04/22/2020
While we may have a little extra time on our hands let me talk again about something not so much fun and/or tedious - computer and internet security. Things happen all the time and to most people. I have had various things hacked over the years, and this morning it happened again. I received an email that one of my passwords has been compromised. The notice included the password, and it is one I use regularly. I have over 120 things that I have or had connected to by internet, and this password is used on about 40 of those sites. They have since been changed, or, in some cases, the accounts terminated (by me). This is a good reminder to change passwords every now and then, have all your creation information (all the questions that people have been asking on the Facebook challenges), and have a plan to recover in case the bad guys lock you out of your account. Also, there are still a lot of scams going around, saying that someone is "from" Microsoft, or some such, your computer is infected and you need to pay them many dollars for them to clean it. Neither Microsoft, Norton, or anyone else will notify you by a popup on your screen, nor ask you for money this way. One of the simple suggestions I make is - if you didn't specifically, deliberately ask for it, don't click on it. If you feel like your computer has been compromised I offer a cleanup service for $50, flat rate, no additional charges (unless bad hardware is found, then I will provide a quote). I am not a cab driver, the meter doesn't run for however long it takes to clean up, $50 out the door.
