Tech, Mobile Phone and Software

Statistics show that the first three hours after a child’s abduction are most critical to recovery efforts. By combining the efforts of the wireless industry with the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® (NCMEC) and law enforcement agencies, the Wireless AMBER Alerts™ initiative will be a catalyst for the more than 200 million wireless subscribers to aid in the search for and recovery of an abducted child.

AMBER

According to NCMEC, more than 260 children have been recovered since the AMBER Alert program began in 1997. The program-an early warning system to find abducted children-started as a local effort in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, area and became a national initiative in 2003. AMBER stands for “America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response.” The program is a legacy to Amber Hagerman, a 9-year-old girl who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle in Arlington, Texas, and was later found murdered.

An estimated 70 percent of Americans have wireless phones, and together they can serve as a national network that assists families and the authorities in searching for abducted children. By signing up to receive Wireless AMBER Alerts, subscribers receive information about local Alerts, as well as updates as the search progresses.

Opting In

Subscribers capable of receiving text messages, and whose wireless carrier participates in the Wireless AMBER Alerts initiative, may opt in to receive Alerts by registering at www.wirelessamberalerts.org or their wireless carrier’s Web site. Users can designate up to five ZIP codes from which they’d like to be alerted in the case of an AMBER Alert activation.

Public Service

Advertising Campaign

The Advertising Council, in partnership with NCMEC, The Wireless Foundation and the U.S Department of Justice, launched a multimedia public service advertising (PSA) campaign designed to raise awareness of Wireless AMBER Alerts and encourage all wireless subscribers to aid in the search for abducted children. It is the first nationwide PSA campaign to address this technology and the ads launched on National Missing Children’s Day (May 25th).

Wireless subscribers can now sign up to receive free AMBER Alerts via text messages.

10 Steps To A Safe, Smooth Running PC By Michael A Silva

These ten steps will help you increase your computer’s security. From discovering viruses to learning how to avoid them, this article is a must read!

Windows password This is the easiest way to make sure you know who is using your pc. Choose a lengthy password that contains capital and lower case letters. Including a number or two will greatly increase your security. Having a Windows password means that the only people that can log onto a Windows session are people that you have granted access to.

Password manager You should never write your passwords down. Using the same password all the time will also make it very easy for hackers to reach your personal information. So if you can’t write it down and you’re not
supposed to use the same one – how are you supposed to keep track of all of your passwords? The easiest way to do this is to use a password manager. We prefer to use Roboform. Roboform is an easy to use password and profile manager that docks neatly into your Internet Explorer toolbar and keeps track of all of your passwords for you. Roboform also uses a master password system. You will have one password that accesses all of the passwords in the program. This way you can keep all of your information safe and secure. You can download Roboform for free by http://www.roboform.com.

Spyware Remover Next to spam, spyware is the internet’s biggest annoyance. By definition, spyware is “any software that covertly gathers user information through the user’s Internet connection without his or her knowledge, usually for advertising purposes. Once installed, the spyware
monitors user activity on the Internet and transmits that information in the background to someone else. Spyware can also gather information about e-mail addresses and even passwords and credit card numbers.” The amount of spyware that exists on your pc is dependent on the amount of internet surfing you do. A good rule of thumb here is to scan for spyware once per week or whenever poor system performance surfaces. If you don’t have a spyware scanner, we recommend http://www.webroot.com.

Antivirus This should go without saying, but if your computer is connected to the internet you need antivirus software. With weekly scans and program updates you should be protected from most threats. For added protection, we
recommend using more than one anvtivirus scanner.

Firewall A firewall will keep unwanted visitors out of your computer. You can obtain a firewall either by using software application like ZoneAlarm or Black Ice Defender, or by using a router with your internet connection. For more information on routers plese visit http://www.Linksys.com.

File sharing Basically, file sharing programs are the single biggest security risk you will come across. This is because the only facts you have about the files you are downloading are the file name and the file size. It is quite simple to change a filename to dupe someone into downloading a virus or other malware like keystroke recorders. Our advice – stay away from file sharing at all costs. If you need to use it, make sure you have updated antivirus software installed and running.

Research In a sentence – know what’s out there. http://www.Symantec.com has a section on their website that will serve you well. Knowing what types of viruses exist and how to avoid them will make you a much smarter internet user.

Email protection Most of the antivirus applications available offer email scanning. If yours does not, you will want to get one that does. Email scanning will make sure all of your incoming and outgoing emails are safe for both you and the recipient. Email viruses spread very quickly by using your address book to propagate. Never read email from people you don’t know and always make sure your email scanner is active.

Network security Another way that viruses spread is through computer networks. We have a few quick tips to keep your network safe. Always scan any files that come in from other computers. Even if it’s a file you have brought from home. Never allow a file to be placed on your network until it
has been scanned. The main server should be the only computer with file sharing enabled. By not allowing computer users to transmit files, you can quickly neutralize a threat.

Maintenance Performing weekly virus and spyware scans will go a long way to keeping your computer safe. Defragmenting weekly will also greatly improve performance. If you put in the effort, you will be rewarded with a safe and smooth running pc. Not to mention less headaches!

By following these ten guide lines, you will greatly improve the performance of your computer. You will also generate peace of mind as you gain a new sense of security.

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Anti-Virus sends shivers down your spine when you think of all the damage they can do and the word tool gives us a primal instinct of safety and help. When you think about this is exactly what Anti-Virus Tools is designed for, peace of mind and a way to keep your computer form catching a cold.

Pros

What can one person say, there are more pros to this than there are letters in any alphabet but to name a few of them at the very least are, the protection it provides you while doing something as simple as checking your email, or chatting on one of the various Instant Messengers out there. Another fact is that all can and will continuously scan on their own or when you command them too. You can also determine how deep a scan is or isn’t. In addition another Pro is the level of Defense the Anti-Virus Tools can provide, you can set it so high that nothing is getting in, unless of course you let it.

Cons

When it comes to Cons well there are a few to consider, one being whether or not your Anti-Virus tool is up to the job, some only protect against certain attacks while others cannot handle or keep up with the daily changes to the Anti-Virus world. Another and probably the biggest problem is the size of these programs, there are some out there that do not leave much room for anything else to be running, while others themselves are so large that unless you are running 128 MB or higher you do not have enough resources to use the program anyway.

User ability

The ease of use in these programs can be as different as day and night, however in most cases if you let it set up and install then run itself in the default settings then they are relatively easy to use. Another thing to consider is, before you install one is whether the product is right for you and if the Anti-Virus Tool does the job you need it to. Once these things are out of the way the User Ability turns into simple issues like deciding when the best time for it to run a scan is, remember the PC has to be turned on at the time and it is generally best to not do anything else during the scan.

Safety and Security

When it comes to Anti-Virus tools the safer you are in your choices and settings the more secure you will be. If you turn on your PC then you need to have an Anti-Virus tool, whether the computer ever gets put on line or not. A major Security for all of us is our own personal information and whether we are comfortable giving it out or not. There are very few of us who will willingly give out much more than our name and email, there are even more who do not like giving even that out. I suggest an alter-net email address for those who do not like giving out there own, and take into consideration that if the Anti-Virus tool you choose wants more information from you to download it then maybe you need to consider where you are downloading it from.

Summary and Rating

Summing up something as complex as Anti-Virus Tools, with all the options out there, and all the more reasons to use one is a huge undertaking in itself. I can only make suggestions on where to go from here. First choose carefully and wisely, do not be afraid to spend a few dollars to protect your computer. The thing to remember about the cost is, it has to be cheaper than having to buy an new PC. When choosing a tool, see what its minimum requirements are, what it protects against and how often it updates. Also whether or not you can set it to scan all the time and run your own deeper scan whenever you want.

As far as the Rating goes, it will and should always get a 10 and be one of the first things you do for your PC.