Remembering Your Password
Here are a few questions about computers I've received recently from people like you, and my answers. I have edited and restated the questions a bit, for readability. This week my mailbox contained questions about keeping track of passwords, getting rid of a browser hijacker and spam that harvests your address book.
If you have a question, send it to me at
mossberg@wsj.com, and I may select it to be answered here in Mossberg's Mailbox.
Q: In my financial and professional life, I use many password-protected sites. Some force a particular syntax on me, and I am concerned that even if I could use the same password for every situation, it is probably not safe to do so. How do I keep track of all this, without leaving a list somewhere for a hacker to find?
A: This is a widespread dilemma, and many people cope with it either by using the same few passwords for everything or by keeping a list of passwords in a computer file, or on a piece of paper. Those methods are insecure.
One solution is to use a special program that stores all your passwords in an encrypted file. This file is itself protected by a password, but if you simply memorize that one password, you can refer to all your others whenever you like. There are many such programs, and many are free for individual users, or for up to a modest number of passwords.
Two examples are Any Password, by Roman Lab (
www.romanlab.com/a pw/) and Password Agent by Moon Software (
www.moonsoftware.com). I haven't reviewed these and can't say if they are good. Still, they may be worth a try.
Another option is to buy a fingerprint reader, or a computer with such a reader built in. These devices typically come with software that will store all your passwords in an encrypted file and automatically enter any password when you simply swipe your finger over the reader.
Q: How can I get rid of SearchforFree.info, which has taken over my home page, and return to Google as my home page. I have heard that the former is a hijack. Is there an easy way to return my home page to where I want it?
A: I'm not familiar with SeachforFree.info, but it has been identified as a browser hijacker -- a spyware program that takes over a person's home page and/or chosen search engine in place of the user's own choice. The only way I know of to permanently get rid of this kind of program is to run a reputable antispyware program at all times. That should remove it and prevent it from returning. The antispyware program I recommend is Spy Sweeper from Webroot Software (
www.webroot.com), but other good antispyware programs also may do the trick. If you try one of them, and it doesn't work, try another.
Q: I receive spam email daily that displays in the "from" line the names of real people whom I use regularly in my normal outgoing email. I run an antispyware program daily, but the use of these names continues and it's kind of frightening. Does this happen to everyone?
A: It happens to a lot of people. Some spammers use malicious software, usually in the form of a virus-laden email, that harvests names from an address book and then uses them as the fake "from" address in spam. They do this so that antispam filters won't catch the spam, because most filters are set to allow messages from people in your address book or in your sent-message folder to pass through.
In your case, the malicious software or virus may have harvested your own address book, or the address book of one or more of your correspondents, which has many similar entries. Because of this tactic, some people even get spam that they appear to have sent themselves.
Your antispyware software isn't likely to touch this problem. You need a good antivirus program that scans email, and a good spam filter. Even with those, however, it will be hard or impossible to undo any damage that has been done, especially since the infection may have occurred on a friend's personal computer, not your own. The best you can do is to look for some identifying characteristic, other than the "from" line, in this troublesome email, and set your antispam filter or the rules in your email program to block messages with that characteristic, regardless of who the sender seemed to be.
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Because of the volume of e-mail I receive, I can't routinely answer individual questions by e-mail, or consult on individual problems or purchasing decisions. I read all questions I receive and select three each week to answer in the column.
记住你的密码
在我们大多数人拥有的大件电器中，再没有什么比个人电脑更令人费解、更变幻莫测的了。每个人或许都有些关于电脑的问题，而《莫博士信箱》将为您提供帮助。
本周我将回答读者有关如何记住密码、删除浏览器间谍软件和阻止垃圾邮件的问题。
问：在我的财务和职场生活中，我要用到许多受密码保护的网站。其中一些要求我按特定的语法设定密码，我很担心，即便我可以在任何情况下使用相同的密码，这样做可能也不安全。我如何能记住所有的密码，而不用在某个地方留下一张密码表，以防被黑客发现呢？
答：这是一个普遍存在的两难问题，许多人的解决之道就是要么全都使用相同的几个密码，或是把密码表存在电脑文件中，或写在纸上。这些方法都不安全。
一个办法就是使用一种特殊的程序，将所有的密码存放在一个加密文件中。这个文件也受密码保护，但只要你记住这一个密码，你就可以在任何时候查到所有的其他密码。市面上有许多这样的程序，很多都是对个人用户免费的，或对一定数量的密码是免费的。
这里提供两个程序可供参考，一个是由Roman Lab (
www.romanlab.com/a pw/)开发的Any Password，另一个是由Moon Software (
www.moonsoftware.com)开发的Password Agent。我没有检测过这些程序，无法说明它们是否好用。但它们可能值得你一试。
还有一个办法就是购买一台指纹读取器，或者一台内置此类指纹读取器的电脑。这些设备通常都附带可以将所有密码存储在加密文件中的程序，只要手指一按指纹读取器，就可以自动输入任何密码。
问：我怎样才能去除已经成为我默认主页的SearchforFree.info，并重新将Google设定为主页呢？我听说前者是一种间谍软件。有什么简单的方法可以把主页重新设置为我想要的网站？
答：我对SeachforFree.info不大熟悉，但它已经被认定是一种浏览器间谍软件──取代用户的主页或者用搜索引擎取代用户自己选择的主页。我所知道的唯一一种可以永久性删除此类软件的方法就是时时运行性能卓越的反间谍程序。这样做应该可以删除它并防止它再度入侵。我推荐的反间谍程序是Webroot Software (
www.webroot.com)的Spy Sweeper，但其他优秀的反间谍程序也可能同样奏效。先试用其中一个，没用的话，再试试别的。
问：我每天都能收到垃圾邮件，这些垃圾邮件的“发件人”一栏显示的都是我通常在正常发出的电子邮件中使用的真实姓名。我每天都运行反间谍软件，但情况照旧，这有点令人害怕。所有人都会遇到这种情况吗？
答：许多人都遇到过这种情况。一些垃圾邮件发送者利用恶意软件，通常以充满病毒的电子邮件的形式，从通讯簿中窃取姓名，然后用它们充当用垃圾邮件中假冒的“发件人”地址。他们这样做是因为，反垃圾邮件过滤器不会抓住这些垃圾邮件，因为大多数过滤器的设置是允许接收你的通讯簿里的或者你的“已发送邮件”文件夹里的人的讯息。
根据你说的这种情况，恶意软件或者病毒可能已经窃取了你的通讯簿，或者是你的一个或者多个联系人的通讯簿，这些存在许多相似的记录。由于这种手段的存在，一些人甚至会收到似乎是由他们自己发出的垃圾邮件。
你的反间谍软件不大可能解决这个问题。你需要一个能够扫描电子邮件的反病毒程序以及一个反垃圾邮件过滤器。不过，即便有了这些，要消除已经造成的损害也是不大可能的，难度非常大，尤其是在你朋友、而非你自己的个人电脑感染了病毒的情况下。你所能采取的最好的办法就是在此类恼人的电子邮件中寻找一些除了“发件人”一栏之外的可以识别的特征，然后将反垃圾邮件过滤器或者电子邮件程序中的规则设置为阻止接收具有此类特征的邮件，无论从表面上看发件人是谁。
