Hackers and Computer Viruses Don't Care that I'm Androgyne

[Guest Juniper Blue]

My computer is gonna' crash any day now .. so, if I am not around for a while don't worry. Captain Andro is probably at the computer repair place pulling out his credit card, scratching his head and wondering if the repair people will be able see all of his Laura's Playground posts and on-line shopping at REI ... oh well. ( Probably not .. but some person in Russia, living in a cramped apartment might have and They probably thought "BORING!" )

Hugs,

JB

[Guest]

Aye, aye, captain!

Captain Andro needs an Android? Not really- just liked the word play...

I hope you get the PC refreshed and back on line quickly and inexpensively!

Love, Megan

[Cyndee]

Clear your browser cache (if not already), malwarebytes scanner is effective and free if you have not tried that already.

No they don't care about people, they only want $$.

Good luck

C -

[Guest Annabelle Anders]

I'd like to imagine that the person sitting in Russia hacking your stuff, tries to figure out what the hell you're talking about, and learns something about themselves in the process! Like a little circle of life.

Also, I love Android! I named my phone "My little Andro"

[Guest Juniper Blue]

Thanks Megan and Cynthia!

Good thing that they only care about MONEY cause when they look into my BANK account they will say "So Little?? and perhaps a benevolent hacker may be inclined make a DEPOSIT!!"

Anyway .. I know that many of you work with computers ... any thoughts on cyber-security? Just how safe are we here on LP?? What can we do to make ourselves safer on-line??

Tell us all so that we can all become like one of those really paranoid people who brings their own silverware to restaurants!!

I am not too worried .. I do take some precautions like using a special (low limit) credit card on-line and I have an Identity Theft Protection service that will alert me AFTER I have been robbed but what else can we do to be safe on-line?? And what is "SAFE" anyway??

I have to go .. "THEY" are watching.

Hugs,

Juniper

[Guest agfrommd]

Anyway .. I know that many of you work with computers ... any thoughts on cyber-security? Just how safe are we here on LP?? What can we do to make ourselves safer on-line??

I'm a computer science teacher and a former software engineering. That being said, I'm not any kind of expert. Here is my list of dos and don'ts for what they're worth:

* DO: Always back up everything important to you on a flashdrive or portable hard drive. Your computer *will* crash. You don't want it to take data with you.

* DO: Go with an anti-virus program with daily updates. I'm a notorious cheapskate but that's one thing I want to pay for.

* DON'T: Download software unless you are 100% sure it's legit. I always google before I download. It's saved my bacon more than once.

* DON'T: Ever log in anywhere using a public WIFI. They are not secure, and anyone could be listening to our password.

* DO: Make sure you know your neighbors well, or anyone who could be within range of your home WIFI. Home systems are not secure and easy to eavesdrop on within range.

* DON'T: Use the same password for sensitive data (like email, bank account, etc.) as you do for every other random website (yes even Laura's Playground). I use two, one for my sensitive data and one for all the other random ones. (I learned this the hard way. Zappo's gave my yahoo password to hackers and my email account was hacked a couple days later).

* DON'T: Ever send a password, SS# or any other personal information via email. I don't ever store passwords anywhere in cyberspace.

* DON'T: Post on places like Laura's or other places with personally identifiable information (I actually think that's a rule for this site.

* DON'T: Keep personal information in emails. If someone sends you an email with your address/phone/ss# in it, delete it. If you want to save a copy, save it on your computer, not on the email server.

* DON'T: Keep personal information on your smartphone. They're too easy to lose.

Probably a lot of other things I'm forgetting.

[Guest Robin Winter]

If you want to keep your private stuff private, use Firefox with the private browsing feature turned on, or, as I prefer, just have it clear everything whenever firefox closes. That way it will retain all your cookies and passwords etc for as long as you have firefox open, to save you having to retype everything, but when you close the browser it all goes kaput. No worries about any repair people seeing your history.

Also, of course, a good virus scanner and a hardware firewall (a good router will do). Also good to periodically run programs that take out the trash, as it were, like CCleaner, malwarebytes, Spybot S&D, etc.

Personally, I run Avira antivirus (the free version) with daily scans, CCleaner semi-regularly, and malwarebytes and Spybot only if I have reason to believe they are needed. I have a firewall via my router, but keep the windows firewall on as well.

[Guest Juniper Blue]

THANKS!!