Cyber Attacks and Your Money

During the last month, there were cyber attacks to our banks from foreign countries. These attacks denied many people access to their banking by overloading the system. I check my online banking daily, so I was one of many who could not get access my bank's website to view my account, or make any transactions.

These attacks have caused many people to become concerned about their money. I don't know if these concerns are real or not. Most large companies have very sophisticated computers with extensive backup systems.

However I do see some experts predicting that there might be some problems in the future, either from viruses or other computer problems beyond my understand.

So is our money safe in our banks? And if not, what should we do?

I trust that our financial institutions are doing everything possible to protect our computers and financial records. I believe we have some of the most intelligent and well-trained people in the world protecting our computers and guarding against potential problems.

Having said that, I do believe that there are certain things everyone should do to protect their money and any situation that may arise to come between us and our money.

Here are the basics.

1. Keep an adequate supply of food and the other necessities of life in your home to ride out a short-term crisis.

2. Keep a little extra cash in your home, in small and large bills. If you can't access the money in your bank, you want to have cash available to buy items where business is still being conducted.

You need a mix of both large and small bills. You do not to have to give someone a $10 bill for a bottle of water when they don't have any change.

3. Keep a paper copy of your money in banks or other saving vehicles. Make sure that it is current. If you have an online bank, be sure to print your bank statement monthly and keep it in a safe place in your home.

Finally, be sure and protect your personal computer. Have a good virus program installed on your computer, and back up your information to a travel disk (USB flash drive) and also use an online backup service to store your information.

No one can predict what may or may not happen. However we can do our part to protect our personal information.

Remember, if you get hungry, you cannot count on the government delivering a fresh loaf of bread to your doorstep. If everyone prepares and works together, we will all do better in handling any cyber attacks and potential emergencies together.

About the Author: Nikki Willhite, mother of 3 and an interior design graduate, has been writing and publishing articles on the topic of frugal living for over a decade. Visit her at http://www.frugalhappyfamilies.com/ - where you will find hundreds of frugal living tips and articles. Frugal Happy Families- more than just money!

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How to Save Money on SSL Certificates

Any web site that exchanges personal information with the site users, such as an e-Commerce site, places themselves and their site users at risk of being hacked unless they use the Secured Socket Layer (SSL). SSL enables a secured, encrypted, connection between your web server and the user's browser.

SSL also requires an SSL certificate, which is purchased from Certificate Authorities who are in the business of verifying the identities of web site operators.

Given the environment we are dealing with, an internet populated by hackers and infested with malware and exploits, the costs of SSL certificates are well worth it. However, if you operate many sites that require SSL the costs can addup. Since Certificate Authorities charge per year, the costs will only accumulate over time.

How can you save money on SSL Certificates?

Consider the level of site verification that you need

When you purchase an SSL certificate you can choose between basic "Domain Validated" Certificates and Enhanced Verification (EV) certificates.

Both types are "signed" by a third party Certificate Authority. This means that a site visitor's browser receives information required to check with the third party Certificate Authority and verify that the message was sent from the actual site owner.

However, the Domain Validated certificates only verify that the site is owned by the sender of the certificate. They do not consider the other factors such as the integrity and reliability of the site owner. The Certificate Authorities go through a much more rigorous verification process to ensure that the site visitor is not dealing with a dangerous situation.

Now, you know that you are reliable and on the level so you might want to save some money and go with the cheaper basic certificates. However, there are hacking techniques that can compromise Domain Name Servers to obtain fake Domain Validated certificates and redirect users to another site.

In addition, consider that that the point of these certificates is to assure the site user. Consider the value the EV certificates have in building customer trust and confidence. How do you put a price tag on that?

If your site is important to your business and accessible through the public internet you should go for the SSL certificates that offer the highest level of verification.

Comparison Shopping

One of the benefits of the internet is that it is very easy to comparison shop. If you do, you will find that the price of SSL certificates vary widely. The oldest and largest Certificate Authority, VeriSign, is relatively expensive.

Many other Certificate Authorities offer comparable certificates at lower prices. Verisign SSL certificates start at over $200 while there are comparable certificates available for under $50.

Consider Long Term Discount Plans

Certificate Authorities will discount the annual cost if you sign-up for multiple years. If you are a "going concern" this option could save you some money.

Do you have sub domains?

If your web sites need SSL for sub domains you can save money with a Wildcard SSL. One wildcard SSL can be purchased that will cover a site and all its sub sites.

For example, you can apply one wildcard SSL that covers peanutbutter.com, crunchy.peanutbutter.com and smooth.peanutbutter.com.

Do you have multiple domains and host names?

Unified Communications (UC) SSL certificate can be applied to multiple domains and host names. A single UC SSL certificate can be used for a primary domain and up to 99 alternate names. For example, Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft Live servers operators find they can save a lot of money with UC SSL Certificates.

Isn't free the best price?

You may notice that there are free SSL Certificates available. These are tempting because they offer the same secured, encrypted communication provided by other Certificates.

What's the catch? There is one of two possibilities.

Either it is being offered for a limited trial period or it is an "unsigned SSL Certificate".

You can always go with a trial offer without harm, but you need to be looking at your long term solution.

However, beware of the unsigned SSL Certificate. If used in the wrong situation they can be penny wise and very pound foolish.

Unsigned SSL Certificates do not do the third party verification. They still leave the site visitor open to some scams where hackers trick users into thinking they are connected to one site and they are actually communicating with another

Unsigned SSL Certificates, like Domain Verified Certificates are best deployed on internal, intranet sites. They are great for test labs and sites inside your corporate firewall, but if you are dealing with the public on the web the risks are too great.

Carefully consider your needs, then compare SSL certificates offered by the Certificate Authorities for one that is most appropriate for your site. Whenever appropriate use UC and Wildcard certificates.

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