Dedicated Servers

Since 2009, EUITSols has grown from website design, website maintainence, setting up a forum, setting up a blog to customized web applications, hosting and domain registration etc.  We are now in the process of offering 'Dedicated Servers' with fixed IP addresses to those customers who have specific bandwidth and load requirements.  We can set up the server, manage it, provide remote access and take regular backups as par your requirements.

EUITSols are now providing Website hosting and domain registration service

Another era in the world of website design and development.  EUITSols are now providing Web hosting and domain registration service.  For Irish Domains (.IE), we have a tie up with IEDR to register smoothly and without unnecessary hassles.  For competitive rates, check us out at http://www.euitsols.com/

Susan Bluechild

Website: http://www.susanbluechild.com/
Susan Bluechild has recently commissioned us to redesign her website after having disappointing results with a Flash site(being too slow) earlier (www.wix.com/susanbluechild/susanbluechild - soon to be removed) and a customized Joomla template currently at http://www.susanbluechild.com/  where the player will not display the full track name and wasn't working properly.  We hope to be coming up with a new site, that she and her audience will appreciate, in vew that it will raise her confidence in free lance web developers like us. 

An important lesson here for web developers to be learnt here: Please listen and understand to what the client wants, and then expand on their requirements.

Microsoft related scams.- Part 2

How to recognize scams

New scams seem to appear every day. We try to keep up with them in our Security Tips & Talk blog. To see the latest scams, browse through our fraud section. In addition, you can learn to recognize a scam by familiarizing yourself with some of the telltale signs.
Scams can contain the following:

·         Alarmist messages and threats of account closures.

·         Promises of money for little or no effort.

·         Deals that sound too good to be true.

·         Requests to donate to a charitable organization after a disaster that has been in the news.

·         Bad grammar and misspellings

How to report a scam

You can use Microsoft tools to report a suspected scam.

·         Internet Explorer. While you are on a suspicious site, click the gear icon and then point to Safety. Then click Report Unsafe Website and use the web page that is displayed to report the website.

·         Hotmail. If you receive a suspicious email message that asks for personal information, click the check box next to the message in your Hotmail inbox. Click Mark as and then point to Phishing scam.

·         Microsoft Office Outlook. Attach the suspicious email message to a new email message and forward it to reportphishing@antiphishing.org. To learn how to attach an email message to an email message, see Attach a file or other item to an email message.

You can also download the Microsoft Junk E-mail Reporting Add-in for Microsoft Office Outlook.

What to do if you think you have been a victim of a scam

If you suspect that you've responded to a phishing scam with personal or financial information, take these steps to minimize any damage and protect your identity.

·         Change the passwords or PINs on all your online accounts that you think might be compromised.

·         Place a fraud alert on your credit reports. Check with your bank or financial advisor if you're not sure how to do this.

·         Contact the bank or the online merchant directly. Do not follow the link in the fraudulent email message.

·         If you know of any accounts that were accessed or opened fraudulently, close those accounts.

·         Routinely review your bank and credit card statements monthly for unexplained charges or inquiries that you didn't initiate.

Microsoft related scams.- Part 1.

After a long break, I have decided to write again.  Recently, I got a call from a client of mine who had received a call from 'Microsoft Tech support' claiming to need to fix his computer.  He ofcourse was smart and said that he needed to contact his IT consultant, get back and hung up.  So, I decided to split the possible Microsoft related scams and present them here.  The following has been taken from Microsoft's website:

Microsoft does not make unsolicited phone calls to help you fix your computer

In this scam cybercriminals call you and claim to be from Microsoft Tech Support. They offer to help solve your computer problems. Once the crooks have gained your trust, they attempt to steal from you and damage your computer with malicious software including viruses and spyware.
Although law enforcement can trace phone numbers, perpetrators often use pay phones, disposable cellular phones, or stolen cellular phone numbers. It's better to avoid being conned rather than try to repair the damage afterwards.
Treat all unsolicited phone calls with skepticism. Do not provide any personal information.
If you receive an unsolicited call from someone claiming to be from Microsoft Tech Support, hang up. Microsoft does not make these kinds of calls.

You have not won the "Microsoft Lottery"

Microsoft customers are often targets of a scam that uses email messages to falsely promise money. Victims receive messages claiming "You have won the Microsoft Lottery!" There is no Microsoft Lottery. Delete the message.
If you have lost money to this scam, report it. You can also send the police report to Microsoft and we will use it to help law enforcement catch the criminals who send out these e-mail messages.
To help protect yourself from these e-mail hoaxes, you can use the same general guidance that you use to protect yourself from phishing scams.

Microsoft does not request credit card information to validate your copy of Windows

We require that your copy of Windows is legitimate before you can obtain programs from the Microsoft Download Center or receive software updates from Microsoft Update. Our online process that performs this validation is called the Genuine Advantage Program. At no time during the validation process do we request your credit card information.
In fact, we do not collect information that can be used to identify you such as your name, email address, or other personal details.
To learn more, read the Genuine Microsoft software program privacy statement.
To learn more about the program in general, see Genuine Windows: frequently asked questions.

Microsoft does not send unsolicited communication about security updates

When we release information about a security software update or a security incident, we send email messages only to subscribers of our security communications program.
Unfortunately, cybercriminals have exploited this program by sending fake security communications that appear to be from Microsoft. Some messages lure recipients to websites to download spyware or other malicious software. Others include a file attachment that contains a virus. Delete the message. Do not open the attachment.

Legitimate security communications from Microsoft

• Legitimate communications do not include software updates as attachments. We never attach software updates to our security communications. Rather, we refer customers to our website for complete information about the software update or security incident.
• Legitimate communications are also on ourwebsites. If we provide any information about a security update, you can also find that information on our websites.

Dublin Therapy

John Kelly was a former colleague of mine with whom I had worked in the CRM team at Microsoft Business Solutions in Dublin.  He left MS to start his own business as a Neuromuscular Therapist and hence started Dublin Therapy.  I have the honour to redesign and develop his website http://www.dublintherapy.com/  We are about to go live over the Christmas period, and fingers crossed Letshost is less painful then Register365 when it comes in terms of Database handling.  As always, comments, feedbacks are more than welcome! This weekend's update will be the 1st stage.  A 2nd stage to follow soon in January with images and more content.

Paypal Premier/Business account

I knew for long that if you wanted to sell goods via Paypal i.e. those who want to add 'Pay through Paypal' button to their websites and they receive regular payments from their services or products then you MUST have a business account. I vaguely knew this was due to a cap on the transaction amount or else you can get banned. So today a client of mine was insisting that her 'Premier account' should be enough to conduct e-commerce business. Recently I had done some work for another website where the client had setup a business Paypal account, so I personally wanted to know what was the rules behind Premier and Business accounts.
Here is what I got from an Ebay guide (http://reviews.ebay.com/PayPal-Premier-Versus-Business-Account_W0QQugidZ10000000003441164) :
Business Accounts and Premier Accounts both offer the same basic features.

The only distinction between the two is:

•Business Accounts allow members to conduct business under a company or group name
•Premier Accounts allow members to use their individual name
•The Multi-User (Secondary Users feature is available only to Business Accounts)
PayPal Premier accounts should be created by any individual who may anticipate surpassing the monthly limitations placed by PayPal on Personal accounts. Personal accounts that accept credit or debit card payments are assessed a transaction fee. See our "fee schedule" by clicking the "Fees" link at the bottom of any PayPal page for more information. Personal accounts have a limit on the number of credit or debit card funded payments received per year. To view your Personal account limit, log in to your PayPal account and click the View Limits link.

PayPal Business accounts should be created by formal businesses which are either Sole Proprietor, Corporation or Organizations that maintain a federally issued Tax ID Number and wish to provide only their business name, address and telephone number to their customers.

Again, the distinction between the two account types is whether or not you appear to your customers as a valid business or an individual.