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The Dark Side of the Internet

In an online world of millions of people, there are bad guys and dishonest individuals. They can deceive you just by knowing a little more technology than you. So how do you defend against Internet bad guys? About.com explains here...

More on the Dark Side of the Net:

Internet for Beginners Spotlight10

Paul's Internet for Beginners Blog

What is a Keylogger Trojan?

Wednesday November 11, 2009
Keyloggers are robot spies. Either employed by hackers, or by a suspicious spouse or parent, a keylogger trojan is a small bit of software that observes what you type on your keyboard. It records your passwords, email text, and your private messaging. Theft, or punishment, will often follow next. About.com explains keylogger trojans here...

What's So Great About Gmail?

Sunday November 8, 2009

People usually ask this when they get an invitation to start a Gmail account.  Many users who have Hotmail/MSN Live mail or Yahoo Mail don't see the immediate value of switching to the Gmail free service.  But, truth be told, Gmail is probably the best free webmail service today.  There are several very useful things about Gmail. Marziah Karch explains Gmail here...

 (photo by Marziah Karch)

Emoticons, Decoded and Explained

Saturday November 7, 2009
"Emotional icons" are odd little heiroglyphs used in email and digital messaging. Emoticons started with the classic 1982 smiley :-), and their use has now grown across the planet to become a daily part of digital culture. You can use your keyboard to create skateboarders, Elvis, Homer Simpson, or vampires. You can show love, flirtation, pouts, and glee. And with over 290 emoticons to choose from, you can convey many other stylistic messages...

Don't Become Phish Bait.

Thursday November 5, 2009
With all the newspaper, TV, magazine, and Internet warnings out there, it's astonishing that so many people still fall victim to the many high-tech con games. There are several email and web pages scams that will fool you into typing your private information. "Phishing scams" are very convincing to the untrained, but with just a little bit of guidance, you can easily spot when you are getting scammed online. Check out Jeremy's phishing article, and the Phishing IQ test here... (photo by Getty Images)
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