Sony bowed down to pressure from bloggers

14 days after Mark Russinovich first reported about the installation of rootkits in your computer by Sony in his blog, Sony bowed down to pressure from bloggers and began to pull controversial CDs and offer swap.

It's CONSUMER 1 OVER-ZEALOUS SONY 0

Anyway, I would like to reiterate this:
In order to prevent rootkits from installing on your computer, if you are using Windows Operating System, it would be best to disable autorun of your CD/DVD drives. This prevents the creators of CD/DVDs to make your computer run programs just by your insertion of the disc. While autorun is a useful feature, it can be exploited by virus makers to run code without your knowledge. Annoyances.org has an article on how to disable autorun. If you have no experience in editing the registry, my recommendation will be to install TweakUI.

However, if you really cannot leave live without the convenient of autorun, there is another way and that is to install a Host Intrusion Prevention System like AntiHook 2.5 to provide realtime protection, on top of rootkit detectors.

Technorati Tags: computer security, rootkits, sony

The self-destruction of Google? How not to earn money from ad-sense

From digg.com: Firefox Extensions recommended by a Google engineer (Matt Cutts). Matt Cutts introduces Ad-block, a Firefox extension which when combined with Filterset.G, a popular Ad-block script, blocks Google's Ad-sense advertisement. It does not seem to make sense to me...it's contradicting...a Google employee potentially decreasing the amount of ads viewed (just kidding...how much damage can it do?)...Also, Google is paying $1 for each new Firefox user you refer. Well, this move is obviously against Microsoft and could pay off the $1 as the stakes for internet dominance are high. However, I dare say that Firefox users are on the whole more tech savvy than Internet Explorer and are more likely to use Ad-blocking programs. This is a far cry from the earlier days of the Internet where the majority still uses dial-up. The first Ad-blocking program was created then, and along with it was complains from Ad companies that it was wrong etc...

Anyway, I would recommend visitors to my blog to try Firefox. Here's an interesting link providing 13 good reasons to switch to Firefox: Kill Bill's browser. When I first accessed Kill Bill's browser, I thought it was just a play on the movie Kill Bill just to justify the bruceleesque(not burlesque...I just coined this term for pun) bright yellow and black theme. Only when I saw the words Microsoft did it hit me that it was a double pun on the creator of the aforementioned company's founder. It was a little cruel though but I hope that he will take it like a joke. What was more cruel(to me at least) was that I did not realise the double pun fast enough...I've always pride myself on being good with puns and such.

I could do with some extra cash but I have not signed up for Ad-sense. Why? Coz I've figured out that based on the pathetic number of hits my site gets, the pittance I would receive wouldn't even be enough to justify irritating readers. Also, with my advocating of stuff such as Firefox and Ad-block, readers of my blog won't get to see many Ads anyway. Perhaps I can consider ad-sense when my readership increases significantly.

Technorati Tags: ad-sense, browser, Firefox, Google , Microsoft , webtrends

Do your part for blogger by flagging splogs

Of late, there have been a proliferation of splogs or spam blogs. When you click on 'Next Blog' and get directed to one, just 'flag' it by selecting the 'Flag' button next to the 'Next Blog' button. One person cannot make a dent but if everyone who use blogger 'flags' splogs, then it is possible to significantly reduce splogs and make blog surfing a better experience. Even if it can't make a dent, at least you know you've tried.

Thanks

Technorati Tags: blogging, splogs

SONY installs malware on your computer

Sony installs rootkit on your computer when you use some of their CDs with built-in copy-protection. By doing so, it exposes your computer to danger as the rootkits hides files with specific filenames, allowing viruses to exploit this and make themselves undetectable by many anti-virus software. This is discovered by Mark Russinovich and first reported in his blog. It is subsequently reported by BBC, The Inquirer and the Washinton Post.

In order to prevent rootkits from installing on your computer, if you are using Windows Operating System, it would be best to disable autorun of your CD/DVD drives. This prevents the creators of CD/DVDs to make your computer run programs just by your insertion of the disc. While autorun is a useful feature, it can be exploited by virus makers to run code without your knowledge. Annoyances.org has an article on how to disable autorun. If you have no experience in editing the registry, my recommendation will be to install TweakUI.

Technorati Tags: computer security, DRM, malware