More on the Dangers Open Wi-Fi and FireSheep

In our last edition, we talked about how programs like FireSheep open you up to hijacking and snooping when using public un-encrypted Wi-Fi. If you have not read it, please do. It is critical! Currently, over 1/2 million people have downloaded FireSheep. That spells danger for all of us who use public Wi-Fi. 

Also we have talked about CCleaner software here on a few occasions. It has a new, serious upgrade that you should probably download. Have a terrific weekend.

Jim

Cloak your connection to foil Firesheep snoopers

If you're serious about protecting your surfing from prying eyes while on an unencrypted public Wi-Fi connection, the onus is on you to lock down your connections. Using virtual private networking (VPN) is one of the best ways I know to do that. Firesheep has raised the awareness — and hackles — of Wi-Fi users all over the world. It exploits an old, well-known problem called sidejacking. Eric Butler, the author of Firesheep, describes the situation succinctly in his Firesheep post:

Patch Tuesday heads-up: Critical MS Office security holes

After last month’s record-breaking security patch release, Microsoft is offering a November respite. The November Patch Tuesday will feature just three bulletins with fixes for a total of 11 documented vulnerabilities. One of the bulletins will be rated “critical,” Microsoft’s highest severity rating.

Business Discounts Added To Facebook Places

A new Deals service expands Facebook Places to let smartphone users find business discounts wherever they are. By tapping the Facebook Places Check In button, users will see nearby places, with yellow icons denoting available deals. An analyst said Deals on Facebook Places is just the beginning of a dynamic mobile commerce opportunity.

CCleaner 3 delivers nuanced drive wiper

CCleaner hasn't seen many major revisions since Piriform launched it in 2004, but debuting today, CCleaner 3 includes some extremely useful new features that make it worth the upgrade.

Best Free Photo Editing Software

Overexposure, underexposure, random blemishes, red-eye problems, white balance issues, and other visual mishaps will occur, so it's incredibly handy to have a good photo editing application on your PC to make corrections. Fortunately, there are plenty of photo editing applications that can get the job done—for free!