REGION

REGION

Ribbon-cutting ceremony for First Choice Rentals

WARREN — Brett Gilespie will have a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. Tuesday for his new store, First Choice Rentals, 2075 Elm Road.

First Choice is a lease-to-own business that offers televisions, appliances, furniture and electronics. It is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

NATION

Shopping online? Protect computers from viruses

NEW YORK — Whether businesses like it or not, online shopping is increasingly prevalent at work, surveys show, and make up a growing chunk of American retailers’ sales. So experts say businesses need to protect their computers from viruses, spam and other problems associated with e-commerce.

Surveys by the National Retail Federation, CareerBuilder and Accountemps suggest anywhere from one-fifth to one-half of U.S. office workers will be browsing retail Web sites this holiday season.

The Better Business Bureau, National Cyber Security Alliance and information-technology trade group ISACA offer these tips for protecting computers:

UComputer users need to have the most recent antivirus, anti-spyware and spam filters installed.

UMake sure employees know how to verify the authenticity and safety of a retailer’s Web site. The browser’s status bar should show a closed padlock, and the beginning of the site’s address should switch from “http” to “shttp” or “https” when the site asks a shopper to provide credit-card information upon checkout.

Vindicator staff/wire reports