Articles tagged: Featured
Is It OK to Leave a Thumb Drive Inserted All the Time?
Leaving a flash drive or USB thumb drive plugged in all the time runs a small risk of prematurely wearing it out. We’ll look at why, and what to do.
Will AI Crack Your Passwords?
We’re seeing AI associated with many things. Cracking your passwords is now on the list.
Don’t Use Windows Built-in Image Backup
The Windows 7 Backup and Restore tool is still present in Windows 11, but that doesn’t mean you should use it.
Why is My Outlook.com Email Suddenly Full?
Microsoft made a confusing change to how storage is allocated between Outlook.com and OneDrive.
What’s the Best Password Manager for 2024?
The best password manager is the password manager you’ll use (within reason, of course).
Is AI Taking Over the World?
AI isn’t about to enslave humanity — at least not any time soon — but it’s definitely here and changing the world in both positive and negative ways.
Running CHKDSK When CHKDSK Won’t Run
Normally, you can request CHKDSK be run on the system drive at the next reboot. If that doesn’t work, there is another way.
Why You — Yes, You — Are a Target of Hackers
Even if your bank account is zero or you’re just not that interesting, hackers are still after your accounts. Here’s why, and what you can do.
How Should I Back Up When Traveling?
Backing up while on the road can be a challenge. I’ll review what’s practical and how to keep your data safe.
What Encryption Software Do You Recommend?
There are many different tools for encryption. The right one depends on what you’re attempting to accomplish.
Why Is It Important to Have Different Passwords on Different Accounts?
Using a different password for every login is crucial — and it doesn’t have to be difficult.
How to Use Cloud Storage Safely
Cloud service providers often give us lots of storage we can use for cloud backup. How to use it safely, however, isn’t always obvious.
Just What Is Common Sense?
‘Common sense’ is frequently suggested, often missing, and rarely defined. I’ll take a look at some of what I feel are the characteristics of common sense.
It Pays to Be Skeptical
If we would all be a little more skeptical, we’d be safer and the internet would be a more trustworthy place.
Is Using the Cloud Safe?
As security compromises seem to happen regularly, many ask, “Is using the cloud safe?” It’s as safe as you make it.
Internet Safety: 7 Steps to Staying Safe Online
Online security is critical. Here are the key steps you can take to keep yourself safe on the internet.
Why Can’t I Get My Account Back?
Way too often, I hear from people who have lost their accounts permanently. Here’s how to avoid being one of them.
What to Do About the LastPass Breach
The most recent LastPass security incident has many people concerned.
Is OneDrive a Backup?
OneDrive is a powerful tool, but thinking of it as a backup can take you down a dangerous path.
Someone’s Sending from My Email Address! How Do I Stop Them?
Email spoofing is rampant. Spammers often send email that looks like it came from you, and there’s little that you can do about it.
Your Social Media Posts Can All Disappear
Every time you use someone else’s service, you put yourself and your content in their hands… for better or worse.
Please Set Up and Maintain Account Recovery Information
Account recovery information is an important yet often overlooked part of account security. Managed poorly, it can lead to permanent account loss.
How Do I Tell If My Hard Drive Is Too Old?
Age isn’t the most important factor when evaluating hard disk risk of failure. I’ll discuss what is, and what you should be doing to protect yourself.
How Do I Disable OneDrive in Office 365?
OneDrive can be useful, and it can be annoying. It’s on by default, but it’s not terribly difficult to decouple or turn off.
How to Back Up a Machine That Won’t Boot
The rescue or emergency disk provided by many backup programs is more useful than most people realize.
How Do I Make My C: Drive Not ‘Dirty’?
A dirty machine is the result of improper shut downs. There are ways to clean it up, but getting control of your shut-down process is important.
Why Ask Why?
It’s common to ask “Why?” when it comes to computers. It’s also common to be frustrated with the answer.
What is a Digital Fingerprint?
Digital fingerprints are another way that websites might track you, should they want to. What can you do? Should you be worried?
Coping with Gray Text
Gray text is a problem for many people. Unfortunately, there’s no simple solution, though there are some (very) ugly ones.
What Is Smishing?
Smishing is simply text-messaging spam. Learn to recognize and respond appropriately to it.
Does CPU Speed Matter Any More?
CPU speed doesn’t matter quite as much as it once did. I’ll discuss why, and what you should also be looking at.
What You Need To Do About the LastPass Hack
A portion of LastPass was breached. Here’s why it’s not a disaster, and why I’m not leaving LastPass.
Backups ARE Security
Don’t overlook backing up as part of your security. When the worst happens, it’s your backup that will save you.
Get a Windows System Report with MSINFO32
Msinfo32 is a tool to display and save an extensive report of your computer’s configuration and state. It can be very helpful for others helping you diagnose issues.
Can a Data Breach Expose Multiple Accounts?
Data breaches rarely expose multiple accounts. There are rare scenarios where multiple accounts might still be at risk, though.
6 Reasons There Are Still So Many Security Breaches
When you think about the complexity of today’s systems, it’s kind of amazing that we don’t have more breaches.
What Exactly Is a Rescue/Recovery/Repair/Emergency Disc?
Rescue, recovery, repair, and emergency discs can all mean different things.
How Not to Get Locked Out of Your Microsoft Account While Traveling
I tried to get locked out of my Microsoft account while traveling. I couldn’t. Why? I’d prepared. You can too.
Why Can’t I Get Emails From One Person?
If you’re not getting email messages sent by one particular person, there’s a list of things to check.
Using Chrome Remote Desktop in Windows
Google’s Chrome Remote Desktop is a free and convenient remote-access tool allowing you to get help from people you trust or be the person giving help.
How Do I Recover My Facebook Password?
If you’ve lost your Facebook password, there are a couple of ways to recover: use the Facebook process for account recovery, or check your browser’s remembered passwords.
Facebook Trusted Contacts is Going Away. Prepare Now.
Facebook is removing an account recovery feature, making this an important time to take stock of your own account security.
What Happens at Windows 10 End of Support?
The end of support for Windows 10 means Microsoft will no longer issue security updates. Here’s how to continue using it safely.
Why is My Wi-Fi Speed Slow?
Wi-Fi speed can be slow for many different reasons. Slow Wi-Fi can also be a symptom of speed constraints elsewhere.
What Are “Less Secure Apps” and Why is My Gmail Not Working?
Google is increasing the security requirements for accessing your Gmail accounts. I’ll review what the change means and the options you have.
