What is Two-Factor Authentication?

It goes by many names… Sometimes it’s referred to as “2FA,” “two-step verification,” “login approval,” or “enhanced login security.” Bottom line, it’s a big improvement on the username/password method of gaining access to online accounts. Massive data breaches, often exposing millions of login credentials

Two-factor authentication makes it much more difficult (if not impossible) for someone to hack into your online accounts, even if they have your password. That’s because a password is just one factor used to prove (authenticate) that you are who you say you are. The other authentication factor will be quite different.

A username, such as JSmith419, is who you claim to be. In order to authenticate that claim, you may provide a password which, in theory, only the real JSmith419 knows. That’s one-factor authentication. Two-factor authentication requires two of the following three types of authentication factors:

• Something you know (e.g., a password)
• Something you have (e.g., a mobile phone)
• Something that is part of you (e.g., a fingerprint)

Passwords and mobile phones have become the preferred pair of factors for two-factor authentication. To use two-factor authentication methods 1 and 2, you might register your phone number with an online service such as Gmail, Facebook or your bank. Then, each time you enter your username and password, the service sends a text (SMS) message to that phone number, containing a unique one-time code that you must type in to be fully authenticated.

But there are serious vulnerabilities in SMS-based authentication. The SMS protocol was never designed for sensitive communications, so it utterly lacks encryption and other ways of defending against eavesdroppers.

You’ve Got Options

Google and other online services offer 2FA without the insecure SMS requirement. If you turn on this option you’ll need to enter your username/password as usual. You’ll then be prompted for an authentication code before the login can be completed. The code can come from Google Authenticator, an app for your Android or iOS device. This time-sensitive code can be generated even if you’re not online, and you can also print a list of codes for use when you don’t have your phone handy.

The really cool thing about using a two-factor authentication app is that even if a malicious person has your username and password, they cannot login to your account! And no, using Google Authenticator does not give Google access to any of the accounts you use it with. If you prefer to use a non-Google authentication app, check out Authy or the Lastpass Authenticator.

If it sounds like a nuisance to enter both a password and a verification code every time you log in, well, you’re right. But most services that offer two-factor authentication give you the option to enter the code once and check a box that says something like “trust this computer.” If you do that, you won’t need to enter a verification code each time you sign in with that computer.

Online businesses increasingly urge customers to use two-factor authentication. Some even insist upon it. Their reasons include the skyrocketing frequency of mass thefts of username/password pairs by hackers, and the cost of responding to such breaches. Those costs can include lawsuits, fraudulent transactions that merchants or banks must eat, the cost of notifying affected customers, and even the cost of providing a year’s worth of credit report monitoring. Not to mention the cost of bad publicity and lost customers.

2FA: Step-By-Step

There are a couple of websites developed to encourage and help Internet users enable two-factor authentication on all the sites that offer it. The Turn It On site is chock-full of information about two-factor authentication (abbreviated 2FA). Even better, it provides step-by-step instructions for enabling 2FA on over 100 sites, a list that is growing rapidly. See also TwoFactorAuth.org for a long list of websites that support Two-Factor Authentication.

Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Gmail, Instagram, Outlook, Snapchat, Twitter, and Yahoo are among popular sites offering 2FA. “Turn It On” also documents 2FA procedures for backup and sync services such as Dropbox; financial sites including Chase, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America; cloud computing resources such as Amazon Web Services; communication services such as Skype and Office 365; domain services such as GoDaddy; Web hosting services; government Web sites; Paypal and other payment services; eBay, Etsy, and other shopping sites; and many social media sites.

Another option for two-factor authentication is a gadget called a security key. We are all relying on web-based services for an increasing number of functions. As the number of user accounts you have grows, so does your exposure to identity theft and fraud. Two-factor authentication is the best way to protect yourself. It’s worth the small extra effort.

Have a Great week from all of us at ZI

When and How to Reset Your Browser

When struggling with a web browser that’s not doing what it should, sometimes it’s better to just reset it to the “factory defaults” that are known to work. However, that may come at a price. But let’s talk about the problem first, and then move on to solutions.

Symptoms of a borked browser may include browser lock-ups, Web pages that do not display properly (or flash on screen and then disappear), very slow rendering of Web pages, and add-ons that do not function as expected. You may also have unwanted toolbars or notice that your search function has been hijacked. If you are being redirected to a page that you didn’t request, that’s almost certainly a sign of a malware issue affecting your browser. Generally, problems start shortly after a new add-on or software package is installed.

When do you need to reset your browser? Most often, a reset is needed because add-on software is causing a problem. Sometimes add-ons don’t play well together, and finding the subtle conflicts between add-ons is a detective job for professionals. Some add-ons are Trojans concealing malware, and it’s not always obvious how they get there.

If you like to tinker with browser settings you may have caused the problem yourself. For example, the wrong font size combined with a text-magnification factor of 150% can produce very weird results. It can be very time-consuming to review and adjust a lot of settings; a reset may be easiest way out.

If you’ve recently installed or uninstalled software, the Windows registry could have been damaged, causing browser oddities or malfunctions. Viruses and other types of malware can also do this sort of damage.

Dangerous Curves Ahead…

When you reset a browser, you may lose some data stored in it that’s important to you, or be forced to restore it from backup files. Most people have customized their browsers with extensions, add-ons, themes, font changes, and other setting tweaks. Many people have stored usernames and passwords in their browser’s vaults. Most folks don’t realize how convenient cached images, files, and browsing history are until these things vanish. Depending on which browser you use, some of this data will not survive a reset.

Generally, I will try searching online for a solution to a browser problem before I reset everything. I look for an authoritative source; ideally, the browser’s developer. That would be the official user or support forum provided by Microsoft (Internet Explorer), Google (Chrome), Mozilla (Firefox) or Apple (Safari).

If your problem is an unwanted toolbar, or you suspect the problem is related to recently installed software, first try removing the offending item(s) via the Control Panel (for Windows) or delete the program from the Applications folder (Mac OS X). It’s also a good idea to run a scan with to check for and remove malware. Just be cautious about advice from self-appointed experts who urge you to “try this and see if it works” unless you see that several people have done that and it did work. If I don’t find a credible solution I will reset my browser.

Hitting the RESET Button

Actually, there is no big red button, sorry. But here are brief instructions for resetting Internet Explorer, Edge, Chrome, Firefox, and Apple’s Safari browser for desktops. I’ve included lists of what each browser keeps and deletes during a reset, and provided a link to the official low-down on resetting for further details.

Internet Explorer: On IE Version 11, then click on the gear icon and select Internet Options. Click the Advanced tab and then click the Reset button at the bottom of the menu. IE will warn you, “You should only use this if your browser is in an unusable state;” just ignore that.

By default, IE’s Reset permanently erases browser, privacy, security, and pop-up settings, and any stored passwords. You have the option to “delete personal settings” which include your preferred home page and search providers, and the temporary files, browsing history, and cookies specific to your user profile. Add-ons will be disabled but not removed from IE, so you can re-enabled them if you wish.

Microsoft Edge: Microsoft Edge is the default web browser for Windows 10. If it seems to be giving you trouble such as slow performance or crashing, you can do a reset. First, click the WIndows button, then open the Settings app. Go to Apps then Apps & Features. Scroll down to find Microsoft Edge and click it once. When the “Advanced options” link appears, click it. You’ll see two options here: Repair and Reset. I recommend you try Repair first. If that doesn’t solve the problem, try Reset, which will return Edge to default settings. The downside is that you’ll lose your History, Cookies and Settings. Your Favorites (bookmarks) will not be affected.

Google Chrome claims it “gives you the option to reset your browser settings in one easy click.” But it takes several clicks and some scrolling to get to the Reset button:

• Click the Chrome menu (three vertical dots) in the upper-right corner of Chrome
• Click on Settings
• Click “Advanced” in the left sidebar
• Click “Reset and clean up”
• Click “Restore settings to their original defaults”
• Click the blue “Reset settings” button

Here is what happens when you reset Chrome, quoted from the Google Chrome Reset support page:

• Default search engine and saved search engines will be reset and to their original defaults.
• Homepage button will be hidden and the URL that you previously set will be removed.
• Default startup tabs will be cleared. The browser will show a new tab when you startup or continue where you left off if you’re on a Chromebook.
• New Tab page will be empty unless you have a version of Chrome with an extension that controls it. In that case your page may be preserved.
• Pinned tabs will be unpinned.
• Content settings will be cleared and reset to their installation defaults.
• Cookies and site data will be cleared.
• Extensions and themes will be disabled.

Saved bookmarks and passwords will not be affected by a reset. Extensions and themes can be re-enabled, you don’t have to install them again.

Mozilla Firefox’s Reset button is just a few clicks away. Click on the three-bar menu icon, then Help, then “Troubleshooting Information” and there’s the “Refresh Firefox” button in the upper-right corner. Alternatively, type “about:support” in the address bar to go straight to the Troubleshooting Information page.

A Firefox reset saves backup copies of your bookmarks, browsing history, passwords, open windows, tabs, and tab groups, cookies, Web form auto-fill information, and personal dictionary. These data are stored in a folder on your desktop labeled, “Old Firefox data.” They can be restored if desired by simply copying files from the “old” folder to the new user profile folder, overwriting the default files.

Unlike all the other browsers, Firefox deletes all extensions and themes during a reset; you’ll have to re-install those you want. Also purged are website-specific preferences, search engine preferences, download history, DOM storage, security settings, download actions, plugin settings, toolbar customization’s, user styles and social features, according to the Firefox Reset support page.

Safari: Apple’s Safari browser doesn’t really have a reset option. You’ll have to take a series of steps to remove browser history, cookies, cache, extensions, and plugins. Rather than re-invent the proverbial wheel, here’s a Lifewire article that details all the steps.

To summarize, if your web browser is not behaving, a browser reset can often cure your ills. But first, try removing any recently installed software. Next, run a malware scan. If that doesn’t fix things, check online support forums for possible fixes. As a last resort, hit the Reset button.

Have a great week from all of us at ZI

Windows 10: Did You Know…?

The Recycle Bin has been part of Windows since Windows 95. So you probably already know that when you delete a file or folder, it really doesn’t go away. Windows stashes it in the Recycle Bin, just in case it was an “oops” or you later decide you want it back. Similarly, Windows has a cache of temporary files that accumulate while your browse the Web. This enables you to quickly return to a web page without having to re-fetch all the text and images.

But both the Recycle Bin and the temp files can grow rather large over time. On a computer that’s short on hard drive space, this can be a problem. Storage Sense is a Windows 10 feature that empties your Recycle Bin and deletes temporary files automatically. To enable this handy feature, open Settings, then click on System, then click on Storage. Click the “Configure Storage Sense” link to enable the automatic cleanup options of your choosing.

Storage Sense will also show a report of how files are distributed across your hard drive. This can help you to quickly see which folders are using the most space, and identify possibilities for deleting large or unwanted files.

Dynamic Lock automatically locks your PC when a paired Bluetooth device moves out of range. To use this feature, you first need to pair your phone or another Bluetooth device that is usually on your person to the PC. Here’s how to do that:

• On your PC, go to Settings > Devices > Bluetooth & other devices.
• Turn on Bluetooth with the toggle switch. Enable Bluetooth on your phone, too.
• Click on the + sign, and in the pop-up “Add a device” window select “Bluetooth.”
• Choose your phone from the list that appears.
• Prompts will appear on both your PC and phone. Accept them to pair the two devices.

Now you’re ready to enable Dynamic Lock. Open Settings, select Accounts, then click on the Sign-in Options link in the left sidebar. Scroll down the next page to Dynamic Lock and check the box next to “Allow Windows to detect when you’re away and automatically lock the device.” That’s it! Unfortunately, there is no “Dynamic Unlock” feature as yet. You’ll need to manually unlock your PC when you return to it.

More Windows 10 Tips

Microsoft has frequently taken good ideas from the shareware world and incorporated them into Windows, much to the dismay of shareware developers. An example of this poaching of ideas is the “Night Light” feature in Windows 10; it’s a rip-off of the popular f.lux app.

The light from a PC’s screen can be hard on the eyes after sunset. The Night Light feature adjusts the display’s brightness and color to more soothing settings after dark, and restores daylight settings at sunrise or at a time you specify. To enable Night Light, type “night” in the Windows search box and select “Night Light” from the results. On the Display settings page, move Night Light’s slider control to “on.” Click on the “Night Light Settings” link to change how this feature behaves.

A host of automated troubleshooting tools are built into Windows 10. Type “troubleshoot” in the search box and select that word in the results to open a long page of troubleshooters for common and uncommon problems. Some of the most popular troubleshooters fix problems with Internet connections, network adapters, printer setups, and Windows Update.

In case you missed it, the April 2017 Creators Update (finally) included a built-in “print to PDF” option, eliminating the need for third-party PDF drivers. You can select this virtual printer from within any app that supports printing, and save the current document in PDF format.

Battery Saver mode is enabled by default in Windows 10. When your battery’s power level drops to 20%, the Battery Saver kicks in to stretch the remaining power as far as possible. It dims your display. It also prevents Universal Windows Apps from running in the background and receiving push notifications. You can tinker with Battery Saver settings by typing “battery” in the search box and selecting “Battery saver” from the results.

Have a great week from all of us at ZI

Yes, but skip the Lemon Pledge. There are no polished wood surfaces inside the desktop system unit or your laptop case. It is important to get the grunge out of your computer to prolong its life. Dirt, dust, pet hair, food crumbs and even tiny insects (yuck) can affect your computer in a negative way.

Of course, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of compressed air. To minimize the amount of gunk that gets into your computer, thereby lengthening the time you can go without cleaning, here are a few things you can do:

Get the computer off the floor where most of the gunk is. Keep it on your desktop, or on a small table at least a foot above the floor. Your computer has one or more fans inside the case which draw in air to cool the components. You don’t want it sucking in air from the dirtiest place in your home or office.

Keep pets and their hair out of the room in which your computer resides. I know, cats love to sit on computer keyboards, or on your lap as you type. But your furry companions are no friends to your computer.

Don’t smoke around your computer. Tar and particulates from cigarette smoke make a sticky, smothering sludge on a computer’s components that traps more dust. (And also on the inside of your lungs, but that’s another topic.)

Control the air quality in the computer’s room. Keep windows and doors closed. Put passive air filters in the room’s ventilation grills, but not over the computer’s air intake vents. Consider a room air filter for your computer’s room. A HEPA filter is best. Do not use an ion-generating air purifier; the electrically charged ions remove dust from the air by causing it to stick to surfaces, including your computer’s innards.

If you do all of the above you can probably go a year without opening up the computer’s case to clean inside. If you’re careless about air quality, have pets, and smoke around your computer, you may need to clean its innards every three months. But it can’t hurt to do a cleaning more often.

Always unplug everything from your computer (desktop or laptop) before opening up its case; not just the power cable but also monitors, printers, USB devices, Ethernet cables, and anything else. Eliminate any possible path for static electricity to flow into your machine.

Computing in a Vacuum

Many geek websites say that you should not vacuum dust out of a computer. Instead, they recommend blowing it out with canned compressed air (which is not air, by the way, but denser, complex gases which are more easily compressed into dense liquid form, packing more gas into a can). The rationale for this advice makes no sense whatsoever.

“Vacuuming generates static electricity that can harm electronics,” they say. Well yes, rubbing air molecules rapidly against plastic surfaces can generate static electricity. But as far as static electricity goes, it doesn’t matter if the air is moving towards a vacuum or away from a high-pressure area!

After opening the desktop’s system unit case, a soft-bristled brush to loosen clinging dust and a mini-vac are my preferred tools. In addition to any visible dust, take a closer look for dirt on the fan blades and heat sink.

I think it’s preferable to lift dust out of a computer with a vacuum than to drive it deeper into the nooks and crannies with a blast of compressed gas. But to avoid generating significant static electricity, the suction should be no more than is absolutely necessary. A household vacuum cleaner, even a handheld Dirt Devil™, is more than adequate. You can even buy USB-powered mini-vacs with a variety of useful brushes for computer cleaning.

I’ve heard warnings that a vacuum cleaner might suck electrical components right off the motherboard. That sounds unlikely, but you don’t want to get the nozzle that close to the components anyway. Use your brush, and always hold the vacuum nozzle at an angle to the surface being cleaned.

Cleaning Your Laptop

If you have a laptop, clean dust and hair out of the air vents with a Q-Tip. Using compressed air will only send the dirt INSIDE your laptop, but a low-power vacuum can be used to draw out dust and hair trapped inside the vents. I recommend using a toothpick to keep the fans from spinning, as you can damage them if they spin too fast.

If you continue to have overheating issues after cleaning the vents, you may have dirt trapped inside the laptop case. Opening up a laptop can be tricky, because so many components are packed in so tightly. Wires, ribbon cables and electrical components can be damaged if you’re not very careful. For inside the case cleaning, I recommend taking your laptop to a service center rather than doing it yourself.

Cleaning the Keyboard and Mouse

Keyboards are another matter; they tend to collect larger, heavier crumbs of food, and insects. Using a high-power vacuum cleaner on the upper surface of a keyboard won’t do the circuit board inside any harm.

Keyboards also get liquids spilled on them. If you frequent humor websites while consuming coffee or soda, you might have this problem. That sticky goo can mix with dust to form nasty sludge between the keys. isopropyl alcohol (at least 60% solution) and a Q-Tip are best for cleaning such messes.

You may have heard that keyboards are dishwasher-safe; perhaps you’ve even seen YouTube videos demonstrating this technique. I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’ve already tried other methods; you can get a shiny new keyboard for ten dollars. But apparently there’s no reason it won’t work if the keyboard is left disconnected until it dries completely. Try it if you can live without a keyboard (or use a dry spare) for at least 48 hours. Do not use any detergent, just plain water. Put the keyboard keys-down in the upper rack and whatever you do, do not use “heated dry” or the plastic may melt. Did I mention that you can buy a brand new keyboard for ten dollars?

Most mice use optical sensors these days, but if you’re still using a mouse with a rolling rubber ball, you need to open that thing up once in a while. If you’re moving the mouse, and the cursor stay still or jumps erratically, that’s a sign that gunk has accumulated on the ball or the rollers inside. Rotate the cover on the bottom of the mouse to remove it, then let the cover and ball fall into your hand. Clean the ball with a lint-free cloth and set it aside. Inside, you’ll see three rollers that are probably caked with gunk. Use your fingernail, and/or a Q-tip with a bit of isopropyl alcohol to clean the rollers. Before replacing the ball and cover, tap the mouse on a hard surface several times so that any dirt or crud inside will fall out. Clean the mouse pad when you’re done.

Consider treating yourself to an optical mouse for about $15, and you’ll never have to look at the dirty innards of a mouse again. To clean the optical sensor (the red or blue glowing “light bulb” on the mouse’s bottom), remove the battery and wipe the sensor window gently with a Q-Tip wet with isopropyl alcohol.

Have a great week from all of us at ZI