Over the past week, many clients and individuals have asked me why some companies and health care facilities were devastated by the WannaCry ransomware, and why others made it through the weekend without a blink of an eye. Simplistically, it is because those who pay attention to security patches that they receive from technology vendors … Continue Reading
This week (May 8-12, 2017) is Privacy Awareness Week—an annual initiative of the Asia Pacific Privacy Authorities Forum (APPA) that concentrates on sharing information about privacy practices and rules. The APPA is an interesting group made up of privacy regulators from Australia, British Columbia, Canada, Colombia, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Macao, Mexico, New South Wales, … Continue Reading
University of Michigan researchers have discovered that hundreds of applications in Google Play turn Android phones into a server that allow the user to connect the phone directly to a PC and leave open insecure ports available on the smartphone. What does this mean? It means attackers can use the open insecure port to get … Continue Reading
A new but old scam is on the rise and is reportedly hitting droves of unwary and vulnerable consumers. This new but old scam has increased now that tax season is over, and W2 scams are difficult to succeed this time of year. The criminals are always trying to find ways to make money, and … Continue Reading
Phone call scams are on the rise. In addition to scam artists posing as employees of utility companies (see Privacy Tip #84), the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has issued a warning to consumers about a phone scam involving imposters of its agency. The imposters call consumers saying they are from the OIG and … Continue Reading
We often talk about how anything that is connected to the Internet is hackable and unsafe, and to be careful about how you buy and connect devices, products, appliances, home security systems and other wireless “things.” These are called the Internet of Things, or “IoT.” Alexa is an IoT “thing.” Cybersecurity literature constantly warns us … Continue Reading
Remember when TV was free? Okay, most of you don’t, and I was just a tot, but back in the day, it was free. We didn’t have dozens of channels or choices, but everyone could watch the major networks and PBS without a cost. These days, there are charges for everything—including downloading music, videos and … Continue Reading
People always ask me if I use a password manager. The answer is no. I am too paranoid to put all of my passwords in one place. Instead, I prefer to use variations on complex pass phrases that I can remember and I change them frequently. I have a good memory, so it works for … Continue Reading
Many people were shocked and outraged over the story I relayed about a U.S. citizen, in fact, a NASA scientist, who, after returning from racing solar cars abroad was required by Custom and Border Patrol (CBP) agents to hand over his NASA issued mobile phone and password. The story raises all sorts of privacy issues … Continue Reading
What a great idea! Trusty Consumer Reports has announced that it is collaborating with three cybersecurity firms to “create a new standard that safeguards consumers’ security and privacy—and we hope industry will use that standard when building and designing digital products such as connected devices, software, and mobile apps.” The standard is a response to … Continue Reading
I frequently get complaints from small businesses that they don’t have the resources or resilience to properly address cybersecurity and that it is overwhelming to them. Well, it is. We frequently tell businesses that they must be prepared as they might not think they are targets, but they are. But what happened to the relevance … Continue Reading
On March 6, 2017, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released tips and a video to businesses that have been impersonated by Phishing schemes. The guidance, entitled “Has a phishing scam hooked your company’s good name?” provides businesses with several tips to respond to being impersonated through a phishing scheme. The tips include: Notify and alert customers … Continue Reading
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced this week that March 5-11 is National Consumer Protection Week. The FTC will announce different programs and events throughout the week that are designed to educate consumers on how they can protect themselves and understand their rights. As a consumer, one thing that is easy to do and very … Continue Reading
My friends and family frequently ask me about the newest scam, so they can stay vigilant and keep on top of the latest ways fraudsters are trying to get our information. But many times, they alert me to scams that they are experiencing. Such was true this week. We all know by now it is … Continue Reading
There has been lots of talk about the ripple effects of the Trump travel ban. But here’s a new twist I hadn’t heard before—U.S. Customs and Border Control (CBP) agents are detaining U.S. citizens and requiring them to unlock their phones at the border. According to The Verge, a U.S. born NASA scientist spent several … Continue Reading
This scam really makes me mad—especially for some of the most vulnerable in our society, including the elderly. This scam starts when your phone rings and the person on the other end says “Can you hear me?” Being the nice folks that we are, we say “Yes!” Only when you say “Yes,” they are recording … Continue Reading
Starting February 6, WNYC is starting a 5-day plan “to solve that digital dilemma” of having the convenience of living online, but trying to take control over who gets your personal information and what they do with it. It’s called the Privacy Paradox series. I just signed up for the series on their site. You … Continue Reading
Just when I thought everyone knew about the continued W2 schemes, where phishing emails are used to get company employees’ W2 forms so the thief can file a false tax return and get a refund, several additional clients have been hit with the scheme and the thieves were successful. Just like after holiday sales in … Continue Reading
I know a lot of people who have looked for and been successful in finding an apartment and/or a roommate on Craigslist. If you are looking for an apartment on Craigslist right now—listen up. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced yesterday (January 18, 2017) that it has charged Credit Bureau Center LLC and three individuals … Continue Reading
Every day I get a call from a client asking for help involving ransomware. Friends have called in a panic when that dreadful message comes up on the screen informing you that you are the victim of ransomware with instructions on how to pay the ransom with bitcoin. It is no longer a surprise to … Continue Reading
Breaches of our personal information through hacking of data bases is becoming all too common. A third of Americans’ personal information was compromised in healthcare breaches in 2015. We have become numb to the fact that our personal information from forms and other information shared between companies is now on the dark web and we … Continue Reading
I received a call last week on my home land line and when I picked it up (hardly anyone I want to actually talk to calls my home telephone number) the caller on the other end informed me that he was from “Microsoft 10,” that I had a terrible virus in my computer and that … Continue Reading
We have previously warned consumers about IRS phone scams that defraud consumers. Basically, the fraudsters call unsuspecting victims over the telephone impersonating an IRS official, and intimidate the recipient of the call to believe that they have an outstanding tax liability and telling them that if they don’t pay up, they will be arrested and … Continue Reading
There are reports of a java keylogger that is able to copy and forward credit card details from online checkout forms that are used on shopping websites. It has reportedly affected several dozen online shopping websites that use the Magento open-source ecommerce platform. What does this mean? When you buy something online, and you go … Continue Reading
