password

If you use your Mac in areas where it may be accessed by those other than yourself, then undoubtedly you might be concerned about its security. While using a cable lock for both desktop and laptop systems is a good recommendation, you also might set the system up to prevent unauthorized access if you need to quickly step away from it.

One way to ensure your data is safe is to simply log out of your computer every time you leave; however, this will quit your running applications and interrupt your workflow. In OS X Mountain Lion, Apple's autosave … Read more

A friend took me to task last week for a post I wrote back in January on preventing Google from tracking you when you search. His alternative solution: "Just use Bing."

That got me thinking about other no-brainer approaches to security that thumb their noses at the conventional (and often convoluted and time-consuming) advice of the experts.

Search without footprints via the 'other' search engines Truly anonymous Web surfing requires the use of a VPN service that blocks your IP address as well as other personal information. (For more on VPN, see the tip below.) If you simply … Read more

Having your browser store password data for sites can be a huge time-saver and convenience. Naturally, there are security issues to consider-- what if someone else uses your computer? Less severe but more irritating, what if you forget your password and need to log in on another machine? Unless you use the same password for several services, you could be left in a bad situation.

Instead of answering security questions to reset your password to something else you might forget, try these steps to figure out what it is.

Step 1: Open the log-in page for the service you're … Read more

A firmware password on Mac systems locks the hardware to prevent booting to alternative modes that could bypass OS X security, but in order to access some of these modes you first have to disable the firmware password. While this can be done using Apple's Firmware Password Utility on the recovery drive or OS X installation disc, there may be times when you do not have access to this drive either because it is missing or corrupted, and therefore cannot use the password utility.

Unfortunately in these cases for newer Mac systems shipped in 2011 or later, you have … Read more

Even with robust security software installed on a Mac system and Apple's efforts to prevent unwanted tampering, someone with brief physical access to your Mac can bypass security measures by booting to alternative volumes or loading in Single User mode. If this concerns you, you might consider locking the system's firmware.

Locking the firmware prevents the system from accepting boot arguments and loading in modes that might allow access to sensitive data. These include Single User mode, in which the system drops you to a command line with root privileges, and Safe mode, in which nonessential and third-party … Read more

A computer scientist says he discovered that a server of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) had about 100,000 usernames and passwords stored in plaintext and publicly accessible.

Radu Dragusin, a computer scientist who works at FindZebra and is a teaching assistant at the University of Copenhagen, writes in a blog post that he discovered the problem last week and notified the IEEE about his findings, enabling them to "at least partially" fix the problem.

The data was publicly available on the IEEE FTP (File Transfer Protocol) server for at least a month, potentially exposing … Read more

Some iPhone 5 users are seeing lines in front of their eyes, at least when they key in their passwords.

Users chiming in on MacForums and on Apple's Discussion Forums say that lines of static appear across their keyboard as they type. But the problem seems to occur only when they enter their passwords at the App Store or iTunes store.

A YouTube video posted by one user clearly shows the static lines hopping across the screen.

Some posters believe the problem made be software related, especially since Apple changed the look and layout of the App Store and … Read more

PowerPoint Viewer 2007 is free software you can use to view your presentations from Microsoft PowerPoint 97 and beyond without opening the program. It's a quick and convenient way to view PowerPoint files on your computer.

There isn't much to be said about the interface, since there is almost nothing there: as soon as you open the program, it opens a window to select the file you want to view. It's just like viewing a presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint except you can't alter or edit anything. You can print the presentations, which is a bonus. PowerPoint … Read more

Passwords could become a thing of the past if new technology from Intel makes its way to laptops and mobile devices, Reuters reports.

The traditional security method, even when linked to different verification methods, remains an exploit that cybercriminals can pursue. Connectivity online often means that users will keep to the same password, or similar variants -- and once one account is breached, that information can be used to tap into financial information, online payment systems, or sensitive work documents.

But if Intel's prototype "Client-Based Authentication Technology" is successful, biometrics may be the latest defense against cyberattacks.… Read more