I ran across a disturbing article in The Verge about mental health apps that were oversharing user data. As usual, I’m not surprised, but still really angry. This is wrong and has to stop. The study by JAMA Network Open on 36 apps for smoking cessation and depression found that 29 of them shared some
I’ll be honest… I’m finding it hard to even summon the energy to write yet another freaking article about a Facebook fiasco. In fact, there are two this week alone. But they’re serious and if for some reason you have not already deleted Facebook, you need to hear about them. A Tale of Two Screw-Ups
I’ve written a comprehensive guide to choosing the best web browser (which you should definitely read), but the choice just keeps getting clearer. If you’re not already using it, you really need to switch to Firefox. Privacy vs Security The main point of my browser guide is that there is a big difference between security
Rather than write a new article every year, I’ve decided to update my original article on Data Privacy Day. This article tells you how to vastly improve your privacy and guard your data from prying eyes right now. Data Privacy Day 2019 also just happens to exactly coincide with the airing of the 100th episode
[UPDATED] The contest is over – thanks to everyone who listened to the PodCentennial show and entered! The Making of the Pod-Centennial The 100th episode of my Firewalls Don’t Stop Dragons podcast will air on January 28th! It’s hard to believe I’ve been doing my show every week for almost two years now. It all
With 2018 in the rear view mirror, it’s time to look ahead to 2019! And that means it’s time to make your New Year’s Resolutions! Sure, you’re going to join that gym and lose weight and quit smoking … yada, yada, yada. But what about your cyber goals for 2019? You do have them, right??
Marriott announced last week that as many as 500 million of their Starwood Guests had their customer data exposed. In this post I’ll go over what we know about the Marriott breach, what you can do about it, and how to mitigate damage from the inevitable future breaches. Details of the Marriott Breach Here are
The US Postal Service (USPS) has an interesting service called Informed Delivery that allows you to see what pieces of mail are heading to your mailbox before they arrive. You can use it to see what mail you should have received, as well – if you were expecting something but didn’t get it. When you
It’s that time of year again! Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Boxing Day and all the other gift shopping days between now and the end of the year. (Already missed Singles Day, though.) But you need to make sure that you’re not giving away your gift recipient’s privacy or giving hackers a means to rip off
. Consumer Reports is warning people about a recent spate of phone scams with callers claiming to be agents of the Social Security Administration. These fraudsters are using caller ID spoofing to make it seem as if they’re calling from 800-772-1213. While that is the actual number for the SSA, it’s not the SSA calling.
