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National Cybersecurity Awareness Campaign Challenge  Department of Homeland SecurityThe Department of Homeland Security is working with many organizations, both individually and through the National Cyber Security Alliance, to find ways of raising public awareness of cybersecurity. As we develop strategies and messages that will resonate with various groups, we want the benefit of your ideas on how you would get the word out to your colleagues, or your friends, or your parents and children. This competition will gather and share publicly the best, most creative ideas for making the public more cyber secure, cyber smart, and cyber assured. Winners of the Challenge will be invited to an event in Washington D.C. in late May or early June. Winners will partner with the Department to lead in the planning of the National Cybersecurity Awareness Campaign and to ready the campaign for its launch during Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October. Full Details
Important Reminder Regarding Expiration of the Windows 7 RC  Source: The Windows BlogOn February 15th, people still running the Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) will receive a notification reminding them that starting March 1st, 2010, their PC will begin experiencing bi-hourly shutdowns. These shutdowns will continue through June 1st, 2010. On June 1st, 2010, a non-genuine experience is triggered where your wallpaper is removed and “This copy of Windows is not genuine” will be displayed in the lower right corner above the taskbar. This means your PC will no longer be able to obtain optional updates or downloads that require genuine Windows validation. To avoid any data loss, it is suggested that you make plans to move to a released version of Windows 7 before the automatic shutdowns start. During these shutdowns, your work will not be saved. Read Full Article: The Windows Blog
Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer  Microsoft Security Bulletin MS10-002 - CriticalCumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer (978207) This security update resolves seven privately reported vulnerabilities and one publicly disclosed vulnerability in Internet Explorer. The more severe vulnerabilities could allow remote code execution if a user views a specially crafted Web page using Internet Explorer. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights. This security update is rated Critical for all supported releases of Internet Explorer: Internet Explorer 5.01, Internet Explorer 6, Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1, Internet Explorer 7, and Internet Explorer 8 (except Internet Explorer 6 for supported editions of Windows Server 2003). For Internet Explorer 6 for supported editions of Windows Server 2003 as listed, this update is rated Moderate. The security update addresses these vulnerabilities by modifying the way that Internet Explorer handles objects in memory, validates input parameters, and filters HTML attributes. This security update also addresses the vulnerability first described in Microsoft Security Advisory 979352. Recommendation. The majority of customers have automatic updating enabled and will not need to take any action because this security update will be downloaded and installed automatically. Customers who have not enabled automatic updating need to check for updates and install this update manually. For information about specific configuration options in automatic updating, see Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 294871. For administrators and enterprise installations, or end users who want to install this security update manually, Microsoft recommends that customers apply the update immediately using update management software, or by checking for updates using the Microsoft Update service.
**Server Core installation not affected. The vulnerabilities addressed by this update do not affect supported editions of Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2 as indicated, when installed using the Server Core installation option. For more information on this installation option, see the MSDN articles, Server Core and Server Core for Windows Server 2008 R2. Note that the Server Core installation option does not apply to certain editions of Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2; see Compare Server Core Installation Options.
The Great 99 Cent Software Experiment of 2010  For 24 hours, starting at midnight on the 29th of January, you will have the opportunity to participate in The Great 99 Cent Software Experiment of 2010."If you want to upgrade to WinPatrol PLUS on January 29th, I’ll give you a lifetime WinPatrol membership for less than a dollar. Instead of the regular price of $29.95 I’ll provide a coupon on WinPatrol.com that brings the price down to $0.99 USD. That comes out to approx. .70 € to our international friends  This will be a one-day only “experiment” starting at midnight EST on Jan 29th and will last 24 hours. Will over 30 times the normal number customers upgrade to WinPatrol PLUS? If so, will other software developers notice?Like our current $30 plan, the 99¢ license will be good for life. Like sales in the App Store or Droid Market however, this license is only valid for a single computer. Sound fair enough? If you’ve been someday planning on upgrading to WinPatrol PLUS, January 29th is the day to remember. Just go to www.WinPatrol.com this Friday and you may be a part of history." Head over to Bits from Bill for the rest of the details on this incredible one-day event.
Facebook Fake Hacker Warning  I usually ignore the many and various profile postings on Facebook, that warn against a plethora of things; such as: viruses, hackers, and any number of Facebook applications. They are almost always hoaxes.The latest "hacker" warning circulating Facebook is: DO NOT ACCEPT THESE 4 AS FRIENDS, CLAUDIA RIVALTA, DANIELA MAINARDI, SARAH MARIE THOMPSON AND SARA WETTLAUFER "THEY ARE HACKERS, TELL EVERYONE ON YOUR LIST BECAUSE IF SOMEBODY ADDS THEM, YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE HACKED TOO. COPY THIS TEXT TO YOUR PROFILE... DO NOT BE LAZY, PLEASE POST TO YOUR WALL They have been reported to facebook These kind of fake warnings first started circulating via email a couple of years ago, when sites like Myspace and Facebook became popular. The sole intent behind these messages is to flood the site servers with traffic, crashing the servers. Do NOT repost these kind of messages. Educate your friends that these kind of messages are hoaxes. By adding some one to your friends list, they will not have the credentials to hack your account. They will have to obtain those credentials using other methods. Most notably, "phishing". If you watch these trends on Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and any number of other Social Networking sites; long enough someone will claim that they have verified this on snopes. Guess what, people! Snopes is not the be all, know all, end all on hoax verification. Matter of fact, sometimes they are down right wrong.
Firefox 3.6 Released  What’s new in Firefox 3.6:Below are some of the coolest features of Firefox 3.6:
What’s New Under the Hood for Developers
How to get Mozilla Firefox 3.6: Firefox 3.6 is available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux in more than 70 languages – more platforms and languages than any other browser! 
The Evils of Email Chain Letters  No matter how much I preach to my family members not to forward these annoying pieces of internet junk, I always seem to get at least one email chain letter a week.This may come as a surprise, but generally people hate getting junk emails. No matter how funny, cute or inspiring an email might be, many people don't like having an inbox littered with the latest jokes and hoaxes. Sending junk email to people who haven't requested it, can cause the loss of friendship, profane email responses, and other nastiness. Mostly, it annoys the crap out of people. So pause for a moment or two before clicking that send button and forwarding unwanted email to your friends and family. I don't want the junk and I bet neither do you! There are all sorts of junk emails floating around the Internet: bogus virus warnings, urban legends, offers of easy cash, letters that promise to help sick kids... the list goes on. Do not forward chain letters, no matter how compelling they might seem. Propagating chain letters is specifically prohibited by the terms of service of most Internet service providers and you could lose your account. Chain letters are a form of spam where the recipient is encouraged to forward multiple copies so that its circulation increases exponentially. By its very nature chain letters are dangerous because of the resources that it takes to stop its progression and the time it takes for each recipient to read and either destroy it or pass it along. Additionally, they can cause damage to an organization's reputation when associated with a legitimate company or cause. The primary goal of chain letters is to flood servers with thousands of pieces of email. If the number is ten, the first recipient would send ten emails, the ten recipients would send one hundred (ten each), their recipients would send one thousand, and so on. Chain letters that request money or promote pyramid schemes are ILLEGAL. Where the recipient is asked to send a certain amount of money to those above and in theory would receive money from those below them on the pyramid. Electronic pyramid schemes are no different than their paper-based cousins, their goal is to separate you from your money and they are ILLEGAL. The Anatomy of a Chain Letter Chain letters are comprised of three components:
It is very difficult to determine the originator of a chain letter. When you receive a chain letter, delete it. Don't resend the letter. By doing this, you break the chain. If you receive these type of emails on a computer at work, you should let your network administrator know. Remember that generally people hate getting junk email and you may not like the response you get from your friends when you continue to send them unwanted emails. Especially after they have asked you to stop. If you are doing this using a computer at work, you know the one your company has so graciously allowed you to use, you may lose your job.
Pop-Up Security Warnings Pose Threats Press Release For Immediate Release December 11, 2009 Washington D.C. FBI National Press Office (202) 324-3691 Pop-Up Security Warnings Pose Threats The FBI warned consumers today about an ongoing threat involving pop-up security messages that appear while they are on the Internet. The messages may contain a virus that could harm your computer, cause costly repairs or, even worse, lead to identity theft. The messages contain scareware, fake or rogue anti-virus software that looks authentic. The message may display what appears to be a real-time, anti-virus scan of your hard drive. The scareware will show a list of reputable software icons; however, you can’t click a link to go to the real site to review or see recommendations. Cyber criminals use botnets—collections of compromised computers—to push the software, and advertisements on websites deliver it. This is known as malicious advertising or “malvertising.” Once the pop-up warning appears, it can’t be easily closed by clicking the “close” or “X” buttons. If you click the pop-up to purchase the software, a form to collect payment information for the bogus product launches. In some instances, the scareware can install malicious code onto your computer, whether you click the warning or not. This is more likely to happen if your computer has an account that has rights to install software. Downloading the software could result in viruses, malicious software called Trojans, and/or keyloggers—hardware that records passwords and sensitive data—being installed on your computer. Malicious software can cause costly damages for individual users and financial institutions. The FBI estimates scareware has cost victims more than $150 million. Cyber criminals use easy-to-remember names and associate them with known applications. Beware of pop-up warnings that are a variation of recognized security software. You should research the exact name of the software being offered. Take precautions to ensure operating systems are updated and security software is current. If you receive these anti-virus pop-ups, close the browser or shut down your computer system. You should run a full anti-virus scan whenever the computer is turned back on. If you have experienced the anti-virus pop-ups or a similar scam, notify the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) by filing a complaint at www.ic3.gov. http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel09/popup121109.htm
Mozilla Thunderbird 3 Released  What's New in Thunderbird 3.0Release Date: December 8, 2009 Thunderbird 3 Features: For an overview, please see Thunderbird 3 Features. Thunderbird 3 is based on the Gecko 1.9.1.5 platform including some major re-architecting to provide improved performance, stability, web compatibility, and code simplification and sustainability. New features include: New Search with Advanced Filtering Tools
User Experience Improvements
Performance Improvements
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![Post To MySpace!](http://www.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=postto&t=The Great 99 Cent Software Experiment of 2010&c=[size=12]For 24 hours, starting at midnight on the 29th of January, you will have the opportunity to participate in [link=http://billpstudios.blogspot.com/2010/01/great-99-cent-software-experiment-of.html]The Great 99 Cent Software Experiment of 2010[/link].
"If you want to upgrade to WinPatrol PLUS on [b]January 29th[/b], I’ll give you a lifetime WinPatrol membership for less than a dollar. Instead of the regular price of $29.95 I’ll provide a coupon on WinPatrol.com that brings the price down to $0.99 USD. That comes out to approx. .70 € to our international friends
<a href="http://www.winpatrol.com/99cents.html"><img src="http://images.malwareteks.com/one_time_fee.gif" alt="one_time_gif" tile="One Time Fee" style="float:left;" /></a>
This will be a [b]one-day only “experiment”[/b] starting at midnight EST on Jan 29th and will last 24 hours. Will over 30 times the normal number customers upgrade to WinPatrol PLUS? If so, will other software developers notice?
Like our current $30 plan, the 99¢ license will be good for life. Like sales in the App Store or Droid Market however, this license is only valid for a single computer. Sound fair enough? If you’ve been someday planning on upgrading to [link=http://winpatrol.stores.yahoo.net/winplusmemre.html]WinPatrol PLUS[/link], January 29th is the day to remember. Just go to [link=http://www.WinPatrol.com]www.WinPatrol.com[/link] this Friday and you may [b]be a part of history[/b]."
Head over to [link=http://billpstudios.blogspot.com/2010/01/great-99-cent-software-experiment-of.html]Bits from Bill[/link] for the rest of the details on this incredible one-day event.[/size]&u=http://www.malwareteks.com/news.php?extend.308&l=2&r=close "Post To MySpace!")
![SHARE ON LINKEDIN](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=http://www.malwareteks.com/news.php?extend.308&title=The Great 99 Cent Software Experiment of 2010&summary=[size=12]For 24 hours, starting at midnight on the 29th of January, you will have the opportunity to participate in [link=http://billpstudios.blogspot.com/2010/01/great-99-cent-software-experiment-of.html]The Great 99 Cent Software Experiment of 2010[/link].
"If you want to upgrade to WinPatrol PLUS on [b]January 29th[/b], I’ll give you a lifetime WinPatrol membership for less than a dollar. Instead of the regular price of $29.95 I’ll provide a coupon on WinPatrol.com that brings the price down to $0.99 USD. That comes out to approx. .70 € to our international friends
<a href="http://www.winpatrol.com/99cents.html"><img src="http://images.malwareteks.com/one_time_fee.gif" alt="one_time_gif" tile="One Time Fee" style="float:left;" /></a>
This will be a [b]one-day only “experiment”[/b] starting at midnight EST on Jan 29th and will last 24 hours. Will over 30 times the normal number customers upgrade to WinPatrol PLUS? If so, will other software developers notice?
Like our current $30 plan, the 99¢ license will be good for life. Like sales in the App Store or Droid Market however, this license is only valid for a single computer. Sound fair enough? If you’ve been someday planning on upgrading to [link=http://winpatrol.stores.yahoo.net/winplusmemre.html]WinPatrol PLUS[/link], January 29th is the day to remember. Just go to [link=http://www.WinPatrol.com]www.WinPatrol.com[/link] this Friday and you may [b]be a part of history[/b]."
Head over to [link=http://billpstudios.blogspot.com/2010/01/great-99-cent-software-experiment-of.html]Bits from Bill[/link] for the rest of the details on this incredible one-day event.[/size]&source=http://www.malwareteks.com/ "SHARE ON LINKEDIN")
[*]CSS gradients: Supports linear and radial CSS gradients which allow for a smoother transition between colors
[*]Device orientation: Firefox 3.6 exposes the orientation of the laptop or device to Web pages
[/list]
[b]How to get Mozilla Firefox 3.6:[/b]
Firefox 3.6 is available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux in more than 70 languages – more platforms and languages than any other browser!
[html]<a href='http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/?from=sfx&uid=163962&t=562'><img src='http://sfx-images.mozilla.org/firefox/3.6/173x26_get_green.png' alt='Spread Firefox Affiliate Button' border='0' /></a>[/html]&u=http://www.malwareteks.com/news.php?extend.306&l=2&r=close "Post To MySpace!")
[*]CSS gradients: Supports linear and radial CSS gradients which allow for a smoother transition between colors
[*]Device orientation: Firefox 3.6 exposes the orientation of the laptop or device to Web pages
[/list]
[b]How to get Mozilla Firefox 3.6:[/b]
Firefox 3.6 is available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux in more than 70 languages – more platforms and languages than any other browser!
[html]<a href='http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/?from=sfx&uid=163962&t=562'><img src='http://sfx-images.mozilla.org/firefox/3.6/173x26_get_green.png' alt='Spread Firefox Affiliate Button' border='0' /></a>[/html]&source=http://www.malwareteks.com/ "SHARE ON LINKEDIN")
 can now be used to find, download, and install Thunderbird Add-ons which includes Extensions, Themes, and Plugins. Note that few Add-ons are compatible with this beta at the time of release, as Add-on developers need to upgrade them.
[*]Improved Address Book
If someone is in your address book, it is indicated by a new star icon which you can click to edit contact details inline. If they are not in your address book, you can add them with one click of the icon. A new birthday field allows you to keep track of your friends' birthdays. You can also add a photo for contacts in your address book.
[*]Improved Gmail Integration
Better recognition and integration of Gmail's special folders such as Sent and Trash including non-English versions of Gmail. Thunderbird also uses All Mail as the Archives folder.
[*]For Windows Vista users, Thunderbird 3 is now integrated with Vista search results. On first start, Thunderbird will prompt to install its indexing system into Windows Vista and you can choose to see Thunderbird email and news messages in Windows search results.
[*]For Mac users, Thunderbird 3 is now integrated with Spotlight, can import from Mail.app, read your OS X address book, and use Growl for new mail alerts.[/list]
[b]Performance Improvements[/b]
[list][*]IMAP Folder Synchronization
Thunderbird will download IMAP messages by default in the background to allow for faster message loading and better offline operation. This feature can be enabled on an individual folder basis via Folder properties, or for all folders in an account via Account Settings / 'Synchronize & Storage'.[/list]
[html]<a href="http://www.spreadthunderbird.com/aff/6643/12">
<img border="0" alt="Spread Thunderbird" title="Spread Thunderbird" src="http://www.spreadthunderbird.com/files/affiliates/stb_community_member_blue_0.png"/></a>[/html]&u=http://www.malwareteks.com/news.php?extend.302&l=2&r=close "Post To MySpace!")
 can now be used to find, download, and install Thunderbird Add-ons which includes Extensions, Themes, and Plugins. Note that few Add-ons are compatible with this beta at the time of release, as Add-on developers need to upgrade them.
[*]Improved Address Book
If someone is in your address book, it is indicated by a new star icon which you can click to edit contact details inline. If they are not in your address book, you can add them with one click of the icon. A new birthday field allows you to keep track of your friends' birthdays. You can also add a photo for contacts in your address book.
[*]Improved Gmail Integration
Better recognition and integration of Gmail's special folders such as Sent and Trash including non-English versions of Gmail. Thunderbird also uses All Mail as the Archives folder.
[*]For Windows Vista users, Thunderbird 3 is now integrated with Vista search results. On first start, Thunderbird will prompt to install its indexing system into Windows Vista and you can choose to see Thunderbird email and news messages in Windows search results.
[*]For Mac users, Thunderbird 3 is now integrated with Spotlight, can import from Mail.app, read your OS X address book, and use Growl for new mail alerts.[/list]
[b]Performance Improvements[/b]
[list][*]IMAP Folder Synchronization
Thunderbird will download IMAP messages by default in the background to allow for faster message loading and better offline operation. This feature can be enabled on an individual folder basis via Folder properties, or for all folders in an account via Account Settings / 'Synchronize & Storage'.[/list]
[html]<a href="http://www.spreadthunderbird.com/aff/6643/12">
<img border="0" alt="Spread Thunderbird" title="Spread Thunderbird" src="http://www.spreadthunderbird.com/files/affiliates/stb_community_member_blue_0.png"/></a>[/html]&source=http://www.malwareteks.com/ "SHARE ON LINKEDIN")
