Privacy
EU cookie control
American politicians have demonstrated more than once that they don’t understand technology and now they have been joined by their brethren in the European Union. In an attempt to answer privacy concerns, the EU has passed a law that regulates the use of Internet cookies in a draconian and impractical way. TechRadar reports:
While the law [...]
Find out what Google stores about you
If you have a Google account, you can now take a peek at what kind of information Google has stored about you. Google has announced Google Dashboard:
Today, we are excited to announce the launch of Google Dashboard. Have you ever wondered what data is stored with your Google Account? The Google Dashboard offers a simple [...]
More on people search
Periodically, I write about sites for finding people (for example, at this link). Recently, Steve Bass did several pieces in his newsletter about finding people. One is called Find Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime (Almost). It relates a specific example of how he went about finding someone. He followed that with a list of some search tools [...]
Adjust your mindset for social networks
Most of us are pretty decent folk; we don’t go around trying to be malicious or looking for ways to cheat our neighbors. In our day-to-day life we encounter a fairly limited number of people and we tend to assume they are straightforward until proven otherwise. Human society as we know it would be unworkable [...]
Keeping software patched
One of the biggest security problems with a PC is keeping current with all the software patches. Ordinary home PC users simply cannot keep up with the never-ending flow of updates without help. You can use Microsoft update for Windows, Office, and other Microsoft products but what about all that other software that we all [...]
The password problem
The traditional security measure of a login name plus a password is very flawed as we are constantly reminded by incidents of stolen accounts. A big reason for the failure of this security method is human nature. People can’t remember or won’t use long, complicated passwords. At Ars Technica, John Timmer looks at the problem:
A [...]
Outstanding free security list
“Gizmo” Richards has long been a source for excellent advice on free security software. His TechSupportAlert site has a new list of the best security software of all types, almost all of it free. The only problem with the list is that it is so comprehensive that it may be a little overwhelming. For those [...]
Is Windows too unsafe for secure online transactions?
A growing number of technology professionals are saying that the Windows operating system is too unsafe for sensitive online transactions like banking. This is not just the same old tired refrain from Linux and Mac fanboys. These are respected professionals making a sober assessment of a rapidly growing problem. For example, Michael Horowitz, who writes [...]
Check your phishing IQ
How good are you at detecting a phish? Phishers have become expert at fooling people so it’s not as easy as you may think. Periodically, I mention sites where you can test your ability to detect a phish and here’s one from SonicWall.
How to tell if an Internet address is a phish
Did you ever wonder what the different parts of an Internet address or URL actually signified? Some years ago I wrote an article over at my education site that explained what each of the various pieces of an URL meant. I also mentioned how rarely used portions of a standard URL could be used to [...]
Email phishing attack spreading
Following up on yesterday’s report of stolen Hotmail passwords, Neowin reports other services have also been attacked:
Microsoft confirmed yesterday evening that the popular web email service, Hotmail, had been targeted by malicious fraudsters in what is commonly referred to as a phishing scam, tricking users into revealing their credentials at fake websites.
Neowin can today [...]