Tag Archives: Stu Lawson

AVG

Google announces a restructure – it’s now owned by Alphabet

Leave a comment

Why the restructure? According to Larry it’s to help them streamline management of their various companies and also stay focused on their initiatives and new opportunities. It’s “ …about businesses prospering through strong leaders and independence.” – Larry Page.

So Search, Youtube, Apps, Maps, Android and Advertising remain under Google and according to their filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, “Businesses such as Calico, Nest, and Fiber, as well as its investing arms, such as Google Ventures and Google Capital, and incubator projects, such as Google X, will be managed separately from the Google business.”

For anyone who enjoys innovation in tech, this should come as exciting news – it means Google’s core internet product teams will be even more focused on improving and innovating their internet products; and we might start to see more ambitious and technological milestone projects being developed by Google X and Google Ventures.

Congratulations Google, uh…I mean Alphabet, for moving tech forward. Let’s see what you do next.

AVG

Four Quick Windows 10 Privacy Fixes

Leave a comment

If you’re upgrading from a previous version of Windows or buying a new Windows 10 device (PC, laptop or tablet), then you’ll want to be aware of a few privacy issues surrounding some of the new Windows 10 features.

These four quick tips can help you rest easy knowing you’ve got more control over your data.

Disable Personalised Ads

In order to serve you more appropriate ads, Windows 10 tracks some of your behavior so that they can better understand your likes and dislikes.

If you don’t want this feature, you can visit this link https://choice.microsoft.com/en-gb/opt-out on your Windows machine to disable Personalised Ads in your Windows Edge browser and wherever they use your Microsoft Account. This will prevent Windows from showing personalised ads and collecting your data across multiple devices.

Windows 10 Personalised Ads

 

Disable Advertiser ID

To prevent third parties from advertising and collecting your data gathered within Windows from Apps you can disable the Advertiser ID.

To do this go to ‘Start menu’, open ‘Settings’, choose the ‘Privacy’ option, then select the ‘General’ tab and turn off the 1st option at the top of the list.

Windows 10 Disable Advertiser ID

 

Disable Wi-Fi Sense

Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense essentially wants to help you maintain online connectivity on the go, and help you use less mobile data if you’re on a mobile device.

It does this by crowdsourcing networks with other Windows users. It looks for open networks (unsecured or password free networks) and scans your contacts (Outlook Contacts, Skype Contacts and Facebook friends) networks and lets you share Wi-Fi . I

This has some great advantages like not having worry about managing network access, but it does present some issues:

  • People you barely know could connect to your Wi-Fi network.
  • Any questionable activity on your Wi-Fi internet connection could result in you taking responsibility. This means that you have to trust that people accessing and using your connection are doing the right thing.
  • Your Internet connection could suffer significant slowdowns and increased data usage.
  • Open Wi-Fi networks are insecure, and some are setup specifically for nefarious purposes – a hacker can intercept data via packet sniffing or use a man-in-the-middle attack. You might not know if you’ve connected to one automatically and as such are at risk.

Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense

 

If you want to disable the Wi-Fi Sense sharing option then open the Start menu > Settings, Choose the ‘Network & Internet’ option Then click ‘Manage Wi-Fi settings’, and then disable all the options on this page.

 

Disable location services

If you don’t like the idea of Windows 10 or its apps tracking your movement, then you’ll want to disable location tracking. Open the Start menu, click Settings and choose the ‘Privacy’ option, then select the ‘Location’ tab

Windows 10 Location Services

You can disable the location services globally or you choose which apps can track location.

 

We’ve only covered the basics here, but there are additional options available in the Windows 10 privacy settings that you might want to take a look at and customise further, especially if you’re concerned about your privacy.

To go that extra mile and ensure your complete privacy while online, then you can use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service like hidemyass.com which encrypts your data.

If you would like to chat more about privacy, then please start a conversation with us on Facebook or Twitter. We’d love to hear from you and any tips you might like to share.

AVG

Six quick tips for safer and happier gaming

Leave a comment

Gaming is not immune to malware, phishing, scams, viruses, trolling, or abuse. Whether you’re new to playing games, a casual gamer or a hard-core veteran, there are always new threats emerging from the murky depths of the digital world that can lay waste to your gaming fun.

These 6 easy tips can give you a head-start to having a safer and more secure gaming experience.

  1. Buy from reputable and trusted stores to avoid malware
    If you’re looking at purchasing anything online, you should try and purchase from reputable, trusted and well established stores. This will greatly reduce the risk of malware, virus and ransomware infections.If you’re using Android devices you should stick to Google play and avoid sideloading. For iOS devices, use the App store. PC and Mac users can use these trusted online stores or platforms: Steam, Uplay, MacGameStore, com, GreenmanGaming, Origin just to name a few. Console gamers can of course buy new or used games from bricks and mortar stores, and digital copies can be bought via their respective online store – Xbox has the Xbox marketplace and the Playstation offers games via the Playstation Network.When in doubt about the credibility of online stores, do some research. Look for online reviews or ask around in forums before making a decision to buy.

 

  1. Secure your all your accounts
    If you’re using online stores, gaming networks or app stores that contain your personal and financial details, you’ll want to do the following:

    • Keep your login details private and secured with a strong password.
    • Always require a password to login to an account, and remember to logout when you’re finished.
    • Disable in-game or in-app purchases, or require a password to enable purchases.
    • For an added layer of security, you can use prepaid cards or vouchers instead of providing your credit or debit card details.
    • If in doubt about the security of your data being stored by an online service provider, then remove it.

 

  1. Be careful using emulators
    A game emulator is a software program that emulates a video game or game system. Some of the software used to load games can contain malicious code. Try to avoid using emulators if possible unless you know what you’re doing and are aware of the risks.
    If you desperately want to play a retro game, then you can always visit the Internet Archive which offers a free web based library of video games that were made in the 70’s through to the 90’s – https://archive.org/details/internetarcade.

 

  1. Don’t feed the trolls
    If you encounter abuse or harassment while playing network games or Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMO/MMOG), don’t react or engage with the abuser. Instead, ignore and support anyone who is being abused and use the game or gaming network’s report function to report abuse to the developer, support team or moderator. If possible document any incidents so you can provide credible proof.

 

  1. Keep your personal details private
    Beware of revealing too much. When playing games online with others, try and keep your personal details as private as possible – other players don’t need to know your address, telephone number, email, age, gender etc. – this will help avoid abuse or harassment in the real world and also reduce the risk of identity theft.

 

  1. Install an antivirus solution and keep software up-to-date
    You should always try and keep all your devices up-to-date. Not just the operating system but all your software too, including games. Developers or manufacturers regularly find vulnerabilities which they patch with software updates.If you’re playing on a PC, Mac or mobile you should consider installing an effective antivirus solution just in case. PC users you can install AVG AntiVirus Free to help protect against any nasties that might want to infect your system, it also has a handy game mode that won’t slow down your PC while you’re playing games. Mac users can download AVG AntiVirus for Mac for free, and if you’re an Android user you can download AVG AntiVirus for Android via the Google Play Store.

If you have any other tips you’d like to share, please let us know via Facebook or Twitter Enjoy your gaming and stay safe out there.

Software and Security Information