October 4, 2010

National Cyber Security Awareness Month 2010.

National Cyber Security Awareness Month 2010.

The month of October 2010 is the 7th annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) here in the United States. Internet (cyber) security continues to be at the forefront of our minds as we push further into the 21st century, and once again President Obama has made a presidential proclamation regarding the need for increased cybersecurity:

America’s digital infrastructure is critical to laying the foundation for our economic prosperity, government efficiency, and national security. We stand at a transformational moment in history, when our technologically interconnected world presents both immense promise and potential risks. (Read more)

We all have a part in taking cybersecurity seriously and addressing it in our every day lives. The staff of StopSign Internet Security software is proud be be part of the solution by providing excellent antivirus, antispyware, and firewall software as recommended by the Department of Homeland Security for every computer user in the US.

Special Offer: Once again we’re offering a special discount of 20% off our StopSign Internet Security software (which includes antivirus, antispyware, and firewall software [downloaded separately]) for anyone using the coupon code “NCSAM” during National Cyber Security Awareness Month. To take advantage of this money saving offer, visit the StopSign shopping cart and enter the code to get your special price. (The site will open in a new window.) Please note that the discount will not be applied to T4C game items or the StopSign CD box.

If you don’t see the coupon entry form right away, click on the coupon code link in “Step 2” on the cart to enter your coupon code before you order!

StopSign is proud to endorse NCSAM by helping raise awareness regarding Internet security-related topics. For more information on National Cyber Security Awareness Month or government recommendations on cyber security, please visit StaySafeOnline.org.

Image courtesy of Department of Homeland Security

If you're looking for great anti-virus software that won't break the bank, try StopSign. You don't pay extra for tech support for difficult malware, and our web protection software just works. Download & install StopSign to find out why our members choose us over the other options.

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September 22, 2010

There’s No Free Lunch Online.

There’s No Free Lunch Online.

I want to talk about “free“. I don’t know about you, but I love free things. Free samples at Costco, kids eat free specials at restaurants… free is great when you can get it. But it’s not really free, is it? I mean, they want you to buy… they wouldn’t be in business if you didn’t. The free is just to get you in the door; but before you leave they want that “free” to turn into “pay”.

A very famous (and very popular) pop artist has a song that goes:

“We are living in a material world, and I am a material girl.”
Madonna

She is not wrong about where we’re living.

Like it or not, companies exist to make money. That’s not a popular thing to say out loud, but the fact is we all need to make money to survive. Your company needs to make money just as much as mine does, and when they do make it, we get our checks, pay our bills, and send our kids to school.

We see “free” a lot with services and products in the online world, don’t we? Free software, free upgrades, free this or that. But if you look closely, many times you see a free version advertised, only to click on the link to find out (surprise, surprise) that they push the paid versions. StopSign doesn’t do that. We offer a paid service, and a darned good one at that.

In our industry, that of Internet security, we have a lot of competitors. So what sets a company like ours apart if there are plenty of other choices? Why should you choose StopSign over someone else? Because StopSign offers you three things:

  1. Commitment to quality: First and foremost, we have quality software. We stand behind every download and every account that our members have. We’re nothing without you and we know it, so we try harder. We’re a small business, and we don’t have a bajillion dollars behind us to flood the market with empty promises.
  2. Excellent customer service :We’ve got 100% US-based support. Not outsourcing our support means that as a StopSign member you’ll get helped by people who live right here in the United States. We’re committed to keeping as many jobs in the US as possible.
  3. Up front pricing: We don’t ply you with “free” and pretend you aren’t going to pay for our services. Sure, you could get a free 30-day trial of StopSign to test out the waters, but we’re not going to lie and say it’s 100% free. We want you to try StopSign out, see how great we are, and become a paid StopSign member. And because we’re not trying to fleece you with “free”, we don’t have to charge exorbitant support fees if you run into a major problem. Once you pay for your StopSign membership, that’s it until your next bill. You do not pay extra for support! Few antivirus software vendors can say the same thing.

Chances are your mom told you the same thing my mom did: “You get what you pay for.” If you paid nothing for software, what do you think you’ll get when you need help? At StopSign, our reasonably priced subscriptions ensure you get quality, US-based support that won’t quit on you or ask for more money to help you out when you need it. We hope that you’ll choose StopSign for your antivirus and Internet security needs.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/cuteobento/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

If you're looking for great anti-virus software that won't break the bank, try StopSign. You don't pay extra for tech support for difficult malware, and our web protection software just works. Download & install StopSign to find out why our members choose us over the other options.

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February 24, 2010

Is My Antivirus Software Working?

Is My Antivirus Software Working?

The StopSign Support staff fields a lot of different calls every day, and a common question heard by our techs is “How can I tell if my antivirus software is working?“. With hundreds of new viruses and other kinds of malware being written or released every day, it’s natural to suspect that your antivirus software isn’t up to snuff if you don’t see it catching anything.

Like most antivirus vendors, the StopSign Research lab keeps a closed-off network of computers (i.e. not connected to the Internet or our internal networks) with live viruses to test our software before it goes out to our members. For us it’s easy to run our antivirus software against live viruses in our “snakepit” of malware safely because we have a closed environment to test the StopSign Threat Scanner, but that’s not the case for everyone.

Luckily the European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research provides, free of charge, the EICAR Standard Anti-Virus Test File as a tool to test antivirus software using different test files to see if your scanner takes the bait. The EICAR anti-malware test file is a safe (i.e. not truly infected; it only contains patterns and not any actual virus code), publically available anti-malware test file which contains code that should trigger detections by antivirus and/or anti-malware software.

Testing your antivirus software is as easy as 1-2-3:

  1. Download:

    Go to EICAR’s web site and download an anti-malware test file on to your computer (and be sure to note where you downloaded it to). There are several versions of the test file available if you scroll to the bottom of the page. Feel free to choose any (or all) of them.

  2. Scan:

    Using your antivirus software (we, of course, recommend StopSign Internet Security software), scan the anti-malware test file you downloaded.

  3. Review:

    When your security software is finished, it should have detected any of the anti-malware test files you downloaded as infected.

If for some reason your antivirus software doesn’t pick up the “infection” it could just mean it’s time to update your software with the latest anti-malware definitions. Update your security software and try it again, and if it still doesn’t pick up the EICAR anti-malware test file then contact your security software vendor to see if there is a problem.

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/kristiand/ / CC BY 2.0

If you're looking for great anti-virus software that won't break the bank, try StopSign. You don't pay extra for tech support for difficult malware, and our web protection software just works. Download & install StopSign to find out why our members choose us over the other options.

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October 28, 2009

What is spyware?

What is spyware?

Whether it’s at a party with friends or on a phone call with one of our members, we’re often asked “What is spyware?“, but the answer isn’t always cut and dry. In theory, spyware is any software installed on your computer, typically without your knowledge, which is used to track your computer usage, change your PC’s configuration without telling you, and/or display unwanted advertising. Think of it like a digital spy camera, but instead of taking a picture of you, it’s taking snapshots of what you’re doing on your computer. In practice, however, many types of software could be loosely defined as spyware without being malicious. This makes keeping up with what is, and isn’t, spyware all the more difficult.

What we can all agree on is that spyware is computer software that’s more often than not set-up to monitor any activity on your PC, including (but not limited to) what you type, any websites you visit, or any habits you have when you use your computer. Because of this, the inference is that any piece of software that monitors any aspect of your computing can be considered spyware if you take it to the extreme. However, some software by it’s very nature needs to monitor your computer usage, files opened, and software downloaded. Malware and other scam software packages aren’t likely to tell you they’re installing themselves onto your system, much less tell you about any changes they make to your computer. And because there are so many rogue spyware applications out there you should evaluate any piece of software that you download (and ideally before you install) to have an informed decision regarding whether the software is using the information gathered, and any system changes, for good or bad.

Symptoms of a computer with a spyware infection include, but aren’t limited to:

  • An increase in unwanted popups, generally for advertising purposes. These popups may also occur when you’re not surfing the web, visiting Facebook, or streaming movies.
  • If your PC has become uncharacteristically slow, especially when opening, closing, or saving files, you may have a spyware infection. (Of course, a really old or un-optimized computer may act the same way)
  • A sudden, unintentional change in your browser’s homepage is a classic sign of spyware infection, especially if you’ve repeatedly attempted to reset your homepage back to your original settings.
  • New browser toolbars, desktop icons, bookmarks, or applications installed without your knowledge also herald the arrival of spyware onto your system.
  • A “hijacked browser” that takes you to web sites different from what you typed into your address bar is another classic example of things spyware will do.

In some cases, however, you may experience no symptoms at all, especially if the spyware installed is only monitoring your usage and not actively directing you to web sites or advertisements. That’s where some basic Internet security comes in, by having antivirus, antispyware, and firewall software installed, updated, and running 24/7 to help protect you against the real spyware that’s out there.

Image courtesy of x1brett

If you're looking for great anti-virus software that won't break the bank, try StopSign. You don't pay extra for tech support for difficult malware, and our web protection software just works. Download & install StopSign to find out why our members choose us over the other options.

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