Blog: Tech News & Tips - Page 23 of 27

Are You Thinking of Using a Password Manager?

Posted on January 26, 2016February 2, 2016 by Gail Eddy in Cloud, Hackers, Passwords, Phishing, Tips

I am of two minds when it comes to an online password manager. On the one hand, I think it would be a great way to keep multiple passwords secure. On the other hand, I worry about hackers gaining control of my data.

That being said, if your keyboard (or monitor) looks like this, it’s time to find another solution!

Luckily, there are several online password managers to choose from:

1Password
Dashlane
LastPass
KeePassX
mSecure
Sticky Password

Most of these have the same or similar features.

Manage passwords over multiple devices
Generates ultra strong passwords
Stores banking and other sensitive information
Most are free but do have an annual or monthly fee for certain upgrades
Some utilize the iPhone fingerprint to confirm your identity

Even with a secure password manager, you still need to be careful of “spoofing”, where a fraudulent web page is displayed to trick you into providing your super-secure password key as described in this article:

Which password manager do you use? What are its best features? What don’t you like? Let us know in the comments below!

Chris Eddy of Geek For Hire, Inc. has been providing computer service to families and small businesses with Mac’s and PC’s for the past fourteen years. His company is highly rated by both the BBB (Better Business Bureau) and by Angie’s List. You can find more at http://www.GeekForHireInc.com Geek For Hire, Inc. provides onsite service (Tier 3) to the Denver / Boulder / Front Range area and remote service throughout North America.

Computer and Phone Scams to watch for

Posted on January 19, 2016May 17, 2021 by Gail Eddy in Malware, Security, Tips

Computer and phone scams are rampant if my voice mail is any judge. For the last few weeks I’ve been getting a voice mail message with the following recording:

“This call is in regards to the security software we installed on your computer last year. Now we see a red flag on our end stating there is a security breach on it. Please call 1-866-758-1262. I repeat, 1-866-758-1262. Thank you.”

We’ve also received phone calls from regular people like you or me who fell victim to these scams.

Whenever you receive a call on your home or mobile phone from a number that you do not recognize, be extra careful. Dell or Microsoft or Toshiba or even Apple won’t be calling you to tell you that your computer has a virus. When you get this kind of call, your spider-sense should be tingling!

Some of these computer and phone scams are very sophisticated. There are times though when you answer the phone and the person on the other end is very convincing. You might believe them and agree that they can access your computer remotely. Then when you hang up the phone you have second thoughts.

What steps should you take if you think you’ve been scammed?

Turn your machine off.
Disconnect the internet from your machine. You may need to unplug the Ethernet cable from your machine or turn off the router if you have wireless service.
Turn your machine back on and confirm that your anti-virus is still working and is still installed.
Start your virus scanner. It should tell you whether any malware has been installed, and it should remove those programs.
Once your virus scanner has completed and has removed any potential threats, you can reconnect your internet.
For the next few days be very cautious about how you use your machine. For example, it would be prudent not to enter any financial or banking information on that machine – use your phone or iPad instead. If the machine doesn’t show any signs of continued infection, it should be fine. If it starts displaying pop-ups or becomes very slow, it’s time to call in a professional to do a thorough scrub of the machine.

You can find other symptoms of an infected machine here:

INFORMATION ABOUT GEEK FOR HIRE, INC.

I’ve created a Free Report to protect you from “phishing” scams. Click here to receive it!

Chris Eddy of Geek For Hire, Inc. has provided computer service to families and small businesses with Mac’s and PCs for the past eighteen years. Angie’s List and the BBB rate Geek For Hire very highly. You can find more on our website, or give us a call at 303-618-0154. Geek For Hire, Inc. provides onsite service (Tier 3 support) to the Denver / Boulder / Front Range area and remote service throughout North America.

Here’s a link to our Covid19 Policy.

We’ve been using Amazon Prime for the past few years. We like the free and fast shipping. With Prime, we have access to online streaming too. Prime is usually $119/year, but you can get a free 30-day trial by clicking on this link: Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Experts say computers won’t last as long as you think

Posted on January 12, 2016March 23, 2018 by Gail Eddy in Apple, backup, Data Backup, Desktop, iMac, Laptops, Mac's, Malware

We have several customers with very old machines and they generally ask us how much longer they can expect their machine to last. We’re talking ten plus years! Remember Windows ME? Yup, we’re still seeing customers with that Microsoft Operating System!

It’s true that the machines that were built prior to 2010, for example, are likely to last five or so years. Some people have gotten them to last longer by taking special care of them. For example, we’re still happily using our 2008 iMac. Eight years later, it still performs very well. However, machines built in the last couple of years were only made to last three to six years.

I talked with Chris about computers in general and how long we can expect them to last.

“Computer technology doubles every three to four years and computers tend to last about four years. The better (more expensive) computers tend to last much longer than the cheaper ones will.”

Other experts around the internet chime in:

“…we use the 3-4-5 theory. Plan on three years, hope for four, and don’t push past five years.”

“If you’re looking at the computer as a whole, with no interest in upgrading or replacing parts, expect to get at least three years out of the average desktop computer.”

“As a general rule of thumb, I expect laptops to last two to five years. Desktops may last three to seven years.”

“…a good timeframe to consider upgrading is around every three to four years.”

What can you do to help your machine last longer and keep it humming along?

Keeping the insides free of dust and pet hair.
If a machine is short on RAM, adding more will help it to run faster.
Too many protective software programs will make a machine run slower.
When the hard drive is more than 50% full, it will begin to run slower.
Viruses will tend to make your machine run slower. If you think you may have a virus, run your virus scanner to remove them.
Things get bigger and more computationally intense over time, so there are lags.

Remember, even if your machine is running perfectly, to keep your machine backed up regularly. Backups never go out of style and you never know when that hard drive might fail!

Protect Yourself from Phishing Attacks!

Posted on January 5, 2016October 7, 2020 by Gail Eddy in Hackers, Phishing

How to protect yourself from phishing attacks? Many of you know that I take frequent road trips. That’s why my vehicles have the EZ-Pass device on them. EZ-Pass automatically collects tolls on highways and bridges on the East Coast. (FYI, FasTrak is used on the West Coast. Here in Colorado, we use ExpressToll.) When this article crossed my news feed, I was particularly interested.

“Phishing Scam Alert: There is a phishing email* being sent to drivers across the nation claiming they owe money for unpaid E-ZPass tolls. This is not an email from The Toll Roads, the Transportation Corridor Agencies, E-ZPass or E-ZPass tolling agencies. E-ZPass is used to collect tolls electronically on the East Coast; FasTrak is used to collect tolls electronically on the West Coast.

In fact, during the fourth quarter of 2015, phishing attacks saw a huge increase. As expected, financial institutions took the biggest hit, although any company is vulnerable.

Wikipedia has a good definition:

“Phishing is the attempt to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details (and sometimes, indirectly, money), often for malicious reasons, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication.”

How to protect yourself from phishing attacks:

Remember that most phishing attacks come via email, so it is very important to remain vigilant about what links you click in the emails you receive. Even when an email looks legitimate, with accurate looking logos and links, if you have any doubt, don’t click!

Social Media is becoming another prime target and a place to protect yourself from phishing attacks. In fact, according to Ian Trump of LogicNow:

“One in five phishing attempts is made through social media. Some of these will be unsophisticated attempts to snare anyone who might miss-click, but others will be more targeted and try to fool people with specific information, attempting to drive the user to a fake website where they will enter their username and password. A compromised social media account has the potential to wreak further havoc, especially given the habit for people to use the same password over and over again for both work and personal accounts.” More info in this article.

Whenever you receive an email saying you owe an organization money, or they need to confirm your information or anything that makes you wonder if it’s for real, be especially careful. Never click the link on the email. Instead, head to the website you’ve used before to check out the authenticity of the message. If you find that it is a phishing attempt, notify the company too.

Have you been hacked? How do you protect yourself from phishing attacks? How do you handle it? Let us know in the comments below!

I’ve created a Free Report on how to protect yourself from phishing attacks. Click here to receive it!

Watch Out For Phone, Text, Email, and other Scams:

Remember to stay well clear of shortened links unless you know without a doubt where that link will take you. That includes most bit.ly and owl.ly links. Here’s a recent article about short links.
Right now there are a lot of scams out there. Read our article about Covid19 scams.

Information about Geek For Hire, Inc.

Chris Eddy of Geek For Hire, Inc. has provided computer service to families and small businesses with Mac’s and PCs for the past eighteen years. Angie’s List and the BBB rate Geek For Hire very highly. You can find more on our website, or give us a call 303-618-0154. Geek For Hire, Inc. provides onsite service (Tier 3 support) to the Denver / Boulder / Front Range area and remote service throughout North America.

Here’s a link to our Covid19 Policy.

Top 10 Ways to Use Siri

Posted on December 29, 2015December 2, 2019 by Gail Eddy in iPad, iPhone, Siri, Tips

I hope everyone is enjoying their holidays. With New Years Eve just around the corner, I’m giving this post another go! Happy New Year everyone!

I’ve had a number of friends tell me recently that Siri is worthless and never gets anything right. “And besides,” they say, “I can just do it faster myself than asking Siri!”

Granted, Siri had her challenges when she was first rolled out, and many of them remain. But if you just ask her to do simple tasks, she’ll generally get them right.

Here are ten things I frequently use Siri for:

Call people: For example, ask Siri to call your Mom. (If you haven’t set up relationships within your contact settings, here’s an article that teaches you how to do that.)
Email people
Text people: I especially like this feature. I will dictate the message to Siri and she’ll type and send it.
Set timers and alarms Just be aware that Siri sometimes hears “60” as “16”. I will instead ask for a timer for “61 minutes”.
Check on the weather
Show most recently received email
Search emails: You can find emails with specific text in them or emails from a specific person
Find out the time and weather in another city: Don’t forget, these are two separate questions!
1. Siri, what time is it in London?
2. Siri, show me the weather forecast in London.
Search for a local business When you ‘re looking for a specific business, ask Siri to look it up for you. She’ll generally respond with a map and all of their contact information.
Open an application on your phone: Simply ask Siri to open the map application or the FitBit application, etc.
Tell you a bedtime story:

Siri still has her flaws, but if you know what they are and can work around them, she’ll serve you well. (In a limited capacity!)

How do you use Siri? Let us know if the comments below!

Information about Geek For Hire, Inc.

I’ve created a Free Report on what to look for to protect yourself from “phishing” scams. Click here to receive it!

Chris Eddy of Geek For Hire, Inc. has been providing computer service to families and small businesses with Mac’s and PCs for the past eighteen years. Angie’s List and the BBB rate Geek For Hire very highly. You can find more on our website, or give us a call 303-618-0154. Geek For Hire, Inc. provides onsite service (Tier 3 support) to the Denver / Boulder / Front Range area as well as remote service throughout North America.

A Look Back at 2015 in Technology

Posted on December 22, 2015December 2, 2019 by Gail Eddy in Computer History, Hackers, Siri, Tips

Every year there are new developments in the Technology world, and 2015 was no exception. Here are just a few:

VR Headset – At the CES 2015 show in January, no one expected Virtual Reality for the masses to be available this year. They were wrong! Announced in time for Black Friday, Oculus as released a headset that works exclusively with the Samsung Galaxy smartphone. More info here:

iWatch – Apple has been developing their watch since 2011 and it was finally available in the spring of this year. Reviews on the different tech sites that review these things have been mixed. Reviews by Amazon consumers are much higher.

Intel Skylake – Chris is pretty excited about the new 6th generation Intel Core Processor. He says it will run better on mobile technology. Do you know what the 1st generation was? Check out this article and astonish your geeky friends!

Tesla – Chris is also excited about the new Ludicrous upgrade to the Tesla Model S P90DL. Well, anything that takes you from zero to sixty in under three seconds has got to be worthy of some salivation! Here’s a link to DragTimes video.

Car Hacking – This was a big story this past spring. Computers in cars are pretty ubiquitous now and are just as susceptible to hacking as other computers are. The difference here is that car manufacturers don’t seem concerned and are not doing what they could to make their systems more secure. A previous blog about a report released by Senator Ed Markey has more information.

DieselGate – Earlier this year we found out that VW and Audi installed software on many of its 2009-2015 diesel models that would essential “cheat” emissions tests. From this NYTimes article “The software sensed when the car was being tested and then activated equipment that reduced emissions, United States officials said. But the software turned the equipment off during regular driving, increasing emissions far above legal limits, possibly to save fuel or to improve the car’s torque and acceleration.” There’s more info here: Late last month, VW announced their fix for the diesel engines. Automotive News describes the modifications that will need to be made here.

What do you were the most significant technology announcements in 2015? Share in the comments below!

Information about Geek For Hire, Inc.

I’ve created a Free Report on what to look for to protect yourself from “phishing” scams. Click here to receive it!

How To Keep Your Online Presence Safe During the Holiday Season

Posted on December 15, 2015December 2, 2019 by Gail Eddy in Hackers, Passwords, Tips

With the holidays coming up, people are doing lots of online shopping. It is very important to keep your online presence safe! Last week I heard the Amazon website may have been hacked and user IDs and passwords may have been compromised.

Now is the time to change your password for all of your online accounts. Especially accounts where you have credit card or other financial information stored!

Contents

When you change your password, make it a STRONG password!

Use each type of character that the website allows. For example, some websites only allow you to use letters, capital letters, and numbers. Others allow you to use special characters like “@”, or “&”, or “#”. Always use the special characters unless the website doesn’t allow you to. One of the best ways to make a strong password is use a word that is familiar to you and change some of the letters. For example, you can change “a” to “A” or “@”. You can change “o” to “O” or “0”. An “s” can become “5” or “$”. You get the idea. It’s also important to use a long password. Most websites require eight characters, but you should use at least 16 characters wherever the website allows you to. Adding a date to your familiar word will add another eight characters to your password

Here are the steps to follow:

Use letters and capitals
Use numbers
Use special characters
Replace letters with capitals, numbers, and special characters
Make the password at least 16 characters long, or as long as the website will allow you

So a good strong password could be “1_lIk3-$un5ets_1215” instead of “Ilikesunsets”

When you change your password, make it a UNIQUE password!

Use a different password for each site. When you use the same password on multiple sites it makes it that much easier for hackers to get into your accounts on other sites as well. Each site where you have stored credit card information or other financial information should have a different and unique password. So, yes, you’ll need a different one for Amazon and eBay. And, you’ll need a different one for Fidelity and Charles Schwab.

What’s the best way to do this? Add two or more characters to your strong password to indicate which site it is for. For example, you could use “1_lIk3-$un5ets_F1d”, or “1_lIk3-$un5ets_eby”

Phishing is also a holiday issue!

Phishing is where someone tries to trick you into giving them your sensitive and private information. Generally, they’ll send you an email. (They might also call you on your phone.) They tell you that there is an issue with your Amazon or Charles Schwab account and you need to update your password immediately. The email looks legitimate and you are tempted to click on the “Log into your account now!” button. Even if it is a legitimate email, you should always go directly to the official website and log on from there.

Do you already use strong passwords? What tricks do you use? How do you remember them all? Share your tips with your fellow readers in the comments below!

Information about Geek For Hire, Inc.

I’ve created a Free Report on what to look for to protect yourself from “phishing” scams. Click here to receive it!

Patch Tuesday

Posted on December 7, 2015December 2, 2019 by Chris Eddy in Hackers, Malware, Microsoft, Patch Tuesday, Tips

A couple of years ago, when I started leaving my computer on all the time, I noticed that my computer would be turned off in the morning. Since I knew I hadn’t turned it off, I turned to the most likely culprit. I asked Chris why he had turned off my machine without letting me know so that I could save all of my stuff first!

That’s when he told me about Patch Tuesday. Microsoft has been sending out monthly updates, generally on the second Tuesday of each month, for a long time. They formalized this process in October 2003. According to this article:

“Microsoft has a pattern of releasing a larger number of updates in even-numbered months, and fewer in odd-numbered months.[7][8][9] Minor updates are also released outside Patch Tuesday. Daily updates consist of malware database refreshes for Windows Defender and Microsoft Security Essentials. Sometimes there is an extraordinary Patch Tuesday, two weeks after the regular Patch Tuesday. Some updates could be released at any time.”

Although Microsoft has changed the name to “Update Tuesday”, the new name hasn’t gained wide acceptance in technical communities. The patches generally include code to update your Operating System to fix known bugs and to plug up any vulnerabilities from malware.

Most people notice a “Patch Wednesday” more than Patch Tuesday. Since the updates are generally installed overnight, you might be prompted to turn off your machine on Wednesday morning to finish the installation. And, occasionally you’ll experience glitches with your machine on Wednesday.

Patch Wednesday is also called “Crash Wednesday” since your computer is more likely to crash after the Patch Tuesday updates have been installed. We frequently hear from customers on “Patch Wednesday” who tell us that all of a sudden they can’t print, or their internet isn’t working. Lots of times the fix is as easy as turning off the machine and turning it back on again. But sometimes they need us to reinstall drivers or re-configure their router.

It’s also been called “Exploit Wednesday” since there have been times when the Microsoft patches have left machines more vulnerable to malware. In fact, a recent blog by UK engineer “Zeros & Ones” is a bit of a rant about the whole Patch Tuesday process.

“Security is not ‘my bag’ as such – but the people at Microsoft seem to be in a fantastic situation where security issues only arise on Tuesdays. How do they do they seem to manage to get the ‘bad man’ on side?”

If you’re interested in all the patches over the past ten years, check out this website, or this one for the past five years.

What do you think about Patch Tuesday? Share in the comments below!

Information about Geek For Hire, Inc.

I’ve created a Free Report on what to look for to protect yourself from “phishing” scams. Click here to receive it!

My Favorite Websites

Posted on December 1, 2015December 2, 2019 by Gail Eddy in Entertainment, Internet Searching, News, Tips

Several months ago, I blogged about Chris’ favorite websites. People keep asking me what mine are so here goes!

Searching:

For searching, I prefer Google over all the other search sites like Bing or Yahoo. I think it’s results are accurate – it finds what I am looking for, especially if I use the provided search tools, like Images, Video, Date, etc.

News Sites:

I’m a Jersey girl and grew up with the Sunday New York Times – every week! For a long time I didn’t like it because at my friend’s house, they had a newspaper with comics! But as I got older, I learned how to read and enjoy it. Now it’s my go-to website for what’s going on in the world.

I like the Huffington Post for its left-leaning news, and its separate pages for meditation, healthy living, and eastern religions.

I started following Mashable on Twitter ages ago. Now, the website is my go-to site for news that not everyone is writing about.

Other:

Call me weird, but I have a huge collection of books. I like LibraryThing because it helps me keep them organized. You can borrow and lend books with other LibraryThing members too.

Entertainment:

If I ever have a question about a movie, or an actress, or who was that guy in that TV show, I head over to IMdb.com, short for Internet Movie database.

Eagles:

In the spring, there are a couple of webcams pointed at eagle nests. I found it very relaxing to watch the mama and papa eagles tend the eggs and then the eaglets. There’s one from Minnesota, one from Georgia, and one from Pennsylvania. The webcams generally operate from February thru July.

What are your favorite websites? Let me know why!

Information about Geek For Hire, Inc.

I’ve created a Free Report on what to look for to protect yourself from “phishing” scams. Click here to receive it!

My 5 Favorite Weather Websites and Apps

Posted on November 24, 2015November 25, 2019 by Gail Eddy in Technology Tips, Weather

It’s that time of year when people start looking at the weather maps to see how their holiday travels will be. I’ve got a few favorites and will share them with you here.

NOAA – When you enter your city and state into the “Local Forecast” box, you can see just what is in store for your area. In addition, if there is a big storm coming, you’ll see a “Hazardous Weather Conditions” box across the top. I like the NOAA forecast because it is generally right on target. (Although they blew it with the last storm, predicting 10-14″ when we only got about 5″!) NOAA also has radar and satellite maps. By the way, NOAA stands for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and is located right here in Boulder, Colorado!

Weather Underground – I just started using Weather Underground about a year ago. I like that I have several different weather stations to choose from in my town. In addition to the forecast, WU tells me what’s happening right now. When you click on the information from a particular station, you can also see if they have a webcam set up. Then you can see the snow and wind for yourself!

The Weather Channel – The Weather Channel has all the same information the other websites have. Because they consider themselves a news site, they’ve also got, what I can only call Weather Entertainment. Big Floods! Amazing Ancient Ruins! 20 Places Overrun by Animals! And More!! My favorite feature on the Weather Channel is their travel map found here. When you enter your starting place and destination, and the date you will be departing, the map calculates your route AND the expected weather.

NEXRAD – “Nexrad (Next-Generation Radar) is a network of 158 high-resolution Doppler weather radars operated by the National Weather Service” This website shows the radar for the whole US, or just your state.

WeatherTalk – is a Facebook page I’ve recently found. Lyons Weather Analyst Greg Berman gained recognition when he accurately forecasted the extent of the rains and subsequent floods in September 2013. Just recently, he bucked the NOAA trend and called for zero to just a few inches of snow last week in Boulder County and said most of the snow would land south of Denver. He was right on both counts. If you’re on Facebook, I’d highly recommend this page to “Like” and bookmark. His forecasts include most of the Ft. Collins/Boulder/Denver Front Range area.

Some other apps I found while researching this post include Storm Shield Weather Radio and RadarScope.

Do you have a favorite website for weather forecasts? Share in the comments below!