ALERT: Email Phishing.. trolling for your identity

Hi gang,

I wanted to give everyone a heads up on a relatively new email scam called "Phishing". It's a very sophisticated scam that preys upon the trusting nature of normal users who aren't paying attention. Below are some links that provide some very good information.

PLEASE... PLEASE take a moment to read through the information provided and educate yourself on what to look for and how to spot these scams.

What is a Phishing Scam?
How can I tell if an e-mail message is fraudulent?
The Dos and Don'ts of Dealing with Suspicious E-Mail
What to do if you've responded to a phishing scam
Phone Phishing: the latest scam


(even though it's a Microsoft site, the information provided is meant for all platforms and email users... there are some references to Windows products but the Macs have similar counterparts)

OS X Built-in ZIP'per

It’s a pain to send a large file over the Internet, or a horde of smaller ones. Fortunately, OS X has built-in tools to ease this.

Select the file or files, or even a FOLDER of files you want to bundle for shipment in Finder, then select File > Create Archive.

The result is a new file created in the same location of your selected files named "ARCHIVE.ZIP". This smaller compressed file can added to an email attachment and sent down the email pipe.

(NOTE: Not all mail servers are created equal and some companies Mail servers/IT departments will reject anything with a ".zip" attached to it. Double-check that your email made it to the other end safely.)

Preventing Mac Disasters

Macworld’s February issue has a great article on preventing Macintosh disasters. You can read the entire piece here.

Briefly, here is what Macworld has to say. They list eight steps you can take to keep your Mac working well.

1. Verify Preferences
Preferences can get corrupted. To verify your Preferences, the simplest way is to get Jonathon Nathan’s free Preferential Treatment application at http://homepage.mac.com/jonn8/as/. If you find a file which not only shows up as corrupted, but is not a preference for an application which is working fine, quit the offending application, trash the corrupted Preference file, then restart the application. Applications rebuild the preference file if one is not found. You may have to redo by hand some custom preferences.

2. Repair Permissions
The more you download shareware or install new applications, the more often you need to repair Permissions. Open the Utilities folder in the Applications folder, locate Disk Utility and open it. Use the First Aid pane. Select the indented icon of the drive on which you wish to repair Permissions (Macintosh HD in this case) and click on “Repair Disk Permissions.” Always Repair Permissions immediately after installing any new software. Plan on running Repair Permissions weekly if you tend to download a lot of software.

3. Delete Cache Files
Cache files are temporary places where your Mac keeps information for a limited amount of time. Sluggishness in an application or in the System can mean that you have cache files that need to be removed. Titanium Software’s free OnyX 1.4.9 will remove caches. Find it at www.titanium.free.fr/english.html. This tool does not get rid of application-specific caches. If you like French Fries, try this. If you only like Freedom Fries, you will have to look elsewhere. Titanium is a French company. Macworld suggests getting rid of cache files twice a month. Cache files are located in System > Library > Caches and in Users > Username > Library > Caches folder.

4. Delete Log Files
Log files simply record system and application-related activity. They just keep growing over time. They don’t get very big, so if you choose not to get rid of them, there is no space penalty. Titanium’s free OnyX, mentioned above, gets rid of Log files. MacWorld also tells you how to use Console, located in the Utilities folder, to delete Log files.

5. Update Prebinding
Prebinding makes applications load faster. Updating prebinding can make applications launch faster. Once again, Titanium’s free OnyX updates prebinding when you choose optimization in the Maintenance scripts in Titanium. Prebinding is simply a way your Mac records the code an application needs to use to launch. Users of Panther do not need to update Prebinding, but there is no harm in running it.

6. Automate Maintenance
OS X runs some scripts automatically. The scripts delete unnecessary data your Mac creates as it runs. If your Mac is awake when the scripts are scheduled to be run, you have no worries. The scripts run between 3:15 and 5:30 am. So if you turn your Mac off at night, you need to run these scripts yourself. Titanium’s free OnyX runs them under the Maintenance Tab.

7. Take Good Care of Your Hard Drive
There is a SMART (Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology) system that checks on your hard drive and warns of failures before they occur. You can run SMART using DiskWarrior. Disk Warrior is the tool that most Mac experts say is the finest tool you should own. You should own DiskWarrior, but before you use it, be sure to reboot using your Install CD. Do NOT proceed with an Install, but go to the Installer menu and select Disk Utility. In Disk Utility, run Repair Disk.

8. Prepare a Maintenance Toolbox
Why wait until you have a problem to download the tools you will need. It will be obvious to you that you need OnyX and DiskWarrior. MacWorld also adds SmartReporter, which is free at http://homepage.mac.com/julianmayer/. You might add Jonathon Nathan’s free Preferential Treatment application. DiskWarrior does check SMART status, so you might not feel a need for SmartReporter.

So there you are. Eight ways to keep your Mac in top shape. Be sure to go to the web site listed in the first paragraph and read the entire article.

The MacTech is always happy to come and get you setup with these preventive measures. :)