F-Secure Gives You Peace of Mind in Minutes

It’s always a good idea to check the security of your computer to ensure a safe online experience. F-Secure Health Check is a free online tool that helps to pinpoint security problems and gives clear advice on how to fix them. With Health Check, it only takes a moment to get peace of mind for surfing the Internet.

Mika Ståhlberg, VP, F-Secure Labs, said, “F-Secure Health Check determines the status of security solutions running on the computer. More than one million people have already used the free tool and our data shows that a third of its users either haven’t installed antivirus, firewall or antispyware software, or their security software is outdated or turned off. Out-of-date or nonexistent security software leave users wide open to malicious software and exploits.”

In addition to making sure that your firewall, antivirus, and anti-spyware are working properly and are up to date, F-Secure Health Check also checks whether the Windows operating system, third party software and Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer web browsers are up-to-date.

With more people visiting a diverse range of web sites and using their computers to watch films or listen to music, it is the heavily used web browsers, media players and plugins that are often the most vulnerable to attack. The new version of Health Check makes a thorough check of the software that is most critical to your computer’s security.

As a new feature, Health Check also verifies whether all your irreplaceable files, such as photos, music and other documents, are being safely backed up by an automatic backup solution.

Running online Health Check is quick and easy. It’s free and does not require any installation on your computer. To give your computer a Health Check, please go to healthcheck.f-secure.com

Health Check 2.0 includes the following new features:

• Windows 7 Support
• Firefox and Internet Explorer 8 Support
• Automatic backup solution detection
• Simplified user experience with three steps and a solutions page
• Optimized for netbooks
• New Java based launchpoint technology (no more Active X)

After running Health Check, you can also download a free trial version of F-Secure Internet Security 2010 to protect the irreplaceable content on your PC.

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com

F-Secure Releases Its 2009 Holiday Cyber-Watch List for Cyber Monday

The Internet security experts at F-Secure today revealed a list of products most likely to be used by search engine scammers to prey on unsuspecting holiday shoppers. The list compiles projected holiday 2009 gift favorites, including iPods and merchandise related to Michael Jackson’s blockbuster This Is It film. The hottest gifts will be the most searched for online, and thus become prime targets for cybercriminals.

Search engine scams, i.e. nefarious links that masquerade as normal search results, are particularly dangerous this holiday season as online shopping is predicted to be relatively strong compared to traditional retail. This, coupled with the fact that more and more grandparents, typically a less tech-savvy demographic, are shopping online could result in a search engine scam blitzkrieg around this holiday season’s most popular gifts.

The products most likely to be targeted by cybercriminals include:

The popular video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Merchandise related to the Michael Jackson film This Is It
The Flip UltraHD Camcorder
Apple’s iPod
Nintendo’s Wii
Playskool’s Chuck My Talking Truck

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com

Is E-mail Dead?

The shift from e-mail to instant communication via social networking websites is gathering pace. This trend also has important security implications. Cybercriminals have already responded to the changing patterns of communication by focusing more activity on popular social networks.

Instead of logging in and out of the Internet to send e-mail, many people are now constantly online with their computers and smartphones. Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter have grown rapidly as people are making use of the constant stream of fast communications that these sites enable. According to statistics from Nielsen Co., the number of users on social networking and other community sites increased by 31% in the period August 2008 – August 2009, while e-mail use increased by 21%. It may be too early to pronounce that e-mail is dead but the figures do highlight a growing trend.

F-Secure Security Advisor Sean Sullivan said, “E-mail account addresses can be faked and people are used to getting mails from ‘unknown’ persons, so they are skeptical of links sent via e-mail. It is often more difficult to recognize when a member of their social network has been hacked. People have not yet learned to be skeptical of the links forwarded by their ‘friends’ in social networks, which can lead to infection from malware or to websites promoting rogue products.”

Cybercriminals see opportunities to make money from hacking Facebook and other social networking accounts, where the high level of personal trust within communities of friends provides them an ideal cover for scams and for spreading malware.

A personal message or a suggestion to visit a website received from a family member or a friend does not usually set the security alarm bells ringing. However, the Browsing Protection offered by F-Secure Internet Security does. Instead of clicking directly on a link sent by a friend, it is always a good idea to search for the link first and see whether F-Secure’s advanced Browsing Protection considers the web page to be safe. A symbol next to the search results shows if the link should be treated with caution.

Sullivan added, “Instant communications are fun, personal and useful, but everyone should be aware of the new security risks involved. Links sent from hacked accounts and requests for financial help from so-called friends are bound to increase as social networking sites become ever more popular.”

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com

Never Forget Another Backup

F-Secure Online Backup makes sure that you will never lose an important file again. With the newest release, the product supports Windows 7 and Mac Snow Leopard, has an improved user interface for mini laptops and is available in more languages.

SAN JOSE, Calif., November 5, 2009 - Losing important files is every computer user’s nightmare. Yet despite this, few people remember to regularly backup their data. A recent survey by F-Secure conducted in eight countries* revealed that almost 40% of computer users have lost irreplaceable content, such as photos or work documents, but only 56% stored or backed up their content. The survey also found that only 5% of people back up their files online, despite the risks involved with relying on physical media like external hard drives, DVDs and USB sticks.

F-Secure Online Backup, which provides automatic and unlimited data storage space, takes away the fear of hardware failure and property damage. Files are stored in secure data centers, ensuring that important files will never be lost again - even if your computer breaks down or your laptop is lost or stolen. The data is encrypted during the transfer to guarantee complete confidentiality.

F-Secure Online Backup also gives peace of mind from self-inflicted problems. In the event you accidentally delete an important file from your computer, it is possible to retrieve it from the backup within 30 days. An easy-to-use web portal gives access to your backed-up pictures, documents and other digital content over the Internet. You can also view your photos or play music and videos F-Secure Online Backup's built-in media player.

Antti Reijonen, VP Consumer Business and Marketing for F-Secure said, “F-Secure Online Backup automates the task of backing up your files, and eliminates the hassle of burning CDs or setting up external storage devices, which has kept people from backing up. We introduced this product earlier this year and have received positive feedback from our customers, confirming our belief that, with so much important content, such as photos, now in digital format, there is a real need to keep it safe for the future.”

The updated version of F-Secure Online Backup is now available and includes support for Windows 7 and Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard), as well as added language support for Spanish, Slovenian and Brazilian Portuguese. Existing F-Secure Online Backup customers will be automatically updated to the latest version in November. In the future, these updates will continue to take place automatically, ensuring that existing customers always have the latest version.

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com

F-Secure and the Makers of “Star Wreck” Join Forces on Fictional Online TV Series

F-Secure Corporation and Wreckamovie, the producers of “Star Wreck - In the Pirkinning,” today announced that they are working together to produce a fictional TV series about global cybercrime that will be distributed for free on the Internet. The made-for-Internet TV series F-Secure and the Wreckamovie community are collaborating on is called “Griffin.” The series tells the story of Griffin Sharp, a good guy with a complex past in the world of cybercrime. It will initially have six episodes, each taking place in a different country. “Griffin” is being developed by a web community of enthusiasts on the Wreckamovie platform. The community is creating the stories, the script, visuals and will also take part in the actual filming.

Timo Vuorensola, the producer of “Griffin,” said, “Our culture is becoming more and more participatory as seen in the evolution of the web over the last few years. With ‘Star Wreck’ we invited the community to participate in the creation of the movie and we got a tremendous response. With ‘Griffin’ we are taking this even further and working very closely with the Wreckamovie community from day one.”

F-Secure is supporting the project by giving its insight into the world of the fight against cybercrime.

Mikko Hypponen, Chief Research Officer at F-Secure, said,“All the stories in ‘Griffin’ are going to be based on real things that have happened online. We want to show people what to look out for when they're out there on the web. And if we get it right, this will be both exciting and entertaining. So stay tuned.”

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com

F-Secure Makes IT Security Easier for Business

F-Secure Corporation today announced the availability of the new F-Secure Business Suite designed to make life easier when it comes to IT security for business. With the new security suite, companies are able to focus on their core business instead of worrying about IT security or spending time on complicated choices over security products.

The F-Secure Business Suite combines all the essential components for protecting business networks against the entire array of Internet threats, including viruses, spyware and unauthorized intrusion attempts. It is designed for companies with internal IT expertise and replaces F-Secure’s Small Business, Corporate and Enterprise Suites.

Maria Nordgren, VP Corporate Business at F-Secure, said, “We have responded to the IT security needs of businesses by creating a complete security suite that is simple to manage and has a minimal impact on system performance. This means both small and large businesses can really focus on what they do best while maintaining an uncompromised level of security for their operations.”

The F-Secure Business Suite also features the most advanced technology available, delivering security that is faster and more effective than ever before. Scanning is faster, the memory footprint is smaller and the system impact is lower. Usage, updating and purchasing are also designed to be as simple as possible, even when faced with the complex requirements of large organizations.

The suite’s security applications can be centrally installed, configured and updated from a single location. The administrator can also easily define and distribute security policies and keep track of the network by generating extensive reports on its security status.

The F-Secure Business Suite provides comprehensive, centrally managed protection for company laptops, desktops, Windows and Citrix servers, gateways, e-mail and web traffic. The Suite includes the following products:

F-Secure Policy Manager
F-Secure Client Security
F-Secure Anti-Virus for Workstations
F-Secure Anti-Virus for Windows Servers
F-Secure Anti-Virus for Citrix Servers
F-Secure Anti-Virus for Microsoft Exchange
F- Secure Spam Control for Microsoft Exchange
F-Secure Internet Gatekeeper for Linux

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com

F-Secure Discovers that Loss of Valuable Digital Content Is Common

Summer photos and videos are guaranteed to bring back magic holiday memories, but just how safely are people storing their precious pictures and other digital content?

According to a recent survey conducted by F-Secure in the United States and seven other countries*, many people have gone through the painful experience of losing irreplaceable content such as family photos, music collections or crucial work documents. In the US, 34% of respondents said that they have lost irreplaceable digital content. Yet, while everyone fears losing their important files, in practice many people still don’t remember to make regular backups. F-Secure’s survey revealed that only 53% of US respondents said that they have stored or backed up their digital photos.

The most popular photo storage location remains the computer hard drive, with 34% of US respondents relying on this method. DVDs and CDs are also relatively popular storage media in the US (28%), while USB devices are less popular for storing photos among US respondents (7%). Sixteen percent of US survey respondents use the memory cards in their cameras.

Antti Reijonen, F-Secure Vice President for Consumer Business & Marketing, said, “Our international survey shows that close to 40% of computer users have lost irreplaceable content. With so many important aspects of our personal and working lives now stored in digital form, we believe that backing up those files is more important than ever. F-Secure Online Backup makes it easy to be safe rather than sorry.”

F-Secure Online Backup takes away the worry of losing valuable files. It works automatically in the background whenever you are connected to the Internet, securely backing up all your pictures, music, documents and other digital content. There is no limit on the amount of data you can backup from the hard disk of your computer. During backup, your personal files are copied from your computer over the Internet into highly secure data centers. You can restore the content to the same computer or a different computer, and a web portal allows you to view, play and download your backed up content from any PC or Mac with an Internet connection.

To Purchase F-Secure Products Visit http://www.viruslogic.com