The subject of this particular apple phishing email reads “Account Info Change,” the phishing email appears to look like it comes from APPLE, but the email address shows it came from do not reply@itunes.comvia smtp.com,”. This means this email did not really come from apple and instead came from a fraudulent third party email service provider. (Real APPLE emails will show “id.apple.com” as the address. If you are unsure if the email you receive is real or bogus then it’s a good idea to call your network administrator of a qualified computer consultant to look at the email for you.

The fake emails look identical to real emails from APPLE which makes it dangerous for unsuspecting victims of fraud.

The bogus email informs email recipients that their Apple ID was “updated” and includes a link users can click on “to review and update their APPLE account security settings”. The fake link tricks users into believing the link goes to the real apple website but in fact the link takes users to a fake webpage that is cloned to look like the real apple web page.

The bogus APPLE page asks for users to log in with their APPLE ID and password, which of course ais sent to cyber criminals which then take your user name and password and access your real APPLE account and steal your credit card information along with your home or business address, your phone numbers and this quickly turns you into a victim of identity theft.

This kind of cyber crime is blooming up all over the internet and is very popular in Orlando Florida.

It is also important for APPLE users to understand that APPLE laptops, computers, iPhones and Ipads, which are thought to be safer and more secure then Microsoft computing platforms are not immune from online cyber crime and cyber attacks. A long list of new malware and computer viruses have recently emerged targeting and crippling APPLE computers – Macs. Rather than hoping your Apple product will be safe it is best for users to install commercial quality anti-virus software and better yet to use a high quality firewall designed to filter malware and computer viruses.

Of course, there is no substitute for knowledge and common sense. No antivirus software, firewall or reputation.com review can completely protect you from cyber crime like this. If you ever receive an unsolicited email like this, pick up the phone and call your network administrator and computer consultant and have him or her look at the email and whatever you do not click on any links in the email as this can open up a serious threat to your computer and your network. A good Managed Services Provider will proactively monitor your computer and network safety and will filter content so you do not have to worry about doing so but it is not always possible to detect and block these kinds of emails because of the never ending trends of technology and trickery.

What is Image Geo tagging anyways?

Did you know today’s smart phones and digital cameras embed hidden data into the photographs you take. The photos you take can tell others:

• Where you live

• Where you work

• Where you go to school

• Where you spend your free time

• When there is nobody home

• Where you park your car

Now it may not be a big deal if you are taking photographs of yourself or a loved one in a public place like Lake Eola, Cranes Roost Park or another well known public place. On the other hand if you are taking photos in your home, at your job or any other place you don’t want a stranger to know then you probably should continue reading this article.

How does it happen?
When you take a photograph with a smartphone or digital camera, it takes much more then just a photograph. Most of today’s smart phones such as the DROID or the IPHONE have the ability and do so  by default add Geo Tags to the photographs you take which include information about the EXACT location where the photograph was taken, what date and time the photograph was taken and this poses a real security threat to consumers.

Lets pretend you take photos of yourself with your Iphone, DROID or other modern smartphone.
Now lets pretend you upload those photos to your facebook, myspace, a singles website or even email them to somebody you don’t know very well.

Sounds pretty normal so far, right?

The hidden danger is anybody with the know-how or technical knowledge if you will can view the hidden data embedded in your photographs and see exactly where the photos were taken, when the photos were taken and much more…

How do you protect yourself?

You can turn off the GPS feature on your smart-phone, but you might still need the GPS feature turned on for GPS navigation. So if you want to protect yourself you would turn the GPS functionality off on your smart phone when you are taking photographs and turn the GPS function back on if you happen to need to use the GPS features in your smartphone.

Written by Chris Ondo
CFCEcorp.com

I have noticed people are receiving emails that attempt to trick facebook users into believing their facebook accountant is subject to an internet attack by hackers. DO NOT BELIEVE THIS.
This is an attempt to get people to download and install a computer virus to their computers.
Instead we recommend you delete such emails and DO NOT OPEN ANY ATTACHMENTS from sources you do not trust EVER.

Here is an actual email we have seen which is NOT FROM the REAL FACEBOOK.
NOTE: We made the fake email in RED text so you can clearly identify it.

Dear user!

Your account on the site Facebook.com was subjected to attack by third parties
at 21:13 March 25, 2011.
We stopped trying password guessing, using bruteforce.
And strongly recommend that you use complex passwords consisting of random
characters. In no case do not pass on suspicious links, where you are required
to enter a password. Always use antivirus software to avoid becoming a victim
of fraud by entering the password in the fake software.
We strongly recommend that you upgrade your system’s security policy.
We have generated for you patch, which allows the maximum secure your stay
at the Facebook.com.
Be sure to use it, so we can immediately return your page in case of theft
of a password.

Each copy of the patch has its own unique identifier.
And this patch is applicable only to your account.
Once installed, it automatically deleted.
Thus it is not possible to attempt to steal personal settings on your patch.

-
Sincerely,
Customer Support Facebook.com