Since the pandemic began, consumers are shopping less in brick and mortar stores and buying more online. That means that our email boxes are often full of delivery notices. And, we may not always remember exactly what we ordered or from where. Scammers are taking advantage of this with a…
Consumers who believe they are careful about what information they share online may be surprised to learn just how much information is revealed through their photos. In addition to the pictures many routinely post to social media, our online video meetings and Facebook live videos can reveal details useful to…
Two-factor authentication (2FA) provides an extra layer of security for your data, beyond just using a password. For example, it may involve having a code sent to your mobile device. But what happens if you lose that device? The good news is that, although it may be inconvenient, it is…
Geofencing is often used by marketers to target customers in a specific geographic location, for example to send coupons to potential buyers who are within a specified range of a retail store or restaurant. It has also been used by political campaigns to identify people who have attended rallies or…
More employees than ever are working from home, and 85% of Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) said that they had to sacrifice cybersecurity to quickly enable them to do so. Cybersecurity vendor Netwrix announced this and other findings from a June 2020 survey conducted to determine how organizations are responding…
How can receiving merchandise you didn’t order and didn’t pay for be a scam? To most people getting free things in the mail sounds like a dream come true. While the person who receives the products may or may not be directly victimized, this practice, called “brushing”, is indeed a…
Many people consider the TikTok app to be a fun pastime where they can watch videos of kids dancing or post their own funny videos. However, there is a scarier side to TikTok. At the end of 2019 the military banned the app from government-owned devices. And, hardly a day…
Many people believe that by not using the Internet to manage their accounts they are keeping their personal information offline and staying safe. In fact, they may simply be making it easier for criminals to masquerade as them and take over their accounts. KrebsOnSecurity has documented many examples of scammers…
Identity theft is constantly evolving. We come up with ways to thwart the bad guys, and they come up with new ways to steal from us. Although there is probably no way to make yourself 100% secure against identity theft, there are several things you can do to make yourself…
When there is money to be claimed, scammers will be there claiming their (un)rightful share. According to the U.S. Secret Service, a Nigerian crime ring is committing fraud against many states’ unemployment insurance programs using Personally Identifiable Information (PII) obtained from identity theft victims. The scam operates very much like…
Calls from debt collectors are bad news in any circumstances, but, what’s even worse, many of those calls are not legitimate. The caller may not be authorized to collect the debt, it may not be a debt incurred by the person receiving the call or the debt may not even…
“Doxing” refers to publishing a person’s private information (such as their home address, employment location, cell phone number, etc.) to get revenge or for “social justice” purposes. This can lead to harassment or physical harm of the target. In some cases, the target may become the victim of “swatting” which…
Contact tracing involves identifying people who have an infectious disease and the people with whom they have come into contact. That information is then used to reduce or halt the spread of the disease by taking preventive or curative measures. Diseases for which contact tracing has been used range from…
Two-factor authentication (2FA) adds another level of security, beyond only a password, when you log in to apps and accounts. In this interview we will discuss how 2FA helps to secure your accounts, how it works and why you should use it. Expert: Steve Tcherchian Steve Tcherchian is the Chief…