NCTCS Technotes

Microsoft Releases Critical, Out-Of-Band Security Patch for Internet Explorer

angw — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:28:00 GMT

After hackers based in China used a vulnerability in Internet Explorer to hack into Google and other companies, Microsoft has released an emergency security patch. There is a good article about it here.

If you have automatic updates turned on and you left your computer on last night, the patch was likely installed overnight. If not, or if you aren't sure, take a few minutes today and go to Windows Update to check for critical updates. It won't take long and could save you a lot of hassle later.

How Google Ranks Search Results

angw — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 03:52:00 GMT

Finally, a clear explanation of Google's page ranking...

http://www.google.com/technology/pigeonrank.html

Is it Just Me, or is the Site Down for Everyone?

angw — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:22:00 GMT

How often have you (or, if you're another tech, one of your clients) been unable to get to a particular web site, but able to get others? It can be a really frustrating issue, especially if you aren't sure whether the site is down or if it's something on your system. Well, I found a really terrific tool that answers the question in an instant, so you can decide whether to spend time on the issue or not.

Go to: http://downforeveryoneorjustme.com/

Then type in the address you are trying to get to, and get an instant answer. What a time (and frustration) saver!

Trouble with Backups, and Why Online Backups Might Be A Good Addition to Your Backup Plan

angw — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:42:00 GMT

I'm fresh off a couple of disastrous issues this past month, and rethinking my strategies. I had two clients lose important data when they had drive failures or damaged systems. In both cases, backups hadn't been running correctly for months, and no one had checked them. This is an even greater issue on client's home PCs - most clients have tons of pictures, music and videos on their systems, much of which (especially the pictures) is irreplaceable, and yet they don't run regular backups.

I hate to see a client lose data; it somehow feels like a personal failure. But no matter how often I try to check in with people about their backups, remind them to check their own backups, etc., I still have issues like this arise.

I've not been a fan of online backups in the past, primarily because of cost, and the difficulty of really restoring an entire system this way. I'm now rethinking it. There are a number of great companies out there offering affordable online backups. For business and home users, you can't beat Mozy. I use it on my home system; for around $50 per year, my system gets backed up several times daily (backups begin whenever my system is idle) and I don't have to worry about losing the project I've just completed or the vacation pictures. The initial backup took a long time, but most daily backups take minutes, as it only updates changed files.

They also offer business backups, and the pricing is a flat fee plus .50 cents per GB. This can add up fast, but most businesses wouldn't benefit from backing up their whole server anyway - this service is more appropriate for critical data, such as accounting and EMR data. Even if you did back up your entire server, though, most businesses wouldn't small businesses I work with wouldn't be backing up more than 100GB per month or so, and $50 per month is a small price to pay to ensure that you have an alternative backup of your data stored offsite in case of a real emergency.

Exchange Troubleshooting Tool

angw — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:54:00 GMT

If you are a network administrator and don't already use it, Microsoft has a fantastic tool available for troubleshooting Exchange remote connectivity issues. The tool, aptly named the "Microsoft Exchange Remote Connectivity Analyzer" is available here.

I have found myself on the ugly side of troubleshooting a few thorny issues with Exchange lately, and have been making a lot of use of this free tool. You can test ActiveSync (which is what I've used it the most for) as well as Outlook connectivity, Internet Mail and Exchange remote access services. The error messages are clear and make it remarkably easy to nail down where the issues lie. It may not give you the exact answer, but it does tell you just where to look and that has sure saved me a lot of time. Check it out!

MS Antivirus, AntiVirus Pro, AntiVirus 2009, AntiVirus 2010, AntiVirus Ad Infinitum...

angw — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:06:00 GMT

I have spent the better part of the last two weeks tracking down and removing this malware from client systems. This fake antivirus program tries to scare end-users into installing it by creating a pop-up that says "You are infected" and scrolls through a list of viruses. If you click on the pop-up, pretty much anywhere in the pop-up, the malware is installed. Once installed, you will receive more pop-ups, sometimes several a minute, telling you that you are infected and directing you to the makers site where you can "activate" your software by giving them your credit card. In general it just drives people crazy, and if you don't know how to get rid of it, you may end up spending a lot of time and energy trying to remove it.

Most often this program disables your anti-virus, and prevents you from installing some of the most effective tools for removal, such as Malwarebytes and SuperAntiSpyware. It also redirects you to their site if you try to access antivirus/antimalware manufacturers sites. There are probably at least 20 variants (a good list as well a detailed overview of this malware is available here) but they all do similar things. Some even generate phony "blue screen of death" using the joke BSOD program I previously mentioned.

When I saw the first variants of this malware a few years ago, they were pretty simple and easy to clean up. It was also not widespread - it was spread mainly through the UPS/FedEx emails and few bad websites. The latest incarnation is not only much harder to clean up (other techs I have spoken to say they are averaging 2 hours a machine to get rid of this one) it is also spreading through legitimate websites, which makes it even harder for the average user to avoid. And because a click on the pop-up is what installs this malware, it isgenerally able to avoid detection by your legitimate anti-virusprogram.

So what can you do to avoid it?

1. Make sure your system is up to date. Install Windows updates, and update Java - old versions of Java may be one of the ways in which this is spreading.

2. I've been telling clients to close the pop-up by right clicking on it on the toolbar and selecting "Close" so that they don't inadvertently click within the pop-up. Another tech told me that he is recomending that clients ignore the pop-up, close out of all other open programs,and restart the machine with the pop-up still open. This way you don't click anything related to the pop-up. This may not be a bad idea.

At this point, I don't have much other advice on how to avoid this. You can find screenshots of a few of the pop-ups that accompany this infection here, as well as basic removal instructions. However, if you are unable to install the recommended removal tools, or have any questions, please let me know.

Security Breach Compromises Job-Seekers Information at California's EDD Site

angw — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:49:00 GMT

Lot's of big security issues the last couple of days, and the latest one is a doozie. The Employment Development Department's "CalJobs" site, which collects a great deal of personal information as well as resumes from job-seekers has been found to have a number of serious security issues which could allow people to access the personal information of the hundreds of thousands of Californians.
Really an amazing security breach, especially considering the simplicity of the exploits. Read more here.

Windows 7 is Here!

angw — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:51:00 GMT

Windows 7 is finally here, and you are going to like it. I have been running it for several months on a system at the office, and so far, my experience has been absolutely seamless. Some highlights:

Performance is a lot more like XP - it feels faster and more responsive overall
When I installed it, ALL of my hardware just worked. No kidding. No searching for drivers and figuring out workarounds to get things to work. Everything. Just. Worked.
Same with software. So far, the software I have installed has worked seamlessly.
User account control works as it was intended, that is to say, it's helps to make your system more secure, but doesn't irritate you into shutting it down with frequent pop-ups.
Searching is faster and more efficient.
The taskbar is better organized and more intuitive to use. AeroPeek is not only cool, it works well; you can view and switch between windows by hovering over them on the taskbar instead of minimizing/maximizing windows.
AeroShake - this seemed neat but useless, but I actually have ended up using it often. Simply

Finally, the price is actually lower on most versions. What's not to like?

Now, this doesn't mean I suggest you go buy the upgrade today. Not at all! I suggest you let them work out any bugs that come up in the next couple of months on other people, and then lets talk about it. Especially for business machines, I don't see any reason for clients to be on the "bleeding edge" of new technology.

If you are already running VIsta, your hardware specs will likely support it, but if not, you will need to evaluate your machine and make sure it meets the recommended (Not the minimum!) hardware requirements. You should also be aware that you can't just "upgrade" your XP system - you will need to either do a concurrent install and leave your old files in place (not ideal) or a copy all of your data and do a clean install, then restore your data. That can all start to get a bit complicated.

On the other hand, if you have been holding off on a hardware purchase because you didn't want to deal with Vista, now's the time to buy. Dell and HP are hungry for sales after a slow year, and there are going to be some great deals on great systems out there.

As usual, let me know if you have any questions, or need a quote on a system - I can usually save a you a bit of money over web prices.

Outlook Web Access (OWA) Virus Alert

angw — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:27:00 GMT

I have been forwarded details of a virus that is spreading rapidly to businesses that use their own mail servers, particularly those who use Small Business Server and Microsoft Exchange. Basically, users receive an email telling them they need to log on and change some settings due to an upgrade. Once they click on the link, they are taken to a site that looks just OWA and instructs them to download a file to update their settings. Of course, the file is bogus and the virus is installed when you click on the link.

This virus is particularly difficult to get rid of, so a little awareness and prevention will go a long way. If you receive a suspicious email telling to you to download anything, please check in with me before doing so - a quick call or email can save you a lot of time and money.

Further details and screen shots of the virus can be found here, and thanks to Pacific IT Pros for sending out the detailed info.

On another note, just a reminder about the FedEx/UPS virus; I have been seeing a resurgence in activity, and a nasty piece of spyware is being spread through these emails. You can read details here.

End-Users Guide to High Tech Jargon

angw — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 23:20:00 GMT

	NEW	Different color from previous design
	ALL NEW	Parts not interchangeable with previousdesign
	EXCLUSIVE	Imported product
	UNMATCHED	Almost as good as the competition
	DESIGNED SIMPLICITY	Manufacturer's cost cut to the bone
	FOOLPROOF OPERATION	No provision for adjustments
	ADVANCED DESIGN	The advertising agency doesn't understandit
	IT'S HERE AT LAST!	Rush job; Nobody knew it was coming
	FIELD-TESTED	Manufacturer lacks test equipment
	HIGH ACCURACY	Unit on which all parts fit
	DIRECT SALES ONLY	Factory had big argument with distributor
	YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT	We finally got one that works
	REVOLUTIONARY	It's different from our competitors
	BREAKTHROUGH	We finally figured out a way to sell it
	FUTURISTIC	No other reason why it looks the way itdoes
	DISTINCTIVE	A different shape and color than theothers
	MAINTENANCE-FREE	Impossible to fix
	RE-DESIGNED	Previous faults corrected, we hope...
	HAND-CRAFTED	Assembly machines operated withoutgloves
	PERFORMANCE PROVEN	Will operate through the warranty period
	MEETS ALL STANDARDS	Ours, not yours
	ALL SOLID-STATE	Heavy as Hell!
	BROADCAST QUALITY	Gives a picture and produces noise
	HIGH RELIABILITY	We made it work long enough to ship it
	SMPTE BUS COMPATIBLE	When completed, will be shipped byGreyhound
	NEW GENERATION	Old design failed, maybe this one willwork
	MIL-SPEC COMPONENTS	We got a good deal at a government auction
	CUSTOMER SERVICE ACROSS THE COUNTRY	You can return it from most airports
	UNPRECEDENTED PERFORMANCE	Nothing we ever had before worked THIS way
	BUILT TO PRECISION TOLERANCES	We finally got it to fit together
	SATISFACTION GUARANTEED	Manufacturer's, upon cashing your check
	MICROPROCESSOR CONTROLLED	Does things we can't explain
	AEROSPACE TECHNOLOGY	One of our techs was laid off by Boeing

I'm not sure where this came from originally, so if it's yours, I apologize, and please let me know so I can give you the credit!

Better Networks: The Human Ones, That Is

angw — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 21:50:00 GMT

One of the great satisfactions of working with clients at NCTCS is the opportunity to get to know both the people and the specific challenges that their businesses face. It's exciting to partner with clients to map out the ways that technology can help their businesses grow and become more efficient, and rewarding to watch it all come together and see businesses thrive.

Most of my clients own or run small businesses, and while each type of business faces unique, industry specific challenges, I find that we also share a lot of common challenges. Continuing to grow and thrive in this tough economy is a major concern that I hear over and over again, and having seen more than a few businesses go under this past year, it seems particularly pressing.

While I can help you manage costs and improve efficiency with technology, I'd like to do more. Many clients have told me that the majority of their business comes through referrals and that has been my experience at NCTCS as well. Traditional marketing may work well for high-volume, mass-market products, but most of us serve a more targeted market. NCTCS, for instance, is very much focused on working with other small businesses, and radio/tv/newspaper or even direct mail are all too generalized to be effective.

In the past year I have spent a lot of time thinking about ways to do a better job of generating referrals, and of course, about how I can give better referrals to clients and business partners. I participate in a BNI group; it's a terrific, supportive business-to-business networking group. (if you're ever curious please let me know and I'll be happy to have you attend a meeting as a guest.) I have also been focusing more on online networking; LinkedIn is a terrific business networking site and serves to keep me in touch with both clients and associates, and Facebook is also a resource for keeping in touch with friends and associates. Lastly, I have also helped a number of clients implement email marketing. EMail marketing can be very effective and narrowly targeted, but it needs to be done carefully - you don't want to make people angry or be blacklisted for sending SPAM. There are a number of reputable companies out there that can help you manage your email marketing efforts and ensure that you don't run afoul of anti-spam regulations.

So, how can I help you get better referrals? There are several things you can do that would help me do a better job of referring people to your business. First, shoot me off an email or give me a call and let me know who you'd like to work with, and what a good referral for your business would be. Second, please consider connecting with me on LinkedIn; it makes it easy to refer people to you if I can forward your information within that network, and provides lots of channels to request introductions to people or businesses outside your immediate network. Lastly, if you are interested in starting an email marketing campaign, I can direct you to a couple of great companies that offer reasonably priced email management, and if you need help getting started, I can work with you on that as well.

Have a great month!

Microsoft and Adobe Release Critical Security Patches

angw — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 21:07:00 GMT

Microsoft has released two out-of-band (meaning they are released mid-month rather than on the regular "Patch Tuesday.") security updates last week, and if you haven't already updated your system you definitely should. The updates address vulnerabilities in Windows and Internet Explorer that might allow an attacker to take control of your computer.

If you have automatic updates turned on, you should have already received these updates. If not, you can log on to the Microsoft Update site to manually install the patches.

Adobe has also released several critical security updates for multiple products, including Flash, Shockwave, Acrobat and Adobe Reader. I have had a number of clients mention that annoying "Flash Update" pop-up the past week - please take a minute to install it! These vulnerabilities are currently being exploited, and even opening PDFs with an unpatched system can put your computer at risk. Some companies have taken the extreme step of blocking PDFs. I don't think you need to go that far, but do take a few minutes and make sure your system has these updates installed. You can find them at Adobe's Security Site.

As usual, please let me know if you have any questions or problems installing these updates, and have a great week.

We Need Your Help

angw — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:23:00 GMT

We'd like to know how you think we're doing. If we have done any work for you this past year, we'd appreciate it if you'd take a minute to take our survey and let us know how we're doing. Ten questions, and completely anonymous, so it ought to be quick, easy and painless. Click the link below to access the survey, and thanks again for your time!

NCTCS Customer Satisfaction Survey

Protect Your Network and Save Your Business Time and Money with an Acceptable Usage Policy

angw — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:33:00 GMT

If you are already working with NCTCS, you have a good anti-virus system in place, but unfortunately, it can't protect you from every threat. The single biggest reason I end up having to come out and clean up spyware and viruses from a system is that an employee has downloaded something from a site that they shouldn't have accessed in the first place.

There is a tremendous cost to this; not only in frustration and downtime for the business, but a real financial toll to a small business paying for my time to clean up a system. As a fellow small business owner, I share my clients frustration with having to spend money on unnecessary IT costs. I'd much rather spend my time helping you to utilize your resources to grow your business, rather than spending your money to dig out of a hole.

Clients sometimes ask about setting up monitoring on their systems, and we can do that, but for most small businesses the cost is prohibitive, and in reality, the time to actively monitor employees activities just isn't there. The businesses that are most successful at protecting their networks from these kinds of threats are those with a clear acceptable usage policy that is actively enforced. Ultimately, this is more of a management problem more than a computer problem, and you can save your business a lot of money and time by adopting a an acceptable usage policy and making sure that your employees understand and follow it.

To give you a jump start on implementing a policy for your business, I've included a link to a sample acceptable usage policy below. (It's in a standard Word Document format; let me know if you'd like a copy in another format and I'll be happy to forward one to you.) A client passed this on to me some time ago, and I no longer recall who to attribute it to, but it is a straightforward and effective tool to clarify your expectations for employees. Most businesses who implement this type of policy successfully have all employees read and sign it, as well as posting a copy onsite; they also have clear consequences for disregarding it. Check it out, and if you have any questions, just let me know.

Acceptable Usage Policy (Word Document)

Microsoft Small Business Summit 2008 Video

angw — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 17:57:00 GMT

Didn't have time to register for the summit? No problem, we've got it live right here:

Microsoft Small Business Summit

angw — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 17:45:00 GMT

Don’t miss the Microsoft Small Business Summit

October 14-16 (12:00 PM EDT/9:00 AM PDT)

The Small Business Summit is a free online event designed to help small business owners who want to start, run, and grow their business more effectively in today’s competitive business environment. As the most comprehensive virtual small business conference, the Summit provides information on Microsoft technologies and offers valuable strategies that will help small businesses save time and money and better connect with customers. You can register with Microsoft for the event here, or you can just jump in and view it live on our site.

Topics include:

Sales and Marketing—Make an impact.
Productivity, Mobility and Security—Go where the business is.
Financial Management—Achieve financial security.

I have gotten a lot of good feedback on this event the last couple of years, and Microsoft has a much more diverse line up this year.

For a complete schedule, check the Small Business Summit Website.

This summit is free, and each days events will be re-broadcast each day from 1-5 and 5-9, as well as available on-demand after the the event.

Cyber Security Awareness Month and Rogue Anti-Virus/Spyware Programs

angw — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 22:34:00 GMT

October is Cyber Security Awareness Month, but a recent poll suggests most people aren't very aware at all. For instance, 80% of computer users surveyed said they had a firewall installed and protecting their computer, but a follow up scan on their systems showed that half of those didn't have any firewall at all.

With so much confusion about firewalls and viruses and spyware, it's no wonder that people are confused, and a whole rogue industry seems to have sprung up to take advantage of that. There a number of companies out there that make products that falsely detect infections or problems, and then send you out to their sites to buy the software to take care of the non-existent issues. At NCTCS, we are spending an ever increasing amount of time removing these rogue programs from systems, and I have often wished that there was a way to take action against these companies. Happily, Microsoft is now going after some of them in court. There is a great article here by Brian Krebs, who writes a security blog at the Washington Post, discussing some of the actions that are being taken.

One of the programs he discusses is a program that I have been seeing way too much of lately. Anti-Virus 2008/2009 is a rogue anti-virus program that gets installed on your computer and generates a series of pop-ups and false warnings to make you think your computer is infected. (You can see how it works here.) It will ask if you want to fix the problems, and then direct you to their site where you can pay them $49.95 for the privilege of stopping their pop-ups on your system. A new twist that I have seen this past week is that it also downloads the joke bluescreen (I previously mentioned it here) so it also looks like your computer is regularly blue screening. The first time I encountered it on a client machine, I was completely fooled; I thought the computer was bluescreening every time I walked away and left the scan running, when in reality, it was just "bluescreening" when the screensaver started.

As best I can track down, this seems to be downloaded either through illegitimate video sites; you either go to the site directly or click on a link you get in an email to a video, and then you're prompted to install a "video codec" to view the video. As soon as you do, the malware is installed, and this one is really hard to get rid of. It seems like every time I get a good system down for removing it, it morphs again and I'm back to square one.

The best bet for avoiding this type of malware is to avoid sites that are questionable, and never download anything when you don't know the source. Your anti-virus and anti-spyware can't do a good job of protecting you from things you install yourself, so if you aren't sure, just don't install/download it, and as usual, if you have any questions let us know.

Response Point IP/PBX Phone Systems

angw — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 21:59:00 GMT

We're excited about adding a really terrific product to our lineup - Microsoft Response Point Phone systems. This is a great, full-featured phone/PBX system designed for small businesses. Easy to use, easy to manage, and affordable. Voice recognition, and automated receptionist, and Outlook integration are just a few cool features of this system. It allows you to:

See caller details with screen pop-ups.
Specify callers who can ring you directly, bypassing the receptionist.
Integrates easily with Microsoft Office Outlook® contacts.
Voice-enabled Automated Receptionist manages common requests and increased call volume smoothly and professionally.
Monitor and maximize customer service with the call history function.
Calls can be automatically routed on a Voice-over Internet Protocol (VoIP) line, helping you avoid exorbitant long-distance rates.
Route calls to the right employees whether they’re in the office or on the road.
Send voicemail to e-mail for easy access.
Ring all the phones in a particular department for quick access.

A moderately tech-savvy user can administer the system right from their desktop, including adding users, routing calls, etc., with just a few clicks. And new phones are detected automatically, so adding another phone isn't much harder than plugging it in. If you're thinking of upgrading your phone system or just want to learn more, contact us.

QuickBooks Jingle Generator

angw — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 00:53:21 GMT

I was on Intuit’s site today researching an issue for a client when I came across their “Jingle Generator.” What is a jingle generator, you ask? Well, Intuit has created a site when you can create a commercial jingle for your business. Sort of.

Basically, you give the site a few pieces of information, and then it “creates” a jingle to the tune of “Your Love” by The Outfield. The lyrics vary by industry.

Presumably you aren’t really going to use this song as your business jingle, but it’s a vaguely amusing way to kill 5 more minutes of a long Friday afternoon when you are trying to avoid finishing your bookkeeping.

So here is what I did with the end of my Friday afternoon: NCTCS Jingle

Click here to listen to this content, or click below to read more.

Virus Alert: UPS/FEDEX Trojan

angw — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 22:33:47 GMT

The UPS/FEDEX virus has been out since at least early July, but in the past few weeks I have seen a massive upswing in activity, and have had a few clients become infected. It is very difficult to remove, but easy to identify and avoid if you know what to look for.

It is spread via email purporting to come from UPS or FEDEX with a subject line of "Problem with a package delivery." The email typically says that UPS or FEDEX were unable to deliver a package you sent because of an invalid address, and requests that you open/print the attached invoice and bring it to the office to retrieve the package. The attachment has a Microsoft Word icon, but if you look at the file extension, it isn't .doc but instead an executable (.exe).

UPS has issued a warning about this virus (here), but the long and short of it is, while UPS might send an email to update you on the status of a delivery, and they might on rare occasions include an attachment, they would never send you an executable. The bottom line is, if you aren't completely sure, call UPS and verify instead of opening the attachment.

The good news is, if you have up-to-date anti-virus, it should detect this virus and prevent it from being installed on your computer. Most of my existing clients use Trend Micro, and you can see an example of an email "cleaned" by Trend Micro below. I have seen hundreds of these at some client sites in the past week, so it pays to be aware.

Listen to this story here: