Criminals have gotten pretty good at making fake Web sites (for PayPal, eBay, Facebook, etc.) look like the real thing. But what they can’t fake quite as easily is the location of the Web server that’s hosting their fradulent site. You might be looking at a perfect replica of, say, Bank of America, but if the site is hosted in Uzbekistan, it’s a good bet you shouldn’t input your password. Read “Seven HInts to Stay Safe Online” for details on this sort of scam, and some ways to protect yourself.
Flagfox for Firefox makes the necessary detective work simple: it determines the Web server’s physical location and pastes the corresponding country’s flag at the end of the address bar. Clever!
If you’re wondering how it works, Flagfox bases its flag choice on the actual location of the server you’re connected to, rather than just the nationality of the domain name–which may be different.
After installing the plug-in and restarting Firefox, just head to any site and you’ll see the flag at the right end of the address bar. If you click the flag, you’ll get a new tab containing detailed geographic information about the site.
If you right-click the flag, Flagfox pops up a list of other handy tools, including Whois, SiteAdvisor, Web of Trust, and URL-shortener bit.ly. Head to the settings (via Tools, Add-ons) for the plug-in and you’ll find a dozen or so other options you can add to the list.
This is a great little addition to Firefox, one that combines convenience with added security. What’s not to like?
Keep Your PC Insulated from Internet Threats with Free BufferZone Pro
Most security tools leap into action only after they’ve detected a threat–and sometimes that’s too late (especially if the threat is one that’s new and unknown).
The only way to really stay safe while you’re online is to work inside a virtual environment–a kind of protected bubble (aka “sandbox”) that operates on your PC but isn’t directly tied to it. Trustware’s BufferZone Pro creates exactly that kind of protected bubble, thus offering a unique (and theoretically impenetrable) level of protection.
BufferZone Pro originally sold for $40, but Trustware has decided to offer the software free to home users.
The software’s virtual environment isolates security threats and prevents them from ever touching your PC. With it you can safely download, install, and run any application without worrying about Trojan horses, worms, keyloggers, spyware, Adware, phishing attempts, or other computer-clogging malware.
This newly free Pro version includes support for USB devices (flash drives, etc.), P2P file sharing, all instant-messaging programs, and personal files (which get stored in a confidential folder). And unlike many security tools, BufferZone Pro isn’t subscription-based, meaning you won’t get hit with a $40 bill a year from now. It’s free, period.
[ComputerWorld] via [hackinthebox]
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