Jesse Mueller A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a tool for creating a secure connection between your computer and the websites you visit with it. It sounds like a sensible piece of protection for your computer. But do you need a VPN? Most security companies would respond with an empathic Yes!, but keep in mind that they’re … Read more
Update as of 2/13/2024: Readers recently brought to my attention that they couldn’t follow the steps below. After I looked into it, I can see that Meta has changed their Settings Pages, and you may not be able to disable this feature. But as it turns out, that’s OK. Because they’ve disabled the entire Chat … Read more
This post is not really a computer tip, per se, but I’ll cover it anyway. Scam electricity-saving devices are rather tangential to what I write about here, and quite a few people are asking me about them. So heads up! Here’s what I can find and say about these things: Power Saving Devices These things … Read more
The Windows operating system has this central database that it uses constantly, while your computer is running. Better know as the Windows registry, it is essential for your PC’s operation. It’s hidden away where you won’t see it, and only advanced users ever meddle with it. And yet, some helpful apps offer to clean and … Read more
Computers and other tech devices retain small amounts of electricity even when turned off and unplugged. Some of it is deliberately stored in capacitors on circuit boards. Other energy is incidentally caught up as a static charge. In any case, this minute amount of electricity is called Flea Power. It’s a Bug, Not a Feature … Read more
If you’ve ever wanted to send an email to your future self, there’s a great website for that! FutureMe You’re welcome to use this website for free, and it does exactly what it says on the tin: You write an email to your future self, and FutureMe promises to send it to you at the … Read more
Has Xfinity contacted you recently to change your password? This was probably a legitimate request, and prompted by Xfinity’s 2023 data breach. (I’ll call it the 2023 data breach, because they also had one in 2022!) It looks like cybercriminals exploited and intruded upon Xfinity’s systems in October of this year, and we’re just now … Read more
Would you like to thank your Amazon driver for what they do? Amazon has started up their driver tipping program, much like last year. Everytime someone sends a thank you to their last delivery person, Amazon will pay them an extra $5. They make it easy to do. You can: It looks like these gratuities … Read more
For some, it’s easy to spot spam in your inbox. But for others, it can be a real challenge. Spammers use a variety of tactics to make their email look tempting, believable and worthy of attention. But much like a spoiled brat or a passive-aggressive boss, we don’t want to encourage a spammer any more … Read more
I didn’t think we needed a specific term for scam phone calls, but here we are. Following in the footsteps of smishing and quishing, we also have the term vishing. Vishing is another portmanteau, created from voice + phishing. When you see or hear about vishing, they’re referring to any phishing/cybercrime carried out over the … Read more