Internet

Is Your Password Secure?

How secure is your online life? Are your passwords easy to hack? Are you using a password that could be easily guessed or discovered?

Even having a great password is no guarantee of security if you leave copies of your passwords near your computer. If someone was in your home or office would they find it fairly easy to discover your passwords? Do you use the old hiding spots of under the keyboard or under your desk?

SplashData, a well-known provider of password management applications. has revealed its 25 worst passwords for 2011 with their article, When “Most Popular” Isn’t A Good Thing: Worst Passwords of the Year – And How to Fix Them.

The top five are all fairly simple passswords which would prove no match for even the most basic online hackers.

password
123456
12345678
qwerty
abc123

The rest of the passwords on the list are fairly simple with people expecting passwords like ‘iloveyou’ and ‘trustno1′ to offer them some security. It’s worth checking out the original list to see if any of your passwords are featured. If they are, change them right away. (We should all be changing our passwords regularly any way.)

On Wednesday during my Morning Café radio program on 98.5 Sonshine FM I chatted with our technology expert, David Cook. We discussed passwords and looked at the best ways to create good passwords or passphrases. If you want to stay safe online you can listen to our chat by clicking the play button on the audio player below.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Enjoy this post? Please share it:

D-Link Saves My Sanity

Oct 1st, 2011

by Rodney Olsen.

Comments are off for this post

My home internet woes finally seem to be over.

Several weeks ago we had need to replace our DSL modem and wireless router. I chose the Netgear DGN1000 modem/router as pictured on the left.

I’m not an I.T. expert but I certainly know my way around a computer. I’ve pulled computers apart and put them back together, helped friends with computer issues and can generally sort out many computer related issues that would cause most people to throw their hands up in despair. I say that because I want you to know that I know what I’m doing when it comes to setting up new hardware.

The Netgear initially piped fresh internet goodness down the line to our main computer and I thought life was good. That was until we opened up our secondary computer or other internet devices. The others would still get reasonable speeds but the main computer would all but freeze up. We kept getting IP conflict messages and a range of other internet related issues.

Doesn’t Free Mean Free?

I tried all kinds of scans and fixes but today I finally called the 24/7 free Netgear support line. After his initial garbled introduction, the guy helping me made a little more sense and we started working through the issue. He suggested a few changes to settings which I tried but ended up with the same issues. He told me that the issue was beyond his capability and so he would escalate the issue to a technician who could go a little further. He wished me a good day and then went on his way.

A couple of minutes later a new technician was on the line with an even more garbled introduction. Again, he thankfully slowed down enough for me to understand. He verified my identity and then I explained the issue again. Just as he was about to start providing help he said, “You are aware that this is a paid support service?” What? I told him that at no time had I been informed that I would have to pay for this support, that I had called the free support line and that I wouldn’t be paying anything for him to attempt to get a faulty product operating. I’m not in the habit of paying premium prices on gear that doesn’t work. I also resent free support lines that try to trick me into using a paid service. He understood my frustration and also wished me a good day.

Minutes later I was in the car heading to Dick Smith with the Netgear device on the seat beside me. I went into the store, found a D-Link DSL-2730B, paid the small difference between prices and headed home. After a very simple setup we now have working wireless internet on several devices around the house. I know that it’s early days but the signs are promising. No fuss, just working internet. That’s pretty much all I wanted in the first place.

I’m sure that Netgear products work well for many people but I’m certainly never going to buy anything from them again. I’m just pleased that I now have a D-Link product that lets me tell you this story without crashing my computer.

Enjoy this post? Please share it:

Did you hear a click?

Jun 10th, 2011

by Rodney Olsen.

6 comments

Enjoy this post? Please share it:

What’s Your View on WikiLeaks?

Dec 7th, 2010

by Rodney Olsen.

1 comment

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arrested in Britain after an international warrant was issued for him last week, London’s Metropolitan Police said. – ABC News

I’m sure that there are many points of view regarding WikiLeaks and its recently arrested founder Julian Assange. Some believe that releasing previously confidential documents will aid in openness and accountability. They would say that we as the people of democratic countries have the right to know what our elected governments are doing. Others are going as far as saying that publishing classified military documents online amounts to treason and that lives have been put at risk.

What do you think? Can there even be a simple answer or are you still unsure what to think of the revelations that have hit the internet and our news services recently?

Well over 500 mirror sites have already been created for WikiLeaks so the information being released isn’t about to go away any time soon.

Closer to home

The whole situation has me thinking a little closer to home. Do we have the right to know everything? Are there reasons that things should be kept from us? If so, who should make the decision about what is out in the open and what is kept confidential?

Should we expect to know everything that goes on in our workplace, even when it doesn’t concern us? Should boards of management, CEOs and others in senior positions reveal everything about their dealings with everyone inside and even outside the company? Would you be happy to have your employment records and complete pay details online for all to see? I imagine that it wouldn’t bother some people but others would find it a little more concerning.

It seems interesting to me that at the same time that many are calling for greater privacy there is a great deal of support to reveal government details. There was a huge uproar when people felt that Facebook didn’t regard their privacy highly enough. Now we want to expose private conversations between heads of state which may have far greater consequences.

Caught in between

To be honest, I’m caught in between. I think there should be a great deal of openness and accountability within government, especially when those governments are acting on our behalf, but on the other hand, I think there’s a lot to be said for electing a government and then handing over the responsibility of government to those we have chosen to represent us.

Getting personal

Making it even more personal, I’m glad that every conversation I have, every email I write and every thought that goes through my mind isn’t splashed across the web. I try to keep my conversations honourable but I know that sometimes I mess up and say things that should never have left my lips. I’m glad that some people don’t hear those words. When I’m writing emails I do my best to be careful with what I say but I must admit that I have, on occasion, sent emails which have been less than helpful. When it comes to my thoughts …. I’m ashamed at what goes through my mind at times. I’m glad that between the time I think about something and the time I act on my thoughts I have the opportunity to censor myself and filter my reactions.

I’m glad that every thought, word and deed by every person isn’t displayed around the world. I believe we all need to be careful about the way we conduct ourselves in public or in private. We need accountability. We need transparency and openness. But I’m wondering if in calling for confidential details of government conversations to become public property, we’re holding others to a standard we would refuse to be held to ourselves.

Enjoy this post? Please share it:

Fixing Facebook

May 20th, 2010

by Rodney Olsen.

6 comments

We seem to be hearing more and more about online privacy concerns recently. I’m glad that many people are starting to take the matter seriously. In general, we’ve been far too laid back in our attitudes to what is posted online and what we make availabel for the world to see. I recently asked Are You Exposing Yourself Online? and ran a poll to see if you would take part in Quit Facebook Day.

As I’ve said before, I’m not throwing the baby out with the bathwater but I am looking at ways to tighten up security where required. If you’re concerned about Facebook security, and you really should be, you don’t need to delete your account. You can now use a simple scan to review your Facebook security. It’s a simple matter of moving an icon onto your toolbar and then letting the application scan your Facebook settings.

If you think that all the talk about privacy online is a bit over the top and that no one will be checking out your private posts, think again. News.com.au is reporting on a new website which is specifically aimed at gathering details from Facebook pages.

Have you tightened up your online security? Does all the talk of security and privacy concern you? I’d be very interested in your thoughts on the issue. Please leave your comments in the comments section of this post.

Enjoy this post? Please share it: