Do you remember the good old days when we were able to tell the bad guys from the good guys on TV westerns by the color of their hats?

Cyber vocabulary includes the term “black hat.” It is derived directly from those old westerns and those dirty, low-down, dastardly villains. Today, the term is used to describe internet hackers who ambush the innocent folks in white hats. Folks like you and me.

The problem is that it’s hard to tell the color of their hat when they are lurking in the shadows of cyberspace.

There’s an App for That

Yep. There seems to be an app for just about anything. Including some apps created by and for bad guys.

Until recently the most commonly used means of identifying malicious apps was “blacklisting,” or what some of the wranglers around the campfire call “The Oops Method.” In its most simplistic form, you create a blacklist of apps you already know are bad guys. The digital list blocks the bad guys from loading on your PC. The problem is that someone has to discover the evil app either by being caught unaware or by keeping up to speed with all the latest information. Except for the apps that are unknown because they are not on the list, the idea works fairly well.

There’s a Better Way than That

The better way is called “whitelisting.” This method involves creating a list of apps that we already know to be good guys. Instead of blocking the bad apps, whitelisting turns the tables and allows only the apps and software that are on your white list to have access to your computer or mobile devices. Only those who have been “deputized” on the whitelist are allowed in.

Now, that’s very technical, but it does describe the difference well enough for you to know that whitelisting is more effective than blacklisting.

We can help you get a white list started and help you keep it up to date. Tech Sentries is the logical source for your protection. We’re wearing our white hats and protecting your PCs, laptops, and other connected devices against the dangers that lurk in the shadows of cyberspace.

Don’t wait. Contact us today at (843) 282-2222. Tech Sentries is always on duty helping you “Guard Your Technology” at all hours of the day or night and keeping updated on how to be better prepared for Internet scams.

Internet usage continues to expand as coverage becomes more available and as users are added by the thousands. Those users include people who do not understand what goes on behind the scenes as well as others who know that they do not know.

Scam artists have been around throughout recorded history. The intent is always the same: to take advantage of innocent people, usually absconding with some of their cash. It is just that many of the methods have changed over the years. The art of catching people unaware is common to nearly all scams. The best scams work, not because the victims are oblivious, rather that they respond without thinking, often erring on the side of caution.

Here’s an example. On a recent episode of ABC-TV’s “The Catch.” a couple of con artists (who were also pickpockets) needed to get their hands on some cash. They posted legitimate looking signs near an outdoor café. The signs read, “Be careful. Pickpockets operate in this area.”

It was a perfect scam. People who saw the signs immediately put a hand on the pocket where their cash was, just to be safe. Their response to the signs made it easier for the pickpockets to pull off their scam. In fact, the signs were the scam.

Virtually the same thing is happening on the internet with tech scams. The user may receive a message by phone or on their screen, prompting the user to take action to protect their computer from some alleged issue or malware. Just like the victims of the pickpockets, people react instinctively out of an abundance of caution.

Once in contact, the tech scammer will request access to the individual’s computer in an alleged attempt to fix the non-existent problem. Presto-chango! Before the victim knows what has happened, his computer has new malware installed, his personal banking information has been stolen, or his PC is being held for ransom.

This has become particularly dangerous in the era of remote monitoring and maintenance. There are two things you can do to protect yourself from the tech service scammers.

1. Think about what is really happening.
2. Never respond to a tech service warning unless you know the person making contact and that person has been authorized by you to protect your computer.

Be vigilant and think before you react. Thinking first may keep you from doing something foolish. Tech Sentries is the logical source of your protection. We guard and protect your PCs, laptops, and other connected devices against the dangers that lurk in cyberspace and the scam artists who want to take you for everything they can.

Don’t wait. Contact us today (843-282-2222). Tech Sentries is always on duty helping you “Guard Your Technology” at all hours of the day or night and keeping updated on how to be better prepared for Internet scams.

Just when you think you are above being scammed by callers to your phone, some new twist on the old scam schemes sneaks onto the scene. The latest scam may be the sneakiest since Satan got Eve to say “Yes” in the Garden of Eden.

The new scam is so simple that many people never see it coming. After all, this is the hallmark of a scam. If we saw it coming, it wouldn’t work.
The point of this article is to help you see it coming.

The Skinny on the New Phone Scam

The objective: to get you to say “Yes.”
The method: to ask you a question to which you will answer “Yes.” The questions sound innocent enough. For example:

• “Can you hear me clearly?”
• “Am I speaking to (your name)?

The sting: Once the caller has a recording of your voice saying “Yes,” your response can be “spliced” into another recording in which the questions are different. In the altered recording, your “Yes” sounds like a response by which you agree to purchase something. Or worse.

The Sides of New Technology

The constant and accelerating development of new technologies is exciting. However, we need to be aware that there are people who use good technology for evil purposes. It’s okay to be excited, but it is important that we be cautious.
Both the FCC and the BBB have issued advice on how to avoid being scammed on the phone.

1. Don’t answer calls from unknown numbers. Let them go to voicemail.
2. If you answer and the caller (often a recording) asks you to hit a button to stop receiving calls, just hang up. Scammers often use these tricks to identify, and then target, live respondents.
3. If you receive a scam call, write down the number and file a complaint with the FCC so it can help identify and take appropriate action to help consumers targeted by illegal callers.
4. Make a note of the number and report it to BBB Scam Tracker to help warn others.
5. Ask your phone service provider if it offers a robocall blocking service. If not, encourage your provider to offer one. You can also visit the FCC’s website for information and resources on available robocall blocking tools to help reduce unwanted calls.
6. Consider registering all your telephone numbers in the National Do Not Call Registry.

Common sense used to be enough to be your guide. Now it takes education, wisdom, and forethought. Be alert. Be cautious. Be safe.

“Fundamentally, we need to change the way we interact with the Internet… This whole reactive approach we’ve taken for years just doesn’t work.”

That is the opinion of Frank Dickson, the Research Director for Worldwide Security Products at International Data Corp. He was talking about the need for a more assertive, dynamic whitelisting approach to protecting personal and corporate technology.

One of the reasons that people – especially businesses – don’t utilize whitelisting is that it is so manual intensive. Someone has to create the whitelist and keep it up to date. We agree. It can be tedious.

However, what if there were a better way to do whitelisting?

There Is a Better Way.

It is dynamic whitelisting. Think of it as the difference between being the maître d at a restaurant or being one at an exclusive club.

A whitelist is like the maître d at a restaurant checks a list that changes daily to see if you have a reservation. Assuming that you have a reservation, the maître d will allow you to enter and arrange to have you seated. If you are not on the list, you will be politely turned away.

A dynamic whitelist is like the maître d at an exclusive club may have a reservations list, but your name is not going to be on his list unless it is first on the club’s membership list.

Dynamic Whitelisting Is Not New But Still Developing

Even some computer technicians think that dynamic whitelisting is new, but there is at least one report online that cites dynamic whitelisting as having been used in highly-regulated businesses and industries before 2009.

It is increasingly apparent that the accelerating pace of software and application development is rendering companies unable to keep pace. Dynamic whitelisting “facilitates an immediate reaction to any updates in the software world.” Dynamic whitelisting is being refined by leading technology security firms utilizing artificial intelligence, certifications, software tracking, processing, analysis, and classification.

Information is aggregated and loaded into massive databases in real time. Businesses that subscribe to what may become known as WLaaS (Whitelisting as a Service) will no longer have to manage whitelists daily. The security firm provider’s database is akin to the exclusive club’s membership list. If the software is not in the database, it will not be seated in your system.

Look for our next whitelist article, “Why BYOD Makes a Case for Whitelisting.”

Tech Sentries is as concerned about your computer system security as you are. Your computer system security is our business. That’s why Tech Sentries is always on duty. Contact us today to learn how we can help you “GUARD YOUR TECHNOLOGY” (843-282-2222).

News about the popular children’s toy, CloudPets, recently served as a reminder that “not all that glitters is gold.” So it is with the Internet of Things. Although the IoT is heavily promoted by citing its many benefits, as with so many other things, there are always downsides.

The hook that makes CloudPets so appealing to parents – and especially grandparents – is that the product of parent company, Spiral Toys, allows communication via a mobile app and the internal electronics of the plush toy line.

The problem with the toy is that it was not, at least as of the end of February 2017, adequately unprotected from intrusion. It was, in effect, a microphone as a virtual snooping device inside a toy for anyone who understands how to use the internet as a spying tool.

The net results (pardon the pun) of failing to provide even minimal security measures are that millions of private conversations, both in home and across the cloud, were exposed and held for ransom by cyber thieves.

One cyber security expert told the London Daily Mail that,

“It’s an alarming leak because not only does it expose very personal information from children, but the company has also elected not to notify impacted families.

“The primary risk is the invasion of privacy it poses to families. Whilst there is still the potential for hackers to abuse the usernames and passwords stolen, it’s strangers listening to your children which worries parents the most.

“There’s little functional value to voice recordings of children, but it’s content of a very personal nature which families would obviously like to keep private.”

Yet another expert said,

“Anyone can connect to the toy, as long as it is switched on and not currently connected to anything else. Bluetooth LE typically has a range of about 10 – 30 meters, so someone standing outside your house could easily connect to the toy, upload audio recordings, and receive audio from the microphone.”

The Lessons to Learn

1. Do not underestimate the need for security for all connected devices.
2. Any device connected to the internet is vulnerable to attack. This includes smart house and smart car devices.
3. Just because an object looks like a toy, if it contains internet-connected devices, only your child should think it is a toy.
4. Be concerned. Be careful. Be cautious.

Personal privacy, identity, and even conversations, are all in danger of being accessed via the internet and the cloud. No one is exempt. Everyone needs to be sure they are protected.