Et Tu SSL?
~~Et tu SSL? Last month the tech world was filled with stories about the Heartbleed bug. The Heartleed bug was called one of the more serious breaches in security in recent times. What makes is scarier is that the breadth of its impact won’t be exactly known since it went undetected for such a long time and it was in a form of encryption that was thought to be safe and unbreakable: SSL and TLS At TRA Consulting, we stay on top of the latest Technology trends and security news to help and serve our customers the best we can. Whether you have a big or small office, or are just a home user, we help all our customers achieve peace of mind knowing that their computer and private data is safe from prying eyes. At TRA Consulting we server the Long Beach area, as well as the Southbay, Orange County, and the Greater Los Angeles Area. SSL Stands for Secure Socket Layer. TLS stands for Transport Layer Security. Most people might not be familiar with this, but if you’ve ever bought something online, you’ve used SSL/TLS. SSL/TLS is used to encrypt websites, such as online stores, email accounts, online banking sites, and government websites. The way that you know if you are in an encrypted website using SSL would be to look at the address bar and notice that the URL (Usually starts with an http://) will now start with an https://. Seeing that was a subconscious sigh of relief in a world full of cyber hacking data breaches. The Heartbleed bug was not a problem in SSL, but in fact, it was in the implementation of it in the OpenSSL Project. With a bug like this that it completely out of your hands, you might think that there is no way to prevent your computer from being vulnerable, and you might be mostly right. However, there are a few things you can do to neutralize the damage wrought by the heartbleed bug. First of all, change all of your passwords. If your passwords were compromised, the first thing you should do is to replace them and get new ones. This will neutralize most of the damage the bug could have caused you. Even though the bug has been known for some time, there are still websites out there that haven’t patched it and if you are using them, you are exposing yourself to a security risk. One thing you can do to prevent that is to use the Chrome extension called Chromebleed. It lets you know if the site that you are visiting is still being afflicted by the heartbleed bug. There are many security risks out there, many that you can prevent, others that are out of your hands. The best way to keep your private data private is to never connect to the internet. But in this day and age that is nearly impossible. Next to that, the best way is taking preventative measures to bolster your computer and network security. At TRA Consulting we pride ourselves in doing just that, helping you keep your data secure. Contact us today.
Windows 7 vs Windows 8(.1)
~~Ever since Microsoft stopped supporting Windows XP, there has been some confusion as to which is the better operating system to upgrade to: Windows 7 or Windows 8. The consensus is that Windows 7 is the most robust operating system Microsoft has released since Windows XP. It’s more aesthetically pleasing due to its simplicity and the Aero look glass-like transparency of windows and task bar; more secure due to the bugs fixed since Windows Vista and the more user-friendly User Account Control; simpler to use since it still has the Windows Start Menu and everything is pretty much where they were in previous iterations of Windows. At TRA Consulting, we pride ourselves in not only helping you fix your computer and network problems, but also in helping you make the transition to newer technologies. If you need help upgrading your Home or Office computer or network, contact us and we’ll swiftly and gladly help you. We service the Long Beach area, as well as the Southbay, Orange, and Greater Los Angeles area. The biggest gripe the masses have with Windows 8 is the lack of a Start Button and Menu. I do agree that the lack of a Start Button takes some getting used to, almost like you are learning to use a new operating system. The fact of the matter is, that if you take away the desktop from Windows 8, what you have left is Windows RT, the operating system for Windows tablets like Surface and Surface 2 (and the upcoming Surface 3). Side note, the Pro version of these tablets come with full Windows 8, which include a desktop, so it feels like a regular laptop. What Microsoft took away with the legacy Start Button, they instead added access to their new operating system as well as the windows store and their apps. Microsoft listened to the people who said they missed the legacy start button by including it with the release of their 8.1 update, although it did not bring back the legacy start menu. I believe that was a smart move by Microsoft since the legacy start menu would be redundant and clunky, especially on touchscreen devices. Last, but not least, is the relative faster speed at which windows 8 runs on a computer compared to Windows 7. There have been benchmark tests done comparing the two and windows 8 comes ahead by a slight margin. Some of the reasons why Windows 8 is slightly faster is because windows 8 was made with tablets in mind. Tablets are smaller and mobile, so they cannot have the same horsepower as desktops or laptops, and they need to be energy efficient to not drain battery life. Windows 8 also doesn’t have the gpu resource-hog of Aero glass. This gives Windows 8 a more flat look, but at the same time helps to make switching from the regular desktop to Windows apps very fast and smooth. Each version of Windows has their advantages and drawbacks, and choosing one is a matter of preference. Despite what you choose, at TRA Consulting we can help you maintain your computer safe from viruses and your data protected from hackers. We service the Long Beach, Orange, Southbay, and Greater Los Angeles Area. Give us a call today!