The first step is being aware that your digital assets are more at risk than you think. McAfee Labs found that one in six people are at risk of downloading a bad app or click a suspicious URL. Most people don’t understand that the business of cybercrime is growing at an alarming rate, specifically for mobile devices. More than 40% of malware families misbehave in more than one way showing that criminals are developing sophisticated hacks on mobile platforms.

One tactic that cybercriminals are using to obtain valuable information from your mobile device is near field communication (NFC). Essentially, these criminals can hack your mobile device by being within a certain proximity to you if you have your NFC, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi turned on. They get into your device through these paths, exposing personal and financial information. McAfee Labs saw its first mobile drive-by downloads in 2012 and expects to see more of this type of attack in 2013.

Now that you know what you are up against take these four steps to start protecting your device and your privacy.

1. Don’t use “free” Wi-Fi networks: As convenient as these are, they can be more dangerous than you think. Once you get on that network your computer is at the mercy of the cybercriminal. This is the equivalent of leaving the front door to your house open; burglars can come and go as they please and take whatever they want.
2. Check the settings on your phone: Most devices come with a set of default settings that might have your NFC setting turned on. Taking three minutes to check your device’s settings and turning that feature off can save you from having your valuable information stolen.
3. Be cautious when you download apps: Take a few seconds to read through user ratings of certain apps; you never know what you may be downloading onto your phone.
4. Protect yourself with security software:  Security software is a great way to spot malware and virus attacks before they happen. Many times the signs of a cyber-attack on your phone are minimal. Being proactive and protecting your digital assets with security software allows you to be in control of your device and not the cybercriminal.

But one thing he’s always been behind on is technology. His generation missed it by about 20 years. So for the past 5 years I’ve been pushing him to get an iPhone. He swore he’d never text and wouldn’t need the Internet on the go. Recently he got one, and now I’m getting text messages every 10 minutes from him. He takes Apple classes and teaches me things about the iPhone I never knew.

Today McAfee released the results of their Digital Assets survey and found that most people are connected and are spending more time online and getting more devices. How do you stack up?

• Nearly 90% (88%) of consumers own multiple digital devices, with 62% owning three or more and 20% owning 5 or more
• More than half consumers (51%) spend 15 hours or more on their digital devices for personal use each week, which equates to more than two hours per day—men spend more time than women on their devices

And with the explosion of all the digital devices, we are storing more and more assets on these devices. In fact the study showed that on average globally we have over $35,000 worth of assets stored on our devices. This includes things like:

• Personal memories (photos, videos) are what we as consumers value the most and women value these more than men
• Consumers in Singapore, Brazil and Germany place a higher value on personal records (health information, financial records, wills/trusts) than consumers in other countries
• Not surprising, millenials (18-24 year olds) who grew up in the digital world (and have probably never owned a CD), place a higher value on entertainment files (music, tv shows, ebooks, video games, apps) than other age groups and consumers in India rate their entertainment files higher than other countries
• Italian and UK consumers have the most personal communication assets stored on their digital devices

And while we have all these device and have valuable assets on them, we don’t take enough precautions to protect our valuable assets. Nearly 15% of consumers globally don’t have comprehensive security on ANY of their devices and 20% are unfamiliar with cyber risks and security dangers.

Yet, most consumers (72%) are concerned with identity theft, monetary theft or fraud when online and 55% of us store digital assets on our devices that would be impossible to recreate, re-download or re-purchase.

That’s why with all that’s at stake, protecting all your devices and the data on them has never been more critical. That’s why McAfee today announced McAfee® LiveSafe^TM, the first unlimited cross-device security service to use cutting-edge facial and voice recognition technology to protect users’ digital lives.

At this point even my old man knows securing your digital assets is a requirement. And it doesn’t matter if you are on a PC, Mac or mobile, bad guys are targeting anyone connected to the Net.

If you’d like to see if you know about the value of your digital assets, play the $35,000 Question game on Facebook and enter to win some prizes like an Ultrabook!

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Expert to McAfee. He is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!  (Disclosures)

They are trying to get you to click links that will either infect your PC with malware, or visit a website that offers you too good to be true deals on gifts for mom. If you download malware from a bad link, everything you type into your computer could be recorded by the cybercriminal, you could be unknowingly sending them your personal information, or the malware could render your machine useless. Entering your personal and credit card information on a fake site could results in charges on your card, never receiving the item you “purchased, “ and even the possibility of new cards opened in your name.

To help make this Mother’s Day enjoyable for you and your mom, make sure to follow these steps when shopping online:

• Be wary of offers that are too good to be true—the usually are.
• Always be suspicious when you receive an email or text message from a company asking for personal information—legitimate companies do not ask for personal information in emails or texts
• Don’t click on a link in emails, texts, or chats from someone you don’t know
• To ensure you’re visiting the correct site, type the store site URL into your browser’s  address bar or use a safe search plug-in, like McAfee^® SiteAdvisor^® , that comes with McAfee® All Access, and shows you in your browser search results if a site is safe or not.
• Use comprehensive security software on all your devices that includes anti-spam and malware protection.

Make sure you protect yourself so you don’t get your credit card maxed out and then go crying to your mom on Mother’s Day.

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Expert to McAfee. He is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!  (Disclosures)

Reuse of passwords across multiple sites is a big problem. In the digital world, many of us are much more vulnerable than we need to be. For example, it’s very likely that your Amazon password is the same as your Gmail password and also the same one you use for online banking and your Facebook account.

In fact, 74% of Internet users use the same password across multiple websites¹, so if a hacker gets your password, they now have access to all your accounts. Reusing passwords for email, banking, and social media accounts can lead to identity theft and financial loss.

And what’s worse is that many people use simple, easy to guess passwords. A recent study found that the most common passwords people use are “password,” “123456,” and “12345678.”² No wonder cybercriminals are finding it so easy to get into our accounts.

The solution is as simple as changing your habits. Take a moment to protect yourself in a basic area of security, and you can save hours of trouble. In fact you can test how hackable your password is with this tool from Intel.

If you need help moving from just one password, here’s a trick: Use one for your bank accounts, another for email and social networking accounts, so if your email account gets hacked, your bank account isn’t compromised. For more tips on how to create a simple, secure password, read this article.

Here are some other tips to protect your password:

• Avoid logging onto sites that require passwords on public computers, such as those at an Internet café or library—these computers may contain malware that could “record” what you are typing.
• Avoid entering passwords when using unsecured Wi-Fi connections, such as at an airport or in a coffee shop—your passwords and other data can be intercepted by hackers over this unsecured connection.
• Don’t use the “remember me” function on your browser or within apps—if you walk away or lose your device, someone could easily login to your accounts.
• Use comprehensive security software on all your devices, like McAfee All Access, and keep it up to date to avoid malware that could “see” what you are typing on your device or unknowingly send data to hackers.

Password Day is more than a day, it’s a way of life. Don’t leave the backdoor to your life open. Pledge to change yours today.

For more information, join @Intel, @McAfeeConsumer, @StopThnkConnect and @Cyber (the Department of Homeland Security) for a tweet chat today at 3pm ET on protecting your passwords. To participate simply use the hashtag #ChatSTC.

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Expert to McAfee. He is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!  (Disclosures)

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1 Intel

2 http://splashdata.com/press/PR121023.htm

And this should go without saying, but please don’t be stupid.

I’m not preaching here; the fact is I am fully qualified to discuss this topic because every day when I wake up, I tell myself, “Today I’m not going to say something stupid.” But, being human, I often do or say stupid stuff. However, rarely do I make it public online.

Listen. I know it’s hard. I know you can’t help yourself. I know you think you know everything and I know you are telling me to shut up. But in the words of the lovely and talented Fire Marshal Bill: “LET ME TELL YA SOMETHING!”

What you say, do, post, like and even whom you friend on social networks will affect every moment of your life going forward. Social is the new norm, and even adults are guilty of the stupidity of putting something online that gets them busted.

With graduation coming and millions of you getting ready to enter the workforce, you need to be aware of what is and isn’t appropriate in the professional world. While many employers expect that their employees will maintain social media profiles and even support work initiatives via those channels, as a new grad, you need to be aware that your missteps in social media could taint your employer’s image and damage your professional reputation. When people do not use good judgment when posting and share the wrong content with the wrong people, they can jeopardize their careers.

According to McAfee’s Love, Relationships and Technology study, 13.7% of millenials (18-24 year olds) know someone who was fired because of personal images or messages that had been publicly posted and 13% of adults have had their personal content leaked to others without their permission

It’s time to face the facts.

1. Don’t deny this fact: YOU ARE BEING JUDGED EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY BY PEOPLE WHO ARE IN A POSITION TO HIRE AND FIRE YOU.
2. Don’t do that! Learn from other people’s mistakes. When you see someone get in trouble, fired or arrested, DON’T DO THAT.
3. Don’t friend people you don’t know.
4. Don’t take or allow others to photograph/video you with alcohol in your hands, drinking, smoking, doing anything illegal, scantily clad (or less) or making those stupid faces. You are an adult now.
5. Don’t like, share or retweet racist, homophobic or off-color media or comments that make you look like a jerk.
6. Don’t swear. EVER. It’s OK to say flippin’, freakin’, heck, maybe even effing, and shite. But once you start dropping F bombs, you look like an angry, uncouth juvenile delinquent. And seriously, I swear like cage match fighter—but not online.
7. Don’t log on while amorous or inebriated. Nothing good can come of that.
8. Don’t ever talk about anyone in authority—your boss, coworkers, teachers, students, the president or anyone, for that matter—in a negative tone. Seriously. Unless the person is a serial killer or oppressive dictator, play nice.
9. Don’t be so public. Lock down your settings. Most social networks have privacy settings that need to be administered at the highest level. Default settings generally leave your networks wide open to attack.
10. As Howard Stern’s dad used to say to him: “I told you not to be stupid, you moron.”

You have been warned.

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Evangelist to McAfee. Watch him discussing information he found on used electronic devices YouTube. (Disclosures)

If we could just see them all, we would rid our lives of bug infestations with doses of (environmentally friendly) spray. But what about the bugs that we can’t see? What about the bugs that have snuck past, and infiltrated the hidden corners of our lives, then quietly lie dormant until they can strike where it hurts most – our finances, our personal lives and our private information. You might ask, “How can a few bugs do that?”  You may forget: there are bugs that we cannot see, electronic bugs that we unknowingly let into our lives through our phones, tablets, apps and downloads and cannot control. They infest, they attack, they steal, and no amount of bug spray in the world can help with that.

Most recently, the Russian “BadNews Bug” has proven to be an example of this. While technically not a bug in software terms, though it’s been called this in the press, security researchers have identified 32 separate apps on Google Play that have harbored “BadNews.”  BadNews hides out as an innocent, yet somewhat aggressive, advertising network able to conceal its identity and successfully avoid detection systems by hiding in random daily use programs, such as recipe generators, wallpaper apps and games. Sneaking in when a mobile user least expects it, the second part to this infection occurs when the BadNews begins to deliver the AlphaSMS, a malicious premium SMS dialer, through the aggressive ad network and ultimately begins stealing the victim’s credit by sending text messages to premium rate numbers. Day-by-day, month-by-month, money seeps out of the user’s account.

Many people are now left wondering – how many people were infected? Was I infected? Can I be infected? While numbers of people affected are ranging from 2 million to 9 million according to the press, the main concern that should rise here is that the BadNews “bug” isn’t the only bug of its kind on the market. There are hundreds – if not thousands – of bugs lurking in dark corners and fine prints that can very easily sneak into our lives. In 2013 alone, the mobile ad business is a rapidly growing $6 billion industry, and without the proper protection, we may fall victim before we know it.

So how do we do it; how can we protect ourselves? There are ways, of course – besides having to scrutinize your phone bill every month for incurred premium charges – that can protect you from dangers such as this. Depending on your service provider and country, you may have the option to turn off all premium services or be notified when a premium charge is about to incur. There are also security apps that can prevent this from the get-go, such as McAfee Mobile Security, which will ensure all possible protection for your finances and your personal life. Whatever the case is for you, the one thing you should not do is sit by and let creepy crawlers infest your life. Protect yourself. Find your virtual bottle of bug spray today!

The mobile device has become a new and popular platform for companies to advertise their products. The Cisco Visual Networking Index estimates that by the end of the year the number of mobile-connected devices is expected to exceed the world’s population. That’s a lot of talking phones.

So, what are voice ads exactly?

Companies are creating technologies that use not only your mobile device, but its built-in GPS and WiFi capabilities to trigger personalized ads that will carry out a short conversation with you. The ads won’t be asking you anything super personal, like how your mother is doing, but they will ask you targeted questions about certain topics and products. As an example, an ad might ask you if you like a song or genre while you are using the latest Android music streaming app.

While this type of advertisement is effective in capturing attention, skeptics wonder if this type of technology might not just be bothersome but also too invasive of privacy.

At any given point while using an app, GPS and WiFi are used to generate ads relevant to your location. The ads you hear when you’re buying a cup of coffee are really different from ads you may hear when you’re at a sporting event. The point of these ads is to engage you in a conversation that ultimately leads to a message about a product or service.

With companies focusing more on SoLoMo initiatives, the digital world continues to evolve. Standing for Social, Local, Mobile, SoLoMo brings social media, location targeting and mobile devices together to allow marketers to target specific audiences.

During the All Things Digital Mobile 2013 Conference, the CEO of the mapping app Waze and ad executives Jason Spero from Google and Mollie Spilman of Millennial Media discussed how important mobile users’ GPS location can be when creating tailored advertising. Recently Waze teamed up with Taco Bell to use targeted mobile ads within the Waze app to send special offers to people who are in the general vicinity of a Taco Bell.

As the mobile ad business grows, so will the amount of data available about mobile device users. Companies already have the information about places that you go to regularly or for special events from geo-location apps like Foursquare. With these types of ads there will be more context around the data, meaning businesses will now be able to understand the human connection behind the information.

Are mobile voice ads a good idea or just an annoyance? In only a matter of months you will be able to be the judge.

Your device and the private data it holds are very, very attractive to thieves. Yet, most of us don’t protect our smartphones or tablets—and the private information they contain—anywhere near as well as we do our wallets and PCs.

We make life easy for them. The places and ways that we use smartphones and tablets offer new chances for criminals to catch us off our guards—in the coffee shop, on the train, while shopping. When we are using our mobile devices, we usually have other things happening around us as well as on the device. We are easily distracted. And we want what we want now. Click to download. Click to view. Click to get a free app. Few of us take the time to “think before we click.”

We store passwords, bank account information, photos, and all our contacts on these devices so we can be even more fast and efficient as we live our mobile lives. That’s why 51% of us would rather lose our wallets than our mobile phones.^[2]

Some of the things you can expose yourself to if you don’t protect your mobile device include:

• Financial fraud: Someone takes over your bank account, extracts money, or sets up a premium text scam where you pay for messages you don’t want.
• Identity theft: By having information about you, someone can pretend to be you and sign up for credit cards, identity papers—even buy a car. It can take years to recover your good name.
• Privacy loss: Someone gets information about you that you don’t want out there, including social network activities, GPS location, searches, texts, instant messages, downloads and app usage. This information could be just embarrassing—or it could cost you a friendship, a job, your credit rating or a chance for college.
• Losing your device: In addition to having to buy a new device (unsubsidized by the operator), you can give a thief the information needed for the fraud, identity theft and privacy loss mentioned above.

To ensure that you protect your smartphone and tablet you should:

• Don’t click on links in texts or emails, since these links may actually point toward malicious downloads
• Keep your device with you, don’t let it out of your sight and don’t share it with others.
• Make sure to have a pass code on your device and set it to auto-lock after a certain period of time
• Before downloading any app, check other users’ reviews to see if it is safe, and read the app’s privacy policy to make sure that it is not sharing your personal information
• Carefully review your mobile phone bills for any anomalies
• Use comprehensive mobile security that include anti-theft, antivirus and web protection like McAfee Mobile Security or McAfee All Access

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Expert to McAfee. He is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!  (Disclosures)

There’s An App For That

You need to think twice before pressing “agree.” Don’t let apps fool you into a false sense of security; when you hit that button, you may be releasing your private information to third parties or, even worse, cybercriminals. At the same time, however, I completely understand that you don’t want to waste your time reading through the tiny fine print on your mobile screen either. Instead, let McAfee filter through those privacy guidelines and agreements for you, because just like everything else, there is an app for that.

The newly released version of McAfee® Mobile Security is equipped with the most robust privacy features available on the market, protecting you from the tricks hidden within the fine print of app agreements. It’s the perfect way to ensure that all the information stored within your smartphone or tablet including passwords, security numbers, names and addresses stays protected from unwanted eyes.

Not All Apps Created Equal

How do you know if McAfee Mobile Security is right for you? If you don’t want to take our word for it, check out the newly released results of an anti-virus security test conducted by independent testing company AV-Test, to see how McAfee Mobile Security stacks up against other security apps out there. McAfee Mobile Security scored a perfect 100% in the four different areas that were tested. If you’re interested in specifics, some of the areas included:

• Android Malware Detection Rate: Nothing got by! McAfee detected all samples and malware families in the test.
• · False Positives: Zero false positives were reported by the app.
• Power Consumption: The app is efficient and does not drain your battery.
• CPU Consumption: The app does not slow down the device during normal usage.

Basically, for those of us who don’t like and, just don’t care, to read the fine print, McAfee Mobile Security offers the best protection available, without draining the battery of your device so that you can take the perfect photo of your scrumptious lunch.

McAfee Mobile Security

All in all, privacy issues are endless and even more confusing. A single Android app could ask for and hide over 100 different types of permissions in one area of fine print. This is the digital age, and nobody’s got time for 100 different questions about one app.

When all you want to do is use that new app, play that new game, hear that new song – don’t let the fear of having your privacy invaded get in the way– let an app do that work for you. McAfee Mobile Security is an award winning technology trusted by more 3 million users, so join the “smart” smartphone users and download it today. With the new version we’re even offering a free two week trial and the option to sign up for a monthly subscription (yes, that’s for all those commitment phobes out there)!

Most malware is designed to have some financial gain for the cybercriminal. Whether they are seeking your financial account information or holding your computer files for ransom or taking over your computer or mobile device to “rent” it out for malicious purposes to other criminals, they all involve some sort of payment to the cybercriminal. And because they are making money with malware, they continue their malicious ways.

There are a number of ways that malware can get “on” your computer or mobile device. You might open an attachment from someone you know whose files have already been infected. You might click a link in the body of an email or on a social networking site that automatically down­loads a virus. You might even click an ad banner on a website and end up downloading a virus or malware (known as “malvertising”). Or just by visiting a site you could get infected from what is called a drive-by download. Malware is also spread by sharing USB drives and other portable media.

And, now that mobile phones and tablets are basically mini computers, cybercriminals are targeting mobile devices. They are taking advantage of the inherent nature of the device to spread the malware, so as a mobile user you not only need to be aware of the same tricks cybercriminals use for computers, but also ones that apply to mobile devices.

Currently most mobile malware is spread by downloading an infected app so you need to be aware of what sites you download apps from and what permissions it accesses on your mobile device. Mobile malware can also spread via text messages (SMS). Scammers send phishing messages via text (called SMiShing) to try and lure you to give up personal or financial information or sign you up to premium text messages unknowingly.

What does this mean for you? You need to be aware of these tricks and scams as it could mean financial loss, reputation harm and device damage to you and your friends.There are things you should do to protect yourself, including making sure you protect all your devices with a cross-device security software like McAfee All Access. You should also make sure to:

• Keep your operating system and applications updated, as updates often are to close security holes that have been exposed
• Avoid clicking on links in emails, social networking sites, and text messages, especially if they are from someone you don’t know
• Be selective about which sites you visit and use a safe search plug-in (like McAfee SiteAdvisor which is included with McAfee All Access) to protect you from going to malicious sites
• Be choosy about which apps you download and from which sites you download them and be sure to look at the permissions for what information its accessing on your mobile device
• Be smart and stay aware about cyber tricks, cons, and scams designed to fool you

Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Expert to McAfee. He is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Identity Was Stolen.  Disclosures.