Tag: Privacy

  • Google Announces Upcoming Option to Disable Buzz (for real this time)

    Google Buzz is a new Twitter/FriendFeed-esque social network which was released last week for all Gmail users.  Buzz allows you to share messages, photos, and links with your friends that use Gmail and is built right into your Gmail inbox so you’ll never miss a message. Google Buzz has had several privacy concerns since its…

  • Encrypt Your Important Data with TrueCrypt

    With privacy becoming a bigger and bigger issue in the digital world, it is becoming more important to protect your personal data.  The easiest way to keep your personal information secure is to encrypt it.  This can be done seamlessly and for free through a cool program called TrueCrypt. To start down the road of…

  • Gmail Now Uses Secure HTTPS Connection by Default

    When you see a web address that starts with https, it’s typically for something important like your bank account or online shopping.  That prefix means the information you submit – credit cards, home addresses, or social security numbers – are kept private between your computer and the site you’re visiting. Gmail started offering secure https…

  • Twitter Now Supports Geotagging (but you have to enable it first)

    You’ve probably heard the buzz for the last few weeks, and now it’s official – Twitter now supports geotagging your tweets.  What exactly does this mean? From Twitter Support: Twitter’s Geotagging feature allows users who opt-in to the service to selectively Geotag their tweets with their exact location and provide more context to users about…

  • Keep Your Phone Secure with Auto Lock

    While we’re generally protective of our wallets/purses (none of us would be caught dead leaving a wallet or purse unattended for more than a few minutes), we’re much more careless about another item we carry with that contains a great deal of personal information – our mobile phones. Before the advent of smartphones, losing your…

  • Wireless Security Tip: Secure Your Wireless Internet

    If you have your own wireless internet connection, it might be unsecured (meaning that you don’t have to type in a password to access it) or it may be using WEP encryption.  There are several important reasons why you should encrypt your internet (or switch from WEP encryption to a stronger method such as WPA…

  • Encrypt Your Data with BitLocker

    Data security is more important than ever in modern times, so to help keep your files safe, Windows Vista (Enterprise and Ultimate editions), Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 include an encryption program called BitLocker. BitLocker is essentially a software encryption program that encrypts a drive in such a way that if credentials are not…

  • Keep Your Inbox Spam-Free with TrashMail

    I’m not comfortable giving out my email address freely on the internet, but many websites require a valid email address when registering.  While this is typically harmless, it does open you up to the potential for spam – and who wants that? TrashMail lets you sneak past compulsory email registration by generating a disposable email…

  • Facebook Can Use Your Likeness in Advertisements Unless You Disable It

    Did you know that Facebook could use your name and picture in advertisements shown to your friends?  They can (and already are) unless you’ve dug through several layers of settings and manually disabled it. Facebook explains: Facebook occasionally pairs advertisements with relevant social actions from a user’s friends to create Facebook Ads. Facebook Ads make…