Saturday, May 15, 2004
Phishing ( fishing or ID thief ) Aims for Epidemic Status
PCMag.com Security Watch Newsletter.
Every week we bring you an overview of the current viruses, worms and other threats that are trying to get to your computer.
Phishing and spoof attacks are on the rise. According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) Web site, over a dozen unique phishing attacks appear every day.
More alarmingly, attackers are getting more innovative with their spoofing of sites, even going as far as to load fake address bars into your browser. A new eBay phish reported by the APWG contains a link that looks like a standard auction link, but takes the victim to a specially crafted web page that downloads a keylogger program
The latest Citibank phish we've seen links to a page on a theater troupe site that pops up a window to get the your account and pin you use for your ATM, and then redirects you to the real Citibank site.
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Tech News - 4 - Techs -- "RFID"
RFID
May 12 2004 07:18AM
Precisia LLC, a developer of advanced printed electronics technologies, announces that it is the first company in the world to produce fully functional radio frequency identification (RFID) tags with high-speed printed antennas in one location. This breakthrough will hasten the implementation of RFID technology for major retailers and their suppliers. In synthesizing printing and electronics technologies, Precisia is positioned to lead the development of RFID tag production methods.
RFID tags consist of two essential components - a chip and an antenna. Precisia's innovative manufacturing processes utilizeconductive inks to produce printed antennas at high speeds in place of copper, aluminum or screen-printed antennas. Its tag production system assembles the unique components of an RFID device in one location, the first step toward complete high-speed antenna printing and chip attachment in a single production process.
Complete RFID devices are currently being produced and tested at Precisia's dedicated printed electronics design and testing laboratory in Ann Arbor. Customers also benefit from the facility's testing capabilities, which analyze printing and electronics design to ensure high-speed printed RFID solutions work before significant investments are made.
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
A Tech Fest, called, NextFest, in SF this weekend
NextFest, a festival showcasing more than 100 innovative exhibits highlighting the future of design, entertainment, exploration, health, the home, security, and transportation May 14-16.
Sponsored by General Electric and Wired magazine, WIRED NextFest will be held at the 50,000-square-foot Fort Mason Festival Pavilion in San Francisco.
Featured in the NASA exhibit will be several displays, including technologies representing space exploration, personal exploration rovers, personal satellite assistants, a full-scale model of the Mars Exploration Rover, a model of the scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) engine-powered hypersonic X-43 aircraft, a display of "power beaming," a futuristic concept that uses lasers to beam energy to an aircraft so it doesn't need to carry fuel; a video and display of sub-vocal voice recognition technology and an authentic Moon rock collected during one of NASA's Apollo missions.
On Saturday, May 15, at 5 p.m. PDT, NASA Space Architect Gary Martin and Dr. James Luyten, Executive Vice President and Director of Research for The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, will participate in a panel discussion entitled "The Future, Above and Below: A Conversation with Two Pioneers in Space and Deep-Sea Exploration."
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Tech Stuff - Spyware Glossary from...
Consortium Of Anti-Spyware Technology vendors (COAST)
Glossary:
Spyware
Spyware is any software program that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge, and can relay this information back to an unauthorized third party.
Methods of Delivery: Spyware may arrive bundled with freeware or shareware, through peer-to-peer downloads, attached to or embedded in email or instant messenger communications, as an ActiveX installation, or may be placed on your computer accidentally or deliberately by someone with access to it. Once on your system, spyware secretly installs itself and goes to work. Unlike personalization or session cookies, spyware is difficult to detect, and difficult (if not impossible) for the average user to remove.
While some spyware is installed with the user’s knowledge (although the user may not understand exactly what s/he has done), much of the time it is installed surreptitiously as part of another program installation. Even if the bundling of software and information tracking practices are disclosed to the consumer through the End User License Agreement, such disclosures are rarely noticed by users or give them any real understanding of what information will be collected by the spyware and how the collecting party will use it.
Characteristics: Because spyware is not viral, anti-virus software does not offer protection. By attaching itself to legitimate downloads, spyware easily passes through firewalls unchallenged. And by intertwining itself with files essential to system operation, spyware cannot be safely removed by simply deleting files with a system-cleaning tool.
Effects: In their most benign form, spyware programs can significantly slow systems down and result in more pop-up ads than usual. At their most malicious, spyware programs can lead to identity theft, theft of intellectual and other property, and data corruption.
Adware
Often used as a term for spyware, it is preferred and used by makers of software that include ad-serving mechanisms. Adware is advertising-supported software that displays pop-up advertisements whenever the program is running. (More info)
Browser Helper Object (BHO)
A small program that runs automatically every time an Internet browser is launched. Generally, a BHO is placed on the system by another software program and is typically installed by toolbar accessories. They can track usage data and collect any information displayed on the Internet.
Bundled
An arrangement in which one or more software programs are included with another program, for technical reasons or because of a business partnership. Many instances of spyware installations come through bundling.
Cookie
A mechanism for storing a user’s information — such as login information and passwords, or a user's previous activity on a site — on a local drive. (More info)
Dialers
Dialers are software that once downloaded disconnect the user from his or her modem's usual Internet service provider, connect to another phone number, and the user is then billed. (More info)
Drive-by Download
While not a piece of spyware itself, this misleading dialogue box serves as a gateway for the stealth installation of spyware applications. In some cases, spyware can be installed even if the user does not choose the “yes” or “accept” button.
File-sharing programs
These are software applications that allow the exchange of files (especially music, games, and video) over a public or private network. See Peer-to-Peer. (More info)
Freeware
Software that can be downloaded and shared at no cost. (More info)
Hijacker
Hijackers typically come in two categories, Browser/Page Hijackers and System Hijackers:
Browser/Page Hijackers
Applications that attempt to take control over a user's home page or desktop icons, resetting them to a pre-determined website destination. (More info)
System Hijacker
Software that uses the host computer's resources to proliferate itself or use the system as a resource for other activities. This taxes the host computer's resources, negatively affecting computer and Internet speeds.
KeyLoggers
See System Monitors.
Opt-in
An online process by which a user chooses to receive information (such as e-mail newsletters) or software, often by checking a check box on a Web page or software installation screen.
Opt-out
An online process (such as un-checking a pre-checked box) by which a user actively chooses not to receive information, such as e-mail newsletters or software. Actively opting out will prevent a user's information from being a shared with businesses. (More info)
Users should be warned that most “opt-out” options are actually a scam that serves to confirm legitimate/active email addresses. Privacy experts recommend that users do not use the “opt-out” option unless they are personally familiar with the company where the email originated.
Parasite
A parasite is unsolicited commercial software or programs installed on a computer for profit without the consent or knowledge of the user.
Parasiteware
Parasiteware is the term for any Adware that by default overwrites affiliate-tracking links. This behavior is viewed as parasitic because this software diverts affiliate commissions and credits the affiliate's income to another party. To the end user, Parasiteware is not a serious security threat. See Thiefware.
Peer-to-peer (P2P)
A method of file sharing over a network in which individual computers are linked via the Internet or a private network to share programs/files, often illegally. Users download files directly from other users' computers, rather than from a central server.
Many P2P programs bundle third-party advertising programs, and are currently the second largest source of virus, Trojan and datamining infections.
Remote Administration Tools/ RATs
Some Trojans, called RATs (Remote Administration Tools), allow an attacker to gain unrestricted access of a computer whenever the user is online. The attacker can perform activities such as file transfers, adding/deleting files, and controlling the mouse and keyboard. See Trojans, Keyloggers.
Scumware
A slang term for spyware or any unwanted software/programs installed on your computer.
Shareware
Software that is distributed — usually via the Internet and or CD-Rom — for free and on a trial basis. (More info)
System Monitors/Keyloggers
These applications are designed to monitor computer activity to various degrees. They can capture virtually everything a user does on his or her computer, including recording all keystrokes, emails, chat room conversations, web sites visited, and programs run. (More info)
Thiefware
Thiefware applications steal affiliate commissions by either overwriting tracking cookies or spawning new windows to redirect traffic from search engine keywords or other websites. This practice, while not currently illegal, is considered unethical among those in the merchant/affiliate community. See Parasiteware.
Tracking Cookies
Not to be confused with personalization cookies (which allow users to customize pages and remember passwords), some web sites now issue tracking cookies. Tracking cookies allow multiple web sites to store and access records that may contain personal information (including surfing habits, user names and passwords, areas of interest, etc.), and subsequently share this information with other web sites and marketing firms.
Trojan Horses
Trojans are malicious programs that appear as harmless or desirable applications. Trojans are designed to be actively harmful to PCs by intentionally damaging PC operating systems, other software or hard drives. Trojans are generally distributed as email attachments or bundled with another software program (often fraudulent versions of legitimate software).
Web bugs
A file, usually a small or invisible graphic image, that is placed on a Web page or in e-mail to allow a third party to monitor user behavior. (More info)
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Money Matters - Privacy in the Digital Age
Privacy and the Digital Age
Technology and the Quality of Life
by: Kamil Z. Skawinski
Personal privacy has long been one of the most cherished of civil liberties. Unfortunately, as the famous anti-utopian novelists Aldous Huxley and George Orwell long ago recognized, it is probably among the most tenuous of human rights. Having witnessed the abuses of the fascist and communist regimes which emerged in 20th-century Europe, and having lived through a turbulent period in history when even established democracies engaged in censorship and extraordinary domestic surveillance activities, both British writers fathomed just how easily a government could subvert individual privacy and other rights and freedoms should that necessity be deemed expedient and/or technically feasible.
While many today laud Huxley and Orwell for accurately anticipating the threats to privacy and liberty posed by the state, these visionaries did not quite anticipate the genesis of the sundry and problematic non-governmental tracking and monitoring technologies that have proliferated in our present Digital Age. And, so, we have discovered much to our chagrin that the much-maligned "Big Brother" now has lots of competing and worrisome "Little Brothers."
Link to the rest of the story @ www.ccnmag.com
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Money Matters - Privacy in the Digital Age
Privacy and the Digital Age
Technology and the Quality of Life
by: Kamil Z. Skawinski
Personal privacy has long been one of the most cherished of civil liberties. Unfortunately, as the famous anti-utopian novelists Aldous Huxley and George Orwell long ago recognized, it is probably among the most tenuous of human rights. Having witnessed the abuses of the fascist and communist regimes which emerged in 20th-century Europe, and having lived through a turbulent period in history when even established democracies engaged in censorship and extraordinary domestic surveillance activities, both British writers fathomed just how easily a government could subvert individual privacy and other rights and freedoms should that necessity be deemed expedient and/or technically feasible.
While many today laud Huxley and Orwell for accurately anticipating the threats to privacy and liberty posed by the state, these visionaries did not quite anticipate the genesis of the sundry and problematic non-governmental tracking and monitoring technologies that have proliferated in our present Digital Age. And, so, we have discovered much to our chagrin that the much-maligned "Big Brother" now has lots of competing and worrisome "Little Brothers."
Link to the rest of the story @ www.ccnmag.com
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Money Matters - Privacy in the Digital Age
Privacy and the Digital Age
Technology and the Quality of Life
by: Kamil Z. Skawinski
Personal privacy has long been one of the most cherished of civil liberties. Unfortunately, as the famous anti-utopian novelists Aldous Huxley and George Orwell long ago recognized, it is probably among the most tenuous of human rights. Having witnessed the abuses of the fascist and communist regimes which emerged in 20th-century Europe, and having lived through a turbulent period in history when even established democracies engaged in censorship and extraordinary domestic surveillance activities, both British writers fathomed just how easily a government could subvert individual privacy and other rights and freedoms should that necessity be deemed expedient and/or technically feasible.
While many today laud Huxley and Orwell for accurately anticipating the threats to privacy and liberty posed by the state, these visionaries did not quite anticipate the genesis of the sundry and problematic non-governmental tracking and monitoring technologies that have proliferated in our present Digital Age. And, so, we have discovered much to our chagrin that the much-maligned "Big Brother" now has lots of competing and worrisome "Little Brothers."
Link to the rest of the story @ www.ccnmag.com
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Friday, May 14, 2004
Windows XP "Service Pack 2" info
Windows XP Service Pack 2--an inside look
By Jo Best
Silicon.com
May 14, 2004, 7:25 AM PT
Microsoft has been showing off its Service Pack 2 offering and dropping some serious hints as to what users can expect from the security-focused, soon-to-be-ubiquitous offering.
The message from the Redmond types is that SP2 is not just a collection of patches, it's a more comprehensive addition of security code as well as other software bits and bobs--like an overhaul of the wireless LAN user interface--that will turn up on users' desktops as well.
SP2 will herald the change to a system provisionally known as 'delta patching'--term that Microsoft says will be changed to something "more fluffy" when the pack is eventually released--whereby patches will only download changes to a file, not the entire file itself. It's a change that Microsoft reckons will cut download times by 80 per cent and is aimed as a nod to the dial-up populace.
Link to the rest of the story
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
DO a FRIDAY UPDATE on your NORTON, Anti-Virus Software
Computer security specialist Symantec(Norton AntiVirus) Thursday moved swiftly to patch for four very serious vulnerabilities in its popular Norton firewall product suite.
An alert from Cupertino, Calif.-based Symantec described the flaws as "high risk" and warned that a successful exploit could wipe out a user's computer. Attackers could also execute remote code with kernel-level privileges on the targeted system.
The vulnerabilities, first discovered by researchers at eEye Digital Security, affect both enterprise and consumer Norton users.
I just went for an update (12:30 PST)and sure as hell there was one there. And I just update Tus and Thursday. Hurry up! Go do it now and then come back and read...
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Money Matters don't be CONNED on DRUG CARDS
Con artists seize on new drug discount plan
Seniors warned about ID theft, fraudulent cards
By Bob Sullivan
Technology correspondent
MSNBC
As if sorting through the 70 or so new Medicare-approved prescription drug discount programs wasn't confusing enough, senior citizens now have something else to worry about: con artists taking advantage of the mess. Scattered reports from around the United States indicate criminals are using this month's launch of the discount program to sell bogus cards or commit identity theft.
The prescription drug program takes effect June 1, and providers began to sell the cards last week. With them, qualifying seniors can obtain discounts of 10 to 25 percent on medication.
The program is temporary, a bridge to more dramatic Medicare reforms coming in 2006. For now, the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 has created a competitive marketplace for discount drug plans, approving about 70 different national and state plans operated by private companies.
LINK TO THE REST OF THE STORY
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
More on the DVD rot, 2 stories
May 12, 2004
The Man Who Investigated "DVD Rot"
PC Magazine
Speculation about DVD rot is as old as DVD itself, but it didn't break out of the newsgroups and chat rooms until the Sydney Morning Herald published its infamous article about the work of Melbourne failure-analysis engineer Rohan Byrnes. We asked Rohan for an update about what he's learned since the story broke last year.
How did you first get involved in the DVD rot controversy?
It started for me in 2002, when one of my dual-layer discs began exhibiting classic DVD rot symptoms: increasingly corrupt playback with no visible evidence of damage.
Link to the rest of the story
-------------------------
And this one;
DVD Rot, or Not?
By Don Labriola
May 11, 2004
Last Updated: May 13, 2004
The recent Associated Press story about insidious, disc-devouring "rot" wasn't the first to hit the mainstream press. Major news outlets Worldwide have for years been publishing sensational reports that up to 20 percent of all mass-produced CDs and DVD-Video discs were slowly destroying themselves. But when an alarmed DVD industry investigated whether the problem was indeed as catastrophic as it appeared, it turned out that most reported incidents had actually been caused by improper disc handling and storage. Despite the latest round of headlines, true "DVD Rot" today appears to be exceedingly rare. Users themselves are the greatest threat to the longevity of their DVD collections.
Most people think of DVDs as little more than high-capacity CDs, but though the two are very similar, DVDs have vulnerabilities that require particular care in their handling, storage, and cleaning. But with a bit of knowledge and effort, nearly all damage to DVDs can be prevented.
END
Hope these help. I know you'll got alot of what's really inportant to you type stuff on those DVD/CD
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
Microsoft Warns of 'Important' Windows Flaw
By Spencer Swartz
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A flaw in Microsoft Corp.'s (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) almost universally used Windows operating system could allow hackers to take control of a PC by luring users to a malicious Web site and coaxing them into clicking on a link, the company warned on Tuesday.
link
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Browser Use Stats in %'s
Browser Percentage:
Internet Explorer - 6 42.45%
Other Browsers - 21.53%
Firefox - 12.48%
Mozilla - 9.76%
Internet Explorer 5 - 5.89%
Safari 1 - 1.66%
Netscape 7 - 1.62%
Firebird - 1.41%
Opera 7 - 1.21%
Konqueror - 1.05%
AOL 9 - 0.20%
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
NEWS SpywareInfo
First, let me say that, if you feel you understand the importantce of what your agout to read, but feel that the "doing" should be done by others, please do so.
Start
If you've ever been infected with a browser hijacker, you know what an infuriating situation it is. For all intents and purposes, your $1,000 computer is converted into a source of revenue for some fly-by-night web site unable to generate legitimate web traffic. Once installed, it usually takes an expert to remove a browser hijacker effectively.
If you've gone through this before, you never, ever want it to happen again. So, how do you prevent being hijacked? This is surprisingly easy.
Dump Internet Explorer
First and most simply, stop using Internet Explorer. If you use either Mozilla, Firefox or Opera, you are immune to all known and future browser hijackers.
You are immune for two reasons. First, most people use Internet Explorer, so most malicious code is custom built to exploit it. Second, Opera's and Mozilla's programmers take security very seriously and have made these browsers very secure. It is not possible to install software from a web site using these browsers without at least seeing a prompt of some sort asking permission.
If you have to use MSIE
Switching browsers is the easy answer. For some people, that is not an option for various reasons. Internet Explorer can be made reasonably safe without locking down every useful function, but it requires some third-party software.
The most important thing is to update your browser and operating system. Go to WindowsUpdates and install the latest version of Internet Explorer (currently MSIE 6 Service Pack 1), then go back and install any security patches that are available. Also install any service packs and patches for Windows itself. This one action will save you from the overwhelming majority of browser hijackers.
After you've done that, replace Microsoft Java VM with Sun Java. You can download that from http://www.java.com/. There are several hijackers that exploit flaws in Microsoft Java VM. Sun's Java is more secure and more up to date. Make certain, in Java's options, that Sun Java JRE is set to work with Internet Explorer.
Open Internet Options from the Windows control panel and click the "Security" tab. Highlight the "Internet" icon and then click "Custom Level". Choose "Medium" from the drop-down box at the bottom, then click the "Reset" button. Click ok, then click "Custom Level" again.
You can always RESET if you find this to be too much input on the Scripting (Yahoo useser). And if you screw up just go back to were you clicked on the Security Tab and click on the "Default Level" botton.
Set your options just as I have listed below:
.NET Framework-reliant components
Run components not signed with Authenticode (Disable)
Run components signed with Authenticode (Prompt)
ActiveX controls and plug-ins
Download signed ActiveX controls (Prompt)
Download unsigned ActiveX controls (Disable)
Initialize and script ActiveX controls not marked as safe (Disable)
Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins (Enabled)
(This actually refers to Java and Flash, not ActiveX)
Script ActiveX controls marked safe for scripting (Prompt)
Miscellaneous
Access data sources across domains (Disable)
Drag and drop or copy and paste files (Prompt)
Installation of desktop items (Prompt)
Launching programs and files in an IFRAME (Prompt)
Navigate sub-frames across different domains (Prompt)
Software channel permissions (High safety)
Scripting
Allow paste operations via script (Prompt)
Scripting of Java applets (Prompt)
Be aware that MSIE has many security flaws that will allow a clever site designer to bypass security settings, even if their site is in the restricted zone. More must still be done or start use another browser.
Now you need to install SpywareBlaster. ActiveX programs need to use a CLSID (identifier number) before Windows will execute them. SpywareBlaster stops certain ActiveX CLSIDs from working by setting a "kill bit" in the Windows registry. This will stop ActiveX drive-by installations from programs that use those numbers, as well as preventing software already installed from running if they use that CLSID.
As a final safeguard, install a program called Browser Hijack Blaster at www.majorgeeks.com. This program will watch for alterations to the home page, default page and search page as well as watching for Browser Helper Objects being installed. If it detects a change, it immediately will pop up a warning and ask if you wish to allow the change.
Be very careful about installing programs. By far the most common source of malware infection comes from third party bundles. Grokster, for instance, will install a dozen or more unwanted programs.
Finally, you also should disable the preview pane if you use Outlook or Outlook Express. Simply by highlighting an email while the preview pane is active, even to delete it, you could activate any scripting in that email. Visit TomCoyote.com site for instructions on doing that.
Follow the steps above and it will be very unlikely that you ever will be hijacked again. Periodically scan your system with antispyware and antivirus software. END
Mike Healan of SpywareInfo
Of course, buying a router will not hurt at all...
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Tech stuff - What Makes a STRONG Passwords today
Troublemakers steal passwords either by collecting the password as you enter it or by figuring it out. Collecting the password as you enter is why at your safer using Opera than Microsoft's IE for your browser and that at Yahoo and others that lets you use the "SECURE" link to sing in. That will encryped your password. You can prevent crackers from stealing your passwords or otherwise gaining access to your accounts by setting up hard-to-guess passwords and changing them frequently.
To set up strong passwords and close that entry door to online crooks, follow as many of these rules as you can, first make it 16 characters long then:
Avoid real words, names, or dates that mean something in your life, because a crook who knows you may guess them. Keep honest people honest.
Make passwords harder to guess by adding punctuation or numbers as in brain*scan or gue55thi5pa55word.
Combine the first letters of a common phrase to make your password. For example, you might take the phrase "If elected I promise to lower taxes for all" and turn it into the password "ieip2ltfa".
Change your passwords regularly. That doesn't mean once a year whether you've been attacked or not; it means changing passwords as often as every two weeks, or every month at a minimum. It's not as convenient, but convenience and security don't always go together.
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Privacy and the Digital Age Technology and the Quality of Life
By: Kamil Z. Skawinski
Personal privacy has long been one of the most cherished of civil liberties. Unfortunately, as the famous anti-utopian novelists Aldous Huxley and George Orwell long ago recognized, it is probably among the most tenuous of human rights. Having witnessed the abuses of the fascist and communist regimes which emerged in 20th-century Europe, and having lived through a turbulent period in history when even established democracies engaged in censorship and extraordinary domestic surveillance activities, both British writers fathomed just how easily a government could subvert individual privacy and other rights and freedoms should that necessity be deemed expedient and/or technically feasible.
While many today laud Huxley and Orwell for accurately anticipating the threats to privacy and liberty posed by the state, these visionaries did not quite anticipate the genesis of the sundry and problematic non-governmental tracking and monitoring technologies that have proliferated in our present Digital Age. And, so, we have discovered much to our chagrin that the much-maligned "Big Brother" now has lots of competing and worrisome "Little Brothers."
It is this reality that has many concerned that the right, even the mere expectation of personal privacy has gone the way of the buggy whip. As a result, we must ask ourselves, "What have we wrought because we have sought this great technology?"
Personal Privacy, Computer Databases, and Personal Convenience
"Many people are upset by the idea that they are being watched, that the Orwellian 1984 scenario is increasingly becoming true," said Steve Gibson, president and founder of the Gibson Research Corporation www.grc.com, a software developer and Internet publisher concerned with issues surrounding Internet privacy and security. "And as our technology advances, it is increasingly possible for all e-mail, for all phone conversations, for all communications to be monitored and run through some sort of filter. Today, there's no way that any individual who does anything other than conduct private conversations in the middle of Central Park underneath a blanket can avoid that kind of surveillance. Essentially, we're all under surveillance."
Gibson noted that our personal privacy, however, is not being diminished solely by controversial governmental surveillance measures such as "Carnivore" or "Echelon." We also lose some degree of our personal privacy and anonymity because we increasingly want to lead lives where technological conveniences are readily accessible.
"When I take a toll road in southern California, for example, I've got a little transponder in my car window that validates who I am," Gibson said, "and so there's now a record in some computer somewhere that I drove through such-and-such a toll gate at a certain time and date. And all of that information can someday be aggregated into some big database if for some reason someone determines that to be necessary. Yet, I want to have the convenience of not having to anonymously go through a human tollbooth, stopping my car, and physically handing somebody my money to pay a toll. I like not having to do that. But the convenience of not having to do that now takes a toll on my personal privacy, and I can now be easily tracked and monitored on the road."
The ubiquitous discount cards used by large grocery stores have a similar caveat. "Any time you use a card at the supermarket, you also lose a bit of your privacy, because all the transactions registered with that particular card are then tagged specifically to you. Even if you use cash to pay for your groceries, the minute you hand that card to the checker, everything about your purchase goes into some database somewhere and someone knows what you've purchased and when you purchased it."
Of course, those who are concerned about their personal privacy - people who wish to be less traceable or visible to databases and their tracking software - always have the right not to use discount cards, toll-way transponders or other digitized conveniences. But, as Gibson said, by opting out of such otherwise useful services, they forfeit many of the benefits that are available to them. And, ironically, they might incur costs of a different kind in the process. "Opting out," moreover, is not always possible today, for 21st-century surveillance technologies have become ubiquitous.
"It's absolutely become the case that personal privacy is being impinged upon in every direction you look. Our lives have become totally 'digitizable': your every activity is always being entered into a database somewhere. Yet when you aggregate all of this information, it becomes incredibly powerful. Essentially, some 'Big Brother' somewhere, if he cared, can now know just about everything about you. And I'm sure that, on some level, somewhere, such databases are already being pulled together for, let's say, homeland security purposes. Data is increasingly being aggregated and red flags are undoubtedly being tripped whenever some behavior indicates that someone might be a risk to the country. Furthermore, today, the data which had been collected over the past 10 years is now likely being re-processed and looked at in a new way."
And it is this last detail that is of particular concern to Gibson, because the personal information contained within computer databases does not expire. At the same, mass storage is becoming so inexpensive that collecting and preserving copious quantities of personal data almost indefinitely is no longer economically unviable.
"All aspects of our lives have become digital. Yet the personal data that is tagged to us, unfortunately, isn't effected by any sort of statute of limitations which requires, every so often, that your record be cleared and that you get to start over from scratch along the lines of, say, a driving record. It's literally a permanent record of your life; it's a record over which you have no control; and it's being aggregated perpetually. And there's no choice in this equation - you can't choose to opt in or out of these databases. Our lack of privacy arises from an epidemic lack of respect for the sovereignty of the individual."
The Downsides of Monitoring and Profiling
To be sure, there are some benefits to be had from the active monitoring and behavior profiling used by credit card companies, banks and even such convenient personalized appliances/services such as the highly popular TiVo PVR. Many U.S. credit card holders, for instance, are afforded a greater degree of protection from theft and fraud thanks to such tracking. Should a customer's credit card suddenly wind up being used for the purchase of an unexpectedly large number of expensive goods or services, card-issuing institutions will often contact that cardholder to confirm whether or not those unusual transactions were indeed legitimate purchases.
However, monitoring and profiling definitely has limitations and shortcomings.
"I have a bank that absolutely panics if I try to buy gas with their card," Gibson amusedly recounts. "I have a very high limit, but for some reason, whenever I tried to buy gas with this card, [my bank] would constantly shut it down and then call me and ask if that was really me trying to buy gas. And I constantly had to pick up the phone and tell them that, 'Yes, damn it, this is me!' - and I gave up finally. I even asked them if there was any way for them to just permanently say that it's okay for me to buy gas with that card...and they said, 'No.' And after I made such a stink about it - because I was really ticked-off that this was such an inconvenience - they explained to me that they were doing this because the first thing that happens when a credit card is stolen is an attempt to use it is made at an automated gas pump. With an automated pump there's no attendant and thieves can quickly see whether it is honored or not - whether there's a hold on the card or not - and they're literally two feet away from their car to make a quick getaway. So now I have to use a second card to buy gas, and I am now being inconvenienced by the fact that there's this kind of profiling being done by a bank."
Last year, TiVo users also suffered from a notable bout of electronic profiling gone awry. Viewers who enjoyed seemingly innocuous television shows such as "Will & Grace" or "Ellen," for example, suddenly discovered to their bemusement that their personal video recorders had concluded that they were gay, for the machines started recommending and automatically recording programming geared to that particular sexual orientation. Many afterwards viewed the TiVo PVR's behavior as a most unwelcome intrusion into their personal lives.
In its defense, TiVo's parent company explained that it only compiled customer data to help assess viewing behavior, and that it did not identify the viewing habits of particular individuals or use such data for direct marketing purposes. It had also made clear that the PVR's monitoring was not a secret. On its Web site, TiVo plainly states, "In order to provide you with a better, more satisfying television experience TiVo collects and uses certain types of information.... The Subscriber Information you provide...enables your recorder to select programs you want it to record and to suggest programs you might enjoy."
The aforementioned instances nevertheless clearly demonstrate that the intelligence behind computerized monitoring/tracking/profiling is imperfect and in need of further refinement. The rub is that such technology is now increasingly being used by government computer systems to ferret out and keep tabs on individuals whose activities might be potentially harmful to the safety and security of the United States.
TIA: The Dreaded "Cyber-Big Brother"?
"What the Total Information Initiative wants to do is to bring about a fusion so that you can have multiple modes of surveillance that integrate together, with the help of a computer, to hopefully arrive at a more precise, more accurate identification of a person at distance than would be otherwise possible with any single sensor mode," explained Lee Tien, Electronic Frontier Foundation senior staff attorney specializing in free speech law www.eff.org. "Unfortunately, you get a lot of half truths about TIA...it is currently a DARPA research project. But there are plenty of plans, arrangements being made to eventually turn that technology over...to potential DARPA clients like the CIA, FBI, Homeland Security - these are all potential customers that would be most interested in such TIA technologies once they mature and become more concrete."
The domestic use and restrictions upon surveillance do place limits on the sorts of monitoring activity the government is allowed to conduct domestically vis-à-vis U.S. citizens. However, there are notable loopholes that afford the government access to copious quantities of personal information.
"This is a tricky area," noted Tien, "because, right now, what they've been telling us is, at least with respect to the area of data-mining - and this is an area most privacy advocates have been concerned with - the representations are being made that this [technology] is going to be tested on synthetic or existing data that won't require any additional 'gathering' beyond what the government already does. While this may be true, it is somewhat misleading. The government already has an enormous amount of data, including data that it purchases from outside sources, such as the Choice Points system [an information broker] - so they are able to acquire personal information on the open market in the same way that a business would should they be interested in doing some sort of data-mining operation."
Put simply, "Big Brother" can readily use the information that "Little Brothers" have been amassing, aggregating and buying and selling among themselves for years. And as Tien explained, under the Fourth Amendment, the information that has already been revealed or has become known to a third party is not afforded any privacy protections whatsoever. "Only information that is not known to anyone is fully protected by the Fourth Amendment," Tien said, "and so there's no constitutional barrier to the acquisition of that kind of data from the record holders."
And then there is the matter of the "secret subpoena" provision of the Patriot Act. Although it originally was thought to apply to library records and bookstore records, this subpoena power can relate to all sorts of other records. "What you have now is the ability of the government to use this particular subpoena power to say, 'Give us information about this person - and you can't talk about that to anyone else.' There's this gag order in this provision that we consider very dangerous, for it makes it hard to get a real picture of what the government is doing."
Data mining is the most invasive of personal privacy and it is the most troubling to privacy advocates. And when linked together with other tracking/monitoring/profiling technologies, data-mining can become an incredibly potent means with which to keep tabs on an individual's movements and activities.
Unfortunately, as noted earlier, the profiling technology incorporated in current data-mining techniques has its shortcomings. "And so there is a question whether or not the TIA will really work," said Tien. "A lot of experts pooh-pooh the possibility that all this will actually work because of the gap between accuracy and false-positives. You have this enormous quantity of data, yet its quality is not really vouched for. And everyone knows that there are lots of mistakes out there - mistakes in credit reports, mistakes in public records, and so on. And to mine that sort of data to generate any sort of accurate or useful 'suspicious-activity' findings is doubtful. Furthermore, there's no provision for fact checking or confirmation taking place while this data is being mined, and so there's going to be a lot of very junky stuff, lots of junky conclusions being reached. Bearing in mind that they're interested in the transactions of hundreds of millions of Americans - after all, everyone's a potential suspect - the scale of this means that, even if you have a 99.99 percent accuracy, you're still going to have a massive number of mistakes."
Mining erroneous data can lead to mistaken profiles that could make life considerably more "inconvenient" than the mistakes made by the profiling software of a credit card company, a bank, or a TiVo PVR. What is more, at a time when identity theft is on the rise, there is also the very real issue that an innocent individual could wind up inappropriately identified as a "security risk." And this is a very real concern, for the vast quantities of personal information contained within many databases are not exactly kept under lock-and-key.
Your Aggregated Personal Information:
For Sale, Less Than Secure, And Often Readily Available Online
"Identifiable personal information is being sold all over the Internet - social security numbers, drivers' license numbers, birthdates and birthplaces, mothers' maiden names, you name it," said Kevin Mitnick, once the world's most celebrated hacker, author of The Art of Deception, and co-founder of Defensive Thinking www.defensivethinking.com, an information-security firm dedicated to providing intelligent security solutions and awareness training to minimize the constantly changing threats to business. "All of this information is available for sale in the United States of America, because we don't have stringent privacy laws. So, there's a lot of potential for abuse."
This comprehensive personal information is predominately being bought and sold by so-called information brokers. They're like private investigators," Mitnick explained, "and many actually work for private investigators; but, these people will work with just about anyone. For example, if you go to www.77investigators.com on the Web, you can purchase peoples' phone records from that particular information broker." Bearing in mind that personal information is being databased by countless businesses and institutions in our Digital Age, information brokers have lots of sources from which to amass their source material.
"You should also realize that there are big companies that buy up mailing lists and which then cross-reference that data with other sources they have access to," Mitnick continued, this time focusing attention upon enterprises specializing in data-mining. "For example, I know of a place in Florida that I can call that'll send me an information packet about a vacation. And they'll ask me to key in a phone number to help locate my address - and even my number, which is non-published, and my address, which is unlisted, instantly comes back with that information. They then ask me to verify that I'm Kevin Mitnick of such-and-such an address; yet, my number is non-published with the phone company."
Mitnick believes that, today, the greatest privacy risk is posed by computers, which are operated on the behalf of government agencies and the computerized databases operated by the world's businesses. Both are too susceptible to having their archives of personal information plundered via a variety of attacks.
"Again, this stems from a lack of respect for the sovereignty of the individual, the sovereignty of the personal information," said Gibson. "As soon as a database gets working, many businesses then turn their attention to adding features rather than securing the database and making it safe." Larger enterprises, Gibson concedes, generally have more at stake and so they tend to have a greater budget for securing the privacy of their database information. Smaller operations, alas, generally are not as secure. Mitnick, however, points out that even the best electronic-database-security measures can be sidestepped and overcome.
"The larger the company is, the more open it is to what we call an 'engineering attack,' which is basically manipulating trusted people within an organization to have them give out private information or proprietary information, or give out something that allows an attacker to more easily attack the corporate computer system. In a large company, this sort of attack is easily accomplished, because people don't personally recognize the organization's employees. So, it's easy for a skillful attacker to pass himself off as a fellow employee, to use various pretexts and excuses to thereby bypass various security measures. And such an attacker can, for example, call up a trusted employee of a given company, pretend that they're a fellow worker who had accidentally spilled a cup of coffee into their keyboard, and then have that person look up some particular information using their computer terminal. So, one trusted and trusting employee can undermine all of the electronic security measures an organization has implemented."
Most troubling of all is the fact that copious quantities of personal information can be obtained online by way of databases, which were initially designed to make government records more accessible to the general public. Although the original intent was noble, this practice has now opened a Pandora's Box of privacy concerns.
"A social security number, a mother's maiden name, a driver's license number - all these are readily obtainable by just about anyone right now. You can go to a Web site today and easily look up my mother's maiden name or anybody's [mother's] maiden name born in California. And the reason why is that all California birth records are public records, and there's a site that makes it possible to search all of the California birth records. Moreover, you can go online to, say, eBay and buy birth record indexes for places like Texas, Kentucky, Ohio, California, etc., and you can essentially look up anybody's mother's maiden name. But, unfortunately, how most banks, financial institutions and even utility companies prove that you are who you say you are is by asking you to verify information that, today, is no longer secret. And so we really need a new way with which to prove someone's real identity."
And, of course, as the infamous SQL "Slammer" worm demonstrated recently, even seemingly secure and publicly inaccessible systems can become vulnerable to electronic attack if they are not tended with appropriate care and attention.
"The only way that worm propagated was to exploit a known buffer overflow in Microsoft SQL Server 2000. The affected systems, as a result, were exposed to the Internet...which very well could have meant that all of the information of their databases was also exposed to the Internet. And it wasn't just the small companies that were impacted by this vulnerability." Software vulnerabilities are a problem affecting every modern computer operating system because, as Mitnick reminds, not all of the holes get fixed, nor are they always identified, reported and addressed.
Consequently, as far as privacy and respect for personal information is concerned, Mitnick considers the whole present system "broken."
Internet Activity and Privacy
"When it comes to the Internet," Gibson notes, "maintaining personal privacy has more to do with our online behavior. And that's why I really encourage parents to buy a separate PC for their kids and never allow them to use their own machines. It's better to let kids have their own computer, because they'll be doing file swapping, downloading, and a host of other activities that, from a security and privacy standpoint, will be tremendously risky. A child's PC can become a virtual 'Typhoid Mary' that's crawling with spyware, malware, and who knows what else. And when it crashes - and you know that it will thanks to all the junk that'll get into it - you can then just reformat its hard drive, reinstall the OS, and not have to worry about the loss of anything critical. You won't be able to say the same thing if you let a child use your own PC."
Hackers and script-kiddies, although they are still problematic, are not primarily concerned with extracting personal information from the PCs of individual users. According to both Gibson and Mitnick, these computer users are most interested in hijacking unprotected PCs for use in attacks on much more lucrative and rewarding targets: computer databases. Hence, the deployment of firewall and anti-virus software yields individual as well as collective benefits.
Firewalls and anti-virus software can help protect a personal computer from many widely exploited hacks and infections. But to keep a system clear of spyware that might inadvertently have been downloaded and installed on the system, Gibson also strongly recommends that users regularly scan their systems with programs like LavaSoft's Ad-aware or Spybot-Search and Destroy. Encryption software, too, might prove beneficial in helping to keep a PC's critical financial information and personal records safe from prying eyes, both online and offline. Mitnick recommends that concerned PC users consider deploying PGP Desktop to help keep sensitive data safer and more secure.
Such practical software tools, nevertheless, will only stem the leak of personal information that is collected by covert software, worms, Trojans and the like. They won't do anything to make you less visible from the monitoring technologies used by ISPs, telephone companies, Web sites, etc.
The Way We Live Today
"Unfortunately, if you want to maintain complete privacy and anonymity today you literally have to become a Luddite. You have to go back to a pre-technological life and not avail yourself of any of the conveniences that are now available. You almost have to go off to a cabin in the middle of the woods somewhere and isolate yourself from the rest of society," Gibson concluded. "Yet, for kids growing up today, the absence of privacy, the absence of anonymity will be a part of their 'normal' environment, and they likely will think nothing of it. Privacy is gone today, and we're just going to have to reconcile ourselves to that."
It is likely, that as computer technology becomes even smaller and ubiquitous in the human environment, our lives will become even easier to monitor, track and profile.
Consequently, today it is hard not to agree with Huxley's half-century old observation: "In the past, personal and political liberty depended to a considerable extent upon governmental inefficiency. The spirit of tyranny was always more than willing; but its organization and material equipment were generally weak. Progressive science and technology have changed all this completely."
Kamil Z. Skawinski, Science and Technology Editor
Kamil Z. Skawinski is a freelance writer specializing in technology issues who lives in Milwaukee.
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Monday, May 10, 2004
OK, Last Thursday was Nat. Teachers Day, and I've waited till now to say
That let the weekend go by, Thank you
for remembering! And for you newbies the date for that again is the first Thursday of May each year. If you think about it you may have more than me that teach you in your life...
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
Sunday, May 09, 2004
For those of you who think the price of gas is HIGH
Price Per Gallon
A list of common liquids, along with their price per gallon: The Price of a Gallon. A few examples:
Absolut vodka: $58.26
Penicillin: $301.49
Cover Girl nail polish: $892.80
Chanel No. 5 perfume: $25,600
The list is not up-to-date. It lists unleaded gasoline at $1.39 per gallon.
You don't want me to update this, do you?
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
How many Anti-virus programs should you run, 1.
Two For The Price Of One
In today's electronic world, viruses, worms, and other nefarious programs are seemingly everywhere. Because of this, the anti-virus software industry is huge. It is true that you should have anti-virus software on your system. However, many vendors incorrectly suggest that you should have more than one virus scanner on your system at once, so that if a virus 'slips' past the first, it will be caught by the second.
Not true. If you have a reputable anti-virus program, and are keeping it up to date, one is sufficient. Having multiple virus scanners on your system at once may be too taxing on your system and could cause performance problems or other unexpected results.
MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".
