Thinking of starting a business now or later?

Of course you will want a catchy, meaningful and easy to remember business name.

After you have chosen a business name, you should reserve a “.com”, domain name.

I have done this on numerous occasions.

First, give some thought to your business name and try not to limit the scope of your potential business activities if applicable.

Next do a search on the internet to see who, if anyone is using your name and what your competition is.

Next, check with your Secretary of State’s office, or other state agency, to see if the name is being used.

Concurrently have some idea of what type of business organization you will use. Corporation, LLC, etc. You may need to consult a tax/business expert for advice.

As soon as you have a handle on your business name, reserve one or more domain names. If you are reserving a .com you may want to also reserve a .net and other
suffixes to keep a potential competitor from usurping your internet name.

If you have chosen a web hosting provider, you can search for a domain name and purchase it there, although it is often provided with the initial cost of hosting,

If you have not chosen a hosting provider or early on you just want to search for a domain name, here are some suggestions:

InstantDomainSearch.com

“See Domain Name Search Results As You Type

Just start typing! If the domain name you are looking for is taken, you can click WHOIS to find out who registered it or the URL to visit the website.

We apply a $0.99 coupon for .com domain names when you buy at Go Daddy. The offer is valid for only one .com purchase, and does not include the ICANN fee of $0.18 per
domain name per year. That’s a sweet deal!

Love the site? Spread the word on Twitter and Facebook!

All domain searches are encrypted over https, and searches do not leave our servers. Your search results are not recorded. Pressing Enter or Return will take you
directly to Go Daddy or the registrar you’ve chosen where you can buy your domain name. Good luck!”

Search

DomainsBot.com

“The domain name search engine!

Available domain suggestions + expired, expiring and for sale domain name search + whois lookup. Domain + Twitter + Facebook identity suggesitons.”

Search

PCnames.com

“Check Domains, Instantly!

Based on your query, PCNames.com instantly checks whether .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz, .us, .mobi and .name domain names are available. The domain search results
will appear with 2-second delay for your convenience.

Your domain search results are not shared with 3-rd parties. However, we keep history of your recent domain searches and favorite domain picks so you can easily follow
up on all the important search results.”

Search

From Entrepreneur.

“Do’s and Don’ts of Securing a Domain Name

Consider these six tips from small-business owners and experts before deciding on a website name.”
Read more

If you read our article yesterday, January 18, 2015, you know that no router is safe from hacking.

Read more

So, what can you do to improve your odds of not being hacked?

From We Live Security July 22, 2014.

“Wi-Fi security – steps you can take now

A We Live Security video guide offers basic tips on how to secure home routers - and offers a good starting point for ensuring a Wi-Fi network isn’t vulnerable to snoopers and other unwanted ‘guests’.

Harley says, “Firstly, ensure your firmware is kept updated.” Firmware is the code and data which allows routers to function – similar in some ways to a computer operating system, but with the crucial difference that updates (to protect against bugs) often have to be installed manually.”

“Check your settings again

Changing passwords is an essential first step – but it’s worth checking back that your router’s settings haven’t changed, as this can be a problem with some models.

Harley says that users should always, “Change default router administrator usernames and passwords, and change the default SSID.” The SSID is the name of the network – which is broadcast to anywhere within Wi-Fi range. Leaving it as a default can broadcast information that is useful to an attacker – such as the model of router you are using, or whether you are using one supplied by your ISP. When choosing a new network name, avoid any personally identifying information such as your name or house number.

It’s worth considering making yours a “hidden network” – disabling the broadcast of the SSID’s name. That way you’re less visible to attackers – and to connect new devices, simply type in your network’s name on the gadget.

Harley warns that these precautions can be wasted if your router’s software is updated – which can occasionally revert settings to the default. “After any update, check these settings have not reverted,” he says.

WEP is not your friend

If your family or business has had the same router for  a long time, you may be using WEP – an outdated form of encryption that can be cracked easily, even by unskilled hackers. Most new routers will use the more secure WPA2 standard – but if your router has been around for a while, it’s possible family members may have chosen WEP to connect older devices such as Nintendo’s first DS handheld. “Don’t use WEP encryption, if anyone still is,” Harley says. “If the router doesn’t allow anything else, time to change it. WPA2 is reasonably secure.”

Even if you’ve had trouble connecting mobile devices to a network, leaving it “open” is always a bad idea. Harley says, “ If you’re not using encryption at all, fix it.”

Know who is connecting to your network

Harley says that controlling which devices can connect to a network offers another layer of reassurance. “MAC filtering reduces the risk from intruder machines using your network,” he says.

Any PC or mobile computing device has a unique identifying number known as a MAC address. If you access your router’s settings, you can select which devices can and cannot connect to your network – meaning for instance, a neighbor couldn’t log in, or a teenage visitor could not access unsuitable sites via a smartphone.

Add the MAC addresses of all authorized devices in the home – iPhones, tablets, laptops etc. – to the router’s authorized list. No other device will then be allowed on the network. You can find the MAC addresses of mobile phones and other portable devices under their network settings, though this will vary for each device. Check with the manufacturer.”
Read more

From Reuters.

The FBI claims to have evidence that the Cyber attack upon Sony computer systems came from North Korean sources.

“Sony hires Mandiant to help clean up after cyber attack”

“Pictures Entertainment has hired FireEye Inc’s Mandiant forensics unit to clean up a massive cyber attack that knocked out the studio’s computer network nearly a week ago, three people with knowledge of the matter said on Sunday.

Computer systems at the Sony Corp unit went down last Monday after displaying a red skull and the phrase “Hacked By #GOP,” which reportedly stands for Guardians of Peace, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Technicians are making headway in repairing damage caused by the attack and expect to have the email systems back online Monday, said one of the people, who were not authorized to publicly discuss efforts to deal with the attack.”

“Mandiant is an incident response firm that helps victims of breaches identify the extent of attacks, clean up networks and restore systems.

The technology news website Re/code reported on Friday that Sony was investigating to determine whether hackers working on behalf of North Korea might be responsible for the attack, possibly in retribution for the studio’s backing of the film “The Interview,” which is to be released on Dec. 25 in the United States and Canada.

The movie is a comedy about a CIA attempt to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.”

Read more:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/30/sony-cybersecurity-mandiant-idUSL2N0TK0R920141130

From Fireeye:

From ars technica December 15, 2014.

“More Than 100,000 WordPress Websites Reportedly Infected by Russian Malware”

“Over 100,000 WordPress sites have been infected by a Russian virus called SoakSoak, which loads an attack code onto webpages created through the uber-popular blogging platform, according to a report by Ars Technica.

Google has already flagged roughly 11,000 malicious domains — though it is likely that many more than that have been compromised.

According to Gizmodo, more than 70 million total sites use WordPress as a content-management system — from personal blogs to Time.com. However, only self-hosted sites that use WordPress have been affected by the malware — meaning personal blogs are okay.

The aim of the hackers and the consequences of the virus — whether to steal data or otherwise — remain unclear.

Related: 5 Lessons Leaders Can Learn From the Sony Hacking Scandal

The malware infiltrated WordPress through a vulnerability in a slideshow plug-in called Slider Revolution. While Slider Revolution has since fixed the bug with updates — it knew about the vulnerability earlier this fall, according to Gizmodo — the older version of the plug-in is still bundled with many WordPress themes.

“The biggest issue is that the RevSlider plugin is a premium plugin,” wrote Sucuri, an online security firm that was first to identify the infection. “It’s not something everyone can easily upgrade and that in itself becomes a disaster for website owners.””

Read more:

http://arstechnica.com/security/2014/12/some-100000-or-more-wordpress-sites-infected-by-mysterious-malware/

Sucuri free website scanner:

http://sitecheck.sucuri.net/

“Technical support is like insurance. You should rarely need it but when you do, you really need it.”…L Wells

I have used Hostmonster for web hosting for years and other services prior to that.

Three of my Hostmonster accounts were to be consolidated into one or two accounts and some of the numerous domains were to
be discontinued.

Recently I attempted to contact tech support at Hostmonster. I have rarely had to do so. What had been a great experience
a few years ago turned into a nightmare.

I tried both calling and chatting. Both wait times were extremely lengthy.

When I finally engaged a chat, the person was not listening to what I wanted, made assumptions and eventually gave me
incorrect information.

I spoke to someone in sales (the only responsive dept.) who did listen and was apologetic.

Without boring you with details I spent some more money and followed the chatter’s advice.

This turned out to be a bad decision.

Further attempts to get tech support were futile.

I did the usual internet search to find out the experience of others.

I found the following.

“As time went on performance for my websites became worse and worse. It turns out the *actual* culprit of all this was
drastically oversold (overloaded) servers.”

“After receiving several complaints from family who gave up on trying to view some photos in my photo gallery and numerous
complaints from customers (for the software I sell here) I tried contacting HostMonster support again. The chat log from
this contact can be viewed below.”

“Since HostMonster clearly did not value me as a customer and offered nothing to resolve the situation I decided to change
web hosting companies. I am now a proud customer of WebHostingHub.com. The performance on all of my websites has
dramatically improved. They’re snappy even! Hopefully I haven’t lost all of my friends & family as readers. If you stopped
checking in because my sites were slow, you have my apologies. I’m welcoming you back with open arms — better performance
and all. If you stumbled across this post because you’re having similar issues with HostMonster’s performance–what are you
waiting for? Cancel your account with HostMonster for a pro-rated refund and make the switch to WebHostingHub.com. Life
here is grand”

Read more:

http://www.schiffner.com/11-excruciating-months-with-hostmonster-have-come-to-an-end/

One of my favorite expressions is “talk is cheap unless you are talking to an attorney.”

Therefore, I tried a test with Webhostinghub tech support chat and someone responded well and within 30 seconds.

And this was as a non customer.

I then signed up for a two year service of hosting with them. The introductory price was $ 89.64 for two years.

Since signing up, I have received the best support ever with each call or chat responded to with 30 seconds.

This article will be updated with more information as time progresses.
In fairness to Hostmonster and ironically, I got my best response when I cancelled all three accounts.

Too little too late.

After using the internet for years, I had some down time after surgery and delved into the nuts and bolts of websites, search engines, blogs and social networking. I experimented with my new found knowledge and gained a proficiency in SEO, Search Engine Optimization.

I have used this knowledge in my own sites as well as others to get consistent first page results on search engines.

SEO, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, site ranking, branding, brand recognition are all terms familiar to many in large companies involved in marketing and especially internet marketing. What does this mean in English or to the small business person. It is all about getting customers or potential customers to your website, telephone # and your physical location if applicable. It is also about the public recognizing your brand name, products and reputation. Remember years ago when photocopies were referred to as Xerox copies? That is brand recognition.

Think social networking is just about sharing photos and gossip with your friends? Think again. One of the fastest growing age segments using social networking and the internet is the over 50 group. More people each day are looking for products on the internet and social networking is one way to spread your message and gain internet traffic.

You can spend thousands of dollars with companies that tout expertise in search engine ranking. Most of them are doing the same thing that has been done for over a decade. The question is, how much money can you spend or should you spend to “outdo the Jones.” There is also another axiom that applies. One of the definitions of insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting different results.

We follow time tested rules created by the search engines but we also employ some techniques that most companies are not using. You can already envision the value in that. I.E., not practicing insanity. We also use the time tested approach of hard work. Our approach may best be described by another name recognition example from years ago that sticks in my memory. John Houseman for Smith Barney.

“We make money the old-fashioned way. We EARN it”
Whether you run a small, medium or large business, we can help.

If you are a small business owner, we can help you compete with larger ones at minimal costs if you are willing to follow our recommendations.

L. Wells