SDLP want a 'Mike Nesbitt' too??

Could May be standing for Westminster

Reading the Sunday Life (only in the real life copy) and found a tiny little piece on the possibility of a 'celebrity' SDLP  candidate for the Fermanagh and South Tyrone Westminster seat in the 2010 general elections.

Now where have i heard this before? Oh yes, Mike Nesbitt is the UUP celebrity candidate running in Strangford constituency.

Now there are a few questions raised by this rumour.  It is Northern Ireland and that means the likes of May McFettridge counts as a celebrity.  Hmmmm, you could almost see it now.  May McFettridge out electioneering so that she can be elected to one of the biggest and longest running pantomimes in the world.  

This would mean she would not have to wait for Christmas anymore.

Or perhaps the SDLP have snagged their very own tv or radio star.  We shall wait and see.

Who has been using my WIFI?

Not as innocent as you think

I read a Mashable post highlighting a serious point regarding wifi theft.


'The Tech Guy', a radio phone-in show, finds itself taking a call from a woman who wishes to complain that the free wifi she was stealing from someone else in the building where she lived had suddenly stopped.


She then gets irate that she can no longer access the old interweb, and decides to buy a booster rather than actually pay for broadband access.

This really is a serious issue.  I don't like the thought of paying for my broadband, only to have some numpti also use it for free.

Now, the last few providers I have used integrated their broadband with a specialised router.  With one provider, you had to physically push a button on the router they sent in order to activate the ability to input the password and connect up.  Even with this I have read that in a survey by Sophos in 2007 showed that 54% of respondents have knowingly used someone else's WIFI without permission.

I have found that in 2007 two people were cautioned over wifi theft, and a man was arrested for using wifi without permission.  In 2008 a 16 year old boy was also arrested for wifi usage without the owner's permission.

It needs to be noted that in the UK it is illegal to use someone else's WIFI without their permission.  It may also invalidate the broadband contract if the owner does allow it to happen (just go and check your contract with your broadband provider and you will probably find that you are not allowed to share your connection with others)

Using someone else's WIFI is an offence under section 125 of the Communications Act 2003, which states that,

"a person who (a) dishonestly obtains an electronic communication service, and (b) does so with intent to avoid payment of a charge applicable to the provision of that service, is guilty of an offence. The maximum penalty is six months in jail and/or a fine of up to £5,000." 

So,

1. Make sure that you use the highest security settings you can use and never, ever tell anyone your username and password.  You can also find out a little bit more on this at PC Mech
2. Do not use anyone else's unsecured WIFI because it is an offence to do so.

Happy surfing.

A General or a Specific election??

What about 'none of the above'?

I am putting my money on 6th May 2010 for the wonderful General Election.

I know there are lots rumours doing the rounds.  Indeed today Gordon is supposed to be announcing that the General Election will be taking place on 25th March.  All I would say is, if you are as sad as I am, have a wee gander over to General Election Timetables.

There you will see an illustrative timetable of potential election dates and when the 'Proclamation of Dissolution' has to happen.  The 'Proclamation of Dissolution' is basically when the Prime Minster goes to the Queen and asks her to dissolve her Parliament, and she  agrees.

You will see from the timetable that today (Monday 1 March 2010) is the day for the 'Proclamation of Dissolution' for the 25th Match to be the election day, when you and I get to once again drudge down to the local polling stations to vote for people we are not quite sure off.

The rumours for 25th March are now fading big time.  And as you can see below, we will have a few more rumour filled weekends to go through.  Right up to the timings for a June 3 election.

So why do I still stick to 6th May?

1. Its been the longest persisting rumour.
2. A number of Labour Grandees have let it slip now and again.
3. It is the date of the Local Elections in England
4. Its a nice time of the year to have it.
5. Its not the holiday season, so more people will be at home.
6. And, from the Northern Ireland perspective, the date for the 'Proclamation of Dissolution' is 12 April.

Hold on, I have heard that date before, I hear you say (for the pedants, I do not mean this literally! Unless people who read this actually do track me down and do actually speak to me.)

Yes, you have heard this before.  In the Hillsborough Agreement. On page 4.  First Section.

It is the date that Policing and Justice powers will be devolved from Westminster to Northern Ireland.

So what? Its not going to win anyone an election to Westminster.  Well, no it isn't.  But the powers can not be devolved by a dissolved Westminster.  It still has to be in session for the legislation for devolving the powers to be enacted.

A dissolved Westminster does not have any MPs, nor does it debate, nor does it pass legislation.

Ergo, (using latin makes me feel so superior) the Prime Minister will not be announcing dissolution before the 12th April 2010, as he agreed to the timings for devolution at the Hillsborough negotiations.

Now all I need is for Gordon Brown to read this and then call  a snap election, just to spite me.

Hateful viruses, scuzie malware and scumsucky trojans

I HATE THIS SCUMMY MALWARE

It seems to be a week of it for me. My desk top computer just received a wonderful message from a computer security programme that i was being attacked by trojan programmes and they were attacking my programmes and eating up my hard drive.  In fact it was kindly scanning my hard disk for all these nasty viruses, trojans and malware.

That was kind of it.

It also said that all i had to do to ensure it is all cleaned up and dumped nicely off of my computer and everything back to normal, was to click on the button to 'Get full time protection now'.

This wonderful security programme is called 'Security Central'.  The pop-up window is very professional, and kind of reminds me of AVG anti-virus (which is installed).

As a natural reaction I was about to click on buttons I should not be clicking on.  But wait! I never installed this software, I found it very strange that I suddenly had all these viruses when I used AVG, and I really did not like the feeling I was getting when I saw the button for the full activation.

I did not click - if it happens to you.  DO NOT CLICK!

Now, the rub.  'Security Central' is one of the scummiest, most hateful and spiteful, malware programmes.

Security Central pretends to be an anti-spyware program that uses deceptive advertising and aggressive techniques to protect itself from removal. This program is installed without your consent through the use of malware that when executed, silently downloads and installs Security Central in the background before it launches. Once launched it will scan the computer and display an increasing number of false detected infections. Security Central will then not allow you to remove these 'infections' without first purchasing Security Central. The infections are not really there, so no need to panic.  Security Central is trying to scare you into purchasing it.

To protect itself, Security Central will not allow you to run executable programs any anti-malware programs until the process is terminated.  This will obviously make you think that the viruses are for real.

I have just googled Security Central and I have found a few different websites that show you how to get rid of this hateful software.  I will have a go and let you know how I get on.

gone phishing!

Hateful scammers

The last couple of days has been a rude awakening for many twitterers (or twats, depending on what side of the fence you are in on relation to the use of Twitter) in Northern Ireland.  The shock was how easily it was for a scam to suck  people in before they realised it was happening and how often it could be done before people locked their accounts down by changing their passwords.


Firstly, we received, from our friends a wonderful direct message like this,

Hey, this you?? (and a link)

The obvious human reaction, especially with lots of pictures up on the web, is to click the link because it is a direct message from someone you at least vaguely know. 


Ahhhh, big mistake!


Clicking the link will confirm, to a nasty little git, your username and your password. All they need to start being you on Twitter. They will use your account to spread the message again ending up with large lists.  Sometimes its just an idiot messing about, other times they can spread viruses onto your computer, and even worse could allow them to find out passwords to other things like bank accounts.


The mesage is simple: DO NOT CLICK ON UNSOLICITED LINKS. 


If the message is from someone you know, check with them first to confirm they sent it.


Next i started recieving really nice messages like this,

hi, i'm 24/female/horny... i have to get off here but message me on my windows live messenger name (and a hotmail account)

Now that is wonderful except that one of the people who messaged me was Barry McIlduff MLA. Now, I, for one, am fairly sure he is neither 24, female and horny. But then who am I to judge??


It did not stop there either, more messages coming through,

hhey, i've been having better sex and longer with this here (and a link)

Sorry, but I am quite happy, thank you very much.  Besides I am married with two kids, I am too knackered.


All the messages are phishing messages.


Phishing is a name originally given to e-mail fraud methods where a scammer sent out legitimate-looking emails in an attempt to gather personal and financial information from recipients. Typically, the messages appeared to come from well known and trustworthy Web sites, or indeed from friends.


A phishing expedition, like the fishing expedition it's named for, is a speculative venture, where the phisher puts the lure hoping to fool at least a few of the prey that encounter the bait.


Phishers can  be very sophisticated or just use a very simple message like a worm to lure you into giving them personal details.


The one thing people can do to reduce risk is to be very suspicious of messages that are not clear or offer to give you a bigger weenie (particularly suspicious for females who get these messages), or better sex.


If you are suspicious that you have fallen for a scam, IMMEDIATELY change your password.


You have been warned!


Be safe in the twitterverse!