Safe and Secure

According to the FBI, July and August are peak months for home burglaries, making it also prime time to take stock of your home security.

That’s why the New York City-based Insurance Information Institute suggests that everyone protect against “a physical or virtual break-in” during this crucial time.

There are many things a burglar can take from your home, the group said, but the most important thing is your identity.

According to the institute, identity theft insurance is available to repair credit reports and reimburse victims for the restoration of their identities.

August is peak time for home burglaries; tighten security

Want to protect your families health when immediate medical attention may not be available? Of course, we all do. For the best chance of survival from Sudden Cardiac Arrest caused by Ventricular Fibrillation, a defibrillator should be used within 5 minutes. Yet, less than 1 in 20 people survive largely because a defibrillator does not arrive in time. For those with the means (under $1,500) and especially with a risk of heart problems, a home defibrillator should take its place right next to the fire extinguisher, security system and carbon monoxide detector.

Be prepared for the unexpected.
When sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) strikes, the electrical system of the heart short circuits, causing the heart to quiver rather than pump in a normal rhythm. It typically results in the abnormal heart rhythm know as ventricular fibrillation (VF). It usually happens without warning and the majority of people have no previously recognized symptoms of heart disease. And it most often happens at home. For the best chance of survival from SCA caused by VF, a defibrillator should be used within 5 minutes. Yet, less than 1 in 20 people survive largely because a defibrillator does not arrive in time.

Both these models provide simple instructions and automatically determine if a shock is needed, prompting you to press a button if it is. (A shock is only useful in cases of ventricular fibrillation and could cause injury in other cases.)

Philips HeartStart Home Automated External Defibrillator (AED)

Home Automated External Defibrillator (AED) with FREE soft carry case - Great Sale Price!

According to FBI statistics over 80% of burglaries are never solved - in over 4 out of 5 burglaries, the criminal gets away with it. Most burglaries are by forcible entry and most burglaries target homes.

Another amazing statistic was that only 16.5% of reported property crimes were cleared by arrest or exceptional means (2004 FBI Crime Report). This means that the majority of the reported burglaries were not resolved with an arrest. In plain English the burglars got away with the crime.

Home Security and Home Invastion Tips for 2006 - Free Press Release Distribution Service

A coalition including Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society and Oxford University’s Oxford Internet Institute with the support of several prominent tech companies, including Google, Lenovo, and Sun Microsystems and Consumer Reports WebWatch has banded together to fight “badware”, the groups generic term that includes spyware, adware and any other software which “fundamentally disregards a user’s choice over how his or her computer will be used”.

A: StopBadware.org is a “Neighborhood Watch” campaign aimed at fighting badware. We will seek to provide reliable, objective information about downloadable applications in order to help consumers make better choices about what they download onto their computers. We aim to become a central clearinghouse for research on badware and the bad actors who spread it, and become a focal point for developing collaborative, community-minded approaches to stopping badware.

StopBadware.org

Watching her three-and-a-half year old son use a chair to reach countertops, had Natalie Koifman thinking there must be a better, safer way for kids to reach things above their height. So, she invented the “Little Helper” which she hopes will be on the market in a year or so. In the meantime, parents should remember that supervision is key to keeping kids safe - what kids can’t reach, they will climb to get.

Since the process of gaining a license and patent for the “Little Helper” is still ongoing, Koifman is not able to give specific information about the information.

“I can say that it basically acts as a substitute for a chair by providing much better support for a child when he or she stands on it,” Koifman said. “It could possibly cut down on the risk factor.”

Because a lengthy amount of time is spent receiving a license and patent, as well as waiting to be picked up by a major manufacturer, the “Little Helper” may not be out in stores until a few years later.

Boca Raton News - The Leader in Local News Online

Diamond Pet Foods is recalling all food made at its South Carolina plant from September 1 to December 10 after aflatoxin in food from the plant caused several pet deaths. The food is sold under the brands Diamond, Country Value and Professional.

In a comments made last week, Brinkmann said the company had received a call from a customer in New York whose dog had died, which then prompted the company to test samples from its South Carolina plant.

The company routinely pulls samples every 30 minutes, and was still testing them to narrow down which products may be contaminated. However, Diamond decided on a broad recall of all pet food made at that plant from September 1 through December 10 while it awaits further test results.

US News Article | Reuters.com

A new security flaw has been exposed in Windows involving “Windows Metafiles” which typically have a .wmf filename extension. The flaw is rated as critical and no patch is yet available from Microsoft to fix the security hole. It is recommended that users not open or preview any files witha *.wmf extension and set Internet Explorer security settings to “High”.

The vulnerability has been confirmed on a fully patched system running Microsoft Windows XP SP2. Microsoft Windows XP SP1 and Microsoft Windows Server 2003/SP1 are reportedly also affected. Computers will be infected by programs from the Agent.acd family, if users visit unionseek.com or iframeurl.biz. The malicious programs are downloaded to the victim machine and launched via the WMF vulnerability. Agent.acd will then download other Trojan programs to the victim machine.

Source: Techtree.com India > News > Security > Windows Metafile Flaw Exploited

A Michigan company offers temporary tattoos for children, with a twist. The tattoos contain identification and contact information in case the kids are separated from their parents while traveling or separated from a group while on field trips. Tattoos are also available for people with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Designed by a Michigan woman, the tattoos come in six colors, with kits for boys and girls. The tattoos cost about $2 each or $10 for a travel kit that includes six tattoos, a marker for writing a phone number, towelettes to apply the tattoo with and alcohol wipes for removing it. The tattoos generally last for a week, said Cindi Aldrich, who owns Temporary Tattoos With A Purpose. Frey said his daughter’s tattoo started to rub off a little on the way to the airport.

More information from Tattoos With a Purpose

courant.com | Tattoos Give Children Identification That’s Hard To Lose

A new worm making the rounds of all the major Instant Messenging networks attempts to trick you into believing you’ve received a file from a friend. Click the file and you get a picture of Santa - plus a nasty little rootkit installed to your system that could give hackers control of your computer. As with email, you should not open any file attachment unless you are expecting it and know exactly what it is. If a friend sends a link or file by IM, message them back and ask what it is before you open it. If they say they didn’t send anything, it’s almost certainly a virus and should be deleted immediately. If they did send it, you should still scan it with an up to date antivirus program before opening.

The IM.GiftCom.All worm has made an appearance on several messaging networks, including America Online, Microsoft MSN, and Yahoo.

The worm attempts to dupe you into believing that a friend has sent you a link to a harmless file. If you click on the file, you see an image of Santa. While viewing it, the worm attempts to install a rootkit on your system.

Santa Worm Hits Messaging Networks - Computing -

Microsoft revealed a critical security flaw in its Internet Explorer Web browser and an important flaw in its Windows Operating System today. The critical flaw could allow a hacker to take complete control of a users computer.

Microsoft said the vulnerability exists in its Internet Explorer Web browser, which an attacker could exploit to take over a PC by running software code after luring users to malicious Web pages.

Microsoft also issued one other security warning it rated at its second-highest level of “important.”

Fixes can be downloaded at:

www.microsoft.com/security

Technology News Article | Reuters.com