Alert: High Quality 400gsm Business Cards - Print-AAMN - Australian Advertising & Marketing Network

Today I received a spam email with the subject 'High Quality 400gsm Business Cards' from 'Australian Advertising & Marketing Network'.

 

It is unusual for Australian businesses to use spam to promote their services which I think most people will feel is a good thing. Spamming is illegal in Australia and businesses which use the approach should be avoided. If a business is prepared to break the law to gain business it isn't a business you should use. In addition prices are listed plus GST, which again I believe is against the law.

I decide to check a couple of business card suppliers I've used in the past and the prices in the email are close to double I can get a thousand business cards elsewhere.

Don't purchase from spammers. There are plenty of good businesses out there that don't break the law to obtain business. If you find spammers based in Australia sending you unwanted emails you may wish to visit the government site http://www.acma.gov.au/Citizen/Stay-protected/My-online-world/Spam/reporting-spam-i-acma.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Watch out when using a Coles petrol voucher at Shell that isn't the standard four cents per litre.

I recently went to Shell in Doncaster East with a 40 cents per litre discount voucher. When the attendant processed the payment I noticed the discount was for $2 and not the expected $20. The voucher wasn't the best looking as it wasn't printed well at the register. But what did surprise me was the discount offer wasn't automatic and needed to be put in by the operator. This is the second time I've received an incorrect discount.

Make sure you know roughly the discount you expect to receive, particularly if it isn't the standard four cents per litre discount. Since I've been affected twice (in both cases I picked up the issue) I thought others may be missing out on the full value of the discount offer.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: International Business Times promoting scam advertising - Theresa Andrews, Melissa Johnson.

In May I mentioned the Work At Home scam advertising. Today I was opened an article on International Business Times and as usual two windows pop up. A Facebook like page which is simply annoying. I accept annoying because I'm receiving a free service. There are advertising links all through the pages which again is all part of receiving something for free. However what caught my attention was the pop-up which appears in the background.

 

Yes it is the same photo of a mother and child I recognised from the previous work-at-home scams. The trouble however is the media site International Business Times is being used as a vehicle to spread scams and that could easily trick some people. In the past I've seen many people have their browser hijacked by clicking on ads even in Google, but now the scammers are getting their material promoted on media sites which is a worry.

If you see an unexpected pop-up even on a legitimate site, you now need to treat them with suspicion.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Gumtree visit statistic leads people to think more people are checking their ad than really are.

I assisted a client to advertise on Gumtree and they had received a few dozen visits to their ad. They were very pleased that people were reading their advertisement on Gumtree. I suggested to the client the number of visits may be being inflated so I decided to do some testing.

A visit on Gumtree it turns out is not necessarily someone viewing your ad. In fact people may not even see you ad, but are still included as visits.

It is very common for advertising businesses to use a technique to inflate the activity for a number of reasons. In the case of Gumtree, what is also included as a visit, is if you ad appears with a list of other ads. Anyone who visits a section of Gumtree where your ad also appears in the list of ads is considered a visit. Most people will not actually open and read your ad and I suspect many will not even notice it.

Gumtree should provide two statistics to assist advertisers. One number for where the ad appears and one number for people actually opening the ad to check out the ad. That way people will have a better idea on how their advertisement is working.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: #1 New Weight Loss Product & Which Weight Loss Product is Right for You?

Tonight I received a number of email for Weight Loss products. All these emails are faked with links .ru (Russian) domains.

You should delete these emails.

If you want to lose weight check out the site (www.WeightLossMaths.com.au) where I've shared my approach to losing weight. It costs nothing to lose weight. Requires no expensive membership fees. All you need is knowledge and determination. I shared my knowledge and all you need to bring along is your determination.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Should businesses and schools have to pick up the costs of medical certificates they require.

I remember a person going to a doctor to have a government document witnessed. The doctor then requested payment for a consultation. No medical service was provided and the government required the signature. Taxpayers then pick up the rebate.

When our children were in year 12 and weren't well they required a medical certificate. Not sure if this was in general or if it was assessment related. The bottom line however is again the taxpayer picks up the tab through the medical system.

You're not feeling well with a cold and work requires a medical certificate. There is no trust. Even though you are entitled to a number of sick days a years you still have to get a medical certificate. I remember having the flu, could hardly move (living by myself) and still had to get to the doctors because of the pressure people are put under to get a medical certificate.

Medical certificates that are really only needed because the government or companies have no trust in their students or workers. However the real cost is tens of millions of dollars (possibly hundreds of millions) being paid to doctors for services that aren't really necessary.

Perhaps it is time to review the need for medical certificates. I remember one boss who said if you weren't feeling well just take the time off. It was a good working environment and I don't recall the need to take time off.

When you're sick with a cold or fever and really don't need to go to the doctor, the last thing you need is to stress of getting to a doctor and waiting around for an extended period of time in a doctor's surgery. The lack of trust in our society is costing the society tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars a year in unnecessary taxes.

Is it time the companies and organisations who require medical certificates to pick up the tab rather than the taxpayer?

Companies would very quickly move to reduce their costs. Tens if not hundreds of millions could potentially be wiped off the cost to taxpayers almost overnight.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Supermarkets charge more to buy online

I noticed this article about supermarkets charging more to buy online.

Supermarkets charge more to buy online... Read More

A while ago I did a survey for a friend of Woolworths prices online and the cost for the same items in-store. For the products I reviewed I found the difference with the prices online were on average around 8% more. When you add 8% to the cost of your groceries plus the cost of delivery, for most people it would be more cost effective to save the money by visiting a local store.

Some people justify buying online because they can do so at work when the business is paying for their time, so they save time and get paid. However that is false economy, because the extra cost will be more out of their pay packet than if they purchased the items themselves in a store.

I do however see the service being invaluable for those who for some reason don’t have the time, or who aren’t able to visit the store. For those who simply choose to spend a little more for the convenience, then why not.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Energy cost calculator to help determine the electricity cost of your appliances.

I built the Energy Cost Calculator some time ago whilst I was reviewing the electricity cost of appliances and the payback period in terms of replacing an appliance with a lower running cost appliance. The Energy Cost Calculator proved to be very useful and assisted us in reducing our electricity usage to around half. We currently sit around 7 kWh per day. Pretty good for an household with three people.

I've now decided to set up the Energy Cost Calculator as a separate site which is www.energycostcalculator.com.au.

I hope you find the calculator as useful as I have.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Wipe Off 5 ad campaign by the TAC should go.

I just read about the Wipe Off 5 competition so I decided to check out the site. The problem is many people just don't know what the Wipe Off 5 campaign is about and it shows from the suggestions being put forward.

Suggestions like reduce the speedo so it reads 5 km/h less. Reward people who drive 5 km/h under.

All the TAC is doing is sending a confusing message to the general public. Speed limits are posted and people think the campaign is about reducing your speed to 5 km/h below the posted speed limit creating a situation where good people think they are supposed to travel 5 km/h below the speed limit causing frustration to other drivers. Add that speedometers can legally be out by up to 10 km/h below the actual speed and what is created is inconsistent behaviour.

The Wipe Off 5 is about speeding drivers. The Wipe Off 5 is a campaign promoted by the Transport Accident Commission. VicRoads I suspect looks after the speed limits on our roads and adjusts the speed limits to what is considered safe. This is just two government departments sending out mixed messages that conflict with each other and potentially causes more harm than good.

The government needs to get rid of the Wipe Off 5 campaign and replace it with a better message that reflects what they are actually trying to achieve.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: Qantas Departure Information - LIXAB3 KCA AK8 17Y

Today I've been receiving a number of malware infected emails designed to trick Qantas users. If you receive a message from Qantas with a zip attachment, there's a good chance the attachment is malware.

If you need to check departure information visit the Qantas site and check your departure information.

You should delete these emails.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers blog and site merged into Online Connections.

MyAnswers enables me to provide solutions to clients' problems cost effectively, saving time and money for clients.

For some time when I've posted notifications for solutions to the MyAnswers blog and also to the Online Connections blog. Solutions provide clients with an idea of problems others are having that have already been solved. To me it no longer made sense keeping MyAnswers as a separate site. Now all notifications regarding solutions will only be posted on the Online Connections blog.

 

The MyAnswers site has also been merged into the Online Connections site. You can find MyAnswers at www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers, or you can use the link from the Online Connections site.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: NetBankNotification - You have received a secure message

I noticed new malware sent as an attachment (SecureMessage.zip) targeting NetBank users.

The body of the email is the following:

You have received a secure message
Read your secure message by opening the attachment, SecureMessage.zip. You will be prompted to open (view) the file or save (download) it to your computer. For best results, save the file first, then open it.
If you have concerns about the validity of this message, please contact the sender directly. For questions please contact the Commonwealth Bank of Australia NetBank.
First time users - will need to register after opening the attachment.
About Email Encryption

If you receive this email you should delete it.

Currently only three of less common antivirus programs detect the malware and non are antivirus programs typically used by Australians.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: Cellarmasters $50 giftcard

We received a letter today from Everyday Rewards today with a shiny black Cellarmasters $50 giftcard. This reminded me that someone recently mentioned they'd received an offer and was totally confused, placing an order and spending more money than expected, only to later cancel the order.

To me this isn't a gift card. It is a discount. When you buy a gift card for someone and give the card to them, they can the money on whatever they want without any additional cost. That's a gift card.

By using the term giftcard Cellarmarsters is tempt you into spending at least $70 (plus delivery) for 12 bottles of wine. Whether the offer is a good offer or not is up to each person to decide for themselves.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: NAB Weekend Database Update

If you receive and email with the subject "NAB Weekend Database Update" you should delete it. It is a fake with a link that will take you to a site with the .eu domain and not an NAB site. The email I received was sent from Morocco in Africa which is a confirming indicator the email is a fake.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Message: The Age - Subscribe to The Age today for just $1.

I use a newsreader to read news items from all over the world. What surprised me recently was when I clicked on a link to read an article I was presented with a screen to subscribe to The Age. That makes sense. The Age wants people to subscribe.

However I wondered just how thorough The Age was in identify unique readers. The Age limits the number of articles you can read a month before they block you from reading additional articles and requesting that you subscribe. In theory it is possible they might be tracking you individually, and yes this can be done with some effort, but I suspected they'd take the easy path and probably use a cookie to record how many times you read an article. If you cleared the cookies I was pretty sure the subscribe message would disappear.

 

Sure enough, clearing all the historical data including cookies in the browser and the subscribe message disappeared. Alternately using a different browser also had the same effect.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Australian Businessman to Pay $95,000 for spamming New Zealanders as a result of using Image Marketing Group's email list.

Previously I’ve written about Image Marketing Group (IMG) and alerted people to their spamming. I’ve also warned people to make sure they know how their business is being marketed. IMG constantly sends out spam so how anyone would use their service I don’t know. An Australian businesses is now paying the price for using their services.

Australian Businessman to Pay $95,000 for Sending Almost a Million Spam Emails to New Zealanders... Read More

Whilst offers you receive for marketing and SEO services via the internet may be tempting, given they are already spamming you already know the ethics of these businesses. If you decide to use a business that spams you, you really deserve what you get in the end.

I’ve also found smaller web developers in Australia using suspect services for their Australian clients. Make sure if you use a web developer, or in fact any business which may outsource services which have your business name on it, that you know who you are dealing with. It is your reputation on the line and no one cares about the web developer or the company spamming from India or another country. They’ve made their money and you end up with the consequences.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Facebook Use Predicts Declines in Subjective Well-Being in Young Adults

I thought the following research was interesting. My initial feeling was the research may be simply measuring how people feel and then use Facebook more and thus the increased use of Facebook is simply an effect of how they felt. However the research does cover this to their credit.

Facebook Use Predicts Declines in Subjective Well-Being in Young Adults... Read More

If I’m correct in reading the research one interesting insight I think I read into the information is the more you socialise in person with other people the greater the effect when using Facebook. That may infer the less you are dependent on socialising with others for your own happiness the less effect using Facebook has on your happiness. To me it makes sense the more you rely on interaction with others for your happiness, when you’re using Facebook you are not really interacting person to person and thus you could expect to become less happy. I expect others will read what they wish to into the results as I do.

It is good to see services such a Facebook use being researched. I’m also sure that what people write on Facebook reveals a considerably more about them than people realise. Analysis of what people are writing over time may end up being an important tool to assist people and could lead to new areas of preventative health services.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: How to add a Start button to the taskbar in Windows 8.

The following MyAnswers solution 2378 is now available:

In this solution I provide instructions on how to add a Start button to the Windows 8 taskbar. This adds the button which takes you to the Start screen, but does not include the Start Menu. A common issue is the discomfort people have is not having a Start button on the taskbar.

Click here to obtain the solution.

Click here for related solutions.

Kelvin Eldridge
MyAnswers
(An Online Connections service.)

Google AdSense reduces default payment threshold to $100 in Australia.

A while ago I noticed Google announced the payment threshold was being adjusted and that the Australian payment threshold would be $100. When I checked Google AdSense previously the payment threshold was still $150. The latest payment from Google AdSense has been processed and now the payment threshold has been reduced to $100.

Hopefully this will assist those using Google AdSense to get a more frequent regular payment from Google.

If clients would like to generate an ongoing income stream from Google AdSense and receive advice based on a number of years of receiving revenue from Google AdSense I'm happy to provide advice and assistance.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: Call from 02 8820 8777 possible scam.

A person I know received call recently asking for another person (a relation) who lived at the house over 25 years ago. The caller requested the person's contact information but this information was not provided. When asked what it was about they said it was a personal matter. They were asked if they wanted to leave a message. The number they left was 02 8820 8777 and their name was Paula. No message was provided.

I researched the number on the internet and found two other incidents where the same number was used in a similar manner.

The number was not called as it was felt it was too suspicious and calling would potentially create an exposure.

If you receive a call out of the blue requesting a person's details, it is best you don't provide a contact number. Take the callers details. If the person isn't prepared to provide their full contact details, which can be traced via the telephone book, you should treat the call as a potential scam. Scammers are incredibly manipulative and it is easy for them to get past the defences of the average person.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.