Technology Advisor Blog

Recently there have been many reports on a clever twist on an old scam that's made more believable with your hacked password.  The email purports to be from a hacker who has compromised your computer and recorded you watching porn and will release the information to all your contacts if you don't pay the ransom (payable to a crypto currency account so it's not traceable).   

Have you experienced an increase in the number of "local" junk calls to your cell phone?  You're not alone.  Scammers have yet another tactic to get through to you by "spoofing" a phone number.  When your phone rings and you see a local number, you're more likely to pick up.  After you pick up, your number is proven to be a "real" number which is more valuable to scammers and the number of calls increases.  

In case you missed it:  Last week we hosted a technology lunch and learn event with our partner, Jive Communications.  Local business owners enjoyed networking, lunch, and technology.   

A few clients have asked us about recent notifications received from Network Solutions (and others):    "Action Required: Notice Regarding Your Domain Name(s)".  In this day and age, we recommend that all users stay alert when opening email, and we welcome questions about the legitimacy of received mail - better safe than sorry!

This notification states as follows:

"This notification is being sent to you as a contractual requirement of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) WHOIS policy. When you registered your domain with us, you agreed to keep your contact information in Account Manager current, and the WHOIS policy mandates that we ask you to verify and/or update this information periodically. Further, ICANN requires us to remind you that providing inaccurate or dated contact information may be grounds for domain name cancellation."

In this case the message IS legitimate, and we always recommend as an extra precaution that you go straight to the website in question (in this case, the company you registered your domain name with, typically Network Solutions), rather than clicking through the link in the website.  Yes, we just said the email was "real", but as a "best practice", don't follow links in emails when you don't have to. 

You don't have to reply to the email, it's just a reminder to check that the current information is still valid, and t

The FBI has issued an important warning about certain consumer-class routers after a massive malware attack was detected.  Turning the router off, then on again is a simple and important step to help stop the malware.  Additionally, it's recommended that you update the password and make sure the firmware is up to date.  The malware is capable of blocking traffic,  collecting information that's transmitted through the device, and disabling devices entirely.

We've all seen the headlines of the major cybersecurity incidents:  Target, Yahoo, Equifax, Sony, etc... Cybersecurity is a topic that affects everyone, and we view it as a public safety issue.  With all the headlines over the past years, at this point, most people "get it" that cybersecurity is a big problem, but the education can't stop there.   

Ekaru Offers Monitoring and Alerting of Stolen Digital Credentials, Increasingly Valuable Asset on Dark Web

In case you missed it... here's a review of our latest webinar on cybersecurity from earlier today.

This past week a Massachusetts school district paid $10,000 ransom to unlock its files after a cyber attack.  The Police Chief commented that there is no further investigation of this crime because solving this crime is "impossible". This is unfortunately a sign of the times.

You need to send an important update or invitation to all your clients and you're ready to hit the "send" key.  Don't!