More Computer Security - Why? Because It's Important!

Hi All,

I just came across an interesting New York Times article on the web titled, 'How Many Times Has Your Personal Information Been Exposed To Hackers?'

Indeed...using the interactive features on the site, readers can find out how many times your information has been exposed to hackers in categories like:

address information,
birthday,
credit/debit card,
email,
employment history,
financial history,
fingerprints,
health history,
password,
phone number,
social security number

Users are asked to answer basic questions and check off which of the various services they used - then the numbers in the various categories change based on which the user checks off.

The United States Government, AOL, Ebay, Twitter, Anthem, Kmart, Home Depot, Target and UPS are among the larger companies listed in the article as to whether or no users had any affiliation to the organization.

The article goes on to explain what readers should do now, why this keeps happening to websites and how you can protect yourself in the future....

Click on these links to learn more about how you can protect yourself online so you are less likely to become hacked, spoofed or have your identity compromised.

Online Safety - USA.gov
Tips For Online Safety
Secure Your Computer
FCC - How to Protect Yourself Online
FBI - How to Protect Your Computer
US Department of Justice - Protecting Yourself While Using the Internet

Hope the links help protect you while you are online!

Regards,
Stu

Returning the Swag From the Holidays

Hi All,

Now that both Christmas and Hanukah are over the returns start!  Trudging back to the store - assuming you have gift receipt that is - and then making your way to the Customer Service desk is what the day after Christmas is known for nowadays. 

As such, here are a few sites that will help you make the trip back to the Target, Wal-Mart, Sears, Macy's, Kohls or wherever, easier, faster and less painful.

This first list is from Consumer Reports and is titled '5 Simple Rules for Happy Holiday Gift Returns'.  Basically the article explains how to return gifts - and get money back from the returns.

Time Magazine and Money Magazine have come up with this article - and posted on 12/25/14 - titled, 'Hate Your Gifts? Tips For Returns, Exchanges, and Regifting'.  The section on regifting is extremely helpful and insightful.  Read on!

Not to be outdone, USAToday posted an article on 12/25/14 as well titled, 'How To Easily Return Presents'.  Short, concise and nicely written, the article is chock full of advice like, 'unwrap carefully', 'give the gift of receipts', and 'know your online store policies'.

This next article comes from NBC News and is titled, 'Many Unhappy Returns - Retailers Combat Wardrobing' - which is the practice of returning fraudulent merchandise after the holiday season.  

So there you have it - a few good, quality, timely links that will help you return the holiday gifts that are the wrong size, or wrong color, or just not what you wanted! 

Enjoy - and hopefully you won't be spending too much time on the return line in the stores.

Regards,
Stu

Identity Theft

Hi All,

Well, now that the holidays are in full swing, you might want to learn a bit more about identity theft.  What is identity theft you ask?  Click here for an article from Wikipedia about identity theft.

Click on this link for the article that I read that got me thinking about identity theft as a possible topic for this blog.  Interesting article - entitled, '5 Ways Identity Thieves Are Targeting You', courtesy of CNNMoney - a very useful financial related website. 

As you probably know, Target has reported a breach that resulted in over 40 million credit cards have been compromised by hackers.  Click on this link to learn more about how this credit card breach affects you and your credit card.

For a quick peak at what individuals can do to try to stop identity theft, click on this link.

And now...for a whole host of links about identity theft and fraud, click on the following links from various governmental, university and 'think tank' agencies.

FTC - Identity Theft - what to do right away when you find that you're identity has been compromised.
President's Task For on Identity Theft - Report identity theft and victims' rights.
Open Directory Project - DMOZ - link to Identity Theft - all about fake identification and phishing
Carnegie Mellon University - all about identity theft - protective measures, legal issues and more links.
FTC Consumer Information -  privacy and identity links
Dateline from MSNBC - 'To Catch an ID Thief' - video from an episode about hunting for id thieves
Free Credit Report.com - official site to request a free credit report

Hope the links are helpful - especially the last one (Free Credit Report.com).

Regards and Happy holidays,
Stu