All Posts by Paul

Big Changes are a Coming!

Paul

Where Have I been?

Some of you have been asking that question and I really didn’t have time to answer them all. So I thought it would be better to post this and answer those questions. I know I haven’t been around the last few weeks to be truthful, I have been working really hard at getting ready to move. The apartment was a mess and there was only one person who would do it. That being me, I really didn’t get any major help on cleaning the apartment besides a friend helping moving two couches for me to the curb. I have been putting all my effort into cleaning that by the time I did get a chance to rest, I fell asleep most of the time. This has been a really big challenge for me because I have a 3 bedroom apartment that I am moving from and going into a really small complex where I am moving to so I had to decide what I must throw out and what I must keep.

Why Haven’t I posted lately?

Well if you read the first question it basically tells you what I have been doing. I do have to say It isn’t the only reason because as I am getting ready to move, I do not have a stable internet connection so that is the other reason why I haven’t posted. I am planning on doing the complete moving of my stuff this Saturday, so Hopefully starting next week when I am in my new place I will be able to post more frequently but as you can tell, it has been nothing short of a miracle that I got this far in the move. No help from anyone local but when I move to the new area, I will at least have more family support.

Don’t forget to use my Amazon Link!

I haven’t been on lately but anytime you use my Amazon Link, you will help me keep this blog running and be able to give out more gift certificates. So please don’t forget to bookmark my link and use it anytime you are going to go buy something from Amazon. This is going to be a short post but I should have more in the future once I get on my feet at my new location. Only time will tell and I hope you all had a great July 4th Weekend.

Keep it Real

Paul Sylvester

Testing out a VPN that works with Ubuntu/Kubuntu

Paul3 Replies

Sometimes Paying is better!

I’ve been playing around with the Free PPTP services but thought it would be nice to check out a paid version. I never like the idea of getting something for free because you never really know who might be doing it for nefarious reasons. Now that doesn’t mean that these free services are bad but they are better than not using anything. That being said, I came across a possible site that may be something that I will recommend in the future. The Idea is a simple, being able to use a VPN that can be used with Kubuntu and Ubuntu. They support Linux by helping people keep secure in today’s ever changing world.

I won’t know more until I test it!

This isn’t going to be a long post, because they seem to want me verify that I am a blogger. So in order to test this service I have to provide them with a link and you can see:

http://www.usaip.eu

I will also be having a how to for those of you who might want to connect to this service and actually have more security then PPTP. I like having more security while browsing and also hiding my IP from those people who are watching. All I can say is this is looking like a better service than anything that could be free. I’ll be reviewing their speeds and everything in the coming weeks but for the time being. I will being giving people an How To set up the service on your Kubuntu System.

Amazon really is Confusing some times!

Paul

Your Amazon.com password has been changed!

Dear [First] [Last],

This is an important message from Amazon.com

As a precaution, we’ve reset your Amazon.com password because you may have been subject to a "phishing" scam.

Here’s how phishing works:

A scam artist sends an e-mail, which is designed to look like it came from a reputable company such as a bank, financial institution, or retailer like Amazon.com, but is in fact a forgery. These e-mails direct you to a website that looks remarkably similar to the reputable company’s website, where you are asked to provide account information such as your e-mail address and password. Since that web site is actually controlled by the phisher, they get the information you entered.

Go to amazon.com/phish to read more about ways to protect yourself from phishing.

To regain access to your Amazon customer account:

1. Go to Amazon.com and click the "Your Account" link at the top of our website.

2. Click the link that says "Forgot your password?"

3. Follow the instructions to set a new password for your account.

Please choose a new password and do not use the same password you used with us previously.

Thank you for your interest in Amazon.com

Sincerely,

Amazon.com

Please note: this e-mail was sent from an address that cannot accept incoming e-mail. To contact us about an unrelated issue, please visit the Help section of our website.

This Happened a Few Days ago, and I thought I would talk about the security implications of this email. Some users and people are thinking this is fake. Obviously, I was concerned like everyone else so I contacted Amazon to find out about this. I talked on the Phone, and talked to a Representative that didn’t really know why my password was changed. So they told me the she’d give my email address to a specialist and that was it.

Account Alert: Please Read

Greetings from Amazon.com.

Please take the time to read this message – it contains important information about your Amazon.com account.

After careful review of your account, we believe it may have been accessed and used by a third-party to attempt to make purchases without your permission. It seems that someone obtained your personal account and/or financial information elsewhere, and used it on Amazon.com to access your account. Please note that no unauthorized charges were completed as we were able to cancel the order(s).

We have taken immediate steps to secure your account. We’ve assigned a new, temporary password to prevent further access by the unauthorized third-party, and removed any credit cards or other payment methods from your account. Additionally, if any information was added to your account by someone other than you, it has been removed. Your account access has been restored and is available to use at your convenience.

You’ll need to reset your password when you return to our site. Just click “Your Account” at the top of our Home page and select “Forgot your Password?” in the Settings section.” Enter your email address as prompted, and once completed, we’ll send you an e-mail containing a personalized link. Click the link from the e-mail and follow the directions provided. Your new password will be effective immediately. Please note that you will need to re-enter your complete credit or debit card number during the checkout process.

It is important to know that Amazon.com accounts can only be accessed by those who know personal, specific information about you and your account, including your email address and Amazon.com password. As mentioned above, it appears someone obtained this personal account information elsewhere and used it on Amazon.com to access your account.

While it is not clear how this happened in your case, we do know that personal account information is often obtained by scam artists who send unsolicited email to unsuspecting users asking them to "update" their account information. The email usually contains a link to a website that is controlled by the thief asking the user to submit personal information including email address, password, credit card number, and other relevant information. Once the information is obtained, the scam artist can then gain access to numerous online accounts since many internet users frequently use the same user name, email address, password, and financial information at multiple web sites.

Please know that Amazon.com employees will *never* ask for your password, nor will we ever send an email asking you to verify personal information.

Although it appears someone did access your Amazon.com account, they would not have been able to view your full credit card numbers as they are never displayed on our site. However, it is possible your credit card numbers may have been compromised at the time your other personal information was obtained. Therefore, we suggest you carefully review recent credit card statements to check for any unusual activity or unauthorized charges.

In the future, you can protect your Amazon.com password and account by following some of these safety tips:

———————————————————————–

1. Choose a good password: Use at least 8 characters and a combination of letters and numbers. Do not use single dictionary words, your name or other personal info that can be easily obtained, or a password that contains part of your email address.

2. Password protection: Avoid using the same password at multiple sites or for your email account. Do not share your password with others.

3. Account protection: Be cautious of unsolicited emails that appear to come from reputable online shops or services that ask you to submit personal information such as your credit card number, email address, and password. Often these emails will look as though they come from the company you’re familiar with, and the email will ask you to click on a link and "sign in". You should never provide this kind of personal information in an unsolicited email.

I don’t know if this isn’t just an automated message because anyone who know me, knows I do listen to Security Now and other such security podcasts. So I know about phishing attacks and other such ways of how someone can get your password. I’ve recommended Lastpass in the past and still recommend it. I don’t get what happened but it looks like they were concerned with my account and decided it need to be restricted until I changed my password. I even like the fact that Lastpass now uses Yubikey as a second factor of authen
tication, which I am quite glad they have implemented this. Great Going Laspass guys.

Don’t Click Links in Emails!

I’ve talked about in the past but I thought it was something that we should at least remind people. If you get an email with a link to your account and you’re not expecting it then don’t click it. You can click links if your resetting your password but those are expected. I always tell people if your not expecting it, talk to the person who sent it to you because they might have a virus or some link that will compromise your account or get your passwords. Remember, surf safe and think about your security.

Security is #1

Paul Sylvester

Hostgator is best by far!

Paul

My experiences with Hostgator!

If you know anything about me, I’ve had several different hosting accounts with different companies like Justhost and Godaddy and I even talked about the websites that not really legitimate sites and are using affiliate links to make money off of people. So I do know several different things that most people might or might not know off. I thought this would be a good time to at least talk about some of them and share with you my coupons to help you save even more money! It is however a personal preference but I will discuss with you in length why I like Hostgator and have been with them for over a year without much a problem.

Reliability is my Priority!

If you are like me, you make your living off people coming to your site. This isn’t always easy for me because I do have 3 different sites all on one server. This is something that helps with me because I have been online for 99.9% of the time since I have been on Hostgator with my 3 domains. Very reliable is great resource. I remember when Justhost wasn’t as reliable and Godaddy was just slow loading, which made people not even try to visit my site.

No Credit Card Required!

This is something that has helped me because of my situation. I don’t have to worry about having a credit card and I can pay with Pay Pal which is something that has been a great value for me. I can go get a Pay Pal Gift card, which is available in several different stores and even in Wal-mart. So I can reload my Pay Pal account every 2 months and not have to worry about fraud with Pay Pal. This is definitely a great resource for those who don’t have credit cards or don’t want credit cards.

Great Customer Service!

I don’t say this lightly because I have my share of problems with my hosting account from problems with redirect and problems with speed. Each time I contacted them they were eager to fix the problem or help me upgrade my server. I even like the possibility to get help almost instantly with just typing to the customer service rep through a chat window. I even had to do some service tickets with them and it didn’t even take 24 hours for a answer from Hostgator. It was really a good experience with Hostgator, some of the reply emails were less than an hour. So I am glad that it didn’t take long to get stuff fixed if it was something that had to be done on the server side.

I could go on but I am really satisfied with Hostgator to the point of wanting to give out some of my domain coupons:

Hostgator Coupons:

Here are the Coupons that you can use to try Hostgator for yourself:

  • paulstechtalk25 — Get 25% off your purchase of an Hosting account using this coupon!
  • paulstechtalk994 — get 9.94$ off first months of hosting!
  • paulstechtalkr2494 — Save 24.94$ of a reseller package.

If I find out more you can bet I will post them so you can get the maximum savings on hosting.

Thanks Hostgator

Paul Sylvester

Change is never easy, but sometime is required!

Paul

A Fork in the Road!

Imagine that you are on the long winding road where there is nothing but problems and hardship. Each step you take is nothing but effort and you don’t see any end in site. I feel like I have walked in hail, rain, sleet, and snow barefooted and no umbrella. I’ve worked past few months but nothing really seemed to help. I’ve done everything in my power but it seems that nothing could of change the out come. I’m at a fork in the road and when I look right I see nothing but road that is hot and no cover, the left side I see a lush forest which will protect you from all the elements of the world. This is how I feel, the impossible choice that will make me stronger or destroy me forever.

A Once in a lifetime chance!

Would you take the once in a lifetime chance to be happy or would you be so scared of change that you wouldn’t do it? This is the ever ending question in today’s society. Most people would not want to get out of their comfort zones. I am like that also because I hate stepping out and making a change that is necessary, which will in my case make me a better person to everyone involved. Being a dad has been nothing but a dream with me and now I have three fantastic children who I do cherish and love every day. Today is Father’s Day and I am glad my children is safe and that I have been a father to them. Have you hugged your child today? Have they wished you a happy Father’s Day? These are somethings you should expect today.

It’s not to late to give your father a Gift?

IT isn’t like you have much chance of doing anything wrong but you should give your father something this year and even a kiss on the cheek will go long ways to brightening his spirit and making him smile. Why not give your dad a great Gift card from Amazon, at least then he can find what he might of really wanted and you can show him your love him.

Happy Father’s Day Everyone,

Paul Sylvester