Living The Lefestyle - Monday 4/15/24
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crewahl
Posts: 3,807 Member
This is a thread for everyone. If you're new to GoaD, or to weight loss, your questions and comments are always welcome. If you're maintaining, or a long-term loser, your thoughts on the topic may be just what someone else needs to hear. If you're reading this, join in the discussion!
Each weekday, a new topic is offered up for discussion.
Monday - crewahl (Charlie)
Tuesday – Wildcard
Wednesday-misterhub (Greg)
Thursday -imastar2 (Derrick)
Friday - Wildcard
Today's Topic: Security
(Departing a little from weight-related topics today.)
We all know things about each other in this forum, and there are things we don’t know. What steps do you take to protect your identity, online or otherwise?
Each weekday, a new topic is offered up for discussion.
Monday - crewahl (Charlie)
Tuesday – Wildcard
Wednesday-misterhub (Greg)
Thursday -imastar2 (Derrick)
Friday - Wildcard
Today's Topic: Security
(Departing a little from weight-related topics today.)
We all know things about each other in this forum, and there are things we don’t know. What steps do you take to protect your identity, online or otherwise?
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This is top of mind for me at the moment, and I’ll clarify why at the end (not anything bad). Below are steps we take, in no particular order.
- Any paper that comes into the house with our name or address gets shredded.
- We download our bills rather than have them mailed to us (and sitting in a mailbox).
- We use the “Hold Mail” feature at USPS when we’re on vacation.
- Any financial stuff we sent via USPS gets dropped in a slot inside the post office.
- We never give out personal information to someone who initiates a call to us.
- Our mobile devices are locked.
- Our computer is behind a power switch, and if we’re not using it there’s no power to the computer to start it (poor man's airgap).
- All of our account have unique, lengthy and reasonably complex passwords.
- We’ve frozen our credit information at the three major credit bureaus; people can’t open accounts w/o access.
- Every two years, we update the passwords on all our financial and medical accounts.
- This year, we’re making sure we have two-factor authentication on for all financial and medical accounts.
Paranoid? Maybe a little. But there have been more and more data breaches resulting in more and more of our personal information being available - including name, date of birth, and social security number. A little paranoia isn’t an unreasonable response in these times.
So I’m once again in the process of updating passwords. That frustrates my wife, because she was just starting to remember some of the more prominent passwords - as was I. And that should explain why this topic is top of m8nd at the moment. 😉0 -
You have a very well thoughtout plan Charlie. Wish that I could claim the same. In the spirit of protecting personal information, I'm not going to discuss the things that we actually do. 😄1
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Has anyone tried a password manager, such as Bitwarden?0
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Is it a fool's errand trying to beat security breaches? I don't know. We've had an IRS breach, medical records breaches, online hacks, spam calls for personal information, you name it. Recently, my wife and I were unable to get Covid 19 vaccine updates recommended by the CDC because of a security breach that affected Medicare payments. When I was in the military, I had a Top Secret clearance and personally thought that they handed those out as easily as candy at Halloween. I don't ignore security and make reasonable attempts to secure my personal information. I am not, however, going to spend an extraordinary amount of time and go to any length to guarantee personal security.
Tim0 -
I use a VPN. We shred stuff with our name and address on it. We use "Hold Mail." I use very strong passwords. We don't give out info without knowing for certain to whom we are giving it. We drop all outgoing mail into a mailbox at the post office. Phones are locked. We use two-factor on the majority of our accounts.0
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I've become more conscious of this issue, and thankfully, technology has made it easier to manage. For example, I allow Google to choose a strong password for me on most new sign-ups, and I do have a password locker to keep track of these. I've had attempts at identity theft related to unemployment benefit requests and now I get a PIN from the IRS for my taxes, and have been given multiple free years of credit score tracking, dark-web searching, and those sorts of things. Indeed, just yesterday I got notice from a healthcare provider I haven't used in over 20 years that they had a data breech and some of my personal identifying information was stolen. Whee.
I have an internet footprint based on my academic work, so I'm kind of stuck with that. I have taken advantage of a service that is supposed to remove identifying information from a lot of websites, but I'm not sure how well it works in real life. Given the current threat level to the Jewish community, and my role in multiple local Jewish institutions, I would prefer that my address not be easily found.
We have also "hardened" our home in a number of ways, that (like Phil), I will not share here.
It's a much tougher world than it used to be, huh?1 -
Has anyone tried a password manager, such as Bitwarden?
I have not, for two reasons - at least one of which is probably valid.- My understanding is the verification requires a internet connection, which is not always available.
- If I were a good hacker, the one place at the top of my target list would be a password manager database.
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Flintwinch wrote: »Is it a fool's errand trying to beat security breaches? I don't know. Tim
It probably is, I agree. I’m trying to a) not make it easy to get to me, and b) limit the value they get from any info of mine they obtain. 🤷🏻♂️0 -
steve0mania wrote: »It's a much tougher world than it used to be, huh?
Who knew what we’d end up paying for all this convenience? And yet, even as a fairly committed privacy nut, I still can’t give it up.0 -
And yes, I saw that typo in the title, said “I’ve gotta go back and fix that”. Did I? Apparently not. 🤯0
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Has anyone tried a password manager, such as Bitwarden?
I have not, for two reasons - at least one of which is probably valid.- My understanding is the verification requires a internet connection, which is not always available.
- If I were a good hacker, the one place at the top of my target list would be a password manager database.
I use Keeper, which I have been using for over a decade. Managers such as Keeper and LastPass - most to be honest - have to undergo Federal review and periodic audits of their security protocols. While no cyber tool is without risk, password managers have a pretty good track record.
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Just to add one more thought: I somehow ended up as the chair of my synagogue's safety and security committee. I have no background in this sort of thing, so I'd say it's been "interesting" to say the least. I'm obviously not in a position to share any of our security approaches here, but it's been a lot of pressure to continue to harden our infrastructure, ensure we have the right personnel in place, and to optimize our security procedures.
Fun related bonus: I'm taking the FBI Citizen's Academy course now. It's just started, but it's already so interesting.1 -
I am required to use AnyConnect (CITRIX) for work. For personal use, I use NordVPN. I have had very little issue with either. All software has the occasional issue, but I have found both to be reliable, easy to configure, and neither has slowed down my transfer speed appreciably.
Once the VPN is up and connected to a server, you just use your computer as you normally would. You'll forget you have a VPN at all after a while.
With regard to protection, your modem is insulated from outside threats because they see a completely different IP address that what you are actually using. They don't know you're there because they can't see you. Plus, the VPN software watches for threats and is very vigilant.
I use a VPN on my laptop, my phone, and my Kindle. I am convinced everyone should use a VPN, especially if you use your device in public spaces.1 -
I hadn't thought about houses of worship until Steve mentioned it. I attend what could generally be called a Progressive Christian church. We have had threats and anti-homosexual literature with graphic pictures placed on car windshields during services, had a guy standing in front of our church outdoors denouncing our beliefs. No violence yet, but we have considered hiring off-duty cops for security detail on Sundays.1
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steve0mania wrote: »Fun related bonus: I'm taking the FBI Citizen's Academy course now. It's just started, but it's already so interesting.
I hope you get a vest out of the deal, Steve! 😉
Seriously, though, that sounds both really interesting and intimidating.0
