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  • VennerCorp 21:08 on October 10, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , , hints and tips, , , ,   

    How To Protect Yourself Online?How To Protect Yourself Online

    1) Create and use Secure Passwords

    Your password should be at least 8 Characters long and be a combination of letters, numbers and symbols.

    Don’t reuse your password, if someone gets hold of your password they will try it on other sites, so try to create a unique password for each site you use. or at least for important sites e.g. your banking keep that password separate.

    If you would like to know how to make / choose a secure password check out our guide here.

    2) Don’t trust links or attachments in emails.

    If your not expecting someone to send you an attachment or a link then treat it with extreme caution as it could be virus/malware.

    3) Enable two-factor authentication.

    If possible enable two-factor authentication, this will send a unique code to your mobile phone to confirm your login. this will prevent most attacks.

    Most of the large web companies now offer it e.g. Facebook, google, twitter etc.

    4) Use a VPN to protect your communications.

    A VPN will both encrypt your data and prevent people from tracking your location.  But they do oftern slowdown your connections and some services will detect if you are using a VPN and ask for extra validation.

     

    If you would like to know how to make / choose a secure password check out our guide here.

    If you would like to discuss your security then please Contact Us.

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 20:46 on August 7, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , , hints and tips, , , ,   

    Has My Password Been Compromised?Has My Password Been Compromised?

    With lots of data breeches happening to multiple large and popular websites and business, it is very possible that a password you use has been compromised especially if you use the same password across multiple sites.

    Amongst the sites that have been Compromised are VTech, Adobe, Ashley Madison, Adult Friend Finder, Sony, Tesco and Minecraft Pocket Edition.

    To check whether  your password has been compromised follow this link https://haveibeenpwned.com/Passwords  if will take you to an easy to use website. Just enter your password and it will see if it has been leaked.

    If you would like to know how to make / choose a secure password check out our guide here.

    If you would like to discuss your security then please Contact Us.

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 20:08 on July 31, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , Electronics, gadgets, , hints and tips, Ipod,   

    Apple Stops Selling iPod’s ! 

    Apple Stops Selling iPod’s!Apple Stop selling Ipods after 16 years

    After 16 years Apple have stopped selling all their basic iPod’s and only selling their Touch model!

    They have quickly withdrawn their popular basic Nano and Shuffle iPod from their website, leaving just their touch model. The touch is an IOS device and is basically just an iPhone without the phone part. This will annoy a lot of people who just want a basic device to play their music while running or on the beach. The Touch of course will do that but it is a lot larger, heavier, fragile and its battery life is tiny compared to the Nano or Shuffle.

    The iPod nano and shuffle will still be available from third party stores such as amazon until their stocks run out. If you are very attached to your older device it might be worth picking up a spare until while you still can.

     

     

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 10:31 on July 9, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: Essential Summer Tech, Essential Tech, , hints and tips,   

    Essential Summer Tech 2017

    Essential Summer Tech 2017With the main summer holiday/vacation time rushing up on us, its time to have a think about some of the essential tech it is worth taking with you.

    We are not going to talk about the obvious things that you will almost certainly have and are already going to take with you e.g. your Tablet, Digital Camera, Smart Phone etc.

    We are going to discuss the items you might not have thought of, but can make a massive difference to your summer holiday/vacation.

     

     

    Travel Converterconverter

    The first item you MUST/NEED to take with you (unless you are not traveling abroad) is a mains plug Adapter, otherwise all the tech you take will be pretty useless once the battery’s run out. You can get cheap adapters that are country specific and ones that don’t have a USB socket in builtin, but they are not really cheap or useful when you considered you then need multiple adapters for each country and you will need to take a USB adapter on top of the converter.

    If you get and take an “all in one” then it will work in pretty much every country and you don’t need to take a separate USB adapter. You can also plug in various country’s plugs in the converter by pulling off the USB section.

    We recommend the below item, designed for Worldwide use it works in over 150 Countries including USA, Europe, UK, Australia, Asia, South America.
    As well as the USB sockets you can plug in a normal mains plug, it can accept plugs from the USA, Europe, UK and Australia.
    It comes with 2 USB sockets allowing you to charge multiple items at the same time.

    Click here to buy it from Amazon for around £14.99

    Power BankPower Pack

    If you are going to be doing any type of intensive gadget use away from a fixed mains socket, Spending a night camping/sailing or maybe you are playing Pokemon Go then taking a Portable Power Bank around with you is essential. A portable power bank allows you to charge up any device that uses a USB socket e.g your Phone or Tablet. You simply just charge the Power bank up before you go and then when your device is running low you just plug it in and it will give you double or triple your normal usage.

    The One we recommend is the Anker model, It is very small and lightweight and can easily slip into your pocket with out any problems. This model will allow at least 2 full charges of standard mobile/cell phone and will recharge in 5 hours.

    Click here to buy it from Amazon for around £12.99

    Large Power BankLarge Power Pack

    A large capacity Power Bank is basically identical to the above, but they are designed to be able to hold a lot more charge to enable you to recharge your devices a large number of times. For example a standard Power Bank will do 2 or 3 charges, but a large Power Bank will do 9 charges.

    If you are going away from a main supply for a prolonged period e.g. your going to a festival or maybe about to trek the Inca trail then a Large Power Bank will be found essential as it will be allow you to recharge all your devices for over a week.

    We recommend the below model as it only takes only about 10 hours to charge, will recharge an iphone up to 9 times and maintains up to 95% of charge after six months in standby.

    Click here to buy it from Amazon for around £72.95

    Luggage scaleElectronic Luggage Scales

    More and more airlines are reducing the hold luggage you are allowed to take, and if you go over the limit they will charge an exorbitant amount. So being able to quickly and easily check the weight of you luggage is essential. By taking a small digital scale you can weigh all your luggage and make any adjustments as necessary.

    The model we recommend below allows you to weigh up to 50 kg with an accuracy of 0.01kg.
    It has a large clear back light display that can give you readings in (lb, g, ounce, kg), its very light weight only 90g and very small so it can easily slip in your case.

    Click here to buy it from Amazon for around £6.99

    Bluetooth SpeakerWaterproof WaterProof Speaker

    If you are going to a summer party on the beach or any other type of group gathering then you will find a wireless Bluetooth Speaker essential as it will allow you to stream all your music from your phone or tablet via Bluetooth direct to the speaker.

    The Model we recommend below is fully waterproof, has a large inbuilt battery giving up to 12 hours play time,
    high quality sound and a unique enhanced bass.

    If you are connecting your mobile/cell phone then it will then give you hands free calling by allowing use of its inbuilt microphone and loud speaker.

    It also allows wired connection via its 3.5mm socket and TF Card Support so you can store your favorite songs permanently on the device.

    Click here to buy it from Amazon for around £24.99

     

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 20:44 on June 26, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , hints and tips, , , , windows XP   

    Microsoft Release an Emergency update for Windows XP to protect against WannaCry. 

    Microsoft Release an Emergency update for Windows XP to protect against WannaCry MalwareMicrosoft Release an Emergency update for Windows XP to protect against WannaCry Malware

    MICROSOFT has just released an emergency software patch for the now “obsolete” Windows XP. The emergency patch should offer protection against the WannaCry malware that recently took down a large portion of the NHS.

    This is a highly unusually move for Microsoft as they stopped supporting and issuing security patches for Widows XP on April 8, 2014.

    Microsoft took this move to try and prevent the ongoing spread of WannaCry as it was using affected machines as platforms to continue the spread of the infection.

    If you have not already done so and you are using Windows XP then you should go straight to https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/security/ms17-010.aspx and download it ASAP.

    If you would like to get rid of malware on your machine, talk to us about prevention or if you would like to upgrade your machine please Contact Us.

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 18:25 on May 31, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , hints and tips, , ,   

    Critical Vulnerability in the Windows Defender Critical Vulnerability in the Windows Defender

    A critical vulnerability in the Windows Defender’s Malware Protection Engine has been discovered. It give would be hackers the ability to take over your computer undetected. This has already been addressed by Microsoft and they have issued a security update outside of the regular patch cycle.

    If you have updates turned on and you are connected to the internet your computer should install automatically, but you should check that that the Malware Protection Engine version in Windows Defender is at least 1.1.13804.0.

     

     

     

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 20:30 on May 8, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , , hints and tips, ,   

    How Do I Stop Emails Being Grouped in Gmail? How Do I Stop Emails Being Grouped in Gmail?

    Below are instructions to allow you to stop similar emails being grouped together in your Gmail account. The Email Group Feature / Conversation View is turned on by default and is loved by some and hated by others.

    Luckily it is actually very simple to turn off, first login to your Gmail account as normal then follow the steps below;

    Step 1: If your not already in Gmail, click on the Mail icon.Out of Office AutoReply in GmailStep 2: Click the Settings Cog on the far right hand side of the screen.

    SettingsStep 3: Click on the settings icon on the drop down menu.

    Settings Menu

    Step 4: Click the “General” option in the top bar.

    Step 4: Turn the Conversation/Group email feature off

    • To turn off Click the “Conversation view off”  round toggle button.
    • To turn back on just Click the “Conversation view on”  round toggle button.

    Step 5: When you are happy click the “Save Changes” button at the bottom.

     

     

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 20:15 on April 10, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , hints and tips, money, payments, scam, scammers,   

    Beware Emails Asking for Payments!

    Scammers have now moved away from sending emails from Nigerian Princes saying they need to move their money abroad. Now they are impersonating peoples Bosses, Wife’s, Husbands or Friends.Beware Emails Requesting Money

    The scammers do a lot of research to make sure the email looks identical to the company’s normal emails and they either fake the email headers or change the email address by substituting a couple of letters (e.g. yourboss@gmail.com to yourboss@gmali.com) so its actually appears to be from them.

    They then say something along the lines that they need to get an urgent payment to a new supplier or the company will loose a big contract. The Employee then sends the money not wanting to question their boss, and all is ok until they are fired for loosing their company’s money.

    There is also a similar email scam where companies are emailed supposedly from one of their suppliers saying their bank details have changed, and all future payments should go to their new bank details. As i am sure you can guess the email is from a scammer and the bank details are theirs and not your suppliers.

    If you ever get an email out of the blue asking for an urgent payment or someone saying their bank details had changed, you should always phone them first on a number you trust (not one in the email) and check that the email is genuine. As its better to appear over zealous than loosing your employers or your own money.

    The BBC have recently done an article talking about these scams, click the below link to check out the full article.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-37100091

     

     
  • VennerCorp 18:48 on April 2, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , , hints and tips, ,   

    How Do I set up an Email Forwarder in Gmail? 

     How Do I set up an Email Forwarder in Gmail?How Do I set up an Email Forwarder in Gmail?

    Below are instructions to allow you to setup an Email Forwarder in your Gmail account. The Email Forwarder feature is perfect for sending a copy of the emails sent to a Gmail account to any other Email account (It can be from any email provider).  E.g. maybe you want to send your personal emails to your work account or may be you want to set up a secondary account and don’t want to have to login into both.

    It is actually very simple to setup, first login to your Gmail account as normal then follow the steps below;

    Step 1: If your not already in Gmail, click on the Mail icon.Out of Office AutoReply in GmailStep 2: Click the Settings Cog on the far right hand side of the screen.

    SettingsStep 3: Click on the settings icon on the drop down menu.

    Settings Menu

    Step 4: Click the “Forwarding and POP/IMAP” option in the top bar.

    Step 4: Setup the Forwarder.

    • Click the “Add a Forwarding Address” button.
    • Enter the destination Email address in the box provided.
    • Confirmation: Google will then ask you to confirm the email address, click Proceed if you are happy.

     

    • Confirmation Code: Google will now send a code to the destination email address, enter this in the box provided.
    • Click the Verify button, that’s it, its all now setup. You should now get a copy of every email sent to this email account in your destination email account.
    • When you are happy click the “Save Changes” button.

     

     

    If you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     
  • VennerCorp 21:28 on March 21, 2017 Permalink |
    Tags: , , hints and tips, ,   

    How Do I set up an Email Signature in Gmail?How Do I set up an Email Signature in Gmail?

    Below are instructions to allow you to setup an Email Signature in your Gmail account. The Email Signature feature is perfect for setting up a automated message that will appear at the bottom of all your emails e.g. your contact details or an email disclaimer. You can also select if the signature appears before or after any quoted text.

    It is actually very simple to setup, first login to your Gmail account as normal then follow the steps below;

    Step 1: If your not already in Gmail, click on the Mail icon.Out of Office AutoReply in GmailStep 2: Click the Settings Cog on the far right hand side of the screen.

    SettingsStep 3: Click on the settings icon on the drop down menu.

    Settings Menu

    Step 4: Setup the Signature.

    • No Signature: Turn off all signatures – No signatures will appear on your emails.
    • Select Signature: You can setup a different signature for each alias you have on your account, select the one you want here.
      • The default will be your main email address.
    • Signature: This is where you can craft your signature.
      • You can either create it from scratch in the editor, or you can paste it in from Word etc and it should keep any formatting. You can also copy and past HTML – note you need to copy and past the ‘visual webpage’ not the code.
    • Insert this: Select whether you want the Signature before or after the contents from replied/forwarded emails.
    • When you are happy click the “Save Changes” button.

     

    Thats it, if you have any questions or you have any tips of your own, Why not drop a comment below.

     

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