Realty World Northern California & Nevada

Following up from an earlier post titled “Virus Meets Spyware” I reviewed the difference between virus and spyware. Yesterday, Microsoft released their FREE anti-virus software through the Microsoft Security Essentials software. Microsoft is now offering real-time protection against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software. Oh, and by the way…. did I mention it was FREE?

All that is required is a genuine copy of Windows XP SP2 or SP3, Windows Vista SP1 or SP2, or Windows 7. If you already have an anti-virus program installed you will need to uninstall it prior to attempting installation of Microsoft Security Essentials.

Like any other anti-virus program, you can schedule quick or full scans, setup automatic updates, exclude files and locations or file types, and setup how you are notified of potential threats.

I am truly appreciative of what Microsoft is doing here and so far have been impressed with the simple setup, clean interface, and real-time protection.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who currently doesn’t have any malware protection. For those of you who have malware protection already, I wouldn’t jump ship from what you have just yet and only time can tell who is going to provide the highest level of protection. But for me, I am onboard with Microsoft Security Essentials.

Tei Baishiki
Chief Technology Officer
tei.baishiki@rwnc.net

When you buy a big boat and register it with Homeland Security and the Coast Guard you have to name the vessel and its hailing port to obtain your documentation.  So, years ago when it came time to name our boat, which we worked hard for and we’re fortunate to finally get, I took the matter seriously.  I wanted a name that reminded me of good dealing, clean hands, equity and honor.  So I named her Covenant.  I thought the name would best represent our faith, goodwill, meaningful alliances and promises we make with others and our consequential relationships with much of the universe.  And, I’m equally proud of her name as the American flag she flies.

Recently I’ve had some dark thoughts about people’s obligations to mortgage companies and other creditors in these tough and trying economic times.  Those small lingering thoughts of default; the breaking of a promise and the premeditations of allowing one’s self to break a covenant with another have met a different reality and environment that give these notions birth.  Sadly, these seas are rooted politically.

I’m not referring to borrowers who have suffered a substantial or complete loss of income or those who obtained mortgages that shouldn’t have; I think those are separate matters entirely.  I’m talking about the people who have equivalents in income and other growth and income opportunities that otherwise could financially afford to maintain their present obligations and promises to lenders and simply choose not too.

Increasingly, reports of creditworthy and stable individuals are weighing the risk of future losses in real estate equity and purposely plotting strategies to benefit from mortgage default.  They reportedly move to a similar property in the same area that has gone down in value and walk on their present loan(s).  How they get financing remains a question to me?

Many have coordinated time lines to maximize withdrawals on remaining credit lines, equity loans and have somehow balanced in their mind a cost benefit factor of living with derogatory credit report.  Just the thought of that is a big reach for me and I grow increasingly worried about this situational ethic, off-the-rack culture and what that will mean for self worth of America’s children and our investment reputation in the financial world.

But, this is what I have to say to the real estate brokers and agents at Realty World…  Please stay clear of any involvement in a transaction that smells of this.  Even in times of desperation your self worth and personal integrity has greater equity than a commission from a transaction that is part and parcel to this behavior.

I understand economic waters may be rough; I’m right there with you.  But we have navigated through tough currents before and during these times, and while trying as they may be it brings me no justification to change the name of my boat.

I hope you feel the same way.

Scott LeForce
President
scott.leforce@rwnc.net

What’s a virus? What’s spyware? Both give you a headache and they are both referred as malware at times. Malware is a general term for any type of unwanted software that infects your computer.



The main difference between viruses and spyware is the way they are spread. A virus spreads software, usually malicious in nature, from computer to computer. Viruses can erase data, corrupt files, and cause usability problems on computers that they infect. Some indications that your computer might be infected may include your computer running more slowly than normal, stops responding periodically, or restarts very frequently.



Spyware, or sometimes referred as adware, collects information about you without appropriate notice and consent. Often times spyware is unknown and hidden from the user. Unlike viruses, spyware does not usually self-replicate. Spyware can come bundled with other software. When a user downloads a program and installs it, it may additionally install the spyware. Some spyware infects computers through security holes in web browsers. When a user navigates to a website which has malware on it the spyware uses the browser security hole to download and install the spyware. Symptoms include unwanted behavior (i.e. pop up advertisements) and degradation of system performance.



There are numerous ways to prevent malware from infecting your computer. Good commercial antivirus software is advisable over free antivirus software due to the frequency of virus definition updates. If you think you may have a virus, the Microsoft Windows Live OneCare safety scanner will scan your computer for viruses at no cost. Another good starting point is to make sure that your computer is up to date with the latest bug fixes for Microsoft Windows using Windows Updates.



For spyware, I believe Microsoft Windows Defender is the best software on the market and it is free. It will protect against spyware with real-time protection, detection, and removal.



It’s great to be protected with software against malicious malware software. However, your best protection is to be smart with what you do on the computer. We all get emails from websites, (i.e. Facebook notifying us a message a friend sent or Amazon.com notifying us about an order we’ve place, etc.) which include a link in the email. This may sound fine, however, it is not wise to click on the links in the email. You have to take precautions that it isn’t a malware email sent to you. Many times, someone who has your email in their address book is infected and you are being sent an email to trick you in clicking the link, further spreading the virus to all of your friends.



I am guilty of clicking links sent to me from emails just like everyone else else. Having been there, I wanted to spread the precaution (instead of a virus) on to you so you can be careful what you click!

Read Part II – Virus Meets Spyware

Tei Baishiki
Chief Technology Officer
tei.baishiki@rwnc.net