Here’s the Good News and the Bad News About Modern Technology

The good news is modern technology is absolutely amazing. It can do things and take us places that seem like magic to people only two generations removed. People who grew up watching the original Star Trek never saw the modern smartphone coming in their lifetimes. But here it is. And in many ways, it is better than the communicator that inspired it.

About Modern Technology

Technology is also shockingly inexpensive. Things like high-definition television and all the time/place shifting equipment you need cost less than ever. You can find DIRECTV & Internet offers with movie and sports packages for less than what standard cable packages used to cost. Top home internet speed are faster than business lines back in the day costing three times as much.

One of the greatest advances in modern technology has to do with how easy it has become for the average person to use. You don’t need a degree in geekology to make a short movie, take magnificent photos, or publish your own blog. It can all be done from your smartphone.

But for every piece of good news, there is bad news. Modern technology is neither good nor bad. But it can be used for good or bad. If you are not aware of the dangers, it can be extremely dangerous to you and your family. What follows are some of those dangers, and how you can protect yourself while getting the most from your tech:

Ransomeware

How would you like to be charged $300 in a currency you don’t understand, for access to items that already belong to you? That is exactly what happens when you become a victim of ransomware. Bad actors break into your computing devices remotely, encrypt your data, lock you out of it, and charge you a fee to get back into it.

This is the type of attack that recently hit hospitals and utilities around the world. The good news is that you can protect yourself from ransomeware. The easiest insurance against such an attack is to keep a good backup of your system. When ransomeware strikes, just nuke the whole thing and start fresh.

You will notice that Macs and iPhones don’t tend to be among the affected devices. Windows PC running Windows 10 are also immune from the latest rounds of attacks. So updating your Windows PC and keeping it that way is a good way to defend yourself.

Phishing

The most prevalent type of danger you face today is phishing. For the criminals, it is cheap, easy, and low-risk. For the victims, it is devilishly difficult to detect. And it can cost you everything. Phishing is when a criminal poses as someone you trust, and tricks you into giving them sensitive information.

The most common form is in email. It will look like an official email from Apple, Amazon, Twitter, or someone else holding your credentials or credit card information. The email will look official. It does not matter what it says. The point of the email is to get you to click on a link that goes to an official-looking site where you confirm your credentials.

The story will be that you have been hacked, or there is a problem with your account and they are going to have to discontinue it until you take some action. You should never ever do this no matter how real the site looks.

The way to defeat this is to never ever respond or take any action whatsoever. If you are frightened that it might be real, go to the site from the browser, never from the link in the email. Stay strong, and you will not be phished. While there are ways to identify a phishing email, your best defense is to never, ever click on a link in an email Never!

There are many other ways people will try to take advantage of you via tech. Most of them can be defeated by the same kind of common sense that keeps you safe from any con artist. Beyond that, keep your tech up to date with the latest OS and patches. And never, ever click on links in email. Never!