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6 Tips To Secure Your Facebook Account

facebook-logoThere are several points to consider when accessing your Facebook account. Let’s discuss them one by one.

1. Enable HTTPS

Using HTTPS instead of simple HTTP means that you are securing your communication between the server and your computer. No one will be able to hack between your computer and the server so you can be sure that all the information delivered to and from your computer is completely safe. Modern browsers can highlight the secure URLs with the information about the certificate issuing authority.

To enable HTTPS, you can login to your Facebook account and go to “Account -> Account Settings“.

Select Account Security under Settings tab and check the box beside Browse Facebook on a secure connection (https) whenever possible

2. Use Facebook two- step authentication (Login Approvals)

Like Google, Facebook has also introduced two-step authentication service called Login Approvals. This service lets you login to your Facebook account by using your password plus a security authentication code sent to your mobile device. By enabling this service, you will no longer be able to login to Facebook by only using your password. You will always be required to use the password and security code sent to your mobile device.

facebook-login-approvals

3. Check for Facebook email phishing attacks and scams

While you are in Facebook, you should never click on suspicious links even if the messages were sent from your friends. Most Facebook scams spread by posting messages to walls of all friends of the infected user. The best place to get updated news about Facebook scams is Facecrooks.com. This site will give you details about all the recent scams and other threats spreading on Facebook. Visit Facecrooks.com frequently to find out more about Facebook threats.

You should also take extra care when reading a message from Facebook. Always double-check the email address of the sender before taking any action or clicking on any link in the email. All the emails sent from Facebook will originate from facebookmail.com domain. Emails from any other domain claiming to be from Facebook will be scam and not legitimate.

4. Enable login notifications

Enabling login notifications in Facebook will notify you when someone logs in from a suspicious location or computer. This is important if you always use your Facebook from the same computer and same Internet connection, Facebook will know your location and will trust the computer you’re working on. If you or someone else logs in from another location, you’ll get a notification from Facebook about the suspicious account activity.

To enable login notification, go to “Account -> Account Settings“.

Under settings tab expand “Account security -> Login notification“, check the following two boxes:

§ Send me an email

§ Send me a text message

You should also check Facebook Login history regularly and see if any suspicious person has logged into your Facebook account. Facebook history will tell you the recent IP addresses and devices used to login to your Facebook account.

5. Use Facebook one-time password service on public computers

Like Hotmail, Facebook also provides the facility of one-time password. One-time password is a temporary password which can only be used once and expires within 20 minutes of creation. To enable this service, you’ll need to activate a phone number so that Facebook can send messages to your mobile. To register and activate a phone number you can go to “Account -> Account settings”.

Under Mobile tab, you can activate your phone to use Facebook one-time password service. The temporary password will be sent to your mobile and you’ll be able to login to Facebook once using that password.

6. Check Allowed Applications Frequently

You should always keep an eye on which application you have allowed and what that application is doing. You should never install an app that looks suspicious. Always search the Internet for its reviews and install the app only if it has good rating.

I hope following all these points will give you a better and secure experience with Facebook. Last of all I would like you to attempt a security quiz from Facebook. In this quiz you’ll be asked questions about security and you can see how informed you are regarding Facebook security. You may also take a look at managing Facebook privacy options.

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How to Improve Your PC’s Speed for Free in Seven Easy Steps

Does your computer start up slowly? Do applications run slowly and hang all the time? Do you want to get rid of these problems for free? These steps here will probably help you resolve your problems.1. When you turn on your computer, ensure that there are no media (discs) in the ROM drive or any attached USB devices. Having any of these causes the computer to start slowly as it tries to read them for possible boot options.2. Disable startup programs such as Windows Sidebar and any programs which are installed that run at startup. These programs cause your computer to boot slowly as it has to load them before you can begin to use your computer. To do this, run Windows Defender. Click on Tools and select Software Explorer. Click on the category button to display Startup Programs. Click once on the displayed programs to see which are available for disabling and disable them. You can also disable programs that run at startup by running them, and ensuring that the “Run At Startup” option is not checked or allowed.

3. Click on the battery icon on the taskbar in the lower right-hand corner of your screen. This displays the power options menu. If “High Performance” is not selected as the power plan, select it. This power plan maximizes system performance.

4. End application processes which are not in use at a particular time. These processes compete with the programs you are running for available computer memory and speed. Such processes include Bluetooth, dictionaries, search bars etc (you can always restart them when you need them by running the applications again). To end processes, open the Task Manager. There are several ways to do this:

a. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc. This is the quickest way.

b. Right-click on the taskbar and choose Task Manager from the menu.

c. Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete and choose Start Task Manager from the options that appear.
In the Task Manager, click on the Processes tab to display currently running processes and right-click on the process you want to end. Select End Process or End Process Tree to end that particular process. If you are not sure what process it is, read the descriptions that accompany each process.

5. Disable the Windows Aero color scheme (this is the functionality that gives your computer interface a transparent, glassy look). Windows Aero consumes computer memory and it is advisable to switch to another color scheme which uses less computer memory if your computer is running slow. To do this, right- click on an empty position on your desktop window and select Personalization from the menu that appears. You can also open Personalization by clicking on the Start button and selecting Control Panel and then clicking on Personalization. Under Personalization, select Windows Color and Appearance and choose another option such as Windows Vista Basic or Windows Classic.

6. Defragment your hard disk regularly. As data is added, changed and deleted from your hard disk, it creates non-contiguous portions of data (spaces usually occur where data has been deleted and changes made to data are saved in locations different from the original files). This is known as fragmentation and causes your computer to work harder to find a particular piece of data. This tends to slow a computer down. Defragmenting your hard disk rearranges the data so that it works more efficiently. Defragmentation usually runs on a schedule but you can run the disk defragmenter manually. To do this, click on the Start button and select Computer. Right-click on your primary hard disk (or any other hard disk partitions you would like to defragment) and choose Properties. Click on the Tools tab and select Defragment Now. When the application opens, click on Defragment now.

7. Run Disk Clean Up. This option deletes unnecessary files from your hard disk and frees up space which enables your computer to run faster. To do this, click on the Start button and select Computer. Right-click on your primary hard disk (or any other hard disk partitions you would like to clean) and choose Properties. Click on the General tab and select Disk Cleanup. Select the files you would like to delete, click OK and then click Delete Files to confirm.

Follow these steps and there will be a noticeable improvement in your computer’s speed and performance.

Easy Steps to Improve Your PC’s Performance

Image representing Microsoft as depicted in Cr...

Unless your computer is fresh out of the box, it’s probably not running as fast as it used to. Our PCs fill up with all sorts of good stuff — documents, music, videos, programs, games, downloads — and bad stuff like viruses and spyware, too. Over time they can get bogged down.

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Much like oil changes for your car, a little periodic maintenance can help extend your computer’s lifespan. And in a tight economy, it’s smart to take a few simple steps to help keep your PC running like new, instead of buying a new one.

We’ve collected a series of tips and tricks to help your computer run more smoothly and broaden its useful life. They are easy enough that anyone, even a novice, can run them — but they can all help bring that “new car smell” back to your computer.

Computers with Windows XP and newer operating systems come with several simple utilities to check, clean and de-clutter your hard drive. Doing so will free it up to access your programs and files more quickly.  Disk Check identifies and removes hard disk errors caused by crashes or power failures. It’s a good idea to run it every few months to make sure the drive itself is functioning properly.

    • Click on

My Computer

    • Right click on

C drive

    • Choose “

Properties

 

    • Select the

Tools

    Tab

 

    • Click the “

Check Now

    ” button under “Error Checking”

 

    • Check

all

    the boxes

 

    • Click

Start

Disk Cleanup removes temporary files and unnecessary detritus from your hard drive, freeing up space. For example, when browsing the Internet your computer collects thousands of temporary files to help Web sites load more quickly. But over time these files create clutter, so it’s a good idea to clean them out. We recommend running this around once a month.

    • Click on

My Computer

    • Right click on your

C drive

    • Choose “

Properties”

    • Select

Disk Cleanup

The Disk Defragmenter improves hard drive performance and speed by piecing together parts of files that have been broken apart. As you use your computer, files are constantly added, changed and removed. Over time, these files and folders are broken into chunks of data, so when you want to access the file your hard disk has to work harder and look in more places to find all of its contents. This is known as fragmentation. The more full your hard drive becomes, the more likely it is your files will be fragmented. The Defragmenter pieces those chunks of data back together, so your hard drive can load them more quickly.

We recommend using this utility at least once a month — and it’s best to run when you’re finished using the computer for the day, as it can often take over an hour to complete.

    • Click on

My Computer

    • Right click on your

C drive

    • Select

Properties

    • Choose the

Tools

    tab

 

    • Click “

Defragment Now

    ” button under “Defragmentation”

 

Windows XP and higher can automatically check to see if it needs to be updated. Microsoft often supplies patches, updates and security fixes for Windows (as well as Office and other Microsoft programs) that should always be installed to keep your PC up-to-date. The beauty of Automatic Updates is that it checks with Microsoft on its own and lets you know when you need to do something. So just make sure that Automatic Updates are on:

    • Click

Start

    , and then click

Control Panel

    • Click

Automatic Updates

    • Choose

Automatic (recommended)Though it sounds counterintuitive, dropping an unwanted file in the Recycle Bin doesn’t actually remove it from your hard drive. To prevent accidental deletion, a file can remain in the Recycle Bin and continue to take up space. Periodically emptying the Recycle Bin helps free space for the files you want to keep.

By the way, if running all these individual fixes doesn’t sound like your cup of tea, there is software available that can optimize your computer in a few simple steps — cleaning our your hard drive, speeding startup and shutdown, and repairing errors. AOL offers two that are worth checking out: PerfectSpeed and System Mechanic.

Finally, perhaps the most common causes of computer sluggishness are viruses and spyware. You may already have computer security software installed on your computer, but with so many new threats created every day, it must have updated definition files to be of any use.

If you don’t already have security software on your PC, make sure you install it and keep it updated. Paid AOL members can download security software from McAfee for free, as part of their membership, at safety.aol.com. If you’re not a paid AOL member, you can still find special deals on McAfee software at this site.

Computer Slow Down Issues And Solutions

If you find yourself getting frustrated and annoyed at your slow computer, you are not alone. Most PC owners are likely to face problems sooner or later. Often within a few months of buying a PC, you may notice that it is not performing like new. Unfortunately, most of the time no action is taken until your PC becomes frustratingly slow and leads to a major loss in productivity.

While some of the slowing down of your computer can be attributed to the burden on its resources, most of the time, computer slowdowns are just symptoms of some other underlying issue. When faced with this problem, your first instinct may be to call up a computer expert to help you resolve it, however, there is no need to escalate the issue and you can take care of most PC problems if you cover a few things on your end.

  • Clean and Defrag your Hard Drive: Your hard disk starts getting cluttered from the day you start working on a new computer as all kinds of data gets continuously added and deleted from it. After a while, it may be difficult to find anything on your hard disk. This situation can be avoided by using the Disk Cleanup and Disk Defragmenter tools. While the former will help you get rid of unnecessary clutter, the latter will help you reorganize the files in your hard disk to make them faster to access. These are system tools provided by your operating system and they go a long way in making your system fast.
  • Select Programs Carefully: It is easy to get carried away and install many new and exciting applications on your computer. The flip side of this is that every time you do that you put an additional burden on your computer. Also, each of these applications bring along their own specific bugs and errors. For example, installing Norton security suite makes you vulnerable to ccsvchst.exe high CPU usage problems—especially if you fail to update the software on a regular basis. So, you must be judicious in installing applications on your PC and must get rid of unwanted ones immediately. You can use the Add/Remove Programs utility available in your Control Panel to achieve this. If the software is large or if there are some problems with the un-installation process, you may use a good, third-party program uninstaller tool to do the job.
  • Maintain a Healthy Registry: It has been observed that slow computers tend to have bloated and cluttered windows registries. In addition to the bad performance of your PC, an unhealthy registry is known to cause numerous registry errors and disrupt your work. Therefore, you must maintain a healthy windows registry. This can be achieved either by manually editing your registry or by simply downloading a popular registry cleaner from the Internet. You must opt for manual editing of the registry only if you are sure of what you are looking for, otherwise, you should delegate this task to a registry cleaner that will clean your registry in just a few minutes.

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Super Tips To Deal With Annoying PC Errors

New developments in computer technology are helping computer users to accomplish more than ever before. Our operating systems and applications work faster, do new things, and are more user-friendly. However, at the same time, there is one area where issues of common computer users continue to be ignored and this happens to be annoying computer error messages and their indecipherable codes.

Error messages are comprised of numbers and characters that are difficult to understand and troubleshoot. Your computer screen may display words like Run-time error 75: Path/ File access error, error 619 or c0000221 error which can confuse you. However, if you have time and inclination, you can use the services of any online library of error codes to understand the cause of the problem and try to troubleshoot and fix runtime error and other computer errors.

The easiest way out for a common computer user is to follow the tips listed below to prevent these annoying PC errors:

  1. Your PC is your castle, protect it Oftentimes your computer encounters problems and errors when it comes in contact with external threats such as attacks from malicious software, such as viruses, spyware, and Trojans or malicious people we know as hackers. In addition to causing serious problems, such as system crashes and stop errors, these attackers can steal and misuse information residing on your computer. To combat these threats, you need to equip your PC with the following protection tools:
    • Anti-virus
    • Anti-spyware

You need to select a reliable anti-virus and anti-spyware tool in order to ensure smooth PC performance. These tools work silently in the background and protect your computer from potential security threats. These tools detect these threats and eliminate them efficiently. To get the best out of these tools, you need to:

  • Keep the real-time protection always ON
  • Keep the tools updated so that they can recognize and counter the latest threats
  • Run complete scans on your system at frequent intervals.

In addition to these tools, it is highly recommended that you install a Firewall, especially, if your PC is connected to the internet.

  1. Keep your Windows Registry in Good Health The Windows Registry is like the central nervous system that stores in itself a database of configuration and settings information of your operating system, applications, programs and hardware. Often a windows registry bloats up to a huge size due to non-maintenance and can generate a large number of computer errors. A bloated and damaged registry may also cause slow performance of your computer that may cause frequent stop errors and system crashes.To deal with this potential problem, it is recommended that you scan and repair your Windows registry on regular intervals. The experts do it by manually editing an inbuilt utility called “Regedit” but common users should rely on third party registry tools for maintenance of their Windows Registry.
  2. Take care of your Hard DiskCleanliness is very important when it comes to avoiding computer errors. This not only involves keeping your workstation free from dust particles, but more importantly ensuring that your hard disk is uncluttered and defragmented. An unclean hard disk which is cramped for free space has high chances of encountering errors. Your Windows operating system comes with two important utilities which help you take care of your hard disk. These are the Disk Cleanup and Disk Defragmenter tool.You will notice that you encounter a significantly less number of annoying PC errors if you follow the above tips.

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Setting Up A Hackers Workstation

You have to collect some of the tools, Operating System & documentation on your PC with a very clear format.
Operating System:
Which OS to use, choice is all yours. Windows in all cases is not so ‘made for hacking’ according to me. Whatever XP,Vista or windows 7. They are all just OS which are made for novice public which can learn computers.
If you are a regular Linux user, Then shift to Backtrack Linux. It is Linux made for hacker geeks & completely embedded with all penetration testing tools in it. You can Download Backtrack here. But if you have never used Linux & wish to learn then you can use basic Linux distributions like Ubuntu. But remember that you or not supposed to learn Linux desktop environment like windows, you have to learn its shell or terminal. (command prompt of Linux)
As I said Choice is all yours you can go with Windows also. Its all on you.  (Suggestion: If you can’t make it habit to learn new things, you can never be a HACKER)
Hackers Toolkit:
In your root directory or C:/ in windows make a folder named Tools. So that you can access all tools from command prompt easily E.g.  c:/tools/example
Go surf for these tools enlisted.
What are these tools ? Why are they used for ? How to use it ? are some of the questions that are striking your head.  Chill all dudes & babes, I am here to help you with each of the tools listed above.  All you have to do is first download them all & place in your root directory.