I travel around helping businesses, both large and small, work on assessing their cybersecurity risks and implement measures to protect data, reduce risk and comply with applicable state and federal laws. In doing so, it is obvious that all businesses are struggling with managing data risks, and the time, resources and tools necessary to combat … Continue Reading
Happy National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. I wish it was more uplifting than the current state of affairs, but it has never been so important. One of the most recent scam to hit consumers is by impersonating Netflix. If you are a Netflix user, beware of a new scam that looks like an email that comes … Continue Reading
As more and more state laws allow the use of marijuana for medical conditions, and dispensaries are opening to provide users with access to marijuana for medical purposes (and recreational use), patients are questioning and becoming concerned about the protection of their privacy when purchasing marijuana in dispensaries. The concern is that federal law still … Continue Reading
I haven’t been in the dating scene for decades but I know it sure has changed. Millions of people participate in online dating, and I even know several couples who have found their significant other using online dating platforms. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the Internet is used for bad intentions, … Continue Reading
I spend a lot of time and effort to protect the privacy of my personal information. I am very careful. I have pretty good security hygiene. But I don’t have total control of my personal information and it is frustrating. I am hearing the same sentiments from many of you. My information has been compromised … Continue Reading
It has been so difficult to watch the news reports of the devastation and havoc left in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, and now anticipated this weekend by Hurricane Irma, which is being reported as the most powerful storm to hit the Caribbean and the southeast in almost a century. Not only do those who … Continue Reading
You drop your smartphone and now there are a million cracks and you can hardly read your texts. Getting the screen replaced by the manufacturer of the phone is usually expensive and sometimes it is so expensive that it makes more sense just to buy a new phone. But some will bypass the manufacturer and … Continue Reading
I feel like I have been writing about Passwords over and over and that’s because I have. Despite hearing about how important passwords are over and over again, compromised passwords continues to be an issue for organizations. Since the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) recently published new guidance and is recommending the use … Continue Reading
Last week, our Data Privacy + Cybersecurity Insider reached a milestone—we hit our 100th privacy tip! This week, we mark that milestone with a special edition Privacy Tip: the top 10 most-viewed privacy tips. Our readers can use this list as a refresher resource for some of the most important privacy tips to remember at work and … Continue Reading
It is one thing to steal our identity as an adult, but children are defenseless against this type of fraud. According to Experian, it handles 25,000-30,000 cases of identity theft and fraud every year and a whopping 17 percent affected children and the estimate is that it will affect up to 25 percent of children … Continue Reading
Last January, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launched the IoT Home Inspector Challenge, a contest that requested participants to come up with a tool that would identify security issues that are caused by out-of-date software in IoT devices to better educate and protect consumers about the security vulnerabilities of IoT devices. To remind you of … Continue Reading
We all dream about winning the lottery or the Publishers Clearing House folks secretly coming up our walkway and knocking on our door telling us we won millions of dollars. Well, I do. Unfortunately, because we all wish for such luck, criminals prey on our wishes and have come up with a scam where they … Continue Reading
I have lamented repeatedly that we have a dearth of cyber talent in the U.S. to meet the needs of employers. Many of our clients recruit talent from other countries in order to meet their cyber needs. The need continues to grow, and we are not addressing it adequately. Although we are starting to develop … Continue Reading
As you head to the beach or hammock for a bit of R+R this summer, here is one that you might want on the reading list. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has been publishing a report entitled “Who Has Your Back” since 2010. The point of the report is to assess major digital companies’ attitude … Continue Reading
I don’t own an Echo, and Alexa is not listening to all of the conversations in my home. If that were the case, I would have no credibility in writing weekly Privacy Tips. Echo has evolved, and now I am told and have read that the newest craze is the Echo Show. (Shocker–I don’t have … Continue Reading
One of my favorite lines when I conduct employee education about data privacy and cybersecurity is “Keep Your Day Job.” The context of the comment is when I tell audiences about the dumb moves of employees who think they can steal their company’s data and use it, sell it or do nefarious things with it … Continue Reading
I am from Wisconsin, so I am a Badger fan. Actually a double Badger fan, as I am a big fan of the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s (EFF) Privacy Badger. According to the EFF’s website, Privacy Badger “is a browser extension that automatically blocks hidden third-party trackers that would otherwise follow you around the web and … Continue Reading
For those of you who know me, you know that I have been very frustrated with the federal and state governments for continuing to use Social Security numbers for eligibility, enrollment and participating in Medicare and Medicaid. This includes listing individuals’ Social Security numbers on the Medicare and Medicaid cards. The good news is that … Continue Reading
Social networking app Wishbone, which is used primarily by teenage girls to vote on various teenage type quizzes, like favorite entertainers or fashion, has been hacked. The intruders have reportedly gained access to users’ (again, primarily female minors) names, unique email addresses and mobile telephone numbers. Not just a few, either. The data compromised included … Continue Reading
We hear daily about another payment card breach at a retail store, restaurant chain or hotel line. The response to a payment card breach differs from company to company. I get a lot of questions about payment card breaches and why some companies provide credit monitoring and others don’t, why some companies provide individual notification … Continue Reading
It is hard enough for middle agers like me to stay up on all the ways our personal information can be collected, accessed, used, disclosed, sold or stolen. It is even harder for our loved ones who are older, but not necessarily wiser in the digital age. Here are some tips for care givers to … Continue Reading
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
