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And in the latest installment of “breaking news” that shouldn’t surprise you at all…
…FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III admitted that the United States has used drones over US airspace. It was the first time an FBI official publicly admitted such a program exists, but if you want to believe pop culture (the latest Bourne installment, a recent Castle episode, the Call of Duty video game), drone use is more common than we think.
What we know:
- Drones (or unmanned, remotely piloted aircraft) have been used since the early 1900s, for various purposes, primarily military and law enforcement, though there are increasing demands for public use.
- The Drug Enforcement Agency and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have both tested drones for use in investigations.
- The Federal Aviation Administration has to approve all drone use in US airspace.
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Sileo In the News by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Drones, Expert, FBI, Privacy, Sileo, surveillance
I’m in the business of encouraging people to keep their guard up. I’m always telling people to watch for signs of something that doesn’t feel quite right, take precautionary measures, and stay informed. But even I have to question the tactics some are recommending when it comes to reacting to the NSA PRISM surveillance program leaked by Edward Snowden. In a previous post on this topic, I said it isn’t a black or white argument, but some people are asking you to make it one.
Best-selling author, technology expert and Columbia Law School professor, Tim Wu, has said that web users have a responsibility to quit Internet companies like Google, Facebook, Apple, Yahoo and Skype if it is indeed verified that they have been collaborating with the NSA. In fact, Wu bluntly proclaimed, “Quit Facebook and use another search engine. It’s simple. It’s nice to keep in touch with your friends. But I think if you find out if it’s true that these companies are involved in these surveillance programs you should just quit.” Wu acknowledged that there is still much to learn about this program and admitted it was no surprise that PRISM exists, saying, “When you have enormous concentrations of data in a few hands, spying becomes very easy.”
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Online Privacy, Sileo In the News, Uncategorized by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Expert, NSA, PRISM, Privacy, Sileo, Snowden, surveillance
When you log onto the Verizon Precision Market Insights website, the giant catch phrase that jumps out at you in bold red letters is:
“Know your audience more precisely.
Drive your business more effectively.”
Verizon is pulling no punches when it comes to letting advertisers know that they have valuable data- OUR data- and they’re willing to share it. For a price of course. Phone carriers, who see a continued decline in contract subscriber growth and voice calls, are hoping to generate new sources of revenue by selling the data they collect about us. They already collect information about user location and Web surfing and application use (which informs them about such things as travels, interests and demographics) to adjust their networks to handle traffic better. Now they have begun to sell this data.
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Identity Theft Prevention, Online Privacy, Uncategorized by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: AT&T, Big Data, Expert, opt out, Phone Surveillance, Privacy, Sileo, Sprint, surveillance, T-Mobile, Verizon, Wire Tapping
Do you value national security? Do you want to live free of fear from random terrorist acts like the Boston Marathon bombing? Do you value your privacy? Should you be allowed to act in legal ways without others (namely, the government) digitally eavesdropping on your secrets?
A former data spy is asking us to decide where we stand on the spectrum separating security and privacy. Edward Snowden, 29, a former contractor to the National Security Agency (the guys and gals in charge of wire-tapping phones and internet traffic) and an employee of the CIA, leaked classified documents to reporters about two far-reaching U.S. surveillance programs. Fearing government reprisal, Snowden is hiding in Hong Kong, a country he believes has “a spirited commitment to free speech and the right of political dissent”.
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: Expert, NSA, Privacy, Sileo, Snowden, surveillance
Before you read this article, stop and picture yourself as a 16 year old. Now that you’ve recovered from the trauma of that, think about this question: what thoughts consumed your time – your favorite band, your first car, your first love, your first job, your first password? Certainly not the latter, and you most likely weren’t thinking about online privacy issues.
It’s no surprise then that today’s teens don’t think about them much either, although they do more than most of us ever had to. The Pew Research Center recently conducted a survey entitled Teens, Social Media, and Privacy and found a variety of interesting statistics.
Teens share more about themselves on social media sites than they did according to the previous survey from 2006. A few of the more significant ones:
- 91% post a photo of themselves (up from 79%)
- 71% post their school name (up from 49%)
Posted in Online Privacy, Social Media Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: John Sileo, online privacy, Online/Social Media Privacy, Privacy, Sileo, social networking, Teenagers, teens
School is out for the summer and the tasks that often fall upon the shoulders of your local schools are now sitting squarely on yours. In addition to making sure your kids practice their math facts, read regularly and get plenty of exercise, you’ll want to watch out for how they spend their free time when it comes to using Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and other sites that can expose their social media privacy.
Social Media refers to web-based and mobile applications that allow individuals and organizations to create, engage, and share new user-generated or existing content in digital environments through multi-way communication. Okay, that’s too technical. Social media is the use of Internet tools to communicate with a broader group. Some of the most common examples are listed above. If you have elementary aged children, they may use more secure, school-controlled forms such as Schoology, Edmodo or Club Penguin, but if your kids are older, I can almost guarantee they’re into Social Media sites whether you know if or not.
Posted in Online Privacy, Social Media Privacy, Uncategorized by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "Online Privacy Expert", internet safety, John Sileo, online privacy, Social Media Privacy, social media safety, Social Networking Privacy
I finally got around to watching the latest 007 installment, Skyfall, and it appears even James Bond has entered into the world of Cyber Crime as he tries to protect a computer drive with a list of British agents from falling into the wrong hands. And like the proverbial victims in a James Bond flick, you and your business data are under assault, even though it may not always be as obvious as getting thrown off a train. Why? Because your business data is profitable to would-be thieves. And for many of those thieves, that data is easy to get and the theft can be next to impossible to trace.
Sony PlayStation Network, Citigroup, Lockheed and several others have seen more than 100 million customer records breached, costing billions in recovery costs and reputation damage. If it can happen to the big boys, it can happen to you. If you don’t have Bond on your side fighting off the villains, take these steps to take to secure your business data:
Posted in Cyber Data Security, Digital Reputation & Trust, Fraud Detection & Prevention, Identity Theft Prevention by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: "prevention of identity theft", “data breaches”, “How to Prevent Identity Theft”, “Prevent ID Theft”, “Prevent Identity Theft”, “Preventing Identity Theft”, “Prevention of ID Theft”, “security breach”, “wireless data leaks”, Crime, Cyber, Data Breach, data security, Expert, John Sileo, mobile data, Online, Privacy, safety, Scams, Security, Sileo
Although there is a great deal of excitement over the concept of a breach-proof internet, for now Data security training is the only foolproof protection businesses have against the Syrian Electronic Army, Chinese hackers and a host of other internet-based attackers.
Such attackers know that employees tend to be the first line of defense against hackers targeting businesses and they’ve been succesfully breaching sensitive data—financial records, trade secrets and personal information — in more and more high profile cases.
But what if the internet was “hacker-proof”?
Researchers at Los Alamos National Labs in New Mexico believe they have found a way to use quantum physics to cloak internet communications. Businessweek explains that this method, which researchers call “network-centric quantum communications,” uses “digital keys, generated by a truly random set of numbers, theoretically [leaving] hackers with no way to figure out the key’s internal coding.”
As you might imagine, it’s a complicated process, and one that is not without its flaws:
Posted in Cyber Data Security by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: data security training, digital reputation
Skype is often praised for being free to use, but your online data security may be the real price you pay.
A recent experiment conducted by Ars Technica, with the help of independent security researcher Ashkan Soltani, proved that Skype operator, Microsoft, just can’t keep its nose out of private messages. Soltani and Ars Technica sent through four test links and discovered that two of them were clicked on. Even though snooping is technically within its right due to the terms of use customers agree to, the Skype encryption assurance states:
“All Skype-to-Skype voice, video, and instant message conversations are encrypted. This protects you from potential eavesdropping by malicious users.”
I guess they consider themselves exempt. Of course, Skype reserves the right to see personal details in order to delete viruses and protect against fraud. In other words, they intend to use this ability for your own good.
Posted in Online Privacy by Identity Theft Speaker John Sileo.
Tags: data security, online privacy
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Internet Privacy Expert Reviews DuckDuckGo Private Search Engine
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And in the latest installment of “breaking news” that shouldn’t surprise you at all…
