At long last, Google will now allow you to change your Gmail address! If you have an email that doesn’t quite fit you anymore, you are now allowed to change the username (front part of the email) without losing or harming anything. So for example, if your email is VeronicaLovesPattyMelts2012@gmail.com, you might be able to … Read more
I’m seeing phishing emails that look like friendly ecards, and this post is your heads-up on what to look out for. These phishes resemble the Email-Invitation scams that have been circulating for awhile now. Today, I’ll focus on this Blue Mountain eCard phishing example: This scammy email looks very similar to the real deal. But … Read more
Here’s an unexpected scenario for you to think about: While sitting quietly at home, your doorbell rings. A couple of strangers are darkening your doorstep and they claim that they’re tracking down their lost iPhone and it is pinging from inside your house. They hold up their device to show you a map with a … Read more
I receive more and more calls about Android tablets, where the user is inundated with popups, and the home screen has been made-over with new colors schemes and icons. It’s very alien and uncomfortable when this happens, and it often tracks back to some app that has changed the Default Home App. So let me … Read more
The latest phish to go around arrives in your inbox as a Microsoft Azure Alert: This email is quite convincing. The sender’s address truly is from a Microsoft.com domain, so it is likely to skirt your spam filter. It uses real Microsoft graphics and links. The language is fairly clean. There’s a lot of truthiness … Read more
A lot of advanced Windows tweaks require the use of the Group Policy Editor tool. But Microsoft doesn’t include that in Home editions of Windows (which is most store-bought PCs these days). You don’t have to spend money on a Windows Upgrade. Here’s how to add the Group Policy Editor to any Windows computer for … Read more
We have a growing problem in 2026 with Account Takeover Fraud. Account Takeover (ATO) fraud is when a bad actor logs into someone else’s online account, and changes all of the login/security information. This locks out the true owner of the account, and gives the the criminal power to do anything s/he wants with it. … Read more
I’m sorry for the clunky title, but this nasty business is hard to name. The Outlook Reappearing-Scam-Email Hack is really troublesome, and only seems to affect Microsoft-based email addresses (often ending in Outlook/Live/Hotmail.com). And that’s because the hackers are using some unique Microsoft weaknesses with this hijack. I can’t fully explain their techniques yet, but … Read more
When you first begin to use a website or internet service or software product, you often have to review and submit to some kind of agreement. A 42-page legalese document in 6-pt font appears out of nowhere, to block your way as if it were a bouncer at the club. I’m sure most of you … Read more
There are a lot of different ways to access your Facebook private messages. You can use the Facebook and Messenger apps on your phone, or the side panel of Facebook.com on your computer. But one way is being retired: www.messenger.com . Meta is doing away with that URL and website on 4/14/2026. If you’ve never … Read more