After reading, I simply copy and paste the message. I do not have the time to make corrections nor I am interested in doing so.
-----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Mujtaba Merchant Sent: Friday, April 20, 2012 8:45 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [AI] EXPLAINED: ERROR MESSAGES Hello Sanjay, Appreciate you sharing the knowledge. This is just a feedback on your email. You need to concentrate on the formatting. There are too many spaces in the sentences and breaks in the mail. Makes reading really annoying specially when using the line read function with the screen reader. Please take this positively and forgive any misunderstanding if implied. Mujtaba Merchant Bangalore, India -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of sanjay Sent: Friday, April 20, 2012 7:45 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [AI] EXPLAINED: ERROR MESSAGES Do confusing error messages stop you dead in your tracks? We explain what they mean, and how to deal with them Computer error messages are designed to get your attention. But it isn't always easy to know whether it's safe to proceed, if you should wait, or stop what you're doing altogether - even after you've read them. So where do all these errors come from? They tend to originate from a few key sources: Windows operating system - Windows runs the day-to-day management of your computer (including its hardware and software). Little wonder perhaps that it's the source of most of your computer's errors and alerts. Software applications - Everything from your photo-editing programs to your word processor may also flag up their own warnings, usually when they need updating or can't open a file. Internet errors - The internet, specifically your web browser and its plug-ins, is another common source of error messages. This normally occurs when something is blocked, such as a pop-up advert, or when something needs updating. Security software - Security software is the other likely candidate for on-screen alerts - you will definitely need to pay careful attention to these. It could be a message reminding you to update your protection, or telling you that your anti-malware program, or firewall,has intercepted something that may be harmful. Rogue error messages - In some rarer cases, the error messages you are seeing may not be errors at all, but cleverly disguised scams that are attempting to scare you into parting withyour money to buy bogus security software (see p33). TRAFFIC LIGHT SYSTEM USED BELOW The Computing Helpdesk has rated common errors: Red - Stop and take notice, you need to actAmber - Read the message carefully, then proceed Green - A benign alert, OK to continue. SECURITY ERRORS MALWARE ALERT: Threat detected (Red light) It's easy to panic when you see malware alerts. Don't. Providing you have an anti-malware program installed (and it is up to date), the chances are the message is just letting you know that the software has found something suspicious and has either quarantined or removed it. Before you click on anything in the message, however, make doubly sure that the message is genuinely from a security product that's installed on your computer. Recently, a lot of scammers have started using fake security alerts to trick people into parting with their money and personal information (seelater for more on how to spot these). Assuming the alert is genuine, follow any instructions to remove the malware, and then run a full scan of your system to see if the software picks up anything else. You may also wish to perform a second scan of your computer using a free online malware scanner.The Computing Helpdesk recommends the Microsoft scanner (onecare.live.com). We also recommend the free anti-malware program Microsoft Security Essentials. FIREWALL WARNING: Program is attempting to access the internet ( Red light) Your firewall acts as a barrier between your computer blocking unauthorised traffic to, or from, your computer. All firewalls act differently, but most flag up a warning if they encounter incoming or outgoing communication they don't recognise. This message will probably appear in your Notification Area (at the bottom of your screen); the message should provide you with information about the program or network address that is attemptingto communicate, along with options to block or allow. Read these messages carefully. If you don't recognise the message we recommend copying it and pasting itinto a search engine. You may find that you see a number of these messages after you install a new firewall but they will become less frequent over time. SECURITY UPDATE: Your security software is out of date (amber light) In the majority of cases, your security software should be configured to automatically check for, and install, new updates daily. So it may be that you only ever see these types of message when you first switch on your computer.They may go away of theirown accord once Windows has fully started and your security software has had a chance to obtain the latest updates. In some cases, however, it may be necessary to take some action. You may be prompted to upgrade to a new version of your anti-malware (Microsoft Security Essentials, for example). However, you need tomake sure they're not fake. See the box below for more information on these. SECURITY ALERT: There are multiple security problems with your computer (Red light) In Windows Vista, this Notification Area balloon warning - accompanied byan icon of a red shield with a cross through it - usually means that your computerisn't being protected properly. Those using Windows XP will see a similar red shield warning with the words 'Your computer might be at risk'. In both cases, it's possible to click the message to open Windows Security Center to see what the problem might be. Windows doesn't come with any anti-virus protection built in, so you may find that you need to install some. For details of managing similar errors in Windows 7, see below. ACTION CENTER ALERT: Notification area message with a flag and a red cross Windows 7 manages security and other warnings slightly differently to previous versions, with something called the Action Center. If there's something Windows needs to tell you about, then it will put a white Action Centerflag in your Notification Area. When there's something urgent that needs attention, the flag will be accompanied by a red circle with a cross in it. Click on the flag for a summary of the problems your computer wants you to be aware of. You should deal with critical issues, such as the absence of appropriate malware protection, straight away. WINDOWS ERRORS ISSUE: Your screen darkens and you see a User Account Control warning (amber light) Microsoft introduced User Account Control (UAC)in Windows Vista and itstill exists in Windows 7. When one of these messages pops up, your screen will appear to freeze and a warning message appears onscreen. While it may seem alarming, UAC adds an important layerof protection for your PC,by preventing unauthorised access to critical areas. You may see a UAC prompt when you install new software or attempt to change system settings, for example. In these cases it is safe to click Yes or Continue as prompted. ALERT: A message about Windows updates appears in the Notification Area ( amber light) By default, Automatic Updates is switched on. This ensures that Windows' vulnerabilities are addressed as soon as Microsoft identifies them. However, you may see an alert of some kind in your Notification Area (bottom, right of your screen). In Windows XP, for example, you may see a yellow shield icon with an exclamation mark. This means Windows has found new updates to install. Similarly in Windows 7 and Vista, you may see ablue square with an orange halo around it. In both cases, Windows will eventually install the updates. To speed this up you can click the icon and install the updates. You may need to restart your computer, and may see a message in the Notification Area, click Yes or Restart Now. WARNING: Low virtual memory (amber light) When you're working on lots of programs and files at the same time, your computer may run out of physical memory. It will then start using something called the virtual memory or paging file. If you start to run out of this, you may see a low virtual memory warning; this means you need to make the paging file bigger. To do this in Windows 7 and Vista, go to Start, right-click Computer and select Properties. In the windowthat opens, click Advanced System Settings. Under Performance, click Settings. Choose the Advanced tab and click Change under Virtual Memory. Remove the tick from the 'Automatically manage' tickbox, put a tick next to Custom size and input increased amounts for both Initial size and Maximum size, clicking OK three times to exit. ERROR MESSAGE: You see a 'Program not responding' message (amber light) Programs and applets can appear to stop working.Click the close button (the red cross in the top corner of the program window) and you may be met by a Windows error message with the words, 'The program is not responding' (or similar). Often the program may just need a little time to sort itself out so, in Windows XP, click Cancel and, in Windows 7 and Vista, click the Wait for the program to respond option. If the program fails tocome back to life after afew moments, then clickthe Close button again. This time select End Now or Close the Program. Windows 7 sometimes prompts you to Check for a solutionand restart the program. ERRORS: General Windows, program and driver errors (red light) Windows will happily present you with warnings and prompts from politely informing you that you have unused icons on your Desktop to more worrying error alerts that often display error codes - this may look like '0x80070241', for example. There could be a number of reasons behind the warning, from faulty hardware to a corrupt driver or program compatibility issue. As a general strategy, start by running an internet searchfor the error, typing in the code exactly as it is written in the message. This should point you towards relevant technical help pages as well as posts from forum users who have experienced the same problem and who may have potentially discovered a solution for it. ERROR: 'The blue screen of death' (red light) Known affectionately as 'the blue screen of death' this type of error occurs when Windows stops working and your Desktop is replaced by a blue screen. Blue screen crashes can happen for a number of reasons, including faulty memory, overheating or driver issues. Sometimes all that's needed is a restart but if you keep getting blue screen errors, then it may be a sign that there's something wrong. In and amongst all the information on the screen you should be able to see a stop error code - it will look something like '0x0000001e'. Typing this into an internet search engine, such as Google, should provide you with some clues as to the root causeof the problem. If you have installed new hardware recently, try uninstalling it. Step by step - DEALING WITH UAC 1. Recognise UAC alerts If, after clicking on something, your screen goes dark and presents you with a small message window asking you whether you want to continue, it is almost certainly User Account Control. It should say 'User Account Control'. It's usuallyfine to click Continue or Yes when prompted. 2. Turn off UAC alerts In Windows Vista, go to Start > Control Panel > User Accounts and Family Safety > User Accounts and click Turn User Account on and off. Click Continue, removethe tick in the box and click OK. We reallydon't recommend turning UAC off, however. 3. Manage UAC in WIndows 7 Windows 7 users get more control over UAC alerts. Go to Start > Control Panel > System and Security and click on Change User Account Control settings. Use the slider to select a level. We recommend one of the middle two settings and strongly advise against the 'never notify' option. INTERNET ERRORS Browser alert: Web forgery (amber light) If a website greets you with a warning message 'This site has been reported unsafe' (Internet Explorer) or'Reported Web Forgery' (Firefox) it's likely that you have inadvertently landed on a phishing website and your browser's phishing filter has blocked its content. Phishing sites are fake websites that often looklike banking sites or other recognised institutions. They are designed by scammers to extract money and personal information from you. Luckily, most browsers have phishing filters built in these days. To double-check your phishing filter is switched on go to Tools > Options (in Firefox) and select the Security tab. Make sure there's a tick next to 'Block reported web forgeries'. In Internet Explorer, go to Safety > SmartScreen Filter and select Turn On SmartScreen Filter. If this option is not available from the menu, it means the filter is already switched on. Browser warning: Update required (amber light) Those using Internet Explorer (IE) as their chosen browser are unlikely to see this message. All updates for IE are handled via Windows Updates and, assuming you have Automatic Updates switched on, you shouldn't have to manually update your browser. Other browsers, including Firefox and Google Chrome, will occasionally need updating to stay secure. By default, your browser should be set to download new updates as they are available. Firefox, for example, will check for and retrieve the latest updates in the background. Next time you start the browser it will present you with an alert saying that the new version needs to be installed. Follow the prompts. Browser alert: Javascript errors (green light) While surfing the web, your browser may come across mistakes and incompatibilities within the coding of the pages you visit, and you may seean error message on-screen. In most cases, this will manifest as a somewhat subtle 'Done, but with errors on the page' alert on the bottom left edge of your browser window, which you can safely ignore. Browser alert: Pop-up blocked (green light) Pop-ups are small windows that appear while you surf the web. Most are adverts but some can contain malicious links or unsuitable material.By default most browsers these days come with built-in pop-up blockers that are activated by default. See opposite for information on how to check whether your browser's pop-up blocker is switched on and how to allow pop-ups for specific sites. Your browser will display an alert informing you that it has blocked a pop-up - usually along the top edge of the web page. Most of the time you can just ignore these messages. Web page error: Plug-in required (amber light) Most browsers use plug-ins (or add-ons) in order to add some kind of functionality.The most common plug-in is Adobe's Flash Player, which allows you to view video content embedded in many web pages. If you don't have the correct plug-in installed, this will generate an error message on-screen. In the case of Flash, you can follow the on-screen links to download the plug-in but don't install plug-ins from sources you don't know. Some companies use Flash to track your online behaviour. HOW TO BLOCK POP-UPS INTERNET EXPLORER Go to Tools > Pop-up blocker andselect Turn on Pop-up blocker. Click Yes. If the option isn't available, pop-up blocking is active. To allow pop-ups from a specific site, go to Tools > Pop-up blocker > Pop-up blocker settings. Type the address of the site in the box and click Add > Close. FIREFOX Go to Tools > Options and click the Content tab. Make sure there's a tick next to 'Block popup windows'. Click on the Exceptions button next to the Block popup option and type the address of a website that you wish to allow pop- ups for. Click Allow > Close > OK to finish. GOOGLE CHROME Click the spanner icon, then choose Options and select the Under the Bonnet tab. Click the Content Settings button and highlight the Pop-ups category from the left-hand list. Make sure there's a tick next to 'Do not allow any site to show pop-ups (recommended)'. FAKE ERRORS & WARNINGS Always keen to exploit our fears, it's perhaps no surprise that scammers have turned their hands towards creating fake warning messages and security alerts. Often these try to extract money and personal information from us. Many of them can look extremely authentic, with convincing Windows dialogue box-style designs and OK/Cancel buttons. Most pop-up windows of this type should be blocked by either your web browser's pop-up blocker (see left) or by your existing anti-malware program. So if you're experiencing something of this kind, then it could be that your computer has already been compromised by some kind of spyware. Not only should you never be coaxed into parting with any money for programs that are advertised in such pop ups, but clicking anywherein a bogus alert pop-up could also risk malware infection. Don't even click on the No/Cancel option or the red close button in the top right of the window as these might be fake buttons. The best thing to do if you're not sure is right-click on the taskbar and select Task Manager. Choose the pop-ups from the list in the Application window and select End Task. This should close them safely. Once you've done this, run a complete malware scan with your anti-virus software and preferably a secondary scan with an online malware scanner (see above). SPOTTING A FAKE So, how do you tell if an error message is a fake? With security alerts, always look for the name of your malware program or firewall somewhere in the message - if you can't see a name that you recognise, it could well be bogus. Look for slightly odd colour schemes, spelling mistakes and strangely-worded phrases. You could also try typing the message word for word into Google to see if anyone else has encountered it and flagged it up as fake. Similarly, don't fall for cold-callers claiming to be Microsoft engineers. These guide you to view supposed 'error messages' and ask for cash in order to fix them. Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
