As concerns over security become an ever increasing worry for single PC users, Symantec has just launched a free online security checking tool at http://www.symantec.com/securitycheck.
This website will enable a PC user to carry out a security check on their computer, and offers simple and clear information on possible security problems, along with recommen-dations and advice on solutions.
Why would I need that?
When you connect to the Internet – the Internet is connected to you. Your PC can cease to be your own, and can be abused to impact other people’s Internet usage.
Password stealing programmes and Trojans are circulating the Internet all the time, while hackers use automated tools to investigate who’s on-line and how they can be used. The attacks on E-Bay and Yahoo used insecure PCs which were online to carry out the attack. The legitimate owner probably had no idea that their machine was part of the attack on their favourite sites, but a hacker had gained access and control of their machine.
Cookies are legitimate programmes that can siphon information from your computer as you surf. They are rarely malignant and used as a marketing tool, but you may feel that your privacy rights are being abused if information about you and your surfing habits are sent to an unknown third party.
If you access your on-line bank account, whilst having Back Office on your PC, all your passwords and credit card numbers can be picked up. The bank can do nothing about it as their security can only secure up to a point, which means that they have no control over the security of your machine.
This isn’t scaremongering. We know that home users and small businesses are not going to be the subject of corporate espionage, blackmail or a dedicated denial of service attack. However it is just as likely that their connection will be investigated by the numerous automatic programmes circulating the Internet to see what could be gained from their PC. The attack is random, and may do no more than take a look at what is on your PC. However it will send back all the information that the person who wrote it wants. It could send back every keystroke as you type in your credit card details, or your account number and passwords for on-line banking.
More and more people are coming on-line, and in the same way we don’t care how our car works – we just know it can get us from A to B – so there are a lot of novice users who may not realise the dangers or which software they need to protect themselves.
After determining whether the PC is susceptible to hackers, viruses, and privacy threats, Symantec Security Check provides clear recommendations for protection and pinpoints the most effective and appropriate deterrents. Articles on the site provide detailed descriptions of potential online threats to home PC users and parents, with broadband or dial-up connections, along with steps that can be taken to increase their online security. By ensuring that users have an accurate understanding of the current state of their system security, the guesswork typically associated with finding the most appropriate solution is eliminated.
Assessing your weaknesses
This new tool will give everyone the ability to assess their weaknesses while using the Internet and, more importantly, will give sufficient information and recommendations so they can become and remain secure. As we are increasingly using our PCs for more and more activity, including personal banking, online shopping and storing personal information, we are potentially allowing others access to our most private and personal information. Very few of us would dream of leaving our car door unlocked with a wallet sitting on the front seat – for many computer hackers out there it really is as simple as breaking a car window to access our PCs and any information we have on them, including our credit card details, or our home address.
It’s a case of being sensible and taking the right precautions – just as we would do in any other walk of life. There are straightforward and affordable solutions out there, to help combat computer viruses, hacking attacks and undesirable content. The first step is to check out how secure your PC is already.
The Security Check, which runs within a Web browser, uses several software scanners to search for possible vulnerabilities on a computer, including checking for open ports, open file-sharing access as well as viruses and Trojan Horse programs. The tool also examines the browser to determine whether it reveals personal information, such as history of recently visited Web sites and established whether the PC is exposing that information to Internet hackers.
