If you are adept enough to install a dual boot setup with Linux, you certainly know how to remove trial and ad offerings that most new PCs ship with. No 'deptitude required. The Linux MINT installer told me it detected a Windows 7 installation and asked one question - whether to preserve the other OS or kill it - and created the dual boot installation for me when I said "preserve it". If I had not resized the slider, Win7 would have had half the disk, and Mint the other half. In my previous Linux experiences, most of the distributions assassinated the existing OS without asking permission. This refinement makes Mint a good distribution for anyone who wants to keep an existing Windows setup because they have some Windows-only software. Yes, removing the bundled "crapware" is easy. But, how would you remove the LENOVO ad that LENOVO inserted into the middle of the installation procedure? Without borking the install? It was a pointy-clicky minimal intervention required kind of installation, which is not true of all Linux distros. Mint is worth posting about in areas where novices hang out . Yes, I can get Libre Office, the GIMP, and all the rest for Windows by downloading and installing them ... the point is that I didn't have to. They "came with" the OS, as usual. Unless I need to do something most users don't, such as video editing, I had not only a working OS, but a system that could do real work with no further effort. Getting more software for Linux is usually just opening the software installer and clicking "Install" in what you want. I'm not sure what you've accomplished is an improvement and not just a change. Read the threads here about browser hijacking and viruses and malware and bad links and google for zero day exploits in Windows and IE. It's definitely an improvement, and perhaps knowing there is a easy to install Linux version out there may help someone get into a safer computing environment. Or update the OS on an old machine to get a couple more years out of it? Or get the whole office on a single OS without spending oodles of money? ========== NOTE: I'm a long-time Linux fan. The last Windows OS I installed as the primary OS on a personal machine was Windows 95, although various jobs have had Windows on the office computers. I have Windows only because some software I have to run can't work under WINE.

My Paypal breach experience: In early August I got both an email and phone call notice a of security breach on my credit card (so they cancelled the card & issued me a new number). Shortly thereafter I got an email notice of a security breach on my Paypal account and asking me to change my password, which I did. I had my Paypal account set up up to be auto-paid by my credit card. Then I got another notice of a security breach on my Paypal account so I just called in and closed the Paypal account. Then I got notice in the mail that ICG America had attackers who had accessed their payment processing system from January 2 to August 2, 2013. ICG America learned of the breach on August 8, 2013. That was the notice that started to put everything together for me. In mid July I had ordered my dad an Amazing Club 6 month gift package. Amazing Club is part of the ICG America family. I don't know how hackers operate, but they know how to make life miserable for many. So, you may want to think of all the places you have used your Paypal account recently or see if something has had a security breach. I don't want to bad mouth Amazing Club. My 82 year old Dad (and my Mom) loved the gift packages that arrived each month. Hackers are the bad guys. Hackers just have a way of infiltrating our lives in ways we'll never know. I'm trying to be more careful with my online browsing & shopping, but it will be an ongoing battle. It made me much more aware and careful with my online shopping habits, password strength, changing passwords, etc.

I use Linux but I don't use it for security, I just like it. So I haven't given security much thought. As I understand it, Linux is relatively secure right out of the box. I did attempt to "harden" my server a little, but only because it was exposed to incoming unsolicited packets. (At a minimum, port 80 had to be open to incoming traffic) You're not running a server though, right? And you're probably behind a modem/router with built-in hardware firewall? Personally, at least with my browsing (and software installing) habits, I feel relatively secure running any Linux distro. If I do anything to mitigate risks, it's little things like: I keep my machine updated. I use a sufficiently strong random root password. I don't have ports open that I don't need/want open. I only install software from the repository unless I trust the source. Even though I figure I can get by clicking most links/etc. that I maybe couldn't get by with in Windows... I still don't click them. Hopefully someone else can help you more.

Hi all, Checking in after the weekend. Wanted to give you a quick link to the FAQ for those who may have missed it. https://bit.ly/2S2Gxm8 Important to note that not all accounts have been sent an email, but there is certainly no harm in updating your password regardless. It's a good practice to change passwords regularly and to use different passwords for different sites. For a small number of people (as at least one person noted above) their password was reset proactively because our system was able to detect that it was a weaker password. It is a good idea to check in your account settings and make sure your email is still current. If at some point you do want to reset your password, you will need to have access to the email that is registered to the account to do that. (Also, unless you are registered as a pro, there is no phone number associated with your account, so there couldn't be any connection between this incident and spam phone calls.) Emily