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Articles from Robert Siciliano | Selfgrowth.com
- Covid-19 Remote Desktop Has Significant Risks - by Submitted on Mar 24, 2020 from Robert SicilianoAre you newly working from home? Or are you an old pro? Either way, it is likely you are using some form of remote desktop protocol. Those of us who have been working home as our primary means of earning a living, know these tools very well and are accustomed to eliminating the various ...
Views: 830 - It's Tax Time: Play it Safe or Lose Your Identity - by Submitted on Mar 12, 2020 from Robert SicilianoOnce again, tax time has rolled around, and though you technically have until April 15th, it’s always best to file a bit earlier…especially if you want to avoid setting yourself up for ID theft. How Could Filing Taxes Compromise Your Identity? Here’s how you could become a ...
Views: 847 - 12 Ways To Contain the hack stop the bleeding & eliminating the threat - by Submitted on Mar 07, 2020 from Robert SicilianoHey YOU, SMB, yeah I’m talking to you. There are a number of things that you can do to not only protect your personal information, but also the information you have in your business: Hire a professional – It is entirely possible the small business was hacked because they did not ...
Views: 807 - How to Prevent your Devices From Spying on You - by Submitted on Feb 27, 2020 from Robert SicilianoYou might not realize it, but your electronic devices may be tracking you. They know what you are doing, what you are reading, and the things you like to do. In almost every case, you give these devices permission to collect this info when you start using them. Here are some tips to help you ...
Views: 842 - How a Wi-Fi Hacker Snoops on Your Laptop and Mobile - by Submitted on Jan 30, 2020 from Robert SicilianoYou have likely heard of the dangers of using unsecure public Wi-Fi, so you know that hackers are out there snooping. It is pretty easy to hack into a laptop or mobile device that is on a public Wi-Fi connection with no protection. Hackers can read your emails, steal passwords, and even hijack ...
Views: 851 - Raising a Boy to Be a Man, not a Sex Predator - by Submitted on Jan 23, 2020 from Robert SicilianoIf you looked at a photo of a baby boy, could you ever predict that he would grow up to become a sexual predator? Probably not. However, a study shows that men who commit sexual crimes are more likely to have something called an “anxious attachment” to their mothers due to feeling ...
Views: 815 - Your Uber Driver May be a Criminal - by Submitted on Jan 16, 2020 from Robert SicilianoDo you Uber? If you do, you probably feel pretty safe getting into the car of a stranger. However, you might not be as safe as you think. Most people take for granted that Uber does background checks on its drivers, but there are actually a number of shady drivers who have recently been ...
Views: 795 - Quick and Dirty Disaster Prep Guide - by Submitted on Jan 10, 2020 from Robert SicilianoHow prepared are you for a disaster? Most of us are not prepared, at all, yet two-thirds of us live in an area where we are at a moderate to very high risk of experiencing a natural disaster. Here are a few things you should do, today, to start preparing for a “just in case” ...
Views: 754(1 vote) - Creating an Effective Business Continuity Plan - by Submitted on Jan 04, 2020 from Robert SicilianoMost of us have no idea when a disaster is about to strike, and even if we do have a little warning, it’s very possible that things can go very wrong. This is where you can put a business continuity plan to good use. What does this do? It gives your business the best odds of success ...
Views: 796 - A Guide to How Hackers Hack - by Submitted on Dec 27, 2019 from Robert SicilianoYou have surely heard of hackers, but do you really know how they work? Hackers are well known for being bad guys, though there are certainly good hackers out there too. Here’s a brief guide to help you understand how a hacker can hack: Directions for Hacking are Easy to Come ...
Views: 819 - SIM Swapping: What You Need to Know - by Submitted on Dec 19, 2019 from Robert SicilianoHave you heard of SIM swapping? It’s a new trick that hackers are using to get money and mess up your life. What is SIM Swapping? So, what is SIM swapping? It’s when a hacker tricks your cell phone company into thinking that you have activated your SIM card on another phone. In ...
Views: 1090(1 vote) - Louisiana Woman Tries to Buy a Million Dollar Home with False Document - by Submitted on Dec 12, 2019 from Robert SicilianoHave you ever seen a house and thought…I wish I could afford that? Some people actually try it, but let this story be a lesson learned: if you can’t afford the cost of a house, you probably shouldn’t try to buy it. Pamela Chandler was arrested and now faces forgery charges ...
Views: 815 - Fake Emails are Becoming a Major Issue for Businesses - by Submitted on Dec 04, 2019 from Robert SicilianoYou might be surprised to know that more than 3.4 billion fake emails are sent around the globe each day. What does this mean? It means that almost every company out there is vulnerable to cybercrimes in the form of “spoofing” and “phishing.” On top of this, most ...
Views: 790 - The Smart Parent Guide to Digital Literacy - by Submitted on Nov 27, 2019 from Robert SicilianoIf you are the parent of a child or teen who uses the internet, here are some stats you need to know: Stats About Teens and the Internet Teens think that the internet is mostly private They also think that they can make the best decisions for their life online They believe they are safe ...
Views: 805 - What is Two-Factor Authentication and How Does it Work? - by Submitted on Nov 22, 2019 from Robert SicilianoThere are a number of ways that you can protect yourself online, and one of the things you can do is to start using two-factor authentication. You probably have seen two-factor authentication even if you aren’t sure what it is. For instance, if you do online banking, your bank might ...
Views: 823 - Disinformation i.e. FAKE NEWS: How the Weaponization of Social Media Has You Conned - by Submitted on Nov 13, 2019 from Robert SicilianoThis post takes a hard and honest look at whats happening right now. You either “get it” or you are a victim of whats going on. Victims who read this will trash it and deny the reality of what they read. Denial is warm and comfortable. The truth is cold and can hurt. And nobody likes ...
Views: 843 - DoorDash Admits 4.9 Million Affected by Data Breach - by Submitted on Nov 07, 2019 from Robert SicilianoDoorDash has admitted that it has been the victim of a data breach, which has affected about 4.9 million merchants and people. In a recent blog post, DoorDash announced that it noticed some odd activity early in September from a third-party service. After looking into it, the company found ...
Views: 825 - YouTube's Spoon Feeding Pedophiles Kids Home Videos - by Submitted on Nov 07, 2019 from Robert SicilianoYouTube uses a recommendation algorithm to help people view things they’d like to see. Recently, the algorithm seemingly encouraged pedophiles (YouTube would have no way of knowing this) to watch videos of children playing at home, videos that the family members uploaded. A report from ...
Views: 766 - Gift Cards: The Newest Scam that You Should Be Aware of - by Submitted on Oct 27, 2019 from Robert SicilianoHackers are making a lot of money thanks to phishing attacks these days, and now they are also focusing on gift card scams. One of the most notorious scam groups, Scarlet Widow, which is out of Nigeria, has been boosting its efforts to scam people with gift cards since 2015. This group generally ...
Views: 815 - Medical Identity Theft: 12 Million Patients Breached - by Submitted on Oct 17, 2019 from Robert SicilianoQuest Diagnostics is a US-based company that provides medical testing services, and announced that it used third-party billing collection companies that were hit by a severe data breach. In fact, about 11.9 million Quest customers were affected. The compromised information could include ...
Views: 817 - First American Financial Exposes 885 Million Mortgage Documents - by Submitted on Aug 30, 2019 from Robert SicilianoApproximately 885 million digital documents have been exposed from mortgage deals that date back to 2003. First American Financial Corp is a provider of title insurance, as well as other services for the mortgage and real estate industries, and it allowed millions of records to be exposed ...
Views: 771 - Two Common Government Employee Impersonation Scams: What to Watch For - by Submitted on Aug 27, 2019 from Robert SicilianoOne of the biggest threats that taxpayers are facing these days is an aggressive scam where criminals call victims and pretend to be IRS agents. The goal? To steal money. All year but especially during tax filing season, the IRS will see a big surge in the number of scam calls, which tell ...
Views: 791 - Mass Shootings: Driven by Evil or a Desire for Celebrity Status? - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2019 from Robert SicilianoIf all a gunman, who opened fire and randomly killed nine people, wanted was 15 minutes of fame, he could have achieved this running naked into the field at a major league baseball game. At least one criminologist believes that the driving force behind mass shootings is a desire for celebrity ...
Views: 769 - Woman Murdered after Man Tricks Her with Lost Puppy Ruse - by Submitted on Aug 20, 2019 from Robert SicilianoThis entire post is brutal and for some, hard to read. But if there is a woman or girl in your life might benefit from being freaked out, read it and forward and share it. We’ve all heard about the man approaching a child, showing her a picture of his “lost” puppy, asking ...
Views: 702 - Another Rideshare Rape is an Epidemic - by Submitted on Aug 16, 2019 from Robert SicilianoWomen should never take a ride from a stranger because it’s dangerous – unless she’s paying the driver??? Wrong, of course. Uber and Lyft drivers provide paid rides to strangers as requested via the Uber and Lyft apps. As of August 2018 WhosDrivingyou.org tallied the number ...
Views: 804 - Should Life Insurance Policies Be Banned? - by Submitted on Aug 06, 2019 from Robert SicilianoIt’s fair to wonder how many people would still be alive today if there were never any such thing as a life insurance policy. Personally I can’t imagine NOT having a life insurance policy if you have children 17 and under. But the below info might ring true for some of you. An ...
Views: 746 - Apps for Stalkers Disguised as Parental Control Tools - by Submitted on Aug 01, 2019 from Robert SicilianoSell something called “SuperParent” or even the actual FlexiSpy — and all is swell. Frankly, I’m not opposed to monitoring a child’s phone, kids shouldn’t have phones anyways. But sell something called “iStalk” or “StalkU,” well ...
Views: 677 - You Know Tom Might Kill You So Why Do You Stay with Tom? - by Submitted on Jul 31, 2019 from Robert Siciliano“Tom” can also be “Alicia.” Nevertheless, it happens often enough to come up every so often in a crime documentary aired on the Investigation Discovery channel. The premise is as follows: A person is SO convinced that their spouse or soon-to-be ex-spouse is going ...
Views: 663 - Florida City Pays Hackers $600,000 after Scam - by Submitted on Jul 25, 2019 from Robert SicilianoRiviera Beach, a city in Florida, has agreed to pay a $600,000 ransom to hackers who attacked its network. This week, the City Council voted to pay the demands after coming up with no other option to meet the demands of the hackers. It seems that the hackers got access to the system when a ...
Views: 664 - Boy Scouts of America 12,000 Sex Abuse Victims is Normal - by Submitted on Jul 23, 2019 from Robert SicilianoThe Boy Scouts of American is no stranger to controversy, and now new information is shedding light on how many leaders were actually involved in a sex abuse scandal. According to official records of the Boy Scouts, more than 12,000 children were sexually assaulted while in the scout program. ...
Views: 633 - Reinforce Your Door with the Door Devil - by Submitted on Jul 16, 2019 from Robert SicilianoUnfortunately, there is no such thing as a totally burglar-proof home, but there is also no burglar who can get into any home. By taking a few steps and using some specific security measures, you can make your home ALMOST burglar-proof. When most homeowners consider security, they usually ...
Views: 679 - "Choking Game" Killing Kids, and Authorities Have to Step Up - by Submitted on Jul 11, 2019 from Robert SicilianoIt only took a minute for 12-year old Erik Robinson to die while playing a macabre game called the “Choking Game.” His mother desperately tried to save her son when she found him with a Boy Scout rope around his neck, but it was too late. Erik was brain dead due to lack of oxygen, ...
Views: 794 - Catfished Teen Murders Her Best Friend - by Submitted on Jul 09, 2019 from Robert SicilianoA teenager in Alaska, Denali Brehmer, killed her best friend after a man she met on the internet offered her $9 million to commit the murder. Brehmer, who is 18-years old, killed her 19-year old friend, Cynthia Hoffman, by shooting her in the back of the head at the urging of Darin Schilmiller, ...
Views: 725 - Police Say Scammers Are Stealing Deposits from Homeowners - by Submitted on Jul 04, 2019 from Robert SicilianoThe police in Port St. Lucie Florida have claimed that scammers are now posting homes as available for rent or purchase. You rent/purchase the home by putting a deposit down on the house, but you’re never given any keys. The scammers are getting their victims to the property and even a ...
Views: 607 - Fake Real Estate Agent Caught Stealing $30K in Jewelry - by Submitted on Jul 02, 2019 from Robert SicilianoRecently, a man was accused of pretending to be a real estate agent just to steal some jewelry from an open house. According to Toronto police, he has been arrested. The victims are a couple (their identity isn’t being listed for their safety). They had an open house in a small city ...
Views: 648 - Hackers Hacking Airport USB Ports - by Submitted on Jun 27, 2019 from Robert SicilianoHave you ever wondered if it’s a good idea to surf the internet using a public WiFi network at the airport? It’s heavily trafficked, so it’s more likely that your information could get stolen, right? In some cases, it is safe to use public WiFi; your information isn’t ...
Views: 635 - Deepfakes and the Impact on Cybersecurity Now and in the Future - by Submitted on Jun 25, 2019 from Robert SicilianoCan you believe what you see in a video? Most people say ‘yes,’ but the truth is, you no longer can. We all know that photos can be altered, but videos? Thanks to artificial intelligence, these, too, are being altered at a very quick rate. These videos, known as ...
Views: 611 - Young Kids Getting Sexually Exploited Online More Than Ever Before - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2019 from Robert SicilianoAn alarming new study is out, and if you are a parent, you should take note…children as young as 8-years old are being sexually exploited via social media. This is a definite downturn from past research, and it seems like one thing is to blame: live streaming. YouTube serves up videos ...
Views: 642 - Are Password Managers as Safe as You Think They Are? - by Submitted on Jun 13, 2019 from Robert SicilianoYou have probably heard of password managers, and you probably think they are pretty safe, right? Well, there is new research out there that may might make you think twice, especially if you use password managers like KeePass, 1Password, Lastpass, or Dashlane. Frankly, I’m not worried ...
Views: 626 - Anyone Can Scam You, Even Your Folks - by Submitted on Jun 11, 2019 from Robert SicilianoYou might feel pretty safe with your parents, but more and more stories are coming out about scammer parents—especially when it comes to getting into college. By now, we have all heard of the famous faces who have gotten caught up in the college admission scandal, but they are not the ...
Views: 625 - Facebook Wants my Social Security Number! - by Submitted on Jun 06, 2019 from Robert SicilianoWTH Facebook? Generally, I don’t have a problem giving out my SSN. That might seem contrary to the advice I give, but frankly, our SSNs are everywhere and if my insurance company needs it, I’ll generally just question them on it, maybe resist a bit, and if they insist, and I need ...
Views: 754 - Robert Siciliano on FOX Nation - by Submitted on Jun 05, 2019 from Robert SicilianoI recently had the opportunity to join a panel discussion on FOX Nation. We talked about the grid, and how cyber threats could be the next medium for global warfare. I was able to share opinions with fellow experts on privacy, information security and cybersecurity. Please watch and learn why it ...
Views: 565 - Who Has Access to Your Personal Info? The Answer Might Surprise You - by Submitted on May 30, 2019 from Robert SicilianoAre you aware that many people probably have access to your personal info? If you have ever gotten an apartment, have insurance, or applied for a job, someone has done a background check on you, and you might be shocked by what’s in there, including your debts, income, loan payments, and ...
Views: 1175 - Beware of Conference Invitation Scams - by Submitted on May 30, 2019 from Robert SicilianoConference invitation scams are those that involve a scammer sending invitations out to events with the intention of scamming the invitees. These might be real events or fake events, and the scammers target people including business professionals, lecturers, CEOs, researchers, philanthropists, ...
Views: 736 - WARNING: You or Your Members Could be Targets of List Scams - by Submitted on May 24, 2019 from Robert SicilianoThere are scammers out there targeting conference exhibitors and attendee. What are they looking for? Credit card numbers, money wires and personal information that they can use to steal identities. One of the ways that scammers get this information is by using invitation or list scams. ...
Views: 609 - How to Protect Your identity When Buying or Selling a Home - by Submitted on May 24, 2019 from Robert SicilianoIf you are in the process of buying or selling a home, at some point, you are going to have to disclose personal information when you go through the process. Because of this, a home buyer, especially, is much more likely to become a victim of identity theft. Here are some ways to protect your ...
Views: 624 - The "Mother of All Data Breaches?" It Could Be Here… - by Submitted on May 17, 2019 from Robert SicilianoYou have probably heard of one data breach after another these days, but this is one that you should really pay attention to: more than 772 million unique emails, along with more than 21 million unique passwords, have been exposed. Troy Hunt, who runs the website “Have I Been ...
Views: 537 - Youra Sheethed: My Dalliance Scambaiting a Nigerian Con - by Submitted on May 14, 2019 from Robert SicilianoI put an ad on Craigslist to sell a refrigerator that I no longer need. Within a few minutes I’m happy to report Micheal responded to buy it! SCAMMER: Hi am Micheal I like to ask if this item is till available for sale and what the present condition it. ME: Still for sale, someone is ...
Views: 604 - Youth Suicide on the Rise…is Social Media to Blame? - by Submitted on May 10, 2019 from Robert SicilianoA startling new study shows that youth suicide is on the rise, and it has risen in dramatic fashion. Data from the National Poison Data System shows that there were more than 1.6 million cases of kids from 10 to 24-years old attempting suicide by poison during the time between 2000 and 2018. ...
Views: 679 - Want to be a Cybercriminal? Try Facebook - by Submitted on May 03, 2019 from Robert SicilianoWhen you think of a cybercriminal, you probably picture someone in a black hoodie in a dark room on the dark web, but most cybercriminals are out there in plain sight, including on Facebook. Talos, a cybersecurity firm, found that people can easily join Facebook groups, and then participate ...
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