/virusscan-info.html

• Make sure your antivirus software is updated frequently. Checking for updates once a week or month is reasonable and is required for all computers that use the dental school network; those registered with Dental Informatics are automatically updated.

• If you are concerned that your computer has been infected, please contact your local computing specialist or Dental Desktop Support by email at dds.helpdesk@umich.edu or by phone at 3-3318.

(3) Avoid spyware

Spyware is a general term used for software that performs certain behaviors such as advertising, collecting personal information, or changing the configuration of your computer, generally without appropriately obtaining your consent. You might have spyware or other unwanted software on your computer if:

• You see pop-up advertisements even when you're not on the Web.
• The page your Web browser first opens to (your home page) or your browser search settings have changed without your knowledge.
• You notice a new toolbar in your browser that you didn't want, and find it difficult to get rid of.
• Your computer takes longer than usual to complete certain tasks
• You experience a sudden rise in computer crashes.

 For more information see:  http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/spywarewhat.mspx

“Risky business” (more from the BBC News article)

            “Commissioned by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), the survey found that 30% of people believed they had more chance of getting struck by lightning, being audited by the tax man or winning the lottery than they did of falling victim to a computer security problem. PC users aged under 25 were even more sure. 40% thought they would get hit by lightning, or suffer one of the other events, before being caught out by a computer security breach.

            In fact, said the NCSA, people are far more likely to be struck by a hack attack than atmospheric discharge. According to the US National Weather Service, Americans have a 0.0000102% chance of being hit by lightning. By contrast the chances of falling victim to a computer virus, phishing attack, malicious hack attempt or other cyber security dangers are currently running at 70%, according to statistics gathered for the E-Crime Watch Survey.

            ’Cyber-security should become second nature, just like brushing our teeth,’ said Ken Watson, chairman of the NCSA. The majority of people did pick out computer security as the biggest risk of the four choices they were given.

            The NCSA has declared October to be National Cyber Security Awareness month in the US and is running a series of events to warn home users, small firms, educators and parents about the true scale of the threats they face. Mr Watson said 91% of PCs were infected with spyware programs that spy on browsing habits and report what they see to spammers and others. The NCSA is planning an in-depth follow-up study to its survey in late October that will conduct technical examinations of home PCs to see how well protected they are and what risks they face.”