An Etymology & History Lesson Hacking is nothing new. In the 1970’s, we had hackers that were experts at gaming and abusing our telephone systems. They were able to avoid long-distance charges when placing calls, and those free calls may had led to them being called freaks. But soon after, those phone freaks were simply … Read more
Update for 2024: This doesn’t surprise me. With the US ban on Kaspersky Antivirus, the Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool has also been removed and made unavailable. You could use a VPN to chase down this tool, but it’s easier to just use a different program. Here’s another freebie that can do a one-time virus scan … Read more
The internet is a hotbed for crime, Facebook especially so. It’s simply too big to police. But since we can’t give up using the internet or Facebook, our other options are to prepare, learn and adapt. I encourage you to maintain a rampant skepticism as you use the web. Come with me and consider the … Read more
Here’s a scam that you should know about, but not because it’s particularly dangerous. It’s just weird. But once you know the details about brushing scams, they won’t creep you out, and you can quickly move on from them. Surprise‽ When an unexpected item arrives at your doorstep, it may be part of a brushing … Read more
A couple of years ago, I blogged about Fake Flash Drives, and now I have to write a refresh article: You also need to watch out for Fake Hard Drives and Fake Solid State Drives. Please make sure you don’t buy these things! Good & Bad Examples First, some examples of legitimate, reliable storage drives: … Read more
Stinger is a quick scan tool for your PC that can detect and remove a specific set of viruses and trojans. If you have reason to think you’re infected, you can download Stinger for free and use it anytime. It won’t conflict with your full-time antivirus, and it won’t try to sell you anything. There … Read more
For anyone involved in SNAP or receiving EBT funds, please be aware of the following scam: This is a text message that did NOT come from the government or any legitimate entity. It is the beginning of a scheme to steal your EBT funds. If you receive this text, do NOT call the number. Do … Read more
I’ve seen plenty of Paypal-related scams, but this one is the slickest I’ve encountered to date. Pay attention and don’t be fooled if The Hybrid Paypal Scam shows up on your doorstep: The Scam Arrives You’ll see this scam arrive either in your inbox as an email, or in your Paypal account as a transaction … Read more
The recent compromise of the Seesaw Learning website and app has a lot of people asking me: What is credential stuffing? It’s a good question to know the answer to. Once you get it, you will also know how to keep your online accounts safer. How Credential Stuffing Works It begins with cybercriminals attacking and … Read more
Consider and beware this data breach phishing email: The sender’s address and bad grammar should give it away. But it is still pretty convincing, and closely resembles other real Google email messages. Do NOT call the number. You must NOT reply to the email. Do NOT click the links. If you receive this data breach … Read more