Credit cards and debit cards are so similar that people often feel they are interchangeable. They look the same, swipe the same, and work in almost all the same places. But there is one huge difference between debit cards and credit cards: debit cards directly access your money. Credit cards are loans – they can
A little more than a week ago, we saw perhaps the single largest data breach dump in history. This followed another massive data disclosure from the same group just a couple weeks prior. Dubbed “Collections 1-5”, together these data dumps represent literally billions of unique user email addresses and passwords. While many of the records
What follows is a cautionary tale about a technology I’ve been recommending for years: two-factor authentication, or 2FA. Citizens of the Internet, hear me out! This could happen to you… The Case of the Missing Codes Last month, Apple offered a killer deal on iPhone trade-ins: they doubled the value of your old phone as
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.
It’s National Cybersecurity Awareness Month! One of the key themes this year is working together to improve our overall security. To that end, I’d like to focus on how you can close some common security holes in your life. Security types call this “reducing your attack surface”. One of the best ways to protect yourself
[Last updated: Aug 2020] As hurricane season approaches, I thought I’d share my personal checklist for preparing for the power outage that often accompanies a big storm. This isn’t just for hurricanes, though. It can apply to snow or ice storms, too. These are storms where you have at least a few days to prepare
