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Inside This Issue

E-Mail Hoax
Fraudulent UPS E-Mails Try to Deliver Malware

Ask The Help Desk
What's The Easiest Way To Scroll Through Webpages?

Sites Of The Month
Great Sites To Check Out In September

Short Tutorial
Forwarding E-mail Messages While Protecting Address Privacy



   

Dear Valued DakotaCom.Net Customer

September brings the start of fall—an excellent time to make sure you don't fall for the latest e-mail scam. To that end, review our warning of the fraudulent e-mails claiming to be from UPS that try to deliver malware. This issue also features handy tips on two common Internet tasks: scrolling through webpages and concealing the e-mail addresses of your recipients. Finally, we share Great Sites with news on laptop bags from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), healthy recipes for fall dinners, and tips on Internet safety for kids.

The goal of each of our monthly eNewsletters is to keep our subscribers informed regarding their Internet connection and to improve their Internet experience. We think you'll find this information interesting. If, however, you'd prefer not to receive these bulletins on a monthly basis, click here.

To see what's inside this issue, simply scroll down the eNewsletter or click on the links within the index to the left. Thanks for reading!

- The DakotaCom.Net Team
 
  
 

 

E-Mail Hoax - Fraudulent UPS E-Mails Try to Deliver Malware

Fraudulent e-mails that claim to be from United Parcel Service (UPS) are now sweeping through inboxes so keep your eyes open for them. These e-mails usually contain a phony tracking number in the subject heading, and lead you to believe that a UPS shipment could not be delivered. You're then instructed to open up the attachment to correct the delivery address, print out a waybill or invoice, and pick up the package from a UPS office. See an example of a UPS scam e-mail below:

Download Images to View

The attachment features an icon that makes it appear to be a Microsoft Word document, but if PC users click on it, it actually downloads Malware—short for malicious software. (This does not affect Mac users.) Malware may disable your firewall, look for and steal credit card and bank account details, or make screen snapshots to allow hackers continued access to your computer.

You can read the official UPS statement about this scam and find out how to check the authenticity of notification messages by visiting: http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/about/news/service_updates/virus_us.html

If you receive a suspicious e-mail like this, delete it and do not open the attachment. This attack underlines the importance of thinking twice before you open an attached file, even if it appears to come from a reputable organization. It may be worth the few extra minutes to check out how genuine an attachment is by contacting the sender by phone or e-mail. If you use e-mail, key in the address yourself rather than using the "Reply'" button. This also serves as a reminder to always keep your Internet security program updated, which offers protection through virus definition updates.

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Ask The Help Desk - What's The Easiest Way To Scroll Through Webpages?

Question: I've been using the left button on my mouse to drag the scroll bar up and down when I view webpages, but is there an easier way?

Answer: Yes, there are actually several other ways to scroll through webpages that you might want to try. You can use the wheel on your mouse (if you have one) to move the scroll bar up and down, or use your mouse to click on the arrow keys above and below the scroll bar.

If you'd prefer to give your mouse a rest, you can use the "Page Up" and "Page Down" keys on your keyboard. Another option is to use the spacebar for scrolling. To scroll down while viewing a webpage, simply press the spacebar. To scroll up, hold the "Shift" key and press the spacebar. This shortcut works for Internet Explorer 7, Safari, and Firefox.

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Sites Of The Month - Great Sites To Check Out In September

Laptop Screening At Airports
http://www.tsa.gov/press/happenings/simplifying_laptop_bag_procedures.shtm - This site highlights the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) new “checkpoint friendly” laptop bag procedures. The updated process enables you to keep your laptop in its bag during screening if a clear x-ray image of the laptop can be obtained. Manufacturers have stepped up to the challenge of designing appropriate bags, and the site features photos of both “OK” and "not OK” styles. Visit the site to learn more about the do's and don'ts of streamlined screening.

Recipe Repository
http://www.prevention.com/recipes - What's for dinner? Or breakfast? Or your next holiday party? The answers are just clicks away on this recipe-packed site. Search by nutritional benefits, cooking method, prep time, or star ingredient. And check out the bonus features like Daily Recipe, Tools and Quizzes, and Free Newsletters for even more food and cooking information.

Sport-ese
http://www.sportscliche.com - The Olympics are over and fall sports are in full swing. Are you on top of your game when it comes to knowledge of sports clichés and jargon? If not, you'll want to visit this site, which lists those phrases you tend to hear again and again in a variety of sports situations—teams on the rise, a lost game, in the locker room, etc. You can even look up phrases you've heard in a non-sports context, or take the site's quiz to determine your sports cliché savvy.

Cyber Safety
http://www.fosi.org - The Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI) is an organization that works to make the online world safer for children and their families. The website includes information about FOSI's activities, events, and projects, as well as resources for parents, children, web developers, teachers, and policy makers. Useful tools for parents include The Parents' Child Protection Guide, Children's Bill of Rights, and a Family Online Safety Contract that can be printed for parents and kids to sign.

Got a Gas Guzzler?
http://www.edmunds.com/calculators/gas-guzzler.html - Tired of spending a small fortune each time you fill up? Thinking about trading in your van or SUV for a more fuel-efficient vehicle? This site features a handy calculator that shows how long it will take before you pay off the balance of a vehicle purchase, how much per month you could expect to save on gas, and how soon you'll really breakeven and start saving money.

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Short Tutorial - Forwarding E-mail Messages While Protecting Address Privacy

We've all received them—e-mails that have been forwarded multiple times and contain a long list of e-mail addresses. Unfortunately, unscrupulous people including hackers and spammers can harvest these addresses. To prevent this from occurring when you forward e-mails, follow the steps below to use the Bcc (Blind Carbon Copy) feature. This allows you to send messages to many recipients without displaying their addresses and compromising their privacy.

Forwarding E-mail Messages With Bcc When Using ...
- E-mail Program: Outlook Express 6
- Computer Operating System: Windows XP SP2 Home Edition
  1. With the selected e-mail open, click on the "Forward" button on the toolbar.
  2. If the "Bcc" field is not visible, select "View" from the menu bar and then select "All Headers" from the resulting drop-down menu. The "Bcc" field will now be visible below the "Cc" field.
  3. Click on the "Bcc" button and a list of all saved recipient e-mail addresses will appear. You can choose from this list or you can manually enter the e-mail addresses of your chosen recipients.
  4. As a courtesy to others, highlight and then delete the "From" and "To" addresses within the body of the e-mail so spammers don't harvest these addresses.
  5. It is a good idea to enter your personal e-mail address in the "To" field as often times spam filters will catch messages that do not have an address in the "To" field.
  6. Click the "Send" button on the toolbar.
Forwarding E-mail Messages With Bcc When Using ...
- E-mail Program: Windows Mail
- Computer Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium
  1. With the selected e-mail open, click on the "Forward" button on the toolbar.
  2. If the "Bcc" field is not visible, select "View" from the menu bar and then select "All Headers" from the resulting drop-down menu. The "Bcc" field will now be visible below the "Cc" field.
  3. Click on the "Bcc" button and a list of all saved recipient e-mail addresses will appear. You can choose from this list or you can manually enter the e-mail addresses of your chosen recipients.
  4. As a courtesy to others, highlight and then delete the "From" and "To" addresses within the body of the e-mail so spammers don't harvest these addresses.
  5. It is a good idea to enter your personal e-mail address in the "To" field as often times spam filters will catch messages that do not have an address in the "To" field.
  6. Click the "Send" button on the toolbar.
Forwarding E-mail Messages With Bcc When Using ...
- E-mail Program: Mozilla Thunderbird 2.0
- Computer Operating System: Windows XP SP2 Home Edition and Windows Vista Home Premium
  1. With the selected e-mail open, click on the "Forward" button on the toolbar.
  2. If the "Bcc" field is not visible, select the down arrow to the left of the word "To" in the "To" field. The "Bcc" field will now be visible.
  3. Enter the e-mail addresses of your chosen recipients.
  4. As a courtesy to others, highlight and then delete the "From" and "To" addresses within the body of the e-mail so spammers don't harvest these addresses.
  5. It is a good idea to enter your personal e-mail address in the "To" field as often times spam filters will catch messages that do not have an address in the "To" field. To do this, click on the empty box below the "Bcc" field and the "To" field will appear. Then enter your e-mail address.
  6. Click the "Send" button on the toolbar.
Forwarding E-mail Messages With Bcc When Using ...
- E-mail Program: Apple's Mail 2.1.1 and Address Book 4.0.4
- Computer Operating System: Macintosh OS X 10.4.9
  1. With the selected e-mail open, click on the "Forward" button on the toolbar.
  2. If the "Bcc" field is not visible, select "View" from the menu bar and then select "Bcc Address Field" from the resulting drop-down menu. The "Bcc" field will now be visible below the "Cc" field.
  3. Add the addresses of the recipients that you would like to receive the forwarded e-mail to the "Bcc" field.
  4. As a courtesy to others, highlight and then delete the "From" and "To" addresses within the body of the e-mail so spammers don't harvest these addresses.
  5. It is a good idea to enter your personal e-mail address in the "To" field as often times spam filters will catch messages that do not have an address in the "To" field. To do this, click on the empty "To" field and then enter your e-mail address.
  6. Click the "Send" button on the toolbar.

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We hope you found this newsletter to be informative. It's our way of keeping you posted on the happenings here. If, however, you'd prefer not to receive these bulletins on a monthly basis, click here.

Thanks for your business!

Best regards,

The DakotaCom.net Team




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