Rant 275 1/10/12 Subject: Hidden computerised communication.

Rant number 275

The internet is - for all its wonder and splendour - exactly what it says: a World Wide Web.

So lets just think about that word: Web. It means a network, it means many interlocking points but - it finally and most importantly means a trap.

There are many unpleasant characters hidden away in this web - millions of the bastards and they really want you to fly in unawares and blaze - just to put your foot in one of their sticky strands.

So what can you do?

Exactly what your Mummy always said - be safe and be prepared.

The computer with a normal operating system is a woefully inadequate way of protecting yourself. They write these viruses and spyware with the backdoors in these main programs in mind.

Don't be caught ignorant and unawares!

I'm not a big fan of virus checkers. They run in the background - stealing run time. They miss things and they cost money for the most part. I do swear by one particular combination of things however - that seems to work for me:

A good firewall and some bloody common sense.

I use a firewall (Mac only windows friends - sorry) called Little Snitch. Little Snitch does exactly that. If something tries to talk to your computer or something on your computer tries to call home/communicate out - Little Snitch tells me about it and gives me the chance to stop it.

It's a handy - simple system.

As for common sense - this speaks for itself. If something seems wrong - don't get involved. Don't open e-mail attachments from anyone you don't know.
Scratch that - don't even open e-mails from anyone you don't know or are not expecting!
Another thing to bear in mind - no-one official will ever ask for official information.
Don't get sucked it.

Anyway - I digress.

The real irritation about using a good Firewall is that it really highlights just how much communication goes on with your computer if you don't keep an eye on things. I used one piece of software yesterday (a Divx video player) which tried to speak to home (for no doubt marketing purposes) no less than 4 times in several minutes.

Now- this could be completely benign however, there is a chance that any information on your computer could be shared with the outside world. Is that really what you want?

No - I don't think so.

Get a firewall and keep an eye on things. Don't get stuck on the web - or a spider will probably eat you.

Rant over.