Regular features from February 2004 98th Issue

The Digital Doctor - So who installed that then?

I have briefly touched on this subject in an earlier article but its such a growing problem that I thought it deserved more coverage. Have you ever noticed your computer getting a bit slower or strange things appearing on your desktop or in your browser? Wondering if the rugrats have been at your machine again and what form of punishment you should administer? Well you just may have been the victim of spyware, adware or malware. Every time you connect to that big global network we call the internet you're opening up your computer to countless opportunists who are trying to make a quick buck. Most of them are quite ethical but there are a number of Machiavellian little mothers that will use your computer as a marketing tool of their own.

In general, spyware is any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge. On the internet it is usually in the form of a program that is installed on a computer to secretly gather personal information that is then relayed back to whoever controls it. This information can be anything from credit card numbers to surfing habits and favourite websites. Some forms of surveillance spyware can also determine your computers hardware, software and key strokes, although this is usually only used by corporations, private detectives, law enforcement, intelligence agencies or paranoid spouses.

The flavour of spyware you are most likely to encounter is the common cookie, this simple text file placed on your machine by websites you visit can gather information about your internet habits and distribute it to interested parties who in turn will bombard you with spam (junk email). While most cookies are harmless and can be ignored there are a few insidious little nasties that you really wouldn't want there. Spyware often also comes bundled with other 'free' programs you can download. Some that spring to mind instantly are peer to peer programs such as Kazaa and Limewire, those little time and date managers that have become inexplicably popular recently, and add-ons to Explorer such as Hotbar. While the program appears to be doing what you want, it is secretly using your internet connection and bandwidth to transmit data. So the question 'is there such a thing as free software?" must be raised.

Adware is any software application in which advertising banners are displayed while the program is running. The authors of these applications include additional code that delivers the ads, which can be viewed through pop-up windows or through a bar that appears on a computer screen. Advertising spyware logs information about the user, possibly including passwords, email addresses, web browsing history, online buying habits, the computer's hardware and software configuration, the name, age, sex, etc of the user. While some forms of adware are not as detrimental as most forms of spyware I still find it pretty damn annoying when these intrusive little things impose themselves upon you. Examples of adware that I have seen recently are Hotbar which is an extension to your browser that is a major pain in the nether regions to remove and Gator / Bonzi Buddy which serve no purpose whatsoever other than turn you from a serene, refined computer user into a raging beast poised to terminate the next thing that moves. I have also seen advertising displayed on some email clients such as Incredimail.

Thirdly and probably the most dangerous of these virtual intruders is malware. The formal definition of malware is "malicious software" although I tend to call it something far worse that can't be printed here! Viruses, worms and Trojans make up the majority of examples of malware but there is also "unwanted code" and hijackers. A hijacker will usually change your homepage to redirect to an alternative website - usually one you wouldn't want the rugrats to see. While these are usually quite simple to rectify I have come across ones that have needed a little more specialist attention … and a large polo mallet!

Paranoid yet? Well don't be, help is at hand and it comes in the form of two splendid little programs called Spy-bot Search & Destroy and Ad-aware. These are both free downloads and when installed will scan your machine for all the nasties mentioned above and present them to you for immediate elimination. They will NOT clean viruses, worms or Trojans though, for this you need up to date anti-virus software such as Norton, McAfee or AVG. You must remember to download the latest updates for each program as new spyware and adware is constantly emerging and may not be detected by older updates. The scanner will remove all the cookies it deems as spyware, clean up your registry and blitz any program that shouldn't really be there. Spy-bot S&D can be downloaded from www.safer-networking.org and Ad-aware from Lavasoft www.lavasoftusa.com

Once the associated spyware has been removed you should still be able to use your 'free' date calendars, email clients or peer to peer programs as normal. If you are a heavy internet freak (like myself) you should update and run the scanners every couple of weeks. Either one is as good although Ad-aware is far simpler, with less options and easier to use whereas Spy-bot can also clean history and other parts of the system. Personally I have them both and along with my anti-virus and firewall maintain a pretty tip-top system. If you need your spyware blasted and your system cleansed or have any computer or internet issues you can contact the Doc on 01-1911742 email mjy@digitalmetrix.net Previous articles from the Digital Doctor can found on www.digitalmetrix.net

Back to Basics

When you're sitting by the ocean on a warm sunny morning having an American/British breakfast of fried eggs bacon sausage fresh fruit toast tea/coffee marmalade / jam (probably free newspaper thrown in) and the bill in total comes to 50 Baht, it is easy to forget what its like back home in February.

You could sit with a vest, a shirt, a jacket a pullover and an overcoat and heavy boots in a café and pay 600 baht to a non smiling waitress for the same meal. And it's unlikely you'd get a broad smile even with a 100 baht tip.
All I'm saying is that if you've lived in Hua Hin for a few years it's easy to loose perspective and get annoyed by something as mundane as, when walking in town, the constant pimping for taxis by the locals.
It is just as easy for the ex pat investor to loose perspective on the benefits of offshore investing. So I thought it worth taking a look at the benefits of being an ex-pat investor in comparison to investing if you lived back home.
Tax is the first major benefit of being an offshore investor. No taxes are applied to your investment It is free from Capital gains tax, corporation tax inheritance tax and personal income tax. There are some inescapable taxes like for instance dividend taxes on North American funds. Consequently offshore funds tend to avoid these and invest in capital North American funds whose profits are not liable to any kind of tax.
Many investors have said mistakenly to me that as they are ex pats, their investments back home are tax free. Half true; they may be free from personal income tax but they cannot escape tax on the gains on the underlying assets of their fund. Some countries call this corporation tax. Over the long term this will make a considerable difference to your personal wealth. Another tax benefit I love is that no government civil servant lays down rules on the maximum I can invest tax free. If I have millions then Offshore, it's all tax free.
The next benefit is confidentiality. An offshore investment in most jurisdictions is totally confidential. A little care in setting up your investment will ensure this remains so.
It is impossible for any creditor, alien tax authority or divorce lawyer to access information on your personal circumstances. However, if you are a terrorist, a gun runner or drug dealer confidentiality is impossible for you. There are so many checks and balances since 09/11 no one that I know would touch you with a barge poll. Mainly because if they were caught handling your dirty money they would go to jail too.
However if you are just plain rich the system works for you.
Consumer protection is your next big advantage. In some jurisdictions you can get up to 100% investment protection but most guarantee around 90% of your fund. In other words if the financial institution handling your money goes bust, under jurisdiction law 90-100% of the value of your investment is safe.
I mentioned last month the benefits of Swiss investing with a free trust. I make no apologies for bringing up this great benefit again. If you die prematurely, your chosen beneficiaries inherit your estate without fuss. Probate is not required thus eliminating expensive lawyer's fees.
You should never put your offshore investment in a will. All you need do is nominate beneficiaries, whom you can change at any time. On your death they will inherit your estate automatically in the same confidential manner that you left it.
If you put all this in a will expect the taxman to come knocking for a big slice. Not just inheritance taxes but all the taxes you have avoided during your lifetime. When the tax lawyers have finally got a settlement for your loved ones there may be just enough left to buy a farang breakfast : in Hua Hin

For further information on this article or any area of offshore investing please contact
JerryMcMenamin at jerry@swissinvestcenter.net

Dog Rescue News

Dog Rescue Open House For Children's Day
Each year Thailand celebrates Children's Day where kids are spoilt by the older family members with treats or a day out. Children's day this year saw the Hua Hin Dog Rescue center open it's doors to about 40 children from the Tessabahn Khao Pitak School.
Verity one of the Dog Rescue volunteers regularly spotted children peeking through the gates at the center, so she and husband Thep made arrangements for the visit with the school authorities.
Refreshments were offered to the young visitors, treats were fed to the dogs and the puppies found a lot of new friends.
The children who surprised the Hua Hin Dog Rescue staff with their maturity learned a lot about how to care for pet dogs.
Please note the rescue center have opened a charity shop with all kinds of second hand items, including a good selection of reading material, with profits going to aid sick dogs in their care. The shop is in the Shopping Mall.

Wildlife Friends

The Wildlife Friends of Thailand is an organization dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of domesticated and abused wild animals and to the promotion of animal welfare and wildlife conservation in Thailand. At their Wildlife Rescue Center located in Kao Look Chang over one hundred previously domesticated wild animals live in a safe sanctuary in a setting as close to nature as possible.
The centre currently houses a variety of species including 5 species of gibbon, 5 species of macaque (monkeys), dusky langurs (leaf monkeys), Malayan sun bears, civets, lorises, an otter, a tiger and a crocodile and various other exotic animals.
Most of the animals are victims of the pet trade and have been abandoned by their owners when they became too big and aggressive. These animals would have been taken from the wild as babies, usually after their mother or even whole family has been killed. Others have previously been exploited and abused for the tourist trade, for example as photo animals. Others have been rescued from unsuitable living conditions at temples, zoos and other rescue centers.
All of the animals have come from terrible living conditions, usually crammed into very small cages or held on short chains. Many animals have been isolated from others of their own kind for all of their captive lives and arrive with severe behavioural problems.
At the centre the animals are rehabilitated as far as possible, and sociable species are allowed to live in groups as they would in the wild. As far as possible animals are not kept behind bars; gibbons are housed on islands, bears have an open-air enclosure and the loris live in open tree enclosures. The "Jungle Island" where a group of gibbons live "semi-wild" in the trees is the largest natural gibbon enclosure in South-east Asia.

SOME OF THE ANIMAL STORIES:
Mieuw
Mieuw the Bengal tiger arrived at the center on the brink of death. Kept as an "attraction" at a gas station, Mieuw was fed only chicken scraps and as a result suffered from severe malnutrition. He was also suffering from multiple infections when he arrived and couldn't move or even eat. After months of intensive care Mieuw started to make a recovery and regain some of his strength. He has now grown into a beautiful young adult and although he still has problems with his movement and nervous system his progress has been remarkable.
Joy
Joy is a young white-handed gibbon, rescued from the floating market where he was being used as a photo prop for tourists. When he arrived Joy was very underweight and hyperactive, as he had been given amphetamines by his previous owner to keep him awake so he could be paraded around bars and restaurants at night. Joy was successfully introduced to other young gibbons and now lives happily on the "Juvenile Island" with his 6 playmates and has a great time living freely in the trees, as a gibbon should.Poppy and Peanuts
Poppy and Peanuts the young Malayan sun bears were rescued from an elephant trekking centre on Koh Samui. Here they were being kept chained to a platform so that tourists could pet them. Both arrived with severe medical problems due to malnutrition and lack of exercise. Now they are both doing well and enjoying life in their spacious enclosure with other bears.
Although not a zoo visitors are welcome to visit the wildlife rescue center and the nearby Elephant Refuge and Educational center that is also run by the Wildlife Friends of Thailand. Access to the center is free of charge, however please be aware that the center runs completely on donations without help from any authorities.

Wildlife rescue center
Kao Lookchang
16/1 Moo 6, Tambon Thamairuak
Amphoe Thayang
76130 Petchaburi
Website: www.wfft.org
E-mail: info@wfft.org

Rotary Round-Up - Another busy month for Hua Hin’s Rotary Club

A visit to the Tessabahn School of Hua Hin to administer polio vaccinations to schoolchildren.

During the visit to the school the Rotarians were taken around the music room to view some of the instruments purchased with their help.

Rotary International holds many charitable events throughout the year and works hard to ease hardship for the world’s less fortunate and to improve the quality of their lives.

The Rotary holds meetings each Thursday at the Hua Hin Grand Hotel on Petchkasem Road.

Overseas Rotarians are very welcome to come along and meet their Thai counterparts.

Wet inside and out - sums it up!

Something you thought you’d never see, Paul and Mos with a baby!

Bernd and Yuwanda Fischer celebrate their wedding at Majestic Creek Hotel

Perrin Junior attempts to outsing Perrin Senior at the Dusit Resort and Polo Club’s New Year Party

P.P. Panya Porhnortong expresses good wishes to the bride and groom from Hua Hin’s Rotary members

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