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IT Security

Selena Frye

Selena Frye

TechRepublic Staff

Selena Frye

Selena Frye
Selena has been at TechRepublic since 2002. She is currently a Senior Editor with a background in technical writing, editing, and research. She edits Data Center, Linux and Open Source, Apple in the Enterprise, The Enterprise Cloud, Web Designer, and IT Security blogs.
  • 2

    List open ports and listening services

    You should turn off any services you don't actually need so that they will not become avenues of attack for security threats. Different systems will have different services running by default,...

    Posted by Chad Perrin | April 15, 2008, 8:47 PM PDT | Latest comment by jackhard

  • 151

    Hackers: From innocent curiosity to illegal activity

    Researchers asked why talented youth skilled in "computerese" evolve into criminal hackers. Michael P. Kassner explains their unexpected results.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | May 6, 2013, 7:59 AM PDT | Latest comment by mattohare@...

  • 103

    DropSmack: Using Dropbox to steal files and deliver malware

    Michael P. Kassner interviews a digital forensic scientist who uses Dropbox to compromise targeted networks -- something the bad guys probably figured out as well.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | April 15, 2013, 7:46 AM PDT | Latest comment by Michael Kassner

  • 36

    Cloud-service contracts and data protection: Unintended consequences

    There are things your cloud-service (Facebook, Amazon, Google, Dropbox, etc.) contracts aren't telling you. Michael P. Kassner interviews an attorney concerned about what's not being said.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | May 13, 2013, 11:52 AM PDT | Latest comment by Michael Kassner

  • 36

    Battling the Google Redirect virus

    Consultant Bob Eisenhardt recounts his frustrating experience trying to track down and get rid of a client's search-redirect virus. Here's how he finally ditched it.

    Posted by Bob Eisenhardt | January 2, 2013, 10:56 AM PST | Latest comment by Jane3344

  • 36

    Understanding what motivates Chinese hackers

    Michael P. Kassner, with the help of a noted academic and author, looks at what motivates Chinese hackers. It may not be what you think.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | April 22, 2013, 10:16 AM PDT | Latest comment by HAL 9000

  • 15

    BoxCryptor vs. DropSmack: The battle to secure Dropbox

    Can DropSmack malware be stopped? Michael P. Kassner asks the creators of BoxCryptor if it is up to the task of securing the Dropbox file-synchronization service.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | April 29, 2013, 10:30 AM PDT | Latest comment by Michael Kassner

  • 63

    How to spoof a MAC address

    MAC address filtering for wireless networking isn't real "security". Anyone who pays any attention to current trends in wireless security at all should know that MAC filtering is less effective...

    Posted by Chad Perrin | January 22, 2008, 1:28 PM PST | Latest comment by Doug Vitale

  • 3

    Running the gauntlet: Tips for achieving your CISSP

    One of the most highly regarded security certifications is the CISSP. Dominic Vogel offers these nine tips for becoming certified based on his own experience.

    Posted by Dominic Vogel | April 23, 2013, 5:30 AM PDT | Latest comment by JCitizen

  • 10

    The basics of using a proxy server for privacy and security

    Patrick Lambert goes over the basics of how proxy servers work and why they are used to add security and privacy.

    Posted by Patrick Lambert | December 5, 2012, 6:30 AM PST | Latest comment by Tony Hopkinson

  • 0

    DDoS attack methods and how to prevent or mitigate them

    Patrick Lambert covers the various methods attackers use to launch distributed denial of service attacks, and the precautions you can take to prevent or at least, mitigate these types of events.

    Posted by Patrick Lambert | October 15, 2012, 11:24 AM PDT

  • 21

    Software-Defined Networking: How it affects network security

    SDN technology is set to rewrite the book of networking. Michael P. Kassner looks into how SDN will improve security, and where it's vulnerable.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | April 8, 2013, 7:13 AM PDT | Latest comment by Michael Kassner

  • 64

    Dropbox: Convenient? Absolutely, but is it secure?

    A potential security lapse and possibly misleading statements are plaguing Dropbox, a hugely popular file-syncing app. What are the issues and is concern justified?

    Posted by Michael Kassner | June 13, 2011, 8:03 AM PDT | Latest comment by kprivigyi@...

  • 67

    Use PuTTY as a secure proxy on Windows

    Last month, I wrote about using OpenSSH as a secure Web proxy on UNIX and Linux systems. This time, I'll show you how to do the same thing on Microsoft Windows using PuTTY -- probably the single...

    Posted by Chad Perrin | March 10, 2008, 4:30 PM PDT | Latest comment by abaabaa

  • 5

    The future of IT security compliance: 201 CMR 17.00

    Why should you be concerned about a security rule that is part of the State law of Massachusetts -- especially if you aren't in business there? Donovan Colbert explains how compliance regulations...

    Posted by Donovan Colbert | April 30, 2013, 6:00 AM PDT | Latest comment by dcolbert@...

  • 101

    Hacker vs. cracker

    The word "hacker" gets used in a pejorative sense by journalists an awful lot. Some people think this is perfectly reasonable; others find it offensive, and recommend an alternative term for that...

    Posted by Chad Perrin | April 17, 2009, 1:20 PM PDT | Latest comment by wizard57m-cnet

  • 9

    New McAfee patent hints at a more walled-off online world

    A McAfee patent hints at content filtering at the user level in order to block sites that offer pirated content.

    Posted by Patrick Lambert | May 3, 2013, 9:00 AM PDT | Latest comment by public_domain

  • 74

    10 services to turn off in MS Windows XP

    As I pointed out on 19 October, in point number four of the article 10 security tips for all general-purposes OSes, an important step in the process of securing your system is to shut down...

    Posted by Chad Perrin | November 7, 2007, 10:02 AM PST | Latest comment by JonB2008

  • 0

    Security lessons from the 2013 Verizon Data Breach Report

    Verizon's latest report on data breach statistics offers security pros a guide to the most persistent threats and where attention should be focused to defend against them.

    Posted by Alfonso Barreiro | May 15, 2013, 6:00 AM PDT

  • 89

    The FBI locked your computer? Watch out for new spins on ransomware

    The FBI locks your computer. Can they do that? Or is it fake? How does one know? Michael Kassner asks an expert for help with the latest forms of ransomware.

    Posted by Michael Kassner | November 15, 2012, 7:18 AM PST | Latest comment by JCitizen