CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - The fight against spam might get a little easier.
Facebook recently announced it is ramping up its efforts to stop spammers by creating the "Antivirus Marketplace". The service will provide a free six month license to anti virus software.
Companies like McAfee, Symantec, Microsoft and others are teaming with Facebook to offer free access to anti virus software. Not only that, Facebook is launching a security blog to provide tips and information on how to better protect your accounts.
WBTV's cyber expert, Theresa Payton, explains this good news:
Criminals go where the action is. Facebook has over 900 million active users so cybercriminals love to push their malware, spam, and other misdeeds via Facebook.
HOW THE NEW FACEBOOK FEATURES HELP:
1. 6 months free antivirus
2. Security blog with tips and information
3. Facebook and 5 other companies (McAfee, Microsoft, Sophos, Symantec, TrendMicro) will create a blacklist of the spam originators to help block out the bad guys
WEB RESOURCES
For information on these free services and more, go to the Facebook Security page here.
You will also find more Facebook news about Safety here.
Free Antivirus Tools:
Sophos (for the Mac):
McAfee
Microsoft
Symantec:
TrendMicro
WORD FOR THE WEEK: BLACKLIST or WHITELIST
It's a term used to help filter out the bad guys on the internet. When a company like Facebook or McAfee create a "blackllist" - they simply will not allow any traffic from these addresses in. When they create a "whitelist", this list only lets you talk to a short list of specific addresses known to be safe.
Copyright 2012 WBTV. All rights reserved.
