Voice of Bihar

Hackers can get in, take what they want, and even leave open a “back door” so they can turn your
computer into a “zombie” and use it to launch network security attacks, often against high-profile
computer systems such as government or financial systems. Having control of your computer gives
them the ability to hide their true location as they launch their attacks.

Virus protection is not enough. Don’t think that antivirus software completely protects your
computer from Internet security risks. Virus protection is as good as the latest virus definitions,
which are created in response to the latest viruses – many thousands of people must be
infected before the makers of antivirus software can create a defense. And antivirus software
does nothing to protect your computer against direct network security attacks.

If you use dial-up Internet connection, it is more difficult (not impossible, just difficult) for
a hacker to get in, since your computer only connects to the Internet when it has something to send,
such as email or a request to load a Web page. Once there is no more data to be sent, or after a
certain amount of idle time, the computer disconnects the call. Also, your computer is usually assigned
a different IP address on each call.

• Makes your computer invisible to anyone on the Internet.
• Automatically removes the most dangerous and useless spyware and viruses.
• Blocks banner ads and pop-up/pop-under ads.
• Automatically updates spyware and virus signatures.

Zone Labs has just released the new ZoneAlarm Security Suite
– an easy to use computer Internet security package combining their firewall with antivirus, email security, content filtering, and communication protection.

2) Use antivirus software and keep it up-to-date

Some one recommend Kaspersky Anti-Virus.
It detects more viruses than popular Norton AntiVirus and can protect you from even unknown viruses.
It was the only antivirus program in the world that repelled attacks of all “ILOVEYOU” virus variations
without any additional antivirus database updates. The program checks and cures both incoming and outgoing mail
in real-time, is simple to install and use. You only need to choose from three levels of protection.

To find out if you have any viruses or spyware on your computer without having to uninstall your current antivirus
or install a new one, you can scan your computer online for viruses and spyware with their free Online Scanner.
Just click the link Free Virus Scan on their home page.

The popular ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite uses Kasperky anti-virus engine.
Take a look also at Kaspersky Internet Security.
It’s a package combining antivirus protection with a personal firewall and an antispam filter,
specially developed to protect personal computers against the whole range of network security attacks – viruses, hackers,
spyware and spam.

3) Regularly check for spyware and adware

Spyware and Adware are files that can be installed on your computer without your permission.
These programs allow hackers to track your behavior on the Internet and retrieve your personal
information such as pin, credit card, phone and social security numbers, passwords, usernames, etc.
ZoneAlarm Anti-Spyware
combines a spyware scanner with a firewall and email security.

4) Don’t open unknown email attachments

Don’t open any email attachments unless they are authored by a person or company that you trust.
Also remember that email viruses can often originate from familiar addresses. If you need to open a
suspicious attachment, first save it to your hard disk and scan the file using your antivirus software.

5) Disable hidden filename extensions

Windows operating systems contain an option to “Hide file extensions for known file types”
(enabled by default). Some email viruses take advantage of a hidden file extension. They use
an attachment which may appear to be harmless (.txt, .mpg, .avi) when in fact it’s a script
or executable (.vbs, .exe). For example, “LOVE-LETTER-FOR-YOU.TXT.vbs”.

6) Keep your operating system and other applications patched

Most of the network security attacks would be stopped if all users kept their computers
up-to-date with patches and security fixes. When holes are discovered (this happens frequently),
computer vendors usually release patches for their software. Some applications automatically
check for available updates, for others, you need to check periodically vendors’ websites.

7) Disable Java and ActiveX if possible

Java and ActiveX are used to write code that is executed by Web browsers. Although this code
generally adds useful features, it can be used by hackers, for example, to monitor your
Internet activity. You can disable Java and ActiveX in your browser at the cost of limited
interaction with some websites.

8) Turn off your computer or disconnect from the network when not in use

If you use broadband (DSL or cable) Internet connection, turn off your computer or otherwise
completely disconnect it from the network when you are not using it. This not only “protects”
your computer from Internet security risks, it forces your ISP to change your computer’s IP address
more frequently, thus making it more difficult for a hacker to get in.

9) Make regular backups of important data

A hard disk crash or physical theft of your computer results in the loss of all data stored on hard disk.
Keep a copy of important files on removable media such as floppy/ZIP disks or recordable CD-ROM disks
and store these disks somewhere away from the computer.

A dedicated IP (Internet Protocol) is a unique Internet address dedicated exclusively to a single hosting account. Normally, several hosting accounts reside on a single server and share that server’s IP address. Dedicated IP addresses are usually used for large SSL-encrypted secure Web sites and particularly large and/or traffic-heavy sites. Most shared hosting users have no particular need for a dedicated IP address.

However, a dedicated IP address for your hosting account enables you to:
1. View your Web site via its IP address.
2. Access your accounts by FTP or the Web when the domain name is otherwise inaccessible, such as during domain name propagation periods.
3. Ensure faster response during periods of high traffic load.
4. Set up SSL protection on your Web site.

For most people, they don’t need dedicated IP. But for people that want to provide anonymous FTP or a website using SSL, a dedicated IP can make that easier.

Each computer connected to the Internet is assigned a unique IP address for the purposes of communication. An IP address is a 32-bit numeric address usually expressed as 4 numbers from 0-255 separated by dots, for example 192.168.0.123. There are billions of addresses possible, however, the number is finite.

In the Web hosting industry there are two types of IP address…
Dedicated IP address (also called static IP) means that a website has its own IP address. Whether you type in your URL or the numeric form of its IP address, both will bring you to the same domain.
Shared IP address means that multiple websites share the same address. Web servers can determine by the domain entered in a user’s browser which website is being requested. Typing in the IP address will bring you to some kind of generic page instead of the specific site you want.

Don’t worry if your site is on a shared IP address. In most cases, this doesn’t affect you. Dedicated IP hosting may be required if you need to have some sort of special access to your website, like SSL or Anonymous FTP. If you have no special requirements, then a shared IP will work fine under most conditions.

For me personally, the question of dedicated versus shared IP is very simple: since there is a risk (very small) that a clean site could encounter a problem, and the cost of getting a dedicated IP is minimal, I always recoment our clients go for it.

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d.body.appendChild(c);
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void(0)

put this code in to your address bar and hit enter.

Hack Attack: Become a Gmail master

Gmail is hands-down the best web-based email service on the ‘net. Conversation threads, search, tagging, and keyboard shortcuts have completely revolutionized the way I look at my inbox. I manage all of my email from my personal Gmail inbox, including the daily flood of Lifehacker messages. At this point, I can’t imagine a program I could use to manage my email any more efficiently.

Despite my undying love for Gmail, there are still a lot of people who aren’t won over by sheer enthusiasm alone, and still others who just aren’t taking full advantage of the features and functions they’ve got at their fingertips in Gmail. Either way, the only thing a Gmail naysayer needs is a better understanding of everything you can do with Gmail.

Today I’ve got a rundown of the methods and add-ons I use to make Gmail more powerful. By the time you’re done with this article you’ll be a bona fide Gmail power user, too.
Quick look at what to expect

When you’re done setting up your Gmail account, you should be able to do everything you see in this short video without once leaving your keyboard (which means beaucoup productivity for you):

Set up labels

The first thing you’ll want to do to flex Gmail’s muscle a bit is set up a few labels. If you’re new to labels, think of them as folders, or better yet, tags. [1] Your email doesn’t have to specifically reside in any folders to be just as accessible. In fact, labels are great specifically because you can apply multiple labels to one email, making your email that much easier to find. Setting up labels is super-easy:
Go to Settings, and then select the Labels tab.
In the textbox labeled, “Create a new label:” simply type your label and click Create.

Yep, that’s it. I’d suggest going through your email and figuring out how you might want to categorize and label your emails. I generally create labels for any mailing lists I’m on, along with labels for different work-related emails and an ever-important Follow-up label for the emails I want to make sure I remember to reply to (e.g., those emails I’m not going to reply to immediately but I don’t want to fall through the cracks).

Of course, your labels will revolve around your needs (as they should), and if you don’t already have an email system, I’d encourage you to examine your email and develop one.
Set up filters

While labels are great on their own – and I label a lot of messages after they land in my Inbox – there are a lot of instances where you can assign labels automatically based on the characteristics of the message, thus saving yourself the work. That’s where filters come in.

Gmail can filter an email based on six criteria: From, To, Subject, Has the words, Doesn’t have, and Has attachment. Obviously this setup offers a lot of power for filtering your incoming mail. After you choose your criteria, you can choose any combination of the following options: Skip the Inbox (Archive), Star it, Apply the label…, Forward it to, and Delete it.

When I set up a new filter, I commonly choose to Skip the Inbox and Apply a label. For a detailed description of how to do this, check out my feature on bookmarking with Gmail [2].
Managing multiple email accounts with Gmail

It’s not at all uncommon to have more than one email address these days (actually, for many of you it’s been pretty common for years now). Though you may never be able to consolidate all of your email to one address, you can at least deal with all of your email from one account.

If your non-Gmail account allows for email forwarding, set it up to forward your mail to your main Gmail address (this process will vary based on your email account, but it’s generally really easy to do somewhere in the settings). For example, all of the Lifehacker tips email (which comes to Gina, Keith, and me) comes straight to my personal Gmail address, at which point it’s filtered out of my inbox and labeled “Lifehacker Tips.”

With Gmail’s recent addition of smart replying, you shouldn’t have to worry about sending email from the wrong address. When someone sends you an email, Gmail will automatically use the appropriate email address when replying (whether it’s a Gmail address or not).
Using keyboard shortcuts

This is where Gmail really starts to shine. Despite the fact the Gmail does a lot of things very well, a lot of these features were just sort of ho-hum for me. It wasn’t until I started using keyboard shortcuts, and then the Gmail Macros script, that I completely fell in love with Gmail.

The first thing you’ll want to do is enable keyboard shortcuts in Gmail. This is as simple as navigating to the General tab in the Settings and selecting “Keyboard shortcuts on.” The keyboard shortcuts let you navigate through your messages, within your conversations, archive a conversation, and jump to your inbox without ever having to go for the mouse. Here’s a list of the default Gmail keyboard shortcuts.

Gmail’s keyboard shortcuts by themselves are great, but if you really want to take control of your Gmail inbox, I very highly recommend installing the Gmail Macros script for Greasemonkey. Though it does a lot, the most powerful thing you’ll use the Gmail Macros script for is navigating through your labels (including your inbox, trash, drafts, etc. – after all, they’re all just labels) and labeling your conversations with a really slick Quicksilver-like interface.

First you’ll need to install the Greasemonkey Firefox extension if you don’t already have it installed. Next, install the Gmail Macros script. There are a couple of different scripts available on the linked blog post, but I prefer a patched version of the script that stays more true to Gmail’s original keyboard shortcuts.

Here’s a quick look at the key commands that the Gmail macros script provides (click for a larger version):

Searching your Gmail inbox

Of course, a solid Gmail tutorial wouldn’t be complete without a quick rundown of searching your Gmail (it’s Google, after all!).

Search operators in Gmail work much the same as they do with Google. Type the operator followed by a colon, and then your search term (e.g., to:tips@lifehacker.com). Likewise, you can exclude terms from your search with the hyphen (-).

The search operators allow you to limit the scope of your search to the to (to:), from (from:), and subject (subject:) fields. Easy enough, right? You can also search based on labels (label:), emails with attachments (has:attachment), and even dates (after:/before:yyyy/mm/dd).

Search operators will come in especially handy if you need more flexibility when setting up filters (you can add any search term to the “Has the words” field). Here’s a comprehensive list of Gmail search operators.
Take your Gmail toolbox on the road

Finally, to make my Gmail add-ons (Greasemonkey, Gmail Macros script, and AutoHotKey assignments) as portable as possible, I email them to myself as attachments so that whenever I’m away from my computer I can work just as efficiently as if I were at home.

With all of my systems in place, I’m more pleased with Gmail than I have been with any other email client, desktop or web based. Of course, I’m sure I haven’t exhausted the matter. Gmail users: what tips and tricks do you use to enhance your Gmail experience? Non-Gmail users: What methods do you use that blow Gmail out of the water? Give us your thoughts in the comments or at tips at lifehacker.com.
Adam Pash is an associate editor of Lifehacker. His special feature Hack Attack appears every Tuesday on Lifehacker. Subscribe to the Hack Attack RSS feed to get new installments in your newsreader.
Footnotes:

[1] There are a lot of advantages of Labels or tags over folders. One huge benefit of labels is that if you choose to delete a label because you no longer find it useful (perhaps your system has evolved and you want to clean house), the associated email will not be deleted. Instead, the label is simply removed. Remember that with Gmail, the whole point is that you don’t have to delete any of your email – ever. A second benefit of labels is that you can mark one email with as many labels as you like. [back up]

[2] If you want to use Gmail as a bookmarking tool, drag and drop this modified GmailThis! bookmarklet onto your browser’s bookmarks toolbar and edit email address and the text labeled “bookmark here” to the labels you’ve setup for your bookmarks.

France is to cut 54,000 military and civilian defence jobs as part of a root-and-branch reform of the sector, under government plans.

President Nicolas Sarkozy is proposing to create a smaller and more mobile army he believes will be better equipped to respond to new threats.

His strategy is also expected to place an emphasis on a stronger European Union defence policy.

Officials say there is no plan to scrap France’s nuclear deterrent.

Mr Sarkozy will present the proposals to military officials on Tuesday, in a paper called the White Book on Defence and Homeland Security.

It is the first major review of France’s military organisation since 1994.

‘Unpredictable’ world,

The review is expected to propose boosting spending on technology and intelligence, while cutting personnel.

Bruno Tertrais, a member of the expert panel who drew up the changes, hailed the document as “revolutionary”.

“For the first time in centuries, France does not base its defence policy on the hypothesis of a major military conflict in Europe,” he told the French AFP news agency.

“There is a very strong emphasis on intelligence, recognising that the world may not be more dangerous than it was in 1994 when we did the previous white paper, but it seems more unpredictable.”

Under the plans, the number of combat-ready troops would be reduced from 50,000 to 30,000.

As well as placing more emphasis on EU co-operation, Mr Sarkozy is also expected to propose moving closer to Nato command.

France withdrew from Nato’s military structure in 1966 in protest at the dominance of US commanders.

But Mr Sarkozy indicated earlier this year that France may return to the organisation’s military command.

The proposed new military strategy will be discussed in parliament later this month.

Beijing Olympic chiefs are introducing an official cheer for patriotic spectators to spur on Team China at the Games, Chinese media reports.

The authoritative, four-part Olympic cheer, accompanied by detailed instructions, will be promoted on TV, in schools and with a poster campaign.

It involves clapping twice, giving the thumbs-up, clapping twice more and then punching the air with both arms.

The cheer is accompanied by chants of “Olympics”, “Let’s go” and “China”.

The Beijing Olympic Organising Committee has hired 30 cheering squads who will show spectators how it is done at Games stadia, reports Xinhua state media.

‘Civilized cheering’

A committee official said the simple chants and gestures were designed to help spectators cheer for their favourite athletes in a smooth, civilized manner.

The Ministry of Education is also arranging special training sessions in schools for the 800,000 students who are expected to attend the Games.

Li Ning, president of the Beijing Etiquette Institute, told the Beijing News that the cheer was in line with general international principles for cheering, while at the same time possessing characteristics of Chinese culture.