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Macs Increasingly Under Attack

The big news in cyber security last week was the rising rate of malware on Apple Macs - especially the dreaded ransomware version. Macs owners are realizing they are no longer immune from the risk of losing all of their information, and the use of their machines as well.

"Apple users will become more targeted in the future because up until now there were very few successful malware attempts - now, there’s blood in the water and sharks will come.”  as reported in the Wall Street Journal, March 7th, 2016

This video from the WSJ explains the issues and suggests some protective measures, but for less than $75 a year you can protect your Macs with the best security software available anywhere. 

For Windows users, it's become almost a full-time job staying updated to protect from malware, and it keeps getting worse. On Tuesday, 13 security updates were published designed to fix at least 39 separate vulnerabilities in its various Windows operating systems and software. Five of the updates fix flaws that allow hackers or malware to break into vulnerable systems without any help from the user. As our customers know, the F-Secure Device Security service we offer does it all for you automatically and in real time.

And the matter is increasingly getting worse. In the next few weeks, we will be reading about a new bug that is expected to surpass even the notorious "Heartbleed" strain of 2014. It's referred to as the "Bash" bug, and "Shellshock", and it targets both computers and mobile devices. The virus gives remote operators take full control of afflicted devices, allowing them to do whatever they please.

IRS Suspends Insecure ‘Get IP PIN’ Feature

And the drama at the IRS continues as last week the IRS suspended the insecure ‘Get IP PIN’ feature online. Our suggestion to obtain a taxpayer PIN by snail-mail from the IRS looks especially smart today - "Defending From IRS Tax Fraud and ID Theft in 2016".

Androids Getting Killed

After our report on Androids last week; we added lots of new customers that are now protected from the rapid rising threats they face. It looks like their timing was excellent.

"Palo Alto Network’s research team has recently announced the discovery of 22 Android applications that belong to a new Trojan family named “Xbot”. Palo Alto Networks

 "Protecting Your Family in The Digital Age"

Merrill Lynch Private Banking Investment Group published this whitepaper with our input and comments.

You can get your copy for free, here.

Folks, it's getting ugly out there, and you can bet it will get far, far worse before this mega-cycle of crime plays itself out. Be proactive and preemptive - protective technology works, its easy to use, and is extremely affordable. Contact me personally if I can help.

Thanks for reading,

March Events for Total Digital Security

March 15th - Citi Private Bank, two events: Palm Beach and Miami. "Protecting Your Family, Money & Information"

March 16th - Citi Private Bank, Boca Raton. "Protecting Your Family, Money & Information"

 Protect Now With The Four Fundamentals of Total Digital Security