Mrs. Mecomber's Scrapbook

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Archive for category security how-to

Fixing a Router Invalid MAC Address Problem

Dec 17

Posted by Mrs. Mecomber in computers, how to, networking, security how-to | 3 Comments

I have a very nice Netgear Wireless-B+G+N gateway router for our DSL connection. And I have a very nice Belkin Wireless-N adapter for one of our computers here. Since both gadgets are relatively new technology, I figured that connecting the Belkin to the Netgear would be a piece of cake.

WRONG.

I admit– this Belkin adapter is the EASIEST adapter I have ever installed. It was a breeze and it works right out of the box. But I have hefty wireless security for our home network: I have a long string of hexadecimal characters, MAC address filters, and etc. I won’t budge when it comes to security. I have ditched some of our old equipment because it won’t work with the modern encryption.

So this new Belkin has a funky MAC address that my Netgear router refused to accept. All the other MAC addresses I’ve seen begin with “00,” but this Belkin adapter began with “94.” The Netgear wouldn’t accept the MAC address.

Invalid MAC address

First time I’ve seen that. After checking for a firmware upgrade from Netgear for the router (there was no upgrade), I was on my own to make this adapter work, or return it to the store.

I figured out a hack. And it may help you should you have to do this. This is for my Netgear DGN2000, which allows me to save a config file as a backup. Basically, all I did was backup my config file, open it in Notepad (well, I use Notepad Pro+, a much better program), add the Belkin adapter’s MAC address to the config file, save it, and upload it to my Netgear router. Voila!

Long version of what I just said:

Most routers *should* give you an option to save your configuration settings. Save TWO of these, just in case you make a mistake and wipe out all your settings– you’ll have an untouched saved config file to upload, just in case. I saved one in my Documents folder for safe keeping, and another on my Desktop with which I altered. I had no problems, but it was nice to know that I had a pure backup for caution’s sake.

OK, so… your router will save the file as a “config” file. Right-click it and open it in a text-editing program (like Notepad or whatever). Scroll down, looking for  “MAC+name” and “Trusted Wireless Stations.” That’s what Netgear calls it; I assume other routers call it something similar. It was easy for me to find it because I already have a bunch of connections for other computers in the Trusted Wireless Stations group.

Type in the code using EXACTLY the same format as you see for the other MAC addresses (assuming there are others, as I have), but insert your new adapter’s MAC and network name. For example:

[40102]“Trusted Wireless Stations”=00:55:44:33:88:8FHP-PAV

You see that I name all my network connections after the computers we have here. You could name yours George or Moe or Belkin2020 or whatever. The name is just a way for you to identify which wireless connection is where. But the MAC address you MUST have accurate, or your router will not accept it as a viable member of your wireless network.

netgrconfhack

After you have added in your adapter’s MAC address, save the file as it is– do NOT rename it as something else. Close it. Go back to your router and look for where you can upload a file for settings (usually “restore backup” or “restore settings” or something. Upload the config file. My Netgear gave a confirmation window, asking me if I was SURE I wanted to do this, because doing so would wipe out all my current settings. I said yes. The router automatically reboots. Go to your wireless settings, and allowed MAC addresses, and you will see your new adapter MAC address and new name there.

Your wireless adapter with computer is now part of your wireless network, and all is secure. :)

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Disable AutoPlay to Protect Your Computer From Malware

Nov 27

Posted by Mrs. Mecomber in Windows, computers, crime, how to, security how-to | 4 Comments

Windows by default has AutoPlay configured. AutoPlay (once called AutoRun in older Windows operating systems) is that little program that starts up the software whenever you connect a USB flash drive, an external hard drive, or pop in a CD or DVD. It was handy back in the old days of innocent computer use… but AutoPlay is increasingly used by evil programmers who want to spread malware and viruses. It is now recommended that you disable AutoPlay on your computer if you use USB flash drives or other portable peripheral drives like it.

There’s been a rash of infections in recent months that can be traced back to infected USB or other removable devices being used to transmit malware from one machine to another. The culprit is autorun. Even if you think you have it turned off, I’m betting you don’t have it turned off – not completely anyway.

Autorun (or autoplay, as it’s sometimes known as or confused with), is a very convenient feature of Windows that, as its name implies, allows things to happen “automatically” when you insert a removable device such as a CD-ROM, USB Memory stick or attach a device like a digital camera.

And yes, absolutely, it’s evil, and should be turned off completely as soon as you possibly can do so. The reason is very, very simple: autorun can be seriously abused by viruses and other forms of malware.

…autorun can be used to automatically launch software, either already on your machine or on the removable media. This is good when it’s the CD player software installed on your machine automatically playing the CD you just inserted, and it’s bad when it’s a virus that installs itself automatically.

There are several ways to disable AutoPlay, depending on your computer skills, and the operating system you have.

For Vista, it’s easy to disable it. Go to CONTROL PANEL >> HARDWARE AND SOUND >> AUTOPLAY. In Classic View of Control Panel, look for AUTOPLAY in the alphabetical list.

At the top, under the Menu Bar, you’ll see a box that says “Use AutoPlay for all media and devices.” Deselect it. :D

DisableAutoPl

From there, you can customize the defaults, how Windows will handle various drives and files. It is recommended that all drives be changed to “Take No Action” in the settings.

Now be warned that this fix works in MOST cases. But you know– this is Windows we’re talking about. Depending on your operating system brand, your updates, your hair color, blah blah, this fix may not work for you. In such a case, you can download updates, or you can hack the Registry yourself to fix it. Here are some very helpful links with tutorials and screenshots if you need more information or more detailed instruction.

How-To Geek Forums: Disable AutoPlay in Windows Vista
How-To Geek Forums: Disable Autoplay of Audio CDs and USB Drives for XP
Ask Leo: How do I *really* disable auto-play in Windows XP?

After you have disabled AutoPlay, no window will pop up and nothing will run when you insert a USB flash drive or CD/DVD into your computer. So how do you access the drive? Go to COMPUTER, either on your Desktop or look for it in your START MENU. You will see a listing of drives there. Double-click the drive you want to open, and your portable drives files are there.

CompDrvs

It’s just too risky in this day and age of malware and viruses and worms to leave your computer susceptible to them. It is recommended by the security geeks that you disable AutoPlay. I have learned to live without it, and love it. :D

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Know What’s Running on Your Computer

Sep 18

Posted by Mrs. Mecomber in computers, desktop utilities, how to, security how-to | 2 Comments

One of the best resources I have for my Windows computer is the “Task Manager.” (Right click on your sidebar, and in the menu that appears, choose “Task Manager.” A new window will appear with several tabs. The Task manager shows what is currently running on your computer at the moment. The “Processes” tab has a “Processes Library.” This shows the individual file running.

Some of those names can be a little confusing or misleading. BEFORE you decide to “End Process” (killing the application), be sure to find out if it is an important program. You can do this by searching online for the application name. For example, do a search for “explorer.exe” and you will discover that this is a critical file. You can also bookmark a few reliable process library sites for future reference. The few I have found to be most reliable with concise information are:

ProcessLibrary
TaskList.org
Bleeping Computer

Be sure you know what a file is doing and know of its importance before you end the process, or you could cause your computer to crash. Searching for various processes also helps to determine and discover any malicious files or extra files that may not be necessary to run in the background (such as the Quicktime updater).

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How Are Your Passwords?

Sep 15

Posted by Mrs. Mecomber in crime, desktop utilities, free programs, security how-to | Comments off

Clark Howard had an interesting post about the 10 Most Common Passwords. The results gave me the heebie-jeebies! I cannot believe that people have such lame passwords! I am a password FIEND. I am always preaching the need for stronger and better passwords. Here are the top ten most common passwords. Please tell me yours is not among them:

    1. password
    2. 123456
    3. qwerty
    4. abc123
    5. letmein
    6. monkey
    7. myspace 1
    8. password 1
    9. blink182
    10. (your first name)

I know that creating, keeping, and typing passwords all day is such a chore. I work on the computer, so it is an ALL DAY drudgery for me. There are a few password-management programs that help make password-making and storing a little easier:

LastPass
KeePass
KeePass Portable (you can install the program on a flash drive and take it with you)
RoboForm
There’s a review here of the Top Ten Password Management programs (all of them cost money)

I wish banks and online credit-card companies had better encryption, though. Oftentimes, they only allow 6-10 characters with only upper- and lower-case letter and numbers. This is very unacceptable– a simple password-cracking program can crack these passwords very easily. My account at Photobucket has a better password than my credit-card account. :-p That really stinks.

Passwords should be very lengthy, up to 20 characters, and preferably should have lots of hexidecimal symbols like @ $ & ^ and so on. You can check the strength of your password with Microsoft’s Password Checker.

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Really Really Lame Spam

Sep 14

Posted by Mrs. Mecomber in crime, email programs, security how-to | Comments off

I hope there is no one out there, still falling for this kind of spam. It came this morning, and gave me a good hearty laugh; it was THAT lame:

Dear Windows user,
We recently noticed that your computer is not updated against viruses.
We invite you to update your computer as soon as possible:
[hypertext transfer protocol]microsoft.com/windows/update.aspx?id=21156

Thank you for your understanding.

All in plain text, no images, no “Get Live Mail” advertisement at the bottom, nothing. And when I moved my cursor over the link to the url, it led to this:

[hypertext transfer protocol]megateamworld.net/modules/WindowsUpdate

which is an .exe file. Which means clicking the link will install a (malicious) program onto your computer.

So not even the url was spoofed. There the phishing link was, plain as day! Dumb!! And annoying! :cuss:

Remember, never click on links in emails unless you are expecting them. For added protection, I never open “Fwd” emails anymore. It’s just not worth it to get a virus or a worm so I can look at another “inspirational-story-with-sparkly-pictures-pass-this-on-to-100-friends!!” emails. Not worth it.

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