Add Apple to the list of high-profile companies hit by hackers as of late, right on the heels of a similar attack on Facebook just last week. According to Reuters, this is the widest known cyber attack to ever target corporate Apple computers. In other words: This is a big deal. For both Facebook and Read more…
“Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” – Benjamin Franklin Personal privacy: It’s a tenant of American citizenship, but also the source of a long-held debate over the balance between an individual liberty and national security. Where should governments draw the line, and what Read more…
They say size doesn’t matter… however, at Twitter it actually does! How can you express yourself, knowing that you MUST use no more than 140 characters? How can you tell everything about Avast and still fit within this number? How can you respond to Avast users knowing this limitation? Well, by setting up and communicating daily via […]
“I bought a Mac, because it’s safer than a PC.” “I always surf the web with my iPhone, because I know it can’t get infected.” “I got a virus on my first PC, so now I only use Apple products.” Sound familiar? Too often, the rhetoric around the Mac vs. PC debate focuses on Apple’s Read more…
People love lists. Lately, I’ve seen lists for 7 Ways to Look Younger, Worst Dressed at the Grammys, and our favorite, Top 5 Facebook Software Pages. Late last year, as the number of fans on our popular Facebook page increased, Julia, my fellow Queen of the avast! FREEks, and I noticed that we were quickly […]
Recently we encountered a very suspicious piece of code on some Joomla-powered webpages. The code looks as if garbled and without any special meaning, and starts like this: Upon closer observation, several strange things are to be noted. First, there are no alphanumerical symbols to be seen in any part of the code. Second, on […]
Love is in the air, and while Cupid is sharpening his arrows for Valentine’s Day, scammers are sharpening their skills and using holiday-themed keywords to target unsuspecting users. Whether you’re looking for your soul mate or just trying to buy something special for your sweetheart, hackers see this as an opportunity for profit as you Read more…
I don’t know what kind of curiosity leads people to the dark corners of the internet, when they want to obtain a new version of antivirus software. It’s somehow irrational to find security software at insecure places. But…. it happens. As you can see, the file name is Avast_Antivirus_2012_Trial_Verion.exe – but it is definitely not […]
Wait…what! You heard it right: According to a recent security report, Internet users are 182 times more likely to get a virus from clicking on online ads than visiting an adult website. At first glance, this sounds extremely counterintuitive (and it is). In theory, wouldn’t your risk go up when visiting shady sites? Yes and Read more…
What would you do if someone threatened to post risqué photos of you on the Internet? According to a new McAfee survey, 68.7% of us have used a smartphone to send personal or intimate text messages, emails, or photos – a habit that could put your privacy (and even your job, relationships, or financial stability) Read more…