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Just like older generations never thought that the dial phone in the kitchen could be dangerous (think phone scams), today’s kids don’t have a clue how hazardous smartphone apps can really be. They are a godsend to pedophiles, scammers and hackers. And let’s not forget other kids who just want to be cruel bullies.

Parents should have informative discussions with their kids about the various apps out there. And it’s okay to forbid particular apps you aren’t comfortable with. Like Musicly, search “

As a parent, you may not be crazy about your child spending a lot of time “gaming.” Chances are good that your feelings are fueled by the fact that kids should play outside, be more social, and are getting addicted to tech or maybe the correlation between childhood obesity and excess computer time. It’s not pretty.

However, there’s another elephant in the room, perhaps squeezing out the obesity threat: the pedophile threat.

Recently on a Long Island college campus, a male student was found to be t

As much as you try, the unfortunate truth is that hackers are going to try to attack and access your WordPress website or blog, whether you like it or not. So, it is up to you to make sure you make the hacker’s job as difficult as possible. Here are some tips:

1. Use Plugins

One way to make your WordPress account less appealing is to use security plugins. These vary in quality, and you might have to purchase some of them, too. Just make sure to do some research before buying them, and when you do,

Yes, believe it or not, you CAN get by in life with a wallet that just has a little cash, a store card or two, one to two credit cards and your ID. Unless you absolutely need your insurance card or Social Security card, leave those items at home.

For years now, wallets have been on the market that you can stuff everything into, save for the kitchen sink. This doesn’t mean you must carry a ridiculous bulging wallet everywhere you go.

Now you may not mind having to dig through your wallet for five m

So Macs can be infected with malware. Who would have ever thought? The malware at issue here is the dreaded ransomware. Ransomware scrambles up your files, and the hacker at the helm says he’ll give you the cyber “key” in exchange for a handsome payment.

Ransomware historically has primarily impacted Windows users, but recently it got into OS X—its latest version, Transmission.

• The virus cyber-incubates for three days.
• Then with a Tor client, it connects to an Internet server and locks vulnerable f

In France, anything is possible. Like getting tossed in jail for posting your children’s photos on Facebook.

Yes indeed, it’s true. People in France can be put behind bars for putting their kids’ pictures on Facebook. Or, they may face heavy fines. This is because the French authorities deem posting kids’ photos online threatens their security.

Parents are being warned about the consequences of this violation. The authorities believe that posting images of one’s kids online can lead to some pretty

What’s it gonna take for companies to crack down on their cybersecurity? What’s holding them back? Why do we keep hearing about one company data breach after another?

Well, there’s just not enough IT talent going around. The irony is that most company higher-ups admit that cybersecurity is very important and can even name specific situations that could compromise security, such as

having multiple vendors vs. only a single vendor; not having quality-level encryption in place; allowing employees to

Here’s one for the know-it-alls: Kids are 35 percent more likely to become victims of identity theft than are adults. Betcha didn’t know that! This startling news comes from a 2015 Javelin Strategy & Release study.

Needless to say, the bulk of parents aren’t on top of this problem, unaware that thieves go after children’s SSNs like two-year-olds grabbing at candy. Thieves know that kids (and their parents) don’t monitor their credit reports. Thieves know that they can get away with their crime al

Some people believe that monitoring your kids’ online activities crosses the line of privacy or trust. But monitoring and controlling online activities is, essentially, no different than controlling access to the cookie jar or TV or even locking a liquor cabinet.

Which brings me to a way that parents can always know exactly what their kids are doing in cyberspace. And control when, too. This is possible due to a type of software known as “parental control” that monitors the goings-on of any conne

Identity thieves are after children’s Social Security numbers. With this number, a thief can do so many things like open a credit card account and rent an apartment. Kids’ SSNs have great appeal to crooks because:

• A child’s record is usually very clean.
• This means fertile opportunities for new credit lines.
• Kids usually don’t check their credit reports and thus the fraud can go undetected for years.

Parents should consider putting a freeze on their kids’ credit. Simply getting the credit monitored w

As part of Gemalto’s #ChipAwayAtFraud campaign, I’m being tasked with numerous tasks, some tacky, some essential to living. Gemalto, one of the world’s leaders in digital security, wants a real-world take on the EMV card experience. Which includes the security benefits EMV cards presents. You know EMV; it’s the “chip” credit card that by now, you should have. EMV by the way stands for Euro/MasterCard/Visa. The Euro part essentially means that’s where the card was first deployed.

If you don’t have

Frankly, naked babies shouldn’t be a big deal. If you don’t have naked baby pictures of your kids in the kitchen sink then you aren’t human. BUT….the world has changed. If you compare posting your children’s photos online with whipping out a wallet photo of your toddler daughter in the bathtub to your dinner party guests, I will have a bird.

This is because people just love to post images of their partially or completely naked toddlers and preschoolers online: in bathtubs, those inner tube swimmi

Companies are constantly attacked by hackers, but what if those attacks come from the inside? More companies than ever before are dealing with insider security threats.Here are 11 steps that all organizations should take to mitigate these threats and protect important company data:

1. Always encrypt your data If you want to minimize the impact of an insider threat, always encrypt data. Not all employees need access to all data and encryption adds another layer of protection.
2. Know the different types

Wow cool! A device that lets you know, via Internet, when your milk is beginning to sour! And a connected thermostat—turning the heat up remotely an hour before you get home to save money…and “smart” fitness monitors, baby monitors, watches…

Slow down. Don’t buy a single smart device until you ask yourself these 10 questions. And frankly, there’s a lot of effort in some of these questions. But, security isn’t always easy. Check it out.

• Was the company ever hacked? Google this to find out.
• If so, di

You just learned you have a new credit card account by checking your credit or because a bill collector called you. Problem is that you don’t remember ever applying for it. You must find out what’s behind this new account and how it got there.

• Call the corresponding phone number listed with the account seen on your credit report.
• Begin the process for disputing the entire account.
• Get the name (and employee ID number) of every person you speak to and a transaction or reference number for every phon

No company is immune from hackers—even a toy company. Hong Kong based VTech got hit by a hacker recently. This company makes techy educational toys for kids, and its database got breached.

Customers go to the Learning Lodge store and download content to their children’s VTech devices. The devices for downloading to are a tablet, watch and action camera.

But recently, this gateway store was attacked.

Some customers’ private information—now in the hands of the hacker—may put them at risk for being vi

Burglars actually peruse social media to see who’s on vacation. In fact, 69 burglars were interviewed by Edith Cowan University in Australia, and perusing social media kept coming up as a way to find victims.

Keep your cyber mouth shut till you return. Here are more tips:

Get to know your neighbors. This way they’ll be more inclined to ask a stranger, who’s loitering around your yard, what they’re doing there.

Don’t show off. Like anyone else, burglars are attracted to the niftiest house on the blo

Are you a cyber-blabber? Even a post about your daily afternoon foray to the sub sandwich shop could get you in trouble: A burglar reading this knows when to rob your house. But it doesn’t end there. STOP THE MADNESS!

The Giants: Facebook and Twitter

• Be careful what you post on Facebook and tweet about. It can be used against you in court, even something as innocuous as: “I’m training for my very first 10K.” Not good if you’re suing someone who hit your car for back pain and suffering.
• Lawyers will

Are you a shredder? I hope so. No identity thief on this planet is going to want to attempt to reconstruct cross-shredded documents.

So what, then, should you make a habit of shredding?

• All financial documents and information, including financial information you’ve jotted on a Post-it note.
• Credit card receipts unless you want to file these away for end-of-month calculations, but ultimately, you have your monthly statements so you will not have use for them anyways.
• Old property tax statements (keep

Thinking of bringing a credit card with you on your travels? You can end up in a jam: You just treated your extended family to fine dining in France. Time to pay; your credit card is declined.

If you try to make a purchase overseas, your credit card company might think it’s fraudulent, since it would appear anomalous, relative to your usual, U.S. purchases.

So before you leave for your trip:

• Back up credit card data. It’s always important to have a backup of your card data, both online and in print