Twitter Chat

Twitter is used for connecting. It is used for socializing, sharing, and speaking to the world around you. Hashtags such as #CloudChat used by IBM to discuss cloud computing, is an example of a Twitter Chat. It's easy to get a lot of input using it, and it's easy to share with the world your ideas. However, it's based on Twitter and all of those limitations that it implies. Twitter has 140 character limits, and it can be difficult to ask a complex question within that space, let alone answer it. It's easy to find ways around those limits, but it's not always ideal. I absolutely adore Twitter, though, so I think that Twitter Chat is a great tool for those of us who spend probably way too much time on it.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2032657/listen-for-the-next-big-thing-on-twitter-twitterchats.html

Data, Security Pros, Scary

I read this article because of the title: "Why IT security pros can be scarier than the 'bad guys'". I could understand why they can be, but this article took it in a direction that I wasn't expecting. Our data is always being used and mined for information, to the point where businesses can target us better. Even this post about the article will be used in some way. Because our information is being collected, we could always ask the companies to not track us, but sometimes that defeats the purpose of why you're using them in the first place. For example the article mentioned Pinterest, due to the growing usage of pinners. I have plenty of information, and I know data about me is being collected. However, I love the use of Pinterest in my life, from recipes to inspirational quotes, so I willingly give them my information. I don't think we need to be scared at the way information is being collected, I think we all just need to be aware that we are willingly giving them that information about us by utilizing their products.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2029705/why-it-security-pros-can-be-scarier-than-the-bad-guys.html

I Love Twitter

So this article about Twitter implementing a standard to fight phishing is good news for me. I appreciate it (and applaud it) when companies implement strategies and software so that their consumers can have a better experience. I use twitter a lot, and I would prefer to not receive emails that could potentially hack my account. DMARC - the technology being used by Twitter now - is also being used by Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL, Facebook, Paypal, and Amazon. I was excited to see this news, which is why I am sharing it with you all. Going along with my security focus in this blog, be sure to always check thoroughly who is sending you an email, especially if they're asking you to re-login on a site. If you ever have any doubts about the email, contact the company directly and get verification. It's not worth losing access to your accounts and the data that you may have shared with any of them!

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2028993/twitter-implements-dmarc-standard-to-fight-phishing.html

Zombies

Yes, zombies. We all love them (and if you don't, you still know the hype). But there's a different type of zombie - that a really great article pointed out to me - that we should all be aware of. These are "Zombie Accounts". This article pointed out how many of use create accounts, or link websites/applications, that has access to a lot of personal information. We all try to be safe, but I think we tend to forget about these accounts and that they exist. The author of the article used MySpace as an example, and how he doesn't use it anymore but it still has a lot of information about him stored in it.

I love these types of articles where it's reminding us of different ways we can improve on securing our information. There are a lot of obvious ways that most of us don't seem to realize, and it's good to keep up on how to protect yourself. This particular article is an easy and great read, and the comments after the article are also worth reading. As one comment mentioned, all we need now is a program to help us find all of our lost and zombified accounts!

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2026090/how-to-prevent-zombie-accounts-from-haunting-your-digital-identity.html

Facebook & Twitter!

Fun news! There are some filter-type software and monitoring programs for Facebook and Twitter! They will monitor and alert you to any malicious activity, such as when your friends' updates are spam and scams and what-not. There's also programs now to help monitor your child's Facebook and Twitter accounts to make sure that they are posting appropriate content (if you are a parent).

These seemed to point out to me that the attacks really can originate from anywhere, including your social networking sites. It's also a good reminder that you shouldn't put all of your information ("overshare" was the term they used in the article) up on your profiles, as some of it may be critical and can open your accounts to a higher chance of being compromised. One of those friendly articles that reminds you of how dangerous the internet really can be, and yet how wonderful and useful it is, too.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2010916/lock-down-your-social-media-with-essential-security-add-ons.html