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Surfer Beware - Hurricane Katrina
Internet Scams Abound
We've united to help
the Gulf Coast begin to recover from Hurricane Katrina. But sadly, when
disasters occur, scammers looking for a quick buck inevitably follow. The FBI
has reported that, as of mid-September, about 4,000 websites were claiming to
offer help to victims and that about 60 percent of them were probably scams.
Besides fraudulent websites, the most common Hurricane Katrina
Internet-related scams are e-mail solicitations, a practice called "phishing,"
asking for money for Katrina's victims. The message asks for a donation and,
when an unsuspecting donor provides a credit card number or makes an electronic
payment, the money is pocketed by the scammer and identity theft is a
possibility. Rip-off attempts based upon the notorious "Nigerian fee scams" are
also making the rounds.
Other e-mail scams don't even require a reply.
Messages with Katrina-related subject lines and file attachments carrying
Trojans or viruses can infect your computer if you open the files. Plus, chain
letters (such as "victims receive $1 every time you forward this message") and
messages that use interest in the disaster to sell unrelated and often bogus
products are circulating.
Common sense is your biggest ally in
protecting yourself against these scams. Here are several tips to help protect
yourself against scammers:
Kids and Internet - From Michael Sharer,
PSC Tech Support
IMing – blogging – ripping – flaming. Does it sound like your kids are speaking a foreign language? These are just a few of the activities your child may be participating in on the Internet. As a parent, it’s hard enough to protect your children from known dangers, but what about the mysterious dangers of the Internet?
is a great place to get first-hand information on the rapidly developing technologies associated with the Internet from a parent’s point of view. Their weekly newsletter talks to parents in plain language about current issues with the Internet, cell phones, computer and video games, and other technologies that appeal to today’s young people.The website is packed with resources that can answer parents’ questions from "What is blogging?" to suggestions on how to talk to your child about the dangers of IM (Instant Messaging) and chatrooms. Take advantage of the help available. Visit
Net Family News today.. Thanks.Just a Reminder - PSC Technical
Support
PSC Technical Support is here to help you when you have problems with your PSC Internet services. (i.e. e-mail, dial-up Internet connection, high-speed Internet connection)
PSC Technical Support
Available: Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm
Call:
357-2123, 536-3344, 843-5951 or 1-800-511-4899
E-mail:
After Hours Technical Support
Available: Any time regular PSC Technical
Support is not available, including Sundays and holidays
Call:
1-877-915-7724
FOR SECURITY PURPOSES: After Hours Technical Support requires the last four digits of the account holder’s social security number or a designated 4 digit security number. Access to After Hours Technical Support will not be allowed without this information. The account holder’s social security number or the designated 4 digit security number MUST be on file with PSC prior to calling for After Hours Technical Support
100+ Free Tutorials - PSC's
Website Compass magazine
PSC offers the Website Compass™ magazine to all of our customers. Each quarterly magazine is packed with information. The most recent issue includes the following:
Internet Connections: Modem Operandi
E-mail Basics
Beyond the Basics: The FTP Treatment
Browser Basics: The Secrets of Cookies
Tutorials: Internet Tutorials – More than 100 tutorials related to your browser and e-mail.
The articles are easy to understand, fun to read and educational. And, PSC customers can get free access to the online archived magazines. To check out this service from PSC, click on the following link or copy and paste it into your browser.
http://websitecompass.com/04t-psc/index.php
Ask
The Help Desk - Can Airport Security Scans Harm My Laptop
Computer?
Question: I plan to take my laptop computer with me when I
travel during the upcoming holidays. Why does airport security scan laptops
separately from other carry-on luggage? Can the x-ray system that airports use
harm my computer?
Answer: Laptop computers are inspected
separately because it's a better way to determine if an explosive device has
been hidden within the computer. With all of the electronic components built
into a laptop, it's difficult for a security worker to look at an x-ray image
and determine if there's a bomb. Chemistry kits called "sniffers" are also used
on suspect laptops to determine if residue from bomb-making chemicals is
present. Additionally, airport security may ask you to turn your computer on as
a further precaution to make sure that your computer is not a bomb in disguise.
It's a misperception that airport x-ray machines will damage laptop
computers and other electronic devices, such as cell phones and PDAs. The
concentration of the x-ray beam is not strong enough to penetrate the casings of
electronics. However, there has been a new development regarding photographic
film and airport security x-ray machines. X-ray scanners of recent years do not
damage film. But as a part of anti-terrorism airport security upgrades, a new
type of x-ray machine, called a CTX-5000SP, is being installed in many airports
in North America.
The CTX-5000SP is designed to better detect
explosives, but tests have shown that x-rays from these machines will damage
unprocessed film if the film receives a direct hit from the beam. Processed film
and electronic devices are not affected.
Great Sites To Check Out This Month
How To Find The
Lowest Gasoline Prices
http://gasbuddy.com - With gas prices
the way they are, we need all the help we can get. This site runs 170+ local
websites across the U.S. and Canada that help consumers find area gas stations
that are selling fuel at lower prices. A network of local volunteer gas price
spotters submits updates for their specific area. The site also includes a link
comparing our state's tax rate on gasoline compared to other states. It's
interesting information.
The Legend of Zorro Released This
Month
http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/thelegendofzorro -
Multiple Golden Globe Award nominee Antonio Banderas and Academy Award winner
Catherine Zeta-Jones team up again in follow-up to their internationally popular
motion picture, The Mask of Zorro. The first film grossed over $200
million and the sequel promises to be just as adventurous and action-packed. The
official site for The Legend of Zorro includes production notes, lots of
photos, bios, and a thrilling movie trailer. The film opens October 28, 2005 and
is rated PG.
Dress Your Dog Up As A Bee For Halloween
http://beedogs.com - Have you been
wondering what costume your dog will wear for Halloween? Me neither. But for
those of you who are, why not dress him/her up as a bee? The person who runs
this site collects pictures of dogs that are dressed up in bee costumes and
posts them for the world to see. Come on. You're not doing anything really
important right now anyway — and you are very curious. Go take a
look!
The Amazing Race: Family Edition
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/amazing_race8 -
Last month's Emmy Award winning television show, The Great Race, is back
for another season only this time with a new spin. Instead of two-person teams,
the teams are now four-person teams comprised exclusively of related family
members — including children as young as eight years old. The Amazing Race:
Family Edition is the eighth competition for this popular series. Check out
the site to learn more about the family team members in this season's
contest.
Solve Your Midnight Gourmet Coffee Craving
http://gourmetsleuth.com/copycat_starbucks.asp -
Have you ever had a 2 a.m. craving for a java chip frappe from your favorite
local coffee shop which happened to close hours ago? This site can help as it
takes a shot at trying to recreate some popular drink and baked good recipes. It
may not taste exactly the same nor have the same ambiance as your cozy coffee
shop, but at least you can wear your pajamas as you sip.
Short Tutorial - Add A Sound
Alert When Hitting The "Caps Lock" Key
Accidentally hitting
the "Caps Lock" key when typing an e-mail message is a common keyboarding error.
When you are in a hurry, your left pinky finger sometimes just doesn't reach
either the "tab" key or the "shift" key but instead hits right in between on the
"Caps Lock" key. Before you know it, you've got a whole line of text in all
capital letters.
If it's rare that you intentionally use the "Caps Lock"
key — it's used when making a series of letters all capitalized — you can set
your computer to sound an alert when hitting this key. Here's how to set your
sound alert when using Windows XP:
For Mac users, there is no sound alert
setting for the "Caps Lock" key. However, if your "Caps Lock" is turned on when
using the Safari browser and going to a site that requests a password, you'll
see a symbol in the right corner of the password field advising you that your
"Caps Lock" key is on. Give it a try.
We hope you found
this newsletter to be informative. It's our way of keeping you posted on the
happenings at our shop. If, however, you'd prefer not to receive these bulletins
on a monthly basis, click HERE.
Thanks for
your business!
Best regards,
PSC
One Community
On-line
PSC
11877 E State Road 62
PO Box 126
St Meinrad, IN 47577
(800) 511-4899
©2005
Cornerstone Publishing Group Inc.
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