Online banking is convenient: it’s easy to check balances, schedule payments, and transfer funds. It’s also easy for cybercriminals to target online banking sites, separating consumers from their money. You know about being careful and not clicking on random links or downloading software from unknown sources in order to avoid…
Tax season is in full swing as U.S. Residents and businesses gather up their tax documents and file their returns before the April 15 deadline. It’s also the season for scammers and criminals to brush off their fraud campaigns to swindle you out of your hard-earned money. According to industry…
Although 95% of people are using cloud services today, most users aren’t aware of it and nearly a third think it actually has to do with the weather. Others avoid using the cloud because they worry about their own privacy and security. Let’s look at just how much people understand…
A new attack called Eurograbber recently stole an estimated 36+ million Euros from more than 30,000 bank customers across Europe. The attacks began in Italy, and soon after, tens of thousands of infected online bank customers were also detected in Germany, Spain, and Holland. The attack involved a sophisticated combination…
If you have a pre-teen or teenager, odds are you wouldn’t let them stay out with their friends or roam the streets too late at night. But even when your children are safe at home, some of their online activities could be putting them in harm’s way. A recent ZoneAlarm…
It’s National Cyber Security Awareness Month! The Internet is an important part of our daily life, and we are more connected than ever before. While Googling, tweeting, and friending may be routine, are you doing everything you can to protect yourself online? National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) reminds us…
In a recent study of 50 million Facebook users and 500,000 Facebook applications, the following conclusions paint a different picture than what most people perceive about the apps they’ve come to love. (Click below image to enlarge) EMBED THE IMAGE ABOVE ON YOUR SITE Data-Hungry Apps
As the Internet becomes increasingly interactive and the number of online threats continues to grow, more and more web-based services are realizing that two-factor authentication is more than just a good idea. Instead of relying on just a password or secret question to confirm your identity, it heightens Internet security…
Half of teens say they’ve been using the Internet for five years or more, and 58% consider themselves heavy users. The time teens spend online is more secret than ever, and their lives and computers are more at risk than you may think. (click image to enlarge) EMBED THE IMAGE…
UPDATE 11.15.12: ZoneAlarm products are now Windows 8 compatible. Go to the Free Downloads page on the ZoneAlarm website for the latest version. The long awaited Windows 8, which Microsoft expects to make available on October 26, will offer a few major enhancements – one of them being a new…
This may be the first time you have ever seen politics and computer security mentioned in the same sentence, but what you may not realize is that individuals with different political viewpoints approach personal security differently. Here’s what this year’s voters have to say. (click image to enlarge) EMBED THE…
Email scams are a huge threat, and scammers continue to take advantage of online users. In 2011, roughly 82 percent of all email traffic was spam. It is estimated that scam and phishing messages make up 19 percent of spam, meaning it is essential to be able to spot and…
Whether you’re a parent of a kid in elementary, middle or high-school or a college-bound young adult, your last few days of summer probably seem to be anything but lazy. With so many things to think about, you don’t want to put security on the back-burner. At the very least,…
If you are part of Generation Y then your daily life is all about being connected. Tweeting, friending, and googling is routine, but protecting yourself from the various cyber-related issues that will likely pop up should be, too. According to our research, only 31% of Gen Y ranked security as…
Teens today are pressured into sharing personal information online. In addition, those who have public profiles and lie about their age online are more likely to have negative experiences. For some teens, sharing personal information is a sign of trust. The good news is that a large majority of teens…
Teens are immersed in video, whether it’s using video chat applications, shooting and sharing video, or streaming video live for others to view. That said, with more video use comes more security risk. Let’s explore just how much teens chat, share, and stream, and look at a few simple steps…
When you sign up for a social media site or download an ebook from a website, do you read the terms of use agreement that pops up before you click the “Agree” button? Probably not. Though terms of service can be exhausting and cumbersome to read — the iTunes terms…
Between the cybercriminals who are constantly evolving their techniques and launching new attacks on consumers every day and the explosion of information sharing via social networks, new security threats are on the rise. Luckily, ZoneAlarm Free Antivirus + Firewall defends against these identified and emerging threats, giving you peace of…
As tragic stories of bullying continue to make headlines, and movements like the Bully Project gain steam, communities are coming together to put a stop to bullying — in all its forms. However, one form of bullying is particularly notable and should be paid special attention to: cyberbullying. This fairly…
Many people have found themselves in the following scenario: You log on to the web from your computer, surf a few sites, log in to check your Facebook or bank account, then close your browser when you’re done surfing. Notice the mistake made? You didn’t log out of your accounts….
Media portrayals of cybercrimes have often made them seem alluring. From the ‘90s cult film Hackers to Lisbeth Salander, the hacking heroine of The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo series, cybercrime appears to be glamorous and exciting in popular culture. And while most adults know these crimes are far from…
It sounds like an impressive James Bond gadget: Spyware. But this software is far from fantasy, and it is used everyday to steal information from millions of users. Spyware is a type of malware that gets onto your computer in different ways, but it all has the same goal: to…
Smart computer users know about the importance of security software. These are the programs that prevent hackers from stealing your information and protect against viruses corrupting your computer. But did you know that some of the programs advertised as security software are actually fakes that don’t protect, and in some…
Source With the introduction of smartphones, the mobile world has been revolutionized. One of the most popular features of the smartphone is the mobile app. So popular, in fact, that the Apple App Store reached 10 billion downloads this year, and that doesn’t even factor in downloads from Android, which…
Source As destructive as hackers can be on their own, they’re even worse when they’re in a group. With the most recent attack on Sony’s Playstation Network and a number of other major sites, we thought it’d be pertinent to list some of the most famous collectives, their ethos, and…
Source The term “augmented reality” has come to permeate our everyday, tech-driven lives in the digital age. But what is it, exactly? Augmented reality is what is sounds like–the “heightening” of one’s perception of reality through the use of advanced technologies. The Guardian explains it thusly: “The idea is straightforward…
Not too concerned about your online presence? You should be. It’s no secret that employers search for information about prospective hires (and current employees) online. Last year, Microsoft released a study that concluded that 70% of HR personnel surveyed have rejected someone over incriminating online information. Moreover, 86% of HR…
If you’ve ever wondered why it always seems like advertisers follow you wherever you go, it might be because they do. Recently, The Wall Street Journal investigated 101 Android and iPhone apps, and found that fifty-six of them transmitted phone ID data to outside parties, while forty-seven transmitted location information….
Hackers and computer technology have been a source of cultural obsession since the late 1980s (from the 1995 film Hackers to the most recent incarnation of the Disney Tron films). Still, sometimes not even the most illustrative fiction can compare to what real hackers have pulled off in their time….
Cyberterrorism: It might seem like a silly, dreamed-up concept right out of the pages of a novel, or at least a multimillion-dollar Bruce Willis vehicle (the hugely successful 2007 film Die Hard 4: Live Free or Die Hard revolves around computer hackers) — but the myth is based at least somewhat…
Most web surfers want to feel re-assured that they aren’t visiting unsafe websites. Unfortunately (without good security software) there’s often no way to be sure until it’s too late. But that doesn’t stop people from trying. In the last 5-10 years, websites have experimented with “security seals” (like TrustE) which…
If you’re anything like the average computer user, you’ve probably dropped your computer off a building once or twice, or spilled ketchup on your keyboard, or something. Consequently, your computers probably don’t last too long. But computers are expensive, and, given that the average computer only lasts five years or…
Campaign highlights firewall as a critical layer of protection that anti-virus alone misses By ZoneAlarm Team Anti-virus alone cannot protect consumers against online attacks that are getting more and more sophisticated each year. The truth is, by pairing anti-virus protection with firewall, consumers increase the defenses against new viruses by…
With Holidays just around the corner, we thought you might appreciate a chance to win a Flip Video (UltraHD™ 4GB) and ZoneAlarm Extreme Security for yourself and a friend! We know that everyone could use a convenient tool to capture all those precious moments, as well as a solution…
The ZoneAlarm Team We can’t wait to see those costumes! But, just as you have always lectured your kids about safety as they run off to enjoy this night of mischief, it’s time for us to share a few online security tips that will keep those scary online ghosts and…
By the ZoneAlarm Team Whether you shop online, pay your bills or research your next vacation destination, no matter how often you surf the Web, all PC users need Internet security to protect vital information that can be used in identity theft or to prevent viruses from damaging the computer….
By the ZoneAlarm Team We’ve got interesting new independent test results from av-test.org. The test looked at what happens when you add a ZoneAlarm Firewall to the most popular Free Antivirus program. The independent AV-Test pitted 35 different types of new viruses against these three different configurations on Windows…
Summary: We thought we were being proactive with our virus message. After listening to consumer feedback, we realized that it was mis-interpreted and have turned the pop-up message off. More Details: The popup message in ZoneAlarm Free Firewall was intended as an alert to a virus our technology discovered….
By the ZoneAlarm Team Did you ever get a ZoneAlarm alert telling you some application is trying to access the Internet? Did you wonder whether to click “Allow” or not? We don’t want you to have to wonder anymore. If ZoneAlarm is asking you about an application’s behavior, it’s because…
By Consumer Security Chick Some of my best friends are gamers and they’ve been telling me about their need for speed. They feel it is not acceptable to be killed by a troll or bane spider because: · Some sort of malware is draining your PC and slowing you down…
By the ZoneAlarm Team In our last post, we highlighted what a new 2010 security report tells us. It highlights some trends that antivirus alone can not stop. What can PC users do to stay ahead of these threats? Some good options: 1. At a minimum, use an excellent two-way…
We decided to reward you for being a good friend. With a couple clicks, you simply tell your Facebook friends about our Free Firewall and get entered to win a free iPad each week.
By the ZoneAlarm Team Last Friday, we released a minor update to our ZoneAlarm Free Firewall. The main reason for this was to include two patches from Microsoft that fix some of the issues on Windows 7 64bit. The update also includes improvements in network support and performance with…
By the ZoneAlarm Team Ever had one of those creepy “who’s been watching me?” moments on the Web? A friend was recently Web-researching beaches in the Caribbean. Suddenly she noticed that when she was on unrelated Web sites – such as a garden tool site – she was being shown…
By the ZoneAlarm team A year and a half ago, one of the largest online bill paying sites in the United States was hijacked by hackers. If you were a customer at that time, you may have been redirected to a malicious Web site that tried to install…
By the ZoneAlarm team Good news, ZoneAlarm Free Firewall users: if you are running the latest version, you are seeing 97% fewer pop-up alerts! Some of you will say, “Good!” and stop reading right there. Others want to know more. “Does that mean ZoneAlarm isn’t controlling who sends data…
By Doctor Security If you’re like me, you probably have friends who are struggling to make ends meet in these challenging economic times. Some of my buddies save money by using free antivirus software. This is not something I recommend for most people, because the old adage is usually…
Doctor Security In nature, animals are provided with different forms of defenses to protect themselves from predators. Some creators can fly away, others can run super fast, and many have sharp horns, tusks, or beaks to wield aggressively against an attacker. If your PC were an animal, none…
By Doctor Security Some reports claim that the built-in Windows 7 firewall provides sufficient protection for the average home user who doesn’t take a lot of online risks. Well, we have to respectfully disagree. The Windows 7 default firewall is simply not strong enough. By comparing it to…