Archive for the ‘Security’ Category

Plodding shots bolster new VirusBarrier X6

You want your Mac security tools to behave like Columbo, or Inspector Plodder from the play Sleuth. Not the fastest of detectives, but one that will not miss a detail. So it goes with the newest VirusBarrier X6 anti-virus and firewall product from Intego. You can set it and go, but you might as well [...]

Secure the Mac, jillions of files at a time

It’s not tough to make a case today for better Mac security than what Apple delivers out of the box. Even though your business systems ship with a first-level firewall, they don’t arrive with any anti-virus software. Apple insists in clever ads that Mac security is not the problem that users find on PCs. That [...]

Secure the Microsoft Office

Microsoft has released the 11.5.7 update to its Office suite, aimed at the users of Office 2004. You should download this update to protect your Mac from being hacked by compromised Word, Excel or PowerPoint files. Even the Mac has security flaws, but more common are the hacker entry points through things like Office or [...]

What’s a Web drive-by attack?

Editor’s Note: Our certified security expert Steve Hardwick reported on a insidious style of hacker attack, one that can infect Macs as well as the Windows world where he works everyday. Here at Bites HQ we use the Intego Software suite (NetBarrier and VirusBarrier) for anti-virus protection. Intego just rolled out X6 versions to protect [...]

Making your passwords better for less

Businesses need security even more than personal computer users. We’ve got sensitive financial data from customers; we’ve got more banking sites than consumers, including credit card merchant accounts like American Express Merchant Services — which hates to send a statement by paper. We’ve got customer lists that competitors might like to have. We’ve got business [...]

Make maintenance an easier evil

The Mac is more self-maintaining than other business computers. A big reason for this is Apple’s user interface design. So much of what makes your Unix-based system hum along is gracefully hidden from you. Some call this Apple’s passion to control your experience. You can also consider it a blessed delivery from the constant scrubbing [...]

Work Windows in Parallel Security

Using Windows software on a Mac is as simple as installing one of three tools: Nova Development’s Parallels, VMWare’s Fusion, or Apple’s Boot Camp. But of these three, only Parallels and Fusion supply the essential anti-viral component that every Windows installation requires.
This month I’ve installed the latest Version 5 of Parallels, as well as a [...]

Keep Java secure to avoid being a drone

Apple has an important Software Update for its users who employ Java in their businesses. Like it or not, that’s everyone who’s reading this. Java is endemic in the Web experience, with Java scripts and “applets” being launched many times you visit Web pages.
This security update closes a hole that permits hackers and spammers to [...]

Unwrapping the Myths of Security

What the Computer Security Industry Doesn’t Want You to Know
Review by Steve Hardwick, CISSP
I have worked in the information security business for more than 10 years, and I’ve learned there is one constant throughout – change. Keeping up with the ever-present cat and mouse battle between the hackers and security industry is a full time [...]