Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Anti-Forensic Techniques

Purposely overwriting data is one of the oldest anti-forensic techniques. This usually involves the use of software designed to perform one of three basic functions.

The first form of wiping involves writing over the entire digital media so as to overwrite any data that was previously there. The second most common form of wiping involves overwriting individual files and any remnants of those files in other portions of the digital media. The third most common technique is the overwriting of unallocated or free space on the digital media. For example, magnetic based media such as a hard drive once in use by an operating system will contain allocated space and unallocated space. Allocated data is what is currently active and accessible on the hard drive. This will include data such as a jpeg file, document, text file, Windows Operating System file, etc.

The unallocated space on a hard drive is the portion of the hard drive which has been marked as free and usable, usually by an operating system. This unallocated hard drive space can be used to write new files and data which then belong to the allocated portion of the hard drive.

When a file such as a jpeg is deleted on a Windows operating system in a normal manner by first sending the file to the recycle bin and then by emptying the recycle bin, that file has not actually been "deleted". Rather it has been marked as unallocated and can now be used by the operating system to write new data. The use of wiping software to wipe the unallocated portion of a hard drive will effectively write over all files that have been previously deleted. This will render the data unrecoverable, effectively rendering review and recovery of unallocated and previously deleted files on this hard drive impossible with the technology of today.

Aside from simply wiping digital media, another popular technique is the use of software which will encrypt an entire digital media or just files. Encryption is the process of taking plaintext data and using a cipher or algorithm, making it unreadable to anyone except for those who posses the key, password or some other device to decrypt the data. Encryption has become quite common and the systems and software to employ encryption are becoming easier to use and manage by the average computer user.

One of the most common forms of data encryption that does not involve the transmission of data is file level encryption. This anti-forensics technique is employed quite commonly and is used to hide files such as important documents, pictures and other data from governments, rival businesses and even spouses.

Another very common form of encryption involves encrypting the entire digital medium, such as a hard drive. This means that both allocated and unallocated file space can be encrypted. This will prevent a computer forensics examiner or other individual from accessing and recovering files that have been deleted or are currently active on a digital medium. Anti-forensics methods are not limited to just these two techniques. There are many techniques that can be used to protect the privacy and confidentiality of data.

Incredible Career

Most of us are familiar with the common crimes such that occur in the home or office. Aside from stolen goods, computer technology or information can be stolen from our computers at work or in our homes as well. For this reason families and large corporations are vulnerable to this type of burglary. As a result, new career opportunities have developed for computer forensics training for office employees who can take courses at their local junior college in computer forensics education.

Depending on the career associated with computer forensics training, you may or may not need training for information security, Windows, and network administration. The best course of action is to get a good understanding of the career you want and then look at the type of computer forensics training needed to reach that goal.

Upon completion of college, having this type of certificate or degree will open many exciting career opportunities in computer investigations or perhaps working with law enforcement on criminal prosecution. For this, you will need to complete the appropriate courses for forensics training so you enter the arena as a person of authority.

Although people interested in forensics work have some idea as to career opportunity, most are shocked at the vast number of possibilities. Because of high demand, these jobs offer security, as well as lucrative pay. With the earned certificate or degree, you could work for any number of organizations in the United States or even look overseas. This puts you in a position of power over choosing the company or government entity interested in joining. You could look at small or large companies of virtually any industry.

Having a secure career is huge, especially in today's economy. A degree coming from computer forensics training is worth its weight in gold. Worries about job layoff or having no future opportunity are gone. Instead, with your training, you can work in the real world, making your way to success. The only negative aspect that comes along with forensics training is that most jobs involve working long, hard hours. However, knowing you are doing something good for the company and even the country makes it an easy trade off.

Forensics Certification

Computer Forensics professionals will be in high demand for the coming years. Thanks to the high profile financial scandals that happened around the world. Hence, you should pursue on certifications such as Certified Information Systems Security Profession (CISSP) and Certified Computer Examiner (CCE) after graduating. This will enhance the value of your resume. Let's look at 3 ways to earn your certification with ease.

1. First of all, choosing the right certification is the key factor to ensure you do not waste your time and money. There are many computer forensic certifications available in the market provided by different schools either through on campus, online, or distance learning. Hence, the key consideration is to choose the right school and program. You will have to identify what are the areas you want to specialise in and are the program certified and recognised by the respective bodies or organisations. Other considerations include program structure, schedule and syllabus, location, fees, job prospects and etc. Thanks to the convenience of internet, you can conduct detail research online and request for further information to compare the certifications available in order to decide which program suit you the most.

2. Next, achieve a balance in your work, study and leisure. As "all work and no play make you a dull computer forensic" you need to practice good time management and use the 24 hours a day you have usefully. Balancing your life by allocating time for reading which enhances your knowledge and thoughts to giving your body and mind a break by exercising or simply doing something you enjoy will assist in building a stronger, healthier and smarter you.

3. Last but not least, gain more hands-on exposure and experience to help you understand the things you are studying. As exam questions these days are mostly based on practical scenarios, having real working experience will definitely help you to earn you certification with ease.

Computer Forensic School

Looking for a computer forensic school? Want to get into the top school? In this article, we will discuss some of the ways to secure you a place in the top school.

First of all, find out what the requirements to get yourself into the school. As different schools have different entry requirements, especially for top schools, where there will be more requirements to meet. Hence, it is beneficial for you to check all these out as soon as possible to be well prepared.

If you are in high school now and is considering of pursuing in computer forensics after high school, you should use your holidays or spare time to gain practical and hands-on experience on this field or related IT works. As some top schools might prefer students to have some working or hands-on experience in computing, it is beneficial to equip yourself with this "asset".

Next, it will be rewarding to get to know people who are in this profession. Their views, advices and suggestions are valuable and priceless. You never know how much their guidance can make an impact in your life. To a certain extent, they might also be able to recommend you to get into the top schools.

Above all, the most important is to study smart and achieve good grades in subjects such as English, Maths, and Computing in your high school exams. As preparation is the key to success, start preparing now to secure yourself a place in top computer forensic schools.

Evidence Eliminator

Are you concerned that there might be adult material on your computer that you don't want anyone else to see or discover? Are you looking to remove porn from your computer fast and want to be certain it is gone for good so someone else cannot recover it...ever? Then read on as I have some crucial information that you are definitely going to want to know.

It doesn't matter how or why porn or other adult material got on your computer. Some people enjoy pornography as a form of entertainment. Others avoid it like the plague. Fact is, most computers have some adult content on them either intentionally or not. And it is just sitting there for someone else to discover perhaps at the worst possible time.

You should know that even porn files you have deleted over time may still be sitting there right on your computer's hard drive. The irony is that deleting files doesn't actually delete files! Sounds crazy but it's true. Deleted files don't go anywhere until they are overwritten and that's not something you can control yourself...unless you use special software for that purpose.

And that's where Evidence Eliminator comes in. Evidence Eliminator was specifically designed to not only delete but to completely erase any type of computer files permanently making them impossible to recover. The program might be overkill if your just looking for a simple tool to delete cookies and clear internet history. But if you are looking for the ultimate tool to remove porn fast and for good, then Evidence Eliminator is it.

Why? Because Evidence Eliminator was designed from the ground up to defeat forensics software. Those are the tools used to recover any type of evidence from computers. You would be absolutely astonished and even more frightened if you could see what these forensics tools recover. It is absolutely amazing and scary at the same time.

But why live in fear of what is lurking on your computer drive when you don't have to. Take steps right now to remove porn fast with Evidence Eliminator and be certain it is really gone. You will sleep better!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Performing a Reverse People

Today's technology has made it possible to locate a person or just that person's information at a push of a button.

You may have a long lost family member you haven't seen in years and do not know where they live. You can get possible leads to their whereabouts. You may want to get information on a prank phone caller. You may want to check for identify on a phone number that isn't familiar to you on your phone bill. Not only that you may want to locate an old friend from high school or college or just verify an address. There are numerous reasons why you would want to perform a reverse people search. It could be a very serious matter such as a missing relative or a child that went missing. Getting information on this could save a life.

Unfortunately into day's society people do have unfortunate situations come about where they need to find a person either by a phone number, address, social security number, and so forth.

Just 20 years ago people would have had to hire a detective to achieve this. This was very expensive and sometimes would drain that person's savings. Now due to technology advancements you can go to your computer and do a search for companies that have databases you can get access to for a very reasonable fee. Some companies provide more information than some others. Shop around for the best price and the amount of information they will release to you. It can make a difference in performing a reverse people search online.

A good company will offer most of the information listed below. Going with a company that provides you with the most information would be the one to go with.

Some companies even have advanced people search tools that include households, addresses, and relatives. Some have background reports as well. Here's a list of items you should look for when choosing the right company. There should be millions of other public records available if needed as well.

  • Current Owner's Name and Address
  • Type of Phone- Mobile or Land Line
  • Members of Household
  • Phone Company or Carrier
  • Neighbors and Relatives
  • Providing Map with Location
  • Other Numbers Owner May Have
  • Previous Addresses and Residences

Now back to the saving a life part. How can this save a life? Well, there are many ways but here are two specific ones.

1. Abduction of a child..

Most everyone has heard of Amber Alert. If not it is simply an announcement broadcasted over all air ways at the same time such as the internet, radio, and television stations. It is broadcasted right after it occurs so the public will become immediately aware of it. If anyone sees the child or knows anything they should contact the police after the Amber Alert is made or just be aware if any thing suspicious is going on in the area in which they live. If so, they should report it to the police immediately. There may be a chance you know the missing child personally and may know some information that would help police but you don't have all of the necessary information at hand. You can access information you need by doing a search and having it available to share with the police. You never know it could provide some leads to help police. Time is of the essence when a child goes missing so any information could be very valuable.

2. A Prank Phone Caller..

You may be receiving prank phone calls that are possibly getting out of hand. You want to identify the person behind the call so you simply run a phone search on the number. This person could be a stalker and you could intervene by doing a phone search and then reporting it.

As discussed there are multiple reasons why performing a reverse people search would be very beneficial and could possibly save a life. Technology makes this possible with out the expense of hiring a detective in some cases. This is a great alternative to have access to.

EnCE Certification

The value of computer certifications in general is debatable. For many certifications it is possible to simply study a book, maybe purchase some Transcenders, take the exam and call yourself "certified." I know several people who have brought "certified" individuals in for interviews and sat them down in front of relevant operating system or piece of equipment only to find that this person either has no idea how to log on or to power on the equipment.

Guidance Software has nullified this concern with the EnCase Certified Examiner (EnCE) certification. While you could theoretically pass the written portion of the exam by studying a book such as The Official EnCase Certified Examiner Study Guide by Steve Bunting and William Wei, the practical portion of the exam requires at least a moderate amount of experience with computer forensic analysis.

Even for the experienced examiner there are portions of the exam that can prove challenging. In some cases the challenge is derived from the fact that the certification candidate has not performed a particular analysis technique before. In other instances the challenge is in bringing seldom used analysis techniques to the forefront of one's mind.

Regardless of how the certification candidate is challenged, one thing holds true: Guidance Software has built the EnCE exam to test and reinforce the tenets of computer forensic analysis.

I read a post in a computer forensics forum recently in which the poster was asking about computer forensics certifications. The post is several years old but still relevant and somewhat humorous. The individual was looking for information about the EnCE certification. He claimed to be looking for a certification that would help him increase his salary and enhance his ability "to get girls" and wondered whether the EnCE was his ticket.

In terms of the EnCE's ability to help him increase his salary, I'd say it depends on the employer. Some employers value the commitment that it takes to obtain a certification and will reward the individual appropriately, whether by salary increase or perhaps a bonus. Other employers will view a certification as something that is just "nice to have" and let you go on your merry way.

In my opinion, certification (and the EnCE in particular) is a way to validate your skills. Computer forensics is a niche skill and while there may be a number of people out there who say they have used EnCase or "done forensics" before, there are not a tremendous number of people who have validated their skills by becoming certified. My advice to the previously mentioned prospective certification candidate is that the EnCE certification will make you stand out from the rest of the application pool being received by potential employers.

Sure, there is always that guy who has no education beyond high school and no technical certifications but is an absolute genius when it comes to things IT. Unless you know this guy and have worked with him though, when it comes to the interview he's just a guy who has some computer experience. If you go in to the same interview with some experience and the EnCE, you win (in my opinion) because you have the experience and the certification to validate that experience.

I was married prior to obtaining the EnCE so I can't really opine on whether or not said certification enhances one's ability "to get girls." If I were a betting man, which I am, I'd say no. A technical certification may have worked to his advantage in the mid-Nineties but these days most certifications are so dime-a-dozen that girls just aren't impressed anymore.

An Introduction

When you hear of computer forensics, the first thing that pops to mind might be a Crime Scene Investigator, pulling the plastic sheet off of a computer and inspecting for signs of a struggle. Nobody really ever talked about forensics in daily life until they started making those scientifically accurate prime time cop shows, so of course, simple word association generally leads us to forensic sciences being "Something cops do, right?"

Incidentally, the science behind computer forensics really isn't much different from the science between crime scene forensics. In both instances, the forensics team or expert is looking for a trail of evidence. In either case, the investigator looks at what has happened, determines how it happened, and from that, deducts who might be responsible.

The major difference between the two is that, while an investigator on the scene of a robbery or a violent crime is looking for physical evidence, the computer forensics investigator is looking for digital evidence.

Interestingly, where physical evidence can often be misleading, confusing, ambiguous, and difficult to put together without the help of witness statements, digital evidence tends to present itself in a much more direct manner.

A computer keeps logs of pretty much everything that has been done with it. For example, besides your browser history, there's also your temporary internet folder, where information from the web is stored on your computer. So, say an employee is watching YouTube all day when they're supposed to be working. Even if they're smart enough to clear the browser history, the temporary internet files may still hold the evidence that will earn them a warning.

That's only a very simple example, of course. Computer forensics addresses everything from computer crime to employee misconduct, to such mundane tasks as figuring out why your virus scanner isn't working.

The point is that everything you do on a computer leaves a mark. Deleting a file from your hard drive is not same thing as deleting all the evidence that it was ever there. Just as every room in your house holds some DNA evidence, be it a hair, saliva, or a toenail clipping, no matter how well you vacuum and shampoo your carpets, there will be some evidence that this is your home. The same goes with computers. You can't do anything on a computer without a computer expert being able to figure out exactly what you've been up to.

One issue that many find confusing with regards to computer forensics ... how legal is it, really?

This depends on the context. Here's all you need to know if you're considering hiring a computer forensics team, but aren't sure if you can:

If you suspect an employee of breaking company policy or even breaking the law with a computer that belongs to the company, you do have the right to take a look at the computer they've been working any time you like.

It gets a little trickier when an employee is working on their own computer. This isn't a dead end, but it may be a little trickier. Luckily, you don't always have to look at their computer to find evidence of what they've done on their computer. In any case, go ahead and call your forensics people, and they should be able to advise you on how far you can go to gather the evidence you need in order to take action.

Really, computer forensics is simply the art of finding a trail of evidence on computers, simple as that. You never know when you'll need such services, so it's a good idea to keep them in mind in case you ever do.

Comprehensive View

Wireless networks located in multiple categories, depending on the size of the physical area that can be covered by network.

The following types of wireless network meet the needs of multiple users:

* Wireless personal - Area network (PAN).

* Wireless Local Area network (LAN).

* Wireless Metropolitan-Area network (MAN).

* Wireless Wide - Area network (MAN).

This is using the expansion all major cables for wired networks (such as LAN or WAN) used for years before it enters the wireless network.

Each type of wireless network has the advantages of complementary meet multiple requirements. The following paragraphs explore each type of wireless networks in a concise manner.

Wireless networks (PANS):

The area of wireless networks is a relatively short (up to 50 feet) and most of their effectiveness to meet the needs of a small room or in the cargo area. PANS networks is the performance of the average of data rate of up to (2MBPS). Imperatives followed these advantages for the replacement of cables in many cases.

PAN wireless network includes a person synchronize personal PDA with his laptop computer or personal computer. In a similar, PAN wireless network can provide radio communication to the printer. The advantage of the abolition of knots in the wire when using this type of computer is very useful, where the initial installation of the equipment is easy.

Wireless networks (LANS):

Networks wireless LANs provide high performance within and around office buildings and labs, and homes often have the users in these areas laptop computers, personal computers, PDA screens and processors to support large applications. LANS meet the requirements of communication for these types of computers effectively.

For example, in the work it can be installed the wireless LAN network to provide mobile access to the common applications of laptops. This type of system, the user can, while far from his office, take advantage of network services from the conference rooms and other rooms. That allows staff to be more effective while working away from their offices and more cooperative with each other.

Wireless networks LANS provide the performance levels enable applications to operate smoothly. For example, the wireless network LAN users can easily see e-mail attachments or a large scale video server of the invisible with data rate up to (54 MBPS). Wireless LAN network can meet only networks with the limits of web applications a house or office.

Wireless networks (MAN'S):

MAN'S wireless network includes areas with the size of cities.

Wireless Service Providers (WISPs) Provide wireless networks in cities and remote areas in order to provide homes and firms for wireless communications. Wireless networkings MAN provides the positive benefits and are appropriate when it is impractical to install a traditional wired communications such as (DSL and cable modem). Wireless networks WANS are effective when the right path for the cable systems have made it not possible or too expensive.

Wireless networks (WAN'S):

MAN networks known as mobile wireless applications cover a large area, such as state or continent. Because of the economic side, the operator is able to do remote deployment of the operational infrastructure of the wireless network MAN in order to provide relatively inexpensive long-distance communication for a lot of consumers. It is possible to distribute the costs of such a deployment across multiple users. It provides low fees -subscription.

Virtualize Servers Today

How do you accelerate virtualization for your enterprise - and take IT flexibility and cost savings to the next level? WAN optimization is a class of technology that has rapidly been adopted across enterprises in order to address the challenges of bandwidth limitations and latency over the WAN. In this paper, we examine the trends toward server consolidation and virtualization, and how WAN optimization can help IT organizations like yours solve the key challenges of application performance and information availability within these environments.

Virtualization and infrastructure consolidation can offer significant benefits for both IT and business operations. The combination of WAN optimization solutions along with virtualization offers CIOs the unique opportunity to strategically enable their IT operations, and improve service delivery while saving costs at the same time. IT managers would be well served to consider both technologies as key components of the IT infrastructure going forward.

From data center to desktop, Microsoft Virtualization delivers. At Microsoft, virtualization means helping IT departments maximize cost savings and improve business continuity. Our solutions address both physical and virtual infrastructure, and can be easily managed through a single console.

A Familiar Platform
Microsoft virtualization solutions are based on familiar Windows interfaces and work with well-known Windows-based technologies. And because the solutions are Windows-based, they are supported by a broad network of experienced partners who can rapidly respond to your business needs.

Savings and Value
With Hyper-V in Windows Server & system center, virtualizing your enterprise with Microsoft can cost less than competitive products and help you maximize the return on your virtualization investment.

Seamless Physical and Virtual Management
Microsoft virtualization technologies enable you to optimize your assets, centrally managing all of your physical and virtual resources across multiple hypervisors down to the application level.

Interoperable Tools
Microsoft Virtualization products work seamlessly with the tools your IT staff already knows and uses, allowing for complete integration across your enterprise.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Secret to Fighting Cybercrime

I was shocked to learn how fast the threat of cybercrime is growing. I couldn't believe a report from the Department of Treasury that the profits of Cybercrime are greater than the profits of the sale of illegal drugs. When President Obama informed us that cybercriminals have stolen $8 billion dollars from Americans in the past two years and the cost of repairing computers has risen to $11 billion a year. Cybercrime is not about vandalism. It is about our economy.

Beware of free or store bought security software installed on your computer that claims to protect you from cybercriminals. Your chance of becoming a victim is 7 out of 10. Companies like McAfee, Symantec (Norton), and Trend Micro, Inc. spend a lot of money advertising how good their products are, but Computer World Security writes that they "confirmed vulnerabilities in their security software that could let hackers hijack systems.

The security software and suites that these companies sell do not prevent cybercrime. They mainly focus on worms, Trojans horses, and spyware that allow hackers to infect your computer. It takes many hours for the security companies to capture and analyze the problem, write a new solution, and get it to you. Therefore, hackers are always one step ahead of the security companies. This explains why 172,000 computers are hacked each day.

Security companies do not focus on vulnerabilities, e.g. weak passwords, software bugs, a computer virus or other malware that allow hackers to install malware on your computer, take your sensitive data, convince you to open an email message with attached malware, or copy a hardened, encrypted program onto a thumb drive and crack it at home. Not focusing on these vulnerabilities can bring the 'blue screen of death ' and make your operating system unusable.

When your computer is hijacked, it becomes a zombie computer. The cybercriminal now has full control of all your personal information and can use it for criminal activities. You don't know that this has happened. Your computer slows down and you go to the tech to get it fixed. It costs a lot of money and happens a few times a year. You wish there was a better way to manage your computer, but nobody tells you how.

I know exactly how you feel as I once had 7,500 malware on my computer and it was slowing down. I then enrolled in a managed internet security program where a team of techs remotely cleaned it up. They then installed professional grade software and a bi-directional firewall on my computer, scanned it daily and I was notified immediately if malicious malware had been placed on my computer. I then deleted it. I just love my Managed Internet Security Service.

Check this list to help decide to consider a new concept in Computer Protection, Managed Internet Security, and to learn about the latest technologies that can protect you, your family and your business from cybercrime and cybercriminals.

1. When you first sign up, you will have a tech team who will spend hours to remotely remove viruses, spyware, Trojans, and malicious codes from your computer that the security software you have on it did not remove.
2. You will get professional grade software that bypasses the Windows Operating System, directly scans locations of the hard drive, and removes the infections that are found.
3. You will have a clean and fast computer.
4. Notification pop-ups and warnings will be at a minimum.
5. You are immediately warned of any major security outbreaks.
6. Your emails and attachments will be protected from malware.
7. You can have all of the above for just a small monthly fee.

I am Miriam Bobroff, President and CEO of Bubby's Business, Inc. an international marketing and distribution company that offers information and education about Cybercrime and Identity Theft. A Managed Internet Security Service iis offered that prevents these crimes but should the inevitable happen, trained professionals help solve the problem.Everyone can now fight the war on Cybercrime and be safe and secure from Cybercriminals.

Reinventing SIEM

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) perimeter scope has widened as the business and strategic IT requirement goes beyond just security and compliance. Today SIEM are used for meeting many IT and business requirements because of the kind of data it collects, monitors, correlates and reporting from the heterogeneous set of devices (firewall, routers, switches, UTMs, Vulnerability scanners, VPNs, Content filters, IP enabled devices etc), applications (MS Exchange , Anti virus, etc), databases (Oracle, SQL) and systems (Windows, Linux, UNIX, Mac etc).

SIEM is effectively used by organizations in the following areas.

  • Log Mangement
  • Detecting and responding to security events
  • Protecting confidential and private data (fraud detection)
  • Vulnerability Analytics
  • Security and forensic analysis
  • Automating security operations
  • Monitoring internal & external threats
  • Tracking user activity - end user behavior
  • Monitoring IT staff/administrator behavior
  • Meeting corporate governance initiatives
  • Complying with government and industry regulations
  • Risk Analysis
  • Network operations, Performance monitors & optimization
  • Asset Management, Capacity or resource planning
  • Configuration Change Audit
  • Optimizing traffic , bandwidth monitoring
  • Network behavior anomaly (NBA) detection
  • Troubleshooting IT problems
  • Service level/performance management
  • Business Analysis
  • Centralized Management Analytics
  • Compliance Automation
  • Audit Gap Analysis

Today's next generation SIEM delivers services to the NOC, SOC, Risk and the Audit teams. Its rich reporting capability lets enterprises to have an upper hand in the market and full visibility at the macro and micro levels. Business managers want to see how security controls map to individual lines of business which help in strategic business and IT decisions. Enterprises know what's happening and what is expected to happen in their strategic IT environment which give them the confidence and winning edge over the competitors.

Wiith the emergence of cloud computing which reduces the cost of IT investment and maximizes the ROI, organizations are opting for Software as a Service (SaaS) for SIEM solutions. Most organizations already have invested in many point solutions to meet their IT requirements. But they have gaps and they need to fill those gaps. The SaaS delivery model of SIEM solution fills the gaps. Organizations only need to pay for what they want and that too as a subscription model. They also have all the advantage of cloud computing too. The complexities & expenses involved in managing the infrastructure and resources for point solutions is diluted.

In UAE, Zener Electrical & Electronics - IT Division delivers SIEM through cloud computing (SaaS Model). Organizations can opt for 'Zener Cloud SIEM' and the RIO is justified (lower TCO) whether it's for filling the gaps to meet their requirements or a fully fledged SIEM solution.

Clean Your Secret Data

It is well known to most of people that the browsers, Internet Explorer and Fire Fox, record the track of surfing the Internet. But it is not well known to people that Windows keep the track of your operations. These records are stored in your disk, such as Windows document history, Windows temporary folder, Windows run history etc. On the other hand, the instant message tools also keep your chat track. For example, Yahoo recent profiles, Yahoo cache files and Yahoo pager statistics etc. You are not aware of these things when you leave computer. It most likely leaks your secret, if you share the account and the computer with your friends and colleagues.

So I always use the options of Internet Explorer and Fire Fox to clean my Internet track. But it always can not do it thoroughly. I remove the files in Windows temporary folder every week. But it always can only remove little files. It is a boring thing to delete so many files in different places manually. Fortunately, I find that a tool can do this for me absolutely and thoroughly. The only thing I can do is to click simple button. I just need to check the report that tells me how many tracks in my disk vanish.

Now I keep a habit to clean all tracks in disk every week in my home. In office, I clean tracks every day, including Windows general records, Internet history records, chat history records and common software records. I am satisfied with keeping my secret from others.

Information is Like Water

Is information really like water?

Not long ago, I heard someone say that information is like water; I agree. It always looks for a way to flow, and it's hard to control, it leaks, rains, evaporates, etc. This is an extremely great analogy. In fact, in almost every single challenge that we face with our information, the water analogy holds tight.

Consider if you will, that there have been many people who have sued other folks over water rights. One neighbor might steal water, or someone puts a well on their property in take water from their neighbor's underground resources and reservoir. What's the difference between that and identity theft? Not much.

Ask anyone in the CIA and they will tell you that "loose lips sink ships," that information leaks out, and that's why we have a spy agency in the first place to capture some of the information it leaks, or even help it leak. What is top-secret today, may be on the front pages of the magazines within a month, do you see the point?

Information can also evaporate can't it, after all, the devices we use to store information often fail. And we lose information this way. Perhaps, our hard drive might crash, we might lose a disk of information, or be unable to read it later.

Information is extremely hard to control, information is also valuable like water, and sometimes it seems to have a mind of its own. Information also gets manipulated, transposed, and turned into other things. Just like water can take on additives, and become a fruit drink, a can of beer, or a soda pop in a two-liter bottle. Please consider all this.

Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow believes if you have diabetes, there are things you need to know; diabetes types

Note: All of Lance Winslow's articles are written by him, not by Automated Software, any Computer Program, or Artificially Intelligent Software. None of his articles are outsourced, PLR Content or written by ghost writers. Lance Winslow believes those who use these strategies lack integrity and mislead the reader. Indeed, those who use such cheating tools, crutches, and tricks of the trade may even be breaking the law by misleading the consumer and misrepresenting themselves in online marketing, which he finds completely unacceptable.

Rundll32-exe Features

What is Rundll32.exe?

Now, let's learn more information about the file Rundll32.exe. The role of Rundll32.exe is to execute the internal function of DLL files, so that in the processes there is only Rundll32.exe, instead of the DLL backdoor, which allows the DLL files to be hidden. If you find that there are several Rundll32.exe in the system, please don not worry, as this just shows how many DLL files have been initiated. Of course, as for what the DLL files executed by Rundll32.exe are, we can find them where the system automatically loads.

Is Rundll32.exe infected?

If your computer has the disguised Rundll32.exe file, the system may have contained several files produced by viruses. Generally, these files survive by attaching to other processes, and they download or upload information in the background of the system, doing relatively great harm to the system. The following is the sum-up of some features of infected Rundll32, which may be good alerts to computer users while using their computers.

Feature One:
As long as opening a website, the computer becomes extremely slow; in the processes of the Task Manager, Rundll32.exe occupies CPU 99%. Meanwhile, there are other processes with strange names which will appear again after being closed. And, the antivirus/anti-spyware software does not seem to work to these processes.

Feature Two:
Download a free Process Viewer tool to see the file path of the process Rundll32.exe. If the file path is not C:windowssystem32, it is usually the case that the virus disguises itself and stores in another file directory. Then, there are always many Rundll32.exe appearing in the system process, while it usually exists as hidden file.

Feature Three:
Check the Registry. If the following keys are added, then your system has been infected.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionRun]
"TaskMan"="C:WINNTFontsrundll32.exe"
"Explorer"="C:WINNTFontsexplorer.exe"
"messnger"="C:WINNTsystem32Dvldr32.exe"

Feature Four:
Access the computer system; click Run on Start menu; type cmd, and type netstat -an in the opened command window. If a large number of TCP connections to the external port 6667, or TCP port 5800 and 5900 are in monitoring, then your system may have been infected, as follows:
C:>netstat.exe -n
Active Connections
Proto Local Address Foreign Address State
TCP x.x.x.x:1043 149.156.91.2:6667 CLOSE_WAIT
TCP x.x.x.x:1045 198.65.147.245:6667 CLOSE_WAIT
...
TCP x.x.x.x:4811 198.65.147.245:6667 CLOSE_WAIT
TCP x.x.x.x:4887 149.156.91.2:6667 CLOSE_WAIT

Feature Five:
Often disguise itself with different process names, such as rundll132.exe, rundl132.exe, etc. All these need to be carefully viewed with a Process Viewer tool.

Solutions to fix Rundll32.exe

1. Rundll32.exe is a Windows executable file which can be disabled by many viruses. However, there is a virus named "Happy Times" which has the same name and size as Rundll32.exe and it keeps reproducing itself under the root directory of each folder you open. If a large number of this file appears in your computer, then your computer is undoubtedly infected, and usually most antivirus software can not solve this problem. The general solution is, manually bulk deleting all the files with the name Rundll32.exe, and then retrieve from the Windows source program the useful file Rundll32.exe. The way to retrieve it is, taking Windows XP as an example, typing "cmd" in the Run box and pressing Enter; typing:
expand CD-ROM i386rundll32.ex_%Systemroot%rundll32.exe
CD-ROM is the location of the operating system source code, not necessarily the drive.

2. The original file of Rundll32.exe has backup in C:windowssystem32dllcache, where you can make a copy.

3. Download the same file from website and cover it to the directory C:windowssystem32.

4. If you have two computers at home, it is also available by copying and recovering the file from one computer to another.

Please notice that only Rundll32.exe in the same version of system can be recovered, or the system will show an error. Before recovering the process manager should be used first to end the process Rundll32.exe.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Value of EnCE Certification

The value of computer certifications in general is debatable. For many certifications it is possible to simply study a book, maybe purchase some Transcenders, take the exam and call yourself "certified." I know several people who have brought "certified" individuals in for interviews and sat them down in front of relevant operating system or piece of equipment only to find that this person either has no idea how to log on or to power on the equipment.

Guidance Software has nullified this concern with the EnCase Certified Examiner (EnCE) certification. While you could theoretically pass the written portion of the exam by studying a book such as The Official EnCase Certified Examiner Study Guide by Steve Bunting and William Wei, the practical portion of the exam requires at least a moderate amount of experience with computer forensic analysis.

Even for the experienced examiner there are portions of the exam that can prove challenging. In some cases the challenge is derived from the fact that the certification candidate has not performed a particular analysis technique before. In other instances the challenge is in bringing seldom used analysis techniques to the forefront of one's mind.

Regardless of how the certification candidate is challenged, one thing holds true: Guidance Software has built the EnCE exam to test and reinforce the tenets of computer forensic analysis.

I read a post in a computer forensics forum recently in which the poster was asking about computer forensics certifications. The post is several years old but still relevant and somewhat humorous. The individual was looking for information about the EnCE certification. He claimed to be looking for a certification that would help him increase his salary and enhance his ability "to get girls" and wondered whether the EnCE was his ticket.

In terms of the EnCE's ability to help him increase his salary, I'd say it depends on the employer. Some employers value the commitment that it takes to obtain a certification and will reward the individual appropriately, whether by salary increase or perhaps a bonus. Other employers will view a certification as something that is just "nice to have" and let you go on your merry way.

In my opinion, certification (and the EnCE in particular) is a way to validate your skills. Computer forensics is a niche skill and while there may be a number of people out there who say they have used EnCase or "done forensics" before, there are not a tremendous number of people who have validated their skills by becoming certified. My advice to the previously mentioned prospective certification candidate is that the EnCE certification will make you stand out from the rest of the application pool being received by potential employers.

Sure, there is always that guy who has no education beyond high school and no technical certifications but is an absolute genius when it comes to things IT. Unless you know this guy and have worked with him though, when it comes to the interview he's just a guy who has some computer experience. If you go in to the same interview with some experience and the EnCE, you win (in my opinion) because you have the experience and the certification to validate that experience.

I was married prior to obtaining the EnCE so I can't really opine on whether or not said certification enhances one's ability "to get girls." If I were a betting man, which I am, I'd say no. A technical certification may have worked to his advantage in the mid-Nineties but these days most certifications are so dime-a-dozen that girls just aren't impressed anymore.

Computer Forensics

When you hear of computer forensics, the first thing that pops to mind might be a Crime Scene Investigator, pulling the plastic sheet off of a computer and inspecting for signs of a struggle. Nobody really ever talked about forensics in daily life until they started making those scientifically accurate prime time cop shows, so of course, simple word association generally leads us to forensic sciences being "Something cops do, right?"

Incidentally, the science behind computer forensics really isn't much different from the science between crime scene forensics. In both instances, the forensics team or expert is looking for a trail of evidence. In either case, the investigator looks at what has happened, determines how it happened, and from that, deducts who might be responsible.

The major difference between the two is that, while an investigator on the scene of a robbery or a violent crime is looking for physical evidence, the computer forensics investigator is looking for digital evidence.

Interestingly, where physical evidence can often be misleading, confusing, ambiguous, and difficult to put together without the help of witness statements, digital evidence tends to present itself in a much more direct manner.

A computer keeps logs of pretty much everything that has been done with it. For example, besides your browser history, there's also your temporary internet folder, where information from the web is stored on your computer. So, say an employee is watching YouTube all day when they're supposed to be working. Even if they're smart enough to clear the browser history, the temporary internet files may still hold the evidence that will earn them a warning.

That's only a very simple example, of course. Computer forensics addresses everything from computer crime to employee misconduct, to such mundane tasks as figuring out why your virus scanner isn't working.

The point is that everything you do on a computer leaves a mark. Deleting a file from your hard drive is not same thing as deleting all the evidence that it was ever there. Just as every room in your house holds some DNA evidence, be it a hair, saliva, or a toenail clipping, no matter how well you vacuum and shampoo your carpets, there will be some evidence that this is your home. The same goes with computers. You can't do anything on a computer without a computer expert being able to figure out exactly what you've been up to.

One issue that many find confusing with regards to computer forensics ... how legal is it, really?

This depends on the context. Here's all you need to know if you're considering hiring a computer forensics team, but aren't sure if you can:

If you suspect an employee of breaking company policy or even breaking the law with a computer that belongs to the company, you do have the right to take a look at the computer they've been working any time you like.

It gets a little trickier when an employee is working on their own computer. This isn't a dead end, but it may be a little trickier. Luckily, you don't always have to look at their computer to find evidence of what they've done on their computer. In any case, go ahead and call your forensics people, and they should be able to advise you on how far you can go to gather the evidence you need in order to take action.

Really, computer forensics is simply the art of finding a trail of evidence on computers, simple as that. You never know when you'll need such services, so it's a good idea to keep them in mind in case you ever do.

Computer Network

Wireless networks located in multiple categories, depending on the size of the physical area that can be covered by network.

The following types of wireless network meet the needs of multiple users:

* Wireless personal - Area network (PAN).

* Wireless Local Area network (LAN).

* Wireless Metropolitan-Area network (MAN).

* Wireless Wide - Area network (MAN).

This is using the expansion all major cables for wired networks (such as LAN or WAN) used for years before it enters the wireless network.

Each type of wireless network has the advantages of complementary meet multiple requirements. The following paragraphs explore each type of wireless networks in a concise manner.

Wireless networks (PANS):

The area of wireless networks is a relatively short (up to 50 feet) and most of their effectiveness to meet the needs of a small room or in the cargo area. PANS networks is the performance of the average of data rate of up to (2MBPS). Imperatives followed these advantages for the replacement of cables in many cases.

PAN wireless network includes a person synchronize personal PDA with his laptop computer or personal computer. In a similar, PAN wireless network can provide radio communication to the printer. The advantage of the abolition of knots in the wire when using this type of computer is very useful, where the initial installation of the equipment is easy.

Wireless networks (LANS):

Networks wireless LANs provide high performance within and around office buildings and labs, and homes often have the users in these areas laptop computers, personal computers, PDA screens and processors to support large applications. LANS meet the requirements of communication for these types of computers effectively.

For example, in the work it can be installed the wireless LAN network to provide mobile access to the common applications of laptops. This type of system, the user can, while far from his office, take advantage of network services from the conference rooms and other rooms. That allows staff to be more effective while working away from their offices and more cooperative with each other.

Wireless networks LANS provide the performance levels enable applications to operate smoothly. For example, the wireless network LAN users can easily see e-mail attachments or a large scale video server of the invisible with data rate up to (54 MBPS). Wireless LAN network can meet only networks with the limits of web applications a house or office.

Wireless networks (MAN'S):

MAN'S wireless network includes areas with the size of cities.

Wireless Service Providers (WISPs) Provide wireless networks in cities and remote areas in order to provide homes and firms for wireless communications. Wireless networkings MAN provides the positive benefits and are appropriate when it is impractical to install a traditional wired communications such as (DSL and cable modem). Wireless networks WANS are effective when the right path for the cable systems have made it not possible or too expensive.

Wireless networks (WAN'S):

MAN networks known as mobile wireless applications cover a large area, such as state or continent. Because of the economic side, the operator is able to do remote deployment of the operational infrastructure of the wireless network MAN in order to provide relatively inexpensive long-distance communication for a lot of consumers. It is possible to distribute the costs of such a deployment across multiple users. It provides low fees -subscription.

Virtualize Servers Today

How do you accelerate virtualization for your enterprise - and take IT flexibility and cost savings to the next level? WAN optimization is a class of technology that has rapidly been adopted across enterprises in order to address the challenges of bandwidth limitations and latency over the WAN. In this paper, we examine the trends toward server consolidation and virtualization, and how WAN optimization can help IT organizations like yours solve the key challenges of application performance and information availability within these environments.

Virtualization and infrastructure consolidation can offer significant benefits for both IT and business operations. The combination of WAN optimization solutions along with virtualization offers CIOs the unique opportunity to strategically enable their IT operations, and improve service delivery while saving costs at the same time. IT managers would be well served to consider both technologies as key components of the IT infrastructure going forward.

From data center to desktop, Microsoft Virtualization delivers. At Microsoft, virtualization means helping IT departments maximize cost savings and improve business continuity. Our solutions address both physical and virtual infrastructure, and can be easily managed through a single console.

A Familiar Platform
Microsoft virtualization solutions are based on familiar Windows interfaces and work with well-known Windows-based technologies. And because the solutions are Windows-based, they are supported by a broad network of experienced partners who can rapidly respond to your business needs.

Savings and Value
With Hyper-V in Windows Server & system center, virtualizing your enterprise with Microsoft can cost less than competitive products and help you maximize the return on your virtualization investment.

Seamless Physical and Virtual Management
Microsoft virtualization technologies enable you to optimize your assets, centrally managing all of your physical and virtual resources across multiple hypervisors down to the application level.

Fight Against Computer Crime

Computer technology has attracted its fair share of criminal activities from those looking to exploit and capitalise on people's reliance on the computer to run their daily lives. After all, author Jolly John singled Singapore out for being 'the most network-ready country', signifying both our dependence on new-age technology and the capabilities of the talent we have. However, there are dire consequences to be dealt with should the intentions of those with the ability to manipulate the systems deviate to malice.

In their efforts to safeguard against computer crime, the Singapore Government has set up various measures through a multi-pronged approach. The first step is to keep up governing laws with the fast changing developments of technology and the opportunities for dismeanour it presents by passing new legislation. Singapore passed the Computer Misuse Act in 1993, which has since been amended four times.

The Computer Misuse Act punishes perpetrators of computer crime, rather than cyber crime. Computer crime refers to crimes against a computer through acts that attack a computer system. The Act covers unauthorised access to a computer, or computer material without authorisation, modifying the contents of a computer without authorisation, obtaining or intercepting any computer service or function, interfering with or obstructing the lawful use of a computer, impeding or preventing access to or impairing the usefulness or effectiveness of any computer program or data, or disclosing a password, access code, or other means of gaining access to a program or data. To take just the first example, any person who uses a computer to secure access to another computer without authorization shall be guilty of an offence.

On the other hand, the existing Penal Code governs cyber crime, which is traditional crime like fraud, theft or extortion abetted through the computer. As opposed to carrying out crime against a computer, perpetrators carry out their illegal acts through the computer.

Through the Computer Misuse Act, the law punishes and deters computer criminals by meting out harsh penalties including imprisonment and fines. Crimes targeting the bedrock of our nation's critical industries like banking and finance, communications or transportation and public services warrants the harshest punishment - a fine up to $100,000 and/or imprisonment up to 20 years. It is also noteworthy that a Court can order compensation to be paid by the offender for any damage that is caused, and such compensation which is ordered does not prevent or restrict a civil claim for damages which exceeds the compensation amount.

The next step it has taken is to set up agencies that ensure the enforcement of these laws. These specialised agencies include the Singapore Computer Emergency Response Team, Computer Crimes Branch of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Computer Forensics Branch of the Singapore Police.

Operated by professionally-trained tech experts, they can exercise their power with extra-territorial jurisdiction. They are trained in all aspects of computer investigation, one of which is the emerging field of computer forensics. This intricate process of investigation enables the retrieval of consequential data from computers, computer networks, data storage media and related equipment that may contain evidence which can be presented in court. They first analyse the data and meticulously document and preserve the evidence to be presented before court. This operation requires highly trained professionals as it involves delicate procedures where a single wrong move can destroy or modify the evidence.

If one suspects a breach but don't want to bring it directly to the authorities, there is the option of approaching private forensic investigators like Adroit Data Recovery Centre (ADRC). Due to the increase in violations of the Computer Misuse Act, ADRC has set up a forensic investigation department to deal with the influx of such investigative requests.

With more than 10 years of experience in the data recovery market, ADRC is well equipped with certified computer forensic experts who are capable of securing and documenting digital evidence with full audit trail suitable for court submission and performing data recovery under all adverse situations. They also have their own class 100 clean laboratory. Without having to move evidence around, this minimizes the risk of evidence being contaminated.
Computer users should also adopt preventive measures to safeguard their computers against computer crime, which is a very real threat that has the potential to be even more damaging given our reliance on computers these days.
Adroit Data Recovery Centre (ADRC) Pte Ltd is South East Asia's leading data recovery centre equipped with the first Class 100 clean laboratory in Singapore. It has an un-paralleled capability and the setup to acquire and collect the digital evidence from all kinds of working or damaged media while observing the strictest process of computer forensic investigation.

Data Forensics

Data forensics is one of the sub branches of computer forensics. It is essential to establish legal evidences as found in computers and its storage media. Its primary goal is to give a clear explanation of a digital artifact's state. Digital artifacts include storage devices, computer systems or electronic documents.

Data forensics are employed for a couple of reasons. It is a significant portion of data recovery for either hardware or software failures. It also helps analyze how an attacker was able to break-in to a system. It is also important to gather information about an employee that a certain organization wants to terminate. Alongside all these reasons, different steps are followed in the database forensics process.

There are several steps involved in the entire forensics process. These are as follows:

• Preparation of the investigator. An investigator must have an ample background of the subject matter. He should be trained enough to know the facets of the process. He validates all data needed by the courts basing on generated reports. Since there are many tools to choose from, the investigator should determine the appropriate tool to be applied for the case.

• Collection of data. The data are gathered in the form of digital evidences. Data forensics make use of tools such as computers, hard drives, CD-ROMs and even cellular phones or digital cameras. The data should be carefully handled to assure that no changes are made. Documentation and the use of reliable tools will help secure the collected data for forensics use.

• Examination. There are two ways by which data are examined. Traditionally, the dead data analysis is employed. This is one method where investigations are performed on hard drives or any data at rest. Currently, the live data analysis is also used. This is helpful when the attacker does not make use of the computer's hard drive. This is also important if the person makes use of cryptographic storage devices where data intervention may no longer be seen once the computer shuts-off.

Once the data are gathered and examined, the data forensics investigator may report the incident to management or to whoever needs the data. Following these steps require careful scrutiny of the scenario. This will ensure that all legal actions will be imposed on the attacker. In like manner, it will help dictate the punishment to be given to the offender.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Internal Network From Hackers

Attention! All the hackers on the systems of various according to their sects and wishes are eager to penetrate your network, but you can defeat these attacks by providing an appropriate combination of security tactics.

Networks are daily threaded with attacks, so you need to provide permanent protection. No doubt that the most common threats are: first, the viruses, which are small programs that in reality is trying to infiltrate your network and fool the computer, entering it as an attachment with an e-mail message, beginning immediately after opening the attached file, repeating the same self in the system of your computer. Secondly, Trojan horses which run through the computer by entering the applications or data files are useful, and that is activated on the Trojans after the mediation of specific programs; even begin to take over the reins in the system of your computer.

Thirdly, the worms that are also working to replicate itself and spread to begin the search for security holes in your system, so as to penetrate your system, and often remain hidden until the right opportunity to start attack of the distributed service (DDoS). No doubt that these three types of attacks pose a major threat to his company's data and your personal data as well. Of course, you don't want or any one of the owners of companies that their networks are points of attack to distributed denial of service attacks. Therefore, we must first ensure that the protection of all devices connected to your company, and the first step to ensure this protection is to provide these devices with firewall, which is a line of defense to it.

But is it enough to spend hundreds of dollars for the provision of firewalls, or that the cost would amount to several thousands of dollars? On the walls at a minimum be equipped with an examination engine of the data package (SPI), which examines the content of packages of data and gives the right of access to your network, in the event it was free from malicious software code.

How to use the firewall?

Firewalls can also be based on certain rules or filters block the movement of inappropriate incoming and outgoing data. It can benefit the choice of Internet Protocol (IP) for example, and to prevent existing staff in the network access to the protocol specific addresses on the Internet or receiving emails from them. Firewalls can also block the movement of data in the network based on a unique identifier named " the title of control to access to the" (MAC). Many of firewalls can control in data by using filters of key words or scope, and permit data which is destined for a particular location. Firewalls also allow the creation of more sophisticated to make more complex rules for the data.

There is a better option than the firewall which is equipped with the test engine of the data packages (SPI), is the firewall, which depends on the engine of test of the deep data packages (DPI). It works great test engine (DPI) to examine the full content of the data package in addition to the advantage of examining the packet header to be performed by the firewall engine equipped with the examination of the data packages (SPI). The engines can deep packet inspection of data, during the examination of the contents of packets to discover and prevent many types of attacks: denial of service attacks, such as (DoS), and rash cache, and attacks the guise of Internet Protocol, in addition to a series of attacks by worms. The more the costs of the firewalls as become more like instruments of security, as a result of processing the applications of intent to combat viruses, spyware and virtual private networks (VPNs).

Know the firewall that you need

When the cost of the firewall is cheap, the process was prepared more easily, because the additional costs of course will provide more options, and as we know that when the number of options are increased and available, The process of the preparation of these options are more complex, so we recommend you first to learn what works well on protection, and what are the threats that want to keep away from you. For that we recommend first to write a list of all the services that users need to access, such as web sites and e-mail servers and FTP servers in addition to the messenger services and remote access of data, because the firewall can filter services on the basis of the nomination of port numbers (a way of addressing a particular service in a computer) used by these services, and Internet Protocol address of the source or destination of data. We will mention the following examples of common services outlets figures, namely: 80 of 23 service and HTTP service Telnet and FTP service for the 21 and 25 of the service SMTP.

There is no doubt that the safest way to build a list of control to access to services is beginning block all data movements, and then revisit it after the disengagement to the services required for the block one after the other, such as allowing the movement of data on port 25, if these data are bound to Internet protocol address on your e-mail in your network. If you need access to services in the internal network of computers outside your network, such as Web servers or e-mail servers, you will build more complex rules of the nomination. You can know if the firewall, which has used an outlet of the neutral area DMZ to connect with these services and to be able to isolate the services open to external networks, on the internal network, but if the firewall does not have an outlet for the neutral area DMZ, then supposed to be allowed to feature passage of the performing the work, a process in which all the movements of short data service on a particular Internet protocol address of an internal party. For those who are afraid of the topic of writing the rules for the nomination to firewalls, we say that the operations are not difficult, as appears to them, they soon learn to establish a simple set of such rules, they will learn quickly accomplish complex rules, but if they insist on their fear of the establishment of rules for the nomination, they then use specialists.

Essential Criteria to Be a Forensic Accountant?

To be successful, some of the key criteria which a forensic accountant should possess are:

-Forensic accountants must have strong financial accounting analytical abilities, they need to be able to identify 'potential' financial and accounting fraud and any misbehaves fast and accurate when the data is analyzed.

-They should possess strong written and verbal communication skills to convince not only the "Honorable Judge" in any Court Case, but to be effectively conveying the rightful data and messages to the lawyers, polices, the Authorities, The customers, the offenders, the Convicts, Private Investigators or anyone who need to come in contact with the forensic accountant himself during the case study itself.

-They need to have creative mind with sound business acumen/ judgment to explicitly call out for any potential gaps with areas where more investigations or different kind of investigations are needed , which might have been missed out due to over-look by the other teams before that.

-They must be able to interview and elicit information from potentially uncooperative people and possess a strong amount of skepticism. They need to be very observant and sharp. They look for everything from over-valuation of inventory, and improper capitalization of expenses to misstatement of earning and embezzlement

-They should always carry a proactive 'Hat" with them - Forensic accountants can look for signs of suspicious accounting activity and determine whether deliberate measures were taken to conceal or falsify data.

-He needs to be resourceful and knowledgeable in the different types of financial principles; Accounting Journals, Assets, Liability, Property, Children Custody, Divorce, Bankruptcy. This way, they are able to quantify the necessary damages or liabilities which are uncovered as the hidden financial assets.

-Forensic accountants must have the skills of both a private investigator and an accountant whom has the analytical abilities and research skills from your financial experience, including knowledge of accounting procedures and practices (proper and improper).

-Last but not least, a forensic accountant should be someone who is able to work long hours and during odd hours. This professional will also need to be capable of handling great pressure in dealing with increasing complexities of accounting frauds!

Hackers and Neighbors

Local wireless networks, which provide information to receive and send to the Internet, have become part of the houses and offices. Where as it is less expensive than wired networks and allows for roaming between the two offices to remain in contact with the electronic devices. But experts warn of the penetration it by the strangers or intruders in order to sabotage it.

According to views of the U.S. experts, unsecured homes networks can also be used by the neighbors in order to spam bots download unauthorized material on the rights of the songs and music, and even pornographic material without knowing the owner, which had led to legal proceedings. In particular, it is difficult to identify the person or organization that used the network. One person was detained when he stopped his car in front of a U.S. charitable organization and used its network to communicate with the Internet.

The offices of small businesses were opened that do not have secured internal networks to penetrate the large companies that make business with them; this also is applied to the home network. To overcome the problems the experts proposed to change the passwords on wireless networks from time to time and installation of cryptographic keys to the codes can be changed according to a regular basis. The radio signals can be adjusted so as not to fall outside the walls of the office.

Data Breaching Privacy

Data security represents both a new global market opportunity to enhance the insurance coverage and a new risk especially for independent insurance agencies that may not be compliant with data security laws to protect their own companies from data breaches.

Data Breaching is one of the hot "white collar criminal " probably for the past four years. A lot of legislation has been passed, and data security breaches have become a main street type exposure, so clients are a little more aware that a breach could occur as compared to previous. With the increasing business over the Internet and the presence of Wi-Fi (wireless Internet access), it's virtually impossible to secure all of that information. In other words, though Electronic evidence can be dynamite, the casual nature of email can expose critical evidence.

Encryption might be one of the most widely used method to protect the data held on file servers, Virtual Private Networks (VPN) and databases. Encryption helps to reduce the likelihood of enterprise data loss or data breach incident. Oftentimes, the data security breaches are a result of not having the appropriate procedures in place to prevent employee mischief. Company found that information technology folks in their company doing the work don't have security background checks but they're given access to the systems. So we find that a lot of security breaches are done by insiders which should have been prevented.

Some of the renowned data breach protection company provides data breach solutions, risk assessment, forensic investigation and fully managed victim identity restoration to corporations, financial institutions, and government agencies. They have protect millions of individuals from identity theft and authored the Identity Crime Victim's Bill of Rights.

Any organization that fails to achieve full compliance which suffers a data breach could face substantial imputed and unnecessary costs, class action litigation, and enforcement actions by state or federal authorities. Companies that take proactive measures by resorting resources with extensive expertise in privacy, compliance, and breach response helps to minimize the risk of a security incident and the associated costs. Regulations aside, a data breach can hurt an organization's credibility and can carry huge medical and financial risks to the people whose data is lost.

Breach Prevention program could help organizations to review all aspects of PHI security and data breach readiness, including and not limited to the below:

• Proprietary Risk Self-Assessment - a powerful analytical tool which help detecting existing data risk hot-spots and determining how well protected the exposures are at current security levels.
• Privacy Awareness Training Courseware helps organizations to meet the requirement for ongoing education for their employees who must and are handling sensitive personal information.
• Incident Response Plan is designed for facility decision makers in the process of identifying roles/responsibilities and organizing policies/procedures for responding to a data breach.
• Legislative Updates ensure clients stay up-to-date on data breach notification and related privacy regulations.

At times, forensic accountants could be at risk of breaching privacy and confidentiality laws unwittingly, as they investigate problems ranging from fraud to insolvency which need to access corporate information. Forensic accountants who look at personal information stored electronically could be breaking data protection rules, according to some ID breaching experts. Therefore the first and foremost importance is the caution to check with legal counsel. Check with the company's legal counsel and a local attorney on state and federal laws before launching a financial crime investigation.

All these are necessary when certain investigative measures need to be taken that may violate employee workplace rights or peoples' constitutional rights. There are also special procedures for the gathering and handling of financial crime evidence. This is a highly complex area of crime-fighting where an investigation can easily backfire, and you might be exposing yourself and the organization to possibly more harm than existed before you launched the investigation. Therefore a forensic accountant should avoid breaking the rules while they are out there investigating crime cases found breaking some rules.