Finally! After it’s been in beta for a couple of months our Avira Scout browser is now available for everyone to download, install, and use.
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Tag Archives: Security
What you share online may be revealed to others
Every year we celebrate Data Privacy Day by thinking about what we post online, what methods we use to connect, and the security of the devices we use.
Data Privacy Day (DPD) is an international effort held annually on January 28 to create awareness about the importance of privacy and protecting personal information. Avast knows that security these days means more than protection against viruses. Online threats put your security and personal data at risk. You not only have to protect your desktop PC, but also your mobile devices. Your privacy can be violated by the apps you use, and bad guys can even invade your home through your home router.
Fortunately, these threats can be managed when you take the advice of Data Privacy Day:
STOP. THINK. CONNECT.
Here’s some tips and solutions from Avast to help you manage all the privacy needs on your devices.
Share with care
Think about the consequences of what you post online, especially in social networks. Think about what others could learn about you and who might see your posts in the future ‒ teachers, parents, colleges, and potential employers.
What you post can last a lifetime, so choose wisely what you share publicly.
Own your online presence: Set the privacy and security settings on web services and devices to your comfort level for information sharing. It’s ok to limit how and with whom you share information.
Want to view or change your privacy/security settings, but don’t know where to find them? Use the direct links gathered for DPD to update your privacy settings on popular devices and online services.
Stay CyberAware while on the go
Don’t count on public Wi-Fi networks and hotspots to be safe; anyone could potentially see what you are doing on your mobile device while you are connected. Avast Wi-Fi Finder locates safe and reliable connections in your area.
If no secured networks are to be found, then you can connect using Avast’s virtual private network (VPN) app called Avast SecureLine VPN. It encrypts your connect to prevent hackers from stealing your data via public/open Wi-Fi hotspot networks.
Personal information is like money. Value it. Protect it.
Protect your PC or Mac. Bank account numbers, passwords, photos, messages and emails – all of them need some form of protection to stay out of the wrong hands. One of the easiest steps to take is to get strong protection like Avast Antivirus. Avast does what you would expect – detects and blocks viruses and malware, but it has a unique feature called Home Network Security which strengthens your home network by scanning your home router for vulnerabilities.
Protect your mobile devices. Much of your life is on your mobile devices – banking information, private messages, and photos. Protect all your data with Avast Mobile Security, free from Google Play.
Protect your passwords. The best tip: Avoid using easy-to-crack passwords like 123456 or password. We know when you have an average of 19 passwords to remember that that advice can be a bit difficult. Avast Passwords for PC, iOS, and Android automatically generates extremely strong passwords that you don’t have to struggle to remember! All you do is set and remember one master password to access all your passwords across your devices.
Data Privacy Day might be celebrated on January 28, but the principles need to be practiced everyday so you can make sure your privacy is protected around-the-clock. Here at Avast, we strive to give you the tools to do that. Please share these tips and Avast solutions with the important people in your life.
Avira Scout: On Early Access
Did you know: Our Avira Scout browser is finally freely available for everyone as an early access version. There are a few things you might want to know though, before downloading it.
The post Avira Scout: On Early Access appeared first on Avira Blog.
Amazon Certificate Manager Brings Free SSL Certs to AWS Users
Amazon’s new Certificate Manager is providing SSL certificates for free to AWS customers but experts warn it’s only a matter of time before they’re exploited.
Please don’t use 123456 as your password
Be honest: You’ve been waiting for the list since the New Years. I know I have. Why? It’s probably some kind of voyeurism. For some reason it’s also immensely satisfying to cringe about the horrbile passwords that people are using in their ignorance and knowing that yours is better. Hopefully.
The post Please don’t use 123456 as your password appeared first on Avira Blog.
Avira Scout: Is Usability = Security?
The Avira Scout autopilot has a simple knob which allows you to switch between modes and decide which one suits you best:
“Comfort” or “Secure”
The post Avira Scout: Is Usability = Security? appeared first on Avira Blog.
Apple Gatekeeper still sporting security holes
“I’m going for Apple because it’s a lot more secure than Windows” is one of the arguments you might have heard when talking about malware and operating systems. But total security is a myth.
The post Apple Gatekeeper still sporting security holes appeared first on Avira Blog.
Small and midsize businesses are targeted most often by hackers
“SMBs are not just targets of cybercrime, they are its principal target”
says a U.S. Security and Exchange Commission report from last fall. In fact, the majority of all targeted cyberattacks last year were directed at SMBs.
The New York Times, in its article No Business Too Small to Be Hacked, said that 60% of all online attacks in 2014 targeted small and mid-sized businesses. Of those attacked, more than half (60%) would go out of business within 6 months of a data breach. That’s a lot of broken dreams and heart ache because of a lack of security.
Small and mid-sized businesses use Avast for Business to protect from cyberthreats.
Small businesses lack IT expertise and budget
SMBs make attractive targets because they often neglect their security or rely on older consumer security software for protection. Money is always an issue, and sometimes the budget doesn’t allow for an expensive security package.
Just recently, our free, cloud-managed security solution, Avast for Business, passed a milestone – more than 1 million endpoints protected in less than a year. From our relationship with IT admins in sectors as diverse as Education, Non-profits, Retail, IT consulting firms, and SMBs, we have learned that many organizations lack in-house expertise or resources to install costly and complex security solutions.
“All we wanted was a simple security solution that worked, and I knew we didn’t have to pay a fortune for it,” said Tyler Hisel, an IT technician in Ohio. “Avast was cost saving and had lots of features that I was surprised came free,” he said, “I’ve got to hand it to you, it’s really an impressive product and it being free just makes it better.”
How to protect your organization from cyberattacks
- Install Avast for Business to protect your PCs, Macs, and servers from hackers and data breaches. Avast for Business is easy to deploy and monitor. Our customers tell us that even IT-challenged staff have no issues using our security solution.
- Create strong passwords. This is an easy piece of advice that many small business people fail to take. We understand that using passwords which are 20 characters with a mix of capital letters, numbers, and symbols is challenging to manage. That’s why Avast has created Avast Passwords, a free password management system which creates strong, unique passwords for each of your accounts. It’s free in all Avast Antivirus programs, and synchronizes across your devices.
- Train your employees. Many hacks originate from employees clicking on malicious links or websites. Explain the concept of social engineering to your employees, what the most recent methods of attacks are, and the latest malware threats. Follow this blog or Avast on Facebook or Twitter to stay informed.
Avast for Business is available for every business worldwide
Avast for Business is free for every organization worldwide. Visit Avast for Business to learn more and sign up.
Avast for Business: Zero to One Million endpoints protected in less than a year
Since the launch of Avast for Business, a free, cloud-managed security solution, in February 2015, organizations worldwide have deployed it to protect more than one million PCs, Macs, and servers from cyberattacks and data breaches.
Avast for Business is successful across diverse sectors
Avast for Business is extremely popular with Education, Non-profits, Retail, Healthcare, IT consulting firms, and small business because many organizations lack the IT resources to install costly and complex security solutions. Avast for Business is easily scalable and managed from anywhere. Additionally, Avast for Business starts at a price everyone can afford: Free, making it a natural fit for organizations worldwide.
Education IT admins value easy deployment, management, and the free cost
The sector that has embraced Avast for Business whole-heartedly is Education. IT administrators from universities, school districts, private and charter schools, libraries, and museums all tell us that ease of deployment and management is at the top of their security solution wish list. The fact that it’s also free makes it an easy decision.
“Avast for Business is so easy to deploy and monitor, it’s made the administration of our network much smoother,” said Jothan Virgil, an IT Administrator at Alabama State University. The university has a large network managed by multiple IT professionals, with over 1,000 faculty and staff members and more than 5,600 students. Avast for Business now protects all of them from one console.
“We had AVG before switching to Avast and we really needed to simplify our security solution,” said Tyler Hisel, an IT technician with the Chillicothe City School District in Ohio. He needed software with easy-to-use centralized management where he could monitor the district’s devices. “All we wanted was a simple security solution that worked, and I knew we didn’t have to pay a fortune for it,” he said, “Avast was cost saving and had lots of features that I was surprised came free,” said Tyler. “I’ve got to hand it to you, it’s really an impressive product and it being free just makes it better.”
Non-profits value ease-of-use and the free cost
Monitoring their budget is a priority for non-profits. Avast for Business is free and compared to other antivirus solutions, the optional support costs are nominal. Michael Hensley, Information and Facilities Officer at NeighborImpact, a non-profit human-services agency in central Oregon switched from BitDefender because of the costs.
“The savings on software were extremely helpful in budgeting for our hardware upgrade. The extra money allowed us to get hardware in a different category than we otherwise would have been able to afford,” he said.
Hensley’s staff is not tech-savvy, which contributed to significant security issues in the past.
“The fact that [Avast for Business] is cloud-managed is the primary feature that we needed. We have offices and classrooms distributed throughout the area. We are able to monitor all of our computers from the web-console which has shown consistent improvement.”
SMBs and MSPs value prevention, support, and the free cost
Many businesses have budgeted for security, so free software isn’t the priority, but it certainly doesn’t hurt. Scott Quinn from Montana-based Caritas Design, a small husband and wife web-design firm said, “Any savings are huge for us.”
Despite the huge savings, the primary need is simple managementfrom a solution designed “to keep our clients and servers in a secure environment,” said Levent Silay, of Login Business Solutions, a Managed Service Provider in Istanbul, Turkey. The advantages of Avast’s cloud-managed business security according to Silay are “the quick and easy installation, the monitoring screen that helps in the visualization of all the computers on the network, the online management that can be utilized from anywhere, and the fact that it’s simple and there is no need for training.”
When managing your own business or multiple clients, quick support is essential. Quinn says, “Their support has been amazing on the rare occasions I’ve needed to utilize them. I would, and will, recommend Avast for Business to everyone I encounter.”
Avast for Business is available for every business worldwide
Avast for Business is free for every organization worldwide. Visit Avast for Business to learn more and sign up.
Avira CEO: A look back at 2015 and our security outlook for 2016
The past year was full of achievements, but the security outlook for 2016 is going to be even more challenging.
The post Avira CEO: A look back at 2015 and our security outlook for 2016 appeared first on Avira Blog.