What they are and how to protect against them Attacks and malware What they are and how to protect against them

Types of attacks Malware is “Malicious Software” Botnets are like Beehives Backdoors are other ways into computers or networks. Denial of Service brings down computers and networks Spoofing is when an attack pretends to be someone / something else in order to attack. Malware – they are special programs that do damage to computers and networks. Botnets – A group of malware infected computers on a network that are controlled to do work for the attack, e.g., send spam Denial of Service – a network or program is flooded with specific information or traffic which crashes the service and allows no further access. Spoofing – examples include using fake credentials

Types of malware Examples of Malware: Virus – Any type of malicious code on your computer is a virus. Sometimes they don’t do damage, like just sending mass emails which slow everything down and sometimes they overwrite or delete files on your hard drive. Emails are the fastest way for viruses to spread. Worms – Worms are a type of virus viruses. Unlike viruses, Worms are their own programs but hide to look like files or other programs, ILOVEYOU is a famous worm that displayed itself as a .txt file. Worms mostly search for types of files, like .txt, .doc (Mircosoft Word), .exe (Windows programs) and corrupt them. ILOVEYOU corrupted them and overwrote them to all be a copy of the worm. Trojan – The recent WannaCry was a Trojan Ransomware program. Ransomware infects your files like a worm and then encrypts them with a special key. To get the decryption key and your files back, you need to pay a ransom. Trojans are regular programs that make you think they are helpful, even disguising themselves as antivirus programs. They are very difficult to remove and make your computer almost unusable as they can continuously pop up as you try to use your computer. Some have methods of corrupting your hard drive if you try to uninstall them. Spyware – Keyloggers, they can turn on your web cam, record your screen, steal passwords etc. Mostly don’t do damage to your files but they watch everything you do and can cause ads that contain viruses to get on to your machine.

How to reduce risk Install an anti-virus program and keep it up to date. Be careful about which sites you visit and emails you click Keep your computer and programs up to date! Anti-virus doesn’t have to be expensive version. Some anti viruses have what is called a browser extension and will scan and block anything malicious on the site you visit. In Chrome just google “(name of anti virus) chrome extension” Updates are annoying and always seem to be at the wrong time but they drastically reduce the risk of you being hit if you are kept up to date.

There are many different Anti-Virus options out there. Recommendation to use Microsoft Security Essentials, bitdefender, TrendMicro, avast and eset.

Wireless networks and routers What they are and what to do to configure them correctly

Wireless Network Your Home accesses the internet through your router Your Devices connect to your router over a wireless Connection or using an Ethernet cable Where the router in your house came from

Is your home network safe? Before accessing the internet configure your router Why? How? 192.168.1.1 Administrator settings Wireless network key Ensure a strong password why>? : your router was sent to you configured by the factory that made them just like every other router they made, if they use one method to make up a key for every router then if it is compromised the n they all are. What is this address 192.168.1.1 >?: This is the home address for almost every router you use and this is how you will change your settings. Make sure to change the standard password and username Change your network name to something unique that will make it easier to identify or for fun : PrettyFlyForAWiFi Ensure your password is secret and that it is a long password that is very hard to guess.

How can I be even safer? Keyword filtering Off hours Website blocking Mac address filtering Keyword filtering >? : Some routers don’t have all the best features but keyword filtering for certain words such knife will block a site to do with that keyword These are a few features that the router provided to you by your internet service provider (ISP) may not have.

Adding a new router To use a different router along with the SKY (for example) router: - have a look at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id7mLqemtfc Or, search for How to use your own wireless router together with Sky's - make sure that wireless function is disabled on SKY router