Harnessing the Power of Unchecky

The Ask.com toolbar is one of the most common tag-along programs.

 

What is Unchecky and how can it help my clients?

Most of us are aware of a known phenomenon that affects all computer users, a phenomena which is almost always negative. What am I talking about? Tag-along programs of course!

Tag-along programs are those programs which are, all too-often unbeknownst to the user, installed alongside programs which a user is intentionally installing. Perhaps the most notoriously offending program class is that of the toolbar. Additionally, Browser-Helper-Objects (known as BHOs) are also frequent offenders. BHOs frequently make unwanted modifications to a user’s internet and browser settings. Well-known symptoms of BHOs include changing of the default search engine, changing the default browser’s homepage, and/or changing the default browser itself.

At the very least these things are unwanted and at the worst they are a security issue. Clearly, if given a choice, the average user would not install these programs or make changes of this sort to their computer.

 

Another common example of a tag-along PUP.

 

If users don’t consciously make these choices then how do potentially-unwanted-programs (known as PUPs) get installed on their systems?

Most commonly these programs are added when a user is installing a new program on their system and fail to notice or uncheck boxes which are checked by default. This is not uncommon as the average user clicking through the installation wizard too quickly is not paying enough attention to detect them. This lack of attention then results in boxes which are checked by default in the setup wizard, staying checked. Thus, an option which states that it will change the users default web browser will stay selected and therefore, the operating system thinks that you have given your permission (which technically you have).

 

Another great feature of Unchecky is that it will warn you when are installing a probable PUP, even intentionally.

 

How does Unchecky solve this problem?

Once installed on the user’s computer Unchecky solves this problem by automatically unchecking these pre-checked boxes so that that they will only be installed if the user intentionally checks the box of their own volition. It is that simple.

Unchecky is easy to install, generally stays out of the way, and is free to install. The real question is why you would not install this product on a customer’s computer?

For more information or to download the program for free visit their website at Unchecky.com.

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Beware of What you Click-on…. The #1 Secret for Keeping Your System Clean

by C.W. Andrews of Capital City Systems at capitalcitysystems.com

What is antivirus and what does it protect?

Antivirus programs act as a shield, monitoring your system and blocking programs and processes which may be unwanted, possibly malignant, or even outright viruses which try to infect your system. In many situations antivirus programs will stop or prevent a piece of malicious software from infecting your system even when you click-on the pop-up or executable file.

What can antivirus programs not do?

Antivirus can and does protect you from “drive-by” infections which are those which do not require any action on your part but they do not protect you against everything. In actuality most viruses and malware require some-sort of action by you in order to infect the system. They do this by hiding beneath and within programs, advertisements, and pop-ups which do their best to appear legitimate but are in fact malicious.

For example, you may accidentally click on a pop-up while attempting to close it which is all that piece of malicious code or software needs to get a foot-hold on your system. By clicking on the pop-up, you, the computer user, are effectively giving the program permission (in the form of user input) needed to install or run itself on your system. Once one virus or piece of malware has infected your system it is much easier for others to follow so it is imperative to keep this in mind whenever using a computer.

But what about the Antivirus?

Antivirus programs can and do catch many of these attempts to infect your computer but there are also many which they do not catch so it is best to maintain your vigilance as relying on it as a complete solution is folly.

The best and most complete solution:

At Capital City Systems we believe that the first and best line of defense when dealing with computer security is to be wary of what you click-on! That being said, we also believe that the best defense is a combination of being careful and having a solid antivirus which will hopefully catch those errors in judgement you do make.

Learning and understanding these things is critical to staying safe online and most users can put them to effective use and thereby stay safe but all should keep in mind that there are no guarentees of safety and the only way to stay completely safe from online attacks is not be online.

User-tip:

If you are unsure of whether a pop-up, program, website, or service is genuine then the best thing to do is to simply do a Google search it. Without citing actual statistics we believe that it will tell you what you need to know the majority of the time.

For example:

The Rogue Anti-Virus Personal Antivirus (see image below)

A search for “personal antivirus” returns results with two of the top three calling Personal Antivirus a ‘rogue anti-virus’ with one being instructions on its removal (see image above). It should be obvious to a regular user that at the very least they should do more research before using or interacting with the program further.

For more information or to give us your business please visit us at www.capitalcitysystems.com or fill out the contact form below.

Fill this out and we will be sure to get in contact with you!

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Web of Trust (WOT): The Browser Extension Which Does More Than Any Other To Keep You Safe Online

What is Web of Trust?

Due to the fact that one must be careful online and sometimes it is hard to determine what is safe and unsafe, computer users should seriously consider installing an add-on to your browser called Web of Trust (WOT). This extension is free for the fiver major browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, and Opera) and works through user crowd-sourcing on website and link reputations, keeping the user aware of disreputable and/or dangerous websites.  I strongly encourage WOT users to take a couple of minutes to absorb the information provided at the WOT website (https://www.mywot.com/en/aboutus) as we believe understanding the most important factor for easy and effective use.

How it Works (Basic):

In the most basic sense WOT rates and categorizes reputable and disreputable sites through user feedback (users self-reporting to the wot community [not required for use]) and then displaying this feedback using a simple, ‘traffic light,’ color categorization system which makes it easy to use. Essentially this I mean that good links and websites are green colored while dangerous or disreputable ones are red. Additionally, there are yellow and orange color-coded sites which may require more discretion on your part. At Capital City Systems we believe that utilizing WOT is one of the best things you can do to help protect you and your computer in the long-run, so I encourage everyone to take a little time to learn about it!

Resource(s):
https://www.mywot.com/en/aboutus
www.capitalcitysystems.com