There is a current email phishing scam going on where you get an official-looking email forwarded by your ISP, which states you have violated HBO copyrights and illegally downloaded Game of Thrones.
The email has a link to a website where they say you can pay the fine. Don’t fall for it. The message was sent by cybercriminals and they would get any money you pay.
In general, it’s a bad idea to illegally download shows and movies for two reasons. First, you are indeed violating copyrights which can turn out to be very expensive when you get sued. Second, the websites promising these downloads are often compromised and infect your computer with all kinds of malware.
If you receive such a notice and want to verify if this is for real or not, contact the real IP-Echelon directly which you can do here: https://www.ip-echelon.com/contact-us/
Remember: Think Before You Click!
PS: If you are looking for IT Outsource Services please visit goITgeeks.com
You have probably heard about the new Pokémon app. It’s going viral and sends people on the street to catch these little virtual creatures. There are some risks if you have the “gotta catch ’em all” fever.
First, please stick to the vetted app stores, do not download the app from anywhere else. Why? Bad guys have taken the app and infected it with malware, and try to trick you downloading it from untrustworthy websites.
Second, anyone using the app, and especially kids should be VERY aware that they are not lured into a real-world trap which could lead to mugging or abduction. Other players can track you in the real world using this app so be careful.
Third, there are possible privacy issues if you use your Google account to log into the app. Create a throw-away account and use that to log into Pokémon, not your private or business account .
How much RAM you need in a system depends on what you intend to do with it, how long you intend to keep it, and whether or not you can upgrade your memory post-purchase. This last point is important, as many high-end laptops have eliminated user-upgradeable RAM in order to reduce system thickness by roughly six nanometers.
Adding additional RAM to any laptop generally increases power consumption by a measurable (if small) amount, but this shouldn’t be an issue for most users. It’s also better to have a bit too much RAM than too little, as whatever you gain in power savings you’ll promptly lose to increased disk paging.
Apple’s MacBook Air offers 4GB of RAM, but most of the systems from Dell, HP, and other OEMs start at 8GB, and I think that’s the better sweet spot. That’s not to say you can’t get by on 4GB — you absolutely can — but 8GB gives you a bit more breathing room.
Copy.com, the cloud storage service that offered near-unlimited space and huge bonuses for referrals, announced today they’re shutting down on May 1st, 2016—leaving more than a few people with dozens or hundreds of gigs of data to migrate.
Copy, and its business-focused cloud storage service, CudaDrive, are subsidiaries of Barracuda Networks, which announced the shutdown today first in the form of pop-up notifications to its users, and then eventually in a statement on their home page (linked below). From it, they note:
We know this comes as disappointing news to our users, but rest assured that we will do everything we can to take care of each of you in the manner for which Barracuda is known. We have partnered with Mover.io to make migrating your data to another service as easy as possible and have created a step by step guide that walks you through the process of moving your data to a local hard drive or another cloud storage solution.
If you are on a paid subscription for either Copy or CudaDrive, please keep an eye out in the coming days for an email with more detailed information on your options. For additional information, please visit our FAQ page.
Users with paid plans will likely be offered a refund or credit for a different storage service, but everyone will have to get their data out before the service is discontinued on May 1st. For more, hit the link below to see the full announcement.
When you can’t create the Windows 10 Recovery Drive, try these three fixes
The words you don’t want to read: “We can’t create a recovery drive on this PC.” These workarounds should help in most situations.
If you’re running Windows 10, you need to create a recovery drive—a bootable flash drive that will allow you to restore your system from a restore point, an image backup, or through a complete reinstall.
There’s no single solution to this problem. A fix that works for one person won’t necessarily work for another.
But first, a quick review on creating a recovery drive: Plug in an empty flash drive with a capacity of 4GB or more. Then open Control Panel’s Recovery tool, click Create a recovery drive, and follow the prompts.
And yes, you do want to back up system files necessary for a full reinstall.
If you try those directions and get a “We can’t create a recovery drive…” error, try these solutions:
Scan for problems
Your PC may be suffering from a corrupted system file. Here’s how to find out and hopefully fix it:
Type cmd in the Search field. In the search results, right-click Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
Once you’re inside the command environment, type sfc/scannow and press Enter. The System File Checker (SFC) program will examine Windows files and replace any that appear to be corrupt. This scan rarely takes more than 10 minutes.
After the scan, try again.
Try another flash drive
Yes, it’s obvious, but a lot of people overlook the obvious. You can buy a 4GB flash drive for less than $5, so there’s really no excuse.
Create an install drive instead
A Windows 10 install drive is very much like a Windows 10 recovery drive. The major differences are that the install drive defaults to reinstalling Windows, and doesn’t know the details of your particular Windows installation.
First, you’ll need to download the media creation tool. Be patient; it’s a big file. Once you have it, plug in your flash drive, launch MediaCreationTool.exe, select Create installation media for another PC and follow the prompts.
When you boot from this drive, the Windows Setup wizard comes up. On the second page of the wizard, ignore the big “Install now” button and click Repair your computer in the lower-left corner. That brings you into an environment nearly identical to the Recovery Tool.
But if you do a complete reinstall, there’s a possibility that it will require you to enter your Product ID number—the proof that you can legally run Windows 10 on this machine. So take a precaution now: Download and run Nirsoft’s free and portable ProduKey. Save the displayed numbers in a safe place.
