Category Archives: Cyber Security

BBC Radio CWR, Cyber Security, Cybercrime, Gadget Man, Hardware, Home Security, Interview, Smart TV, Streaming, Tech Tips, Technology, The Gadget Man

The Gadget Man – Episode 179 – Navigating the Murky Waters of Jailbroken Streaming Devices: A Cautionary Tale

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Today I had the pleasure of chatting with Trish Adudu on her drivetime show on BBC Radio CWR about Jailbroken Streaming Devices.

In the golden era of television, our choices were simple, defined by the limited channels available through traditional broadcast. Fast forward to today, and the landscape has dramatically shifted. The digital revolution has ushered in an age where streaming platforms are king, offering a cornucopia of content that was once unimaginable. Yet, with this abundance comes a new set of challenges for consumers navigating the costs and legalities of accessing their favorite shows and movies.

Enter the controversial world of jailbroken or “dodgy” fire sticks. These modified devices promise a world of free content, bypassing the subscription fees of mainstream streaming services. At first glance, the allure is undeniable. Who wouldn’t want access to endless entertainment without the hefty price tag? But as we peel back the layers, the darker implications of these devices come to light.

The Legal Grey Zone

First and foremost, it’s crucial to acknowledge the elephant in the room: jailbroken fire sticks are illegal. Despite their widespread availability and the somewhat cavalier attitude some may have towards using them, they pose significant legal risks to users. Beyond the risk of fines or legal action, there’s a deeper issue at play here—the ethics of content consumption. In our quest for convenience and cost-saving, we must ask ourselves: at what price does this come to the creators and distributors of the content we consume?

The Cost of Convenience

The debate over streaming platforms’ pricing structures is valid, especially in a world grappling with rising living costs. However, turning to illegal alternatives like jailbroken fire sticks isn’t a victimless crime. It undermines the very industry that entertains us, potentially stifling the creation of new content. Moreover, the risks extend beyond legal ramifications. Using these devices can expose users to cybersecurity threats, including theft of personal and financial information. Trusting one’s digital safety to the hands of unknown, potentially criminal entities is a gamble few should be willing to take.

A Fragmented Marketplace

The current streaming landscape is indeed fragmented, with exclusive content spread across numerous platforms. This exclusivity can lead to subscription fatigue, as consumers find themselves subscribing to multiple services to access all the content they desire—a costly endeavor. This fragmentation fuels the temptation to seek out illegal alternatives. Yet, it also calls for a discussion on the sustainability of the current model and the need for more consumer-friendly solutions.

Looking Forward

As we navigate the evolving world of digital content consumption, it’s clear that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. While the allure of free content is undeniable, the risks and ethical implications of jailbroken streaming devices cannot be overlooked. It’s a reminder of the need for a balanced approach that respects the rights of content creators while also considering the affordability and accessibility for consumers. Perhaps the future will bring more innovative solutions to this dilemma, but until then, the debate rages on.

The gadget world is vast and ever-changing, but as we venture into its depths, let’s tread carefully, mindful of the legal and ethical boundaries that govern our digital playground.

Cyber Security, Cybercrime, Police

City of London Police teach all key stage two children across the UK about fraud and cyber crime

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  • Police launch a Cyber Detectives programme to all schools across the UK funded by Lloyds Banking Group
  • All key stage two children will be taught about policing principles, fraud and cybercrime prevention
  • Lessons will involve learning about fraud and cybercrime.

The City of London Police is pleased to announce its Mini Police programme will now be available to all key stage two pupils across the UK. The programme was originally piloted in 2018 at The Aldgate School in the City of London,

The partnership is between the City of London Police, Lloyds Banking Group who funded and co-developed the programme, and the Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education Association (PHSE) who will distribute the lessons to schools through a website link.  The programme aims to raise awareness of online fraud and its associated risks, and explore the skills pupils need to stay safe online and protect their personal information, as well as how to report concerns and access help.

The resource pack includes two comprehensive lesson plans for Year 5/6 pupils, with supporting PowerPoints, accompanied by teacher guidance, explaining how to ensure the most effective delivery of the lessons. The pack also contains information and guidance for parents, to help them stay informed about how online fraud could affect their child, along with practical tips and advice on how to keep safe.

The lessons will support pupils to:

  • Explain what online fraud is and identify and analyse some examples of scams;
  • Engage in cyber security awareness training to enhance an understanding of cyber threats of all kinds;
  • Describe the importance of protecting personal information and data online;
  • Explain why age restrictions for online games can help to keep people safe and prevent fraud; and.
  • Recognise ways to stay as safe as possible online and how to report concerns about online fraud;

The children will also learn what it means to be a police officer and the importance of working with the public to protect them from crime.

Cyber Detectives - Image Credit, City of London Police
Cyber Detectives – Image Credit, City of London Police

Temporary Commander, Clinton Blackburn of the City of London Police, Policing Lead Force for Fraud said:

“The Cyber Detectives project is an excellent opportunity for us to work with schools and teach children to protect themselves from cybercriminals.

“We have designed the programme so that the children receive age-appropriate messages that allow them to learn about policing and cybercrime in a stimulating environment.

“This programme highlights how important and effective partnership working is and we are looking forward to hearing the feedback from pupils, teachers and parents. With more children being online from a young age, the importance of learning about cybercrime and fraud has risen. The programme also makes children think about all aspects of online safety and how they can protect themselves and others.”

Brian Dilley, Fraud and Financial Crime Prevention Director, Lloyds Banking Group, said:

“Helping to keep our customers’ money safe by stopping fraud from happening in the first place is very important to us

“Joining forces with CoLP and PHSE to roll-out the Mini Police primary school programme across the country’s schools will help educate the next generation about financial fraud and build greater awareness among teachers, families and communities – the more people know about spotting the signs of scams, the safer we will all be.”

PSHE Association Subject Specialist, Lydia Stober says:

“The rise of online gaming and social media use means that fraud prevention education has never been more important, particularly for primary aged pupils who are exploring the online world at an early age. These PSHE education lessons from the City of London Police and Lloyds Banking Group will help pupils to recognise the signs of fraudulent activity online in a variety of different contexts including emails, websites and gaming. Pupils are also given the opportunity to discuss the potential risks to themselves and ways to reduce it, and understand the importance of age ratings in keeping them safe and avoiding online fraud.”

Anti-Virus, Apps, BBC Radio Suffolk, Blog Post, Coronavirus, Covid-19, Cyber Security, Education, Gadget Man, Internet Security, Interview, James Hazell, Matt Porter, Radio, Radio Interview, Security, Streaming, Technology, The Gadget Man

The Gadget Man – Episode 162 – Working From Home During the Coronavirus / Covid-19 Crisis

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Such are the strange times we live in, many of us now face working from home for the first time along with caring for our children.

I have worked from home extensively over the past 20 years and I thought I would try and share some tips on how I have been able to work effectively in a home environment.

This morning I spoke to James Hazell at BBC Radio Suffolk about the trials and tribulations about working from home. Listen in to the stream to hear what I had to say and especially the advice at the end.

Stay Safe and Healthy

If you have been given a laptop to use at home, then there is a danger that you may find yourself sitting in an armchair trying to work and you will soon find this isn’t going to work well.

  1. Set up a work environment in a spare room or even your bedroom where you can away from disturbances and distractions as best as possible.
  2. Find a comfortable chair and if possible sit near a window so you can get fresh air while you are working.
  3. Set up your computer, so that is a semi-permanent environment and will allow you to separate work from home and give you a place to ‘go to work’
  4. Get dressed, you don’t go to your place of work in your pyjamas, so again, getting dressed gets your prepared for work.
  5. Take plenty of breaks. If you have children at home, you will need to be able to give them attention. If you can set specific times during the day to stop work, get up and walk around and make yourself a drink.
  6. Try to begin and end your work-day as you would if you were going to your place of work. Let your employer know that these are your work times. Setting these boundaries will mean that you aren’t on-call 24/7.
  7. Most home-working requires an internet connection. Over the coming months, our communications links are going to be under a great deal of strain. The video streaming services are going to be used extensively and this will put a great deal of pressure on internet connection speeds. Home internet is very different to work internet due to what’s called ‘contention ratios’, so you should be prepared for slower than normal connection speeds.
  8. Ask your employer to provide you with a mobile device that can be used as a ‘tether’. This means that should traditional broadband experience issues, you can fall back onto connecting to the internet by connecting via a ‘personal mobile hotspot’.
  9. Make sure all of your internet-connected devices are up to date. This means ensuring anti-virus is updated where applicable and any operating systems updates on your computers, set-top boxes, TV’s, IpCams etc are updated
  10. Keep all of your battery-powered devices charged up, but don’t leave mobile phones plugged in all of the time as the batteries don’t work as effectively if they all continuously charged.
  11. Use a trusted VPN connection to secure your broadband connection further. I recommend Ivacy VPN. Using a VPN or Virtual Private Network secures your connection.

Finally, regardless of whether you are working at home or not, you WILL find the number of scam calls you receive will increase, mainly because you will find yourself at home so much more. NEVER give out any personal bank details over the phone including PIN numbers or passwords. Ignore all automated calls and just hang up. These people care little for the health or financial wellbeing of their victims. If in doubt, speak to a trusted friend or member of your family before taking any action that will cost you money.

Stay Well and see you soon!

Matt
www.thegadgetman.org.uk

Cyber Security, Security, wifi, Wireless broadband

Keeping Customer Data Safe In Your Business

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You’ve got a business, and you’ve got plenty of customers milling in and out of it every day you’re open and operating. Even when you’re closed, you’ve got an ecommerce website that allows people to order what they want from you whenever they want, allowing you to ship out products or services as soon as you’re next able to. It’s a great element to have to your business, and increases your exposure, outreach, and potential sales from these by tenfold.

But that means you’ve got a lot of data to keep track of at the same time. And this data is very important, so you need to keep it safe. So here’s just a couple of details to remember about storing customer data, in the safe and right ways.

 

Always Give Customers an Option

Whenever a customer comes through your ecommerce site, give them plenty of choice over how their details are used. Let them know how their information will be used whilst they’re on the site. Let your customers know they have the option to store their credit or debit details when they use your site, and that they also have the option for the system to forget all about their card. After all, it’s completely up to the person shopping with you whether or not you have their details on file, and you shouldn’t want it any other way.

Move On From Physical Storage

If you’re using physical storage to keep a track of your customer details, you might be missing a trick here. Not only do things like hard drives, USB sticks, and filing cabinets all have a maximum capacity to them, but they’re also quite hard to sort through. Flash drives alone have a huge risk to them, in that the data stored on them can be lost at any moment, and pieces are chipped away every time you log one in and out of your computer. And then you’ll have to look up a guide like https://setapp.com/how-to/usb-data-recovery.

So use cloud storage, or server based storage, instead. There’s a lot more room for expansion, and you can invest in private storage that only you have access to. End to end encryption, as well as the ability to search for the right files in seconds – it’s a real upgrade to have a look into at least.

Keep Outside Connections to a Minimum

If you’re looking to stay safe and secure in the modern day and age, you need to be sure as few people as possible have access to your company files. Especially the customer details you have stored for ease of access on both sides of the screen. So make sure only a select few people have the passwords or keys to the storage, and make sure only secured WIFIs have access.

Customer data is a priority. Security is a big part of maintaining business longevity, so it needs to be something you prioritise in your quest to take your company higher.

Cyber Security, Technology

Technology And Cyber Security

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Crimes that are associated with cybersecurity are from being problems created by the digital age as some would have you believe. Things like fraud and identity theft both existed long before the first computer was invented and criminals were finding ways of evolving their plans without the use of the internet. However, it is fair to say that now they have moved their operations on to the digital landscape it is time we are all prepared.

With that in mind, we are going to take a look at some of the tech options available to you so that you can stay safe and secure.

Understanding The Threat

The first thing you should do when it comes to cybersecurity is to build up your knowledge of what the threat actually is. That means learning what the different types of attacks are that might come your way and what form they are going to take. Before we look into these areas it is important to note that while the threat might seem extreme, there will always be people creating tools to help you combat these problems and sometimes common sense is your best line of defense.

Two of the common types of cyber attacks are listed below and the way they are used is also given as a brief description, this information will be critical to your success in staying safe online and in the digital world:

  • Malware

This term refers to malicious software such as:

  • Spyware
  • Ransomware
  • Viruses
  • Worms

Usually these types of software breach a computer’s security due to the user clicking on a link or downloading them without knowledge. This is where common sense will be a big factor in your security. To avoid having your information stolen through your PC or having malicious software break your home network, don’t click on links from unknown sources.

  • Phishing

This might be one of the terms you are most familiar with. Phishing refers to the practice of sending out communications that are fraudulent such as from a bank or government official that asks for private information. The aim is to steal sensitive data or payment details by posing as a trustworthy source. Once again you should use your own initiative to avoid these attacks where possible.

Software To Help

So, now you know some of the threats you are facing, what can you do? Well, there are some great basic tools that you can use to prevent falling victim to these attacks. The first is to ensure that you have a secure antivirus installed on your device. Companies like McAfee and Norton have been working tirelessly for years to provide you with software that will fight off malware that finds its way onto your computer.

However, sometimes you can get a data breach through alternative methods due to the fact that phishing scams can be highly evolved. Something you can do is sign up to protection services such as https://budgetboost.co/lifelock-cost-review/ that will look for breaches of your private information and secure it up.