What is a Stingray? Its a fake cellphone tower that law enforcement can deploy to intercept cell phone signals. And frankly, if the bad guys have it, then the spies probably do. And we’re sure the organized crime bad guys do too in some places! Why Encryption? Maybe you don’t feel you’re important enough to worry about this sort of thing, but our elected officials do. And some of the things they could/should be doing you can do too! What to learn more about Virtual Private Networks? Go to https://thatoneprivacysite.net/ Want to encrypt your phone? Best check with your smartphone’s manufacturer!
Security? It has us on PINs and needles! (10/20/18 Part 2)
Personal Identification Numbers (or PINs) are a part of modern life. Using an ATM, a debit card at the store, and unlocking your phone all use PINs. So, do you need a good one? Heck yeah you do! Not just for protecting your stuff, but legally as well! Passwords! – Part 2 https://www.thebalance.com/pin-number-definition-and-explanation-315344 https://www.inc.com/will-yakowicz/why-biometrics-are-bad-for-your-constitutional-rights.html https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/12/16298192/apple-iphone-face-id-legal-security-fifth-amendment https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/01/court-rules-against-man-who-was-forced-to-fingerprint-unlock-his-phone/
Grab-bag news show! (8/11/18 Part 1)
Many Subjects – Part 1 Given all the stuff that happens, sometimes we just need to catch up. And one way for us to do that? News show!
News and a poor caller who can’t catch a break… (8/11/18 Part 2)
Many Subjects – Part 2 We continue our news show, and one poor guy didn’t seem like he could get decent cell phone reception when he called.
Did you get a scary email recently? (7/28/18 Part 1)
Did you get an email recently? An email with an actual PASSWORD of yours as the subject line? And threats? And demands of payment? If so, don’t panic. Too much. Its a scam. Passwords 101 – Part 1
More on passwords to avoid pass-woes! (7/28/18 Part 2)
Passwords 101 – Part 2 More on passwords! This is a show for your favorite non-computer savvy person!
Who is watching you? (6/30/18 Part 1)
Everyone is watching! Who’s Listening In? Well, not so much everyone so much as every company. Facebook has patented a new technique for listening to you while while you’re watching TV to figure out what ads you’re watching, how long, and more. So, naturally, we had to talk about this, plus Siri, Cortana, Alexa, and other personal assistants… What exactly are we getting (and risking) here? https://www.consumerreports.org/privacy/66-ways-to-protect-your-privacy-right-now/ https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2018/06/facebook-patent-would-turn-your-mic-on-to-analyze-how-you-watch-ads/ https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2017/03/five-ways-cybersecurity-will-suffer-if-congress-repeals-fcc-privacy-rules
Privacy? What’s that? (6/30/18 Part 2)
Californ-aye-ay! California Privacy There are times that when California passes a law it affects the rest of the country. Why? Well, its got a LOT of people, and its economy dwarfs that of many countries. So, when they decide to pass a law it can be pretty significant. Such as privacy laws. Google, Facebook, Microsoft, many cellular providers and more don’t seem thrilled by this. But why? https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/06/california-approves-privacy-rules-opposed-by-isps-and-tech-companies/ https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/top-three/telecoms-players-blast-california-privacy-rules/ https://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-privacy/california-lawmakers-approve-data-privacy-bill-opposed-by-silicon-valley-idUSKBN1JO35Y?il=0
The European Unions EU GDPR: What is it? (5/19/18 Part 2)
First, some context. Last year Congress used the CRA (Congressional Review Act) to repeal the Obama era privacy protections. The GDP-what? What did we lose from that? A quick read should catch you up! https://www.consumerreports.org/consumerist/house-votes-to-allow-internet-service-providers-to-sell-share-your-personal-information/ The EU’s enforcement of the General Data Protection Regulation is beginning at the end of the month. Chances are you’ve been getting notifications from companies and sites you deal with for a while now, but don’t know why. Well, we talk about it today, and why we should watch its ups and downs! https://www.eugdpr.org/ What do you think?
What to do BEFORE the emergency and DNS servers! (5/5/18 Part 2)
We continue our disaster show by discussing preparedness! Alert Internet Surfer Perry also called in asking about disasters and pets! Plus we touched on Cloudflare’s free DNS server. More EMERGENCY! ASPCA how to prepare for disasters and your pets: https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/general-pet-care/disaster-preparedness Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS server announcement: https://blog.cloudflare.com/announcing-1111/