Jim Hamm likes to keep his eyes on the Internet for anything new and interesting. He has found something new about Amazon. If you shop on Amazon, Jim found an article that you may find interesting -- especially if you're a Prime subscriber. Also mentioned in the article is another website he hadn't heard of: jet.com. Jim plans to check out the news about Amazon here just to see what it's all about. How about you?
Google OnHub: The Ultimate WiFi Router?
Jim Hamm sends us this tidbit about a new product: OnHub. For your possible interest, here is an informative article about OnHub -- the new router from Google. It will be interesting to read the blogs about OnHub once it's available for consumers. The features seem impressive. See the detail here.
Costco Online Photo Center is OFFLINE
Update as of August 17, 2015
Costco has this notice on their online photo center:
"We appreciate and thank you for your ongoing patience - we understand the impact this is having on each of you! Through today, we've made significant progress toward re-enabling the Photo Center site; however, there's additional work to be done before it's ready to go live. We know the previous anticipated dates have come and gone, but we're doing everything we can to bring a safe & secure site back on line as soon as possible. With that said, we are now anticipating that the site will be back online within the next 1-2 weeks. Thank you again for your loyalty and ongoing patience.
"The current coupon book, mailed or found in the Costco.com app, offers $10 Off Canvas Prints, valid 8/6 to 8/30/15. While we are unable to take your order online, we can fulfill your order at the Photo Center kiosk in most warehouses.* For assistance, please check with the Photo Center staff."
See http://www.costcophotocenter.com for a coupon. Hurry! This offer won't last.
Cybercrime and Phishing
This information is always worth repeating. The following was captured from the Prescott Computer Society (pcs4me.com) Messenger. The first 7 items were originally written by Kathy Frey, Member, Computer Club of Green Valley, AZ, (www.ccgvaz.org) as found in the Summer 2015 edition of Green Bytes, the club newsletter. At one time or another we all will be a victim of some form of Cybercrime and Phishing. The use of any preventive product is of little help if you don't practice safe computing. Help protect yourself:
1. Watch out for "phishy" emails. The most common form of phishing is emails pretending to be from a legitimate retailer, bank, organization, or government agency. Delete them. Do not open them.
2. Don't click on links within emails that ask for your personal information.
3. Beware of "pharming." This was also known as redirect. In this version of online ID theft, a virus or malicious program is secretly planted in your computer and hijacks your Web browser. When you type in the address of a legitimate Web site, you're taken to a fake site without realizing it. Malicious programs can be either spyware, adware or malware. Run your spyware scanning programs. Malwarebytes is a recommended program.
4. Never enter your personal information in a popup screen.
5. Only open email attachments if you're expecting them and know what they contain.
6. Phishing also happens by phone. You may get a call from someone pretending to be from a company or government agency, making various kinds of false claims and asking for your personal information. Quite often it is about some problem with your computer. There is no way they can possibly know if you even own a computer. If you have caller ID, screen your calls, and do not answer calls from phone numbers you do not recognize.
7. If someone contacts you and says you've been a victim of fraud, verify the person's identity before you provide any personal information. Get a phone number and call them back. Or call who they are supposed to represent and ask if that business is making those kinds of calls.
8. Report phishing, whether you're a victim or not. Tell the company or agency that the phisher was impersonating.
9. Don't be embarrassed, take action immediately if you've been hooked by a phisher. If you provided account numbers, PINS, or passwords to a phisher, notify the companies with whom you have the accounts right away. For information about how to put a "fraud alert" on your files at the credit reporting bureaus, contact the Federal Trade Commission's ID Theft Clearinghouse, www.consumer.gov/idtheft.
Most Recent Scam Alerts from the Federal Trade Commission: (For the following articles, paste the title into a search bar in your browser) Stand up to fake debt collectors - April 10, 2015 Unlocking the code - April 3, 2015 The FTC didn’t send that sweepstakes letter - April 2, 2015 Scammers play name game and get caught - March 27, 2015 An invoice today gets the doctor to pay - March 26, 2015 Reluctant to be rude? - March 25, 2015 Don’t pay for a vacation to nowhere - March 19, 2015 It’s the IRS calling…or is it? - March 12, 2015 Cleaning up without getting cleaned out - March 6, 2015
10. When shopping online be careful and look for boxes that are pre-checked for you to receive offers from them or their partners. Be sure to uncheck the boxes and opt-out if you don't want to receive any communications. Even legitimate retailers count on you not unchecking the boxes to opt-out.
InfoManager Update
Check out the weekly InfoManager update on our Apple User Group page for interesting news tidbits about the world of computing and the web. This week find out more about safenetting, cybersecurity, net neutrality, halloween fonts, Apple music, and more.
Your PMUG website has been updated!
With a lot of help from friends, the Menu Bar of the PMUG website has been updated.
You can now access the PMUG meeting minutes directly from the Menu Bar instead of looking around for the link that is (still) buried in the Home page.
The other big change is that the Newsletter is no longer hosted by Blogspot. When clicking on the Newsletter item in the Menu, instead of being switched to a different website, the content of the Newsletter is shown in the current window/tab.
By the way, the Newsletter isn't really a Newsletter. Technically, it is a Blog. And we have a new Newsletter Editor. Her name is Sharon Walsh (backed up by John Carter). You can still submit your comments, news, photos, and favorite recipes by e-mail to "editor (at) pmug (dot) us". Sharon may possibly change the content (she is the editor after all), and then post it for you. Unlike other blogs, there is no way to directly post comments.
The presentation of the Newsletter hasn't changed (much). Instead of seeing all the tags on the right side, a list of past blogs by month is shown. If you want to find an article, simply enter a keyword in the Search bar to the right of the Menu bar (found on every page).
In fact, the Search bar in the Menu of the PMUG website is an excellent way to find anything in the PMUG website. Give it a try.
Speculation on iPad Air 3
Keeping us informed David Passell says, "Here is some late news and speculation about Apple iPAD Air." Some are expecting it in September or October.
Man in the Cloud Attack
"Something else to worry our readers about," comments David Passell as he forwards this URL to us. At the end of the article click on “How to secure your computer and online accounts” for 10 actions to consider for your protection.
Zagg Bluetooth Keyboard
"If there's any 'iPaders' in our azapple group, the following comments are for you," says Jim Hamm. He continues, " I've owned an iPad for a long time, but had never used a separate keyboard with it previously. Then my wife got a Zagg bluetooth keyboard for her iPad, and really liked it. So, not to be left behind, I bought one from Amazon for my iPad. What a difference this keyboard makes. Really nice.
"If you've already moved to a bluetooth keyboard for your iPad, read no further. For the rest of you, I recommend you try one."
Jim explains, "I didn't realize how much easier, and nicer, it is to type on a keyboard instead of tapping on the screen with my finger. And the best thing I like about it is no more -- to correct a mistake -- a finger on the screen, with the bubble, trying to move the cursor around. Now I just use the up/down/back/forward arrows on the keyboard to move the cursor and correct a misspelling. I like this.
"We're presently on an RV caravan tour and I haven't even used my MacBook Air once since we left. I find it so convenient and handy just to use my iPad with the Zagg keyboard. Plus, since I've got a cellular data package for my iPad, I don't have to worry if we don't have wifi in the campground. Like right now -- no wifi but a good LTE signal.
"There are other brands of keyboards available for the iPad, but the Zagg is the only one I've tried. There were over a thousand reviews on Amazon for the Zagg keyboard for my particular iPad, with most of them favorable."
And Jim concludes, "I'm not pushing Zagg -- only the use of a bluetooth keyboard for your iPad. Just a thought for your consideration."
Attackers Exploit Mac Vulnerability
Vulnerability in Mac operating systems described in this article published 8-5-2015 the Fox News writer declares that “since Apple has not fixed the issue, those with Yosemite operating systems have little recourse except to be as careful as possible when downloading new files online . . . “ Read the article here.
Remotely Infected With Firmware Malware? What!
Of course, we're keeping up with the latest. So, take a look at this! Jim Hamm writes, "While it's not encouraging to read the following article, it just shows that any electronic device can be hacked. The article points out one scenario I hadn't thought of: if one were to buy a Mac, say, from eBay or someone you don't know, it could be loaded with malware.
"Now this isn't something I'm going to lose sleep over, just something to be aware of and use discretion when clicking a picture or link you're not sure of." And here's that link.
Don't Take This The Wrong Way!
Do you like books with the title that says, "For Dummies"? Oh, well. It does NOT apply to you! Jim Hays wants us to know, "PMUG members that are concerned about online security might be interested in this free eBook available from AARP, Protecting Yourself Online For Dummies, (a PDF file - right click and select Save As)."
The Epidemic Has Begun
After you've viewed Jim Hamm's alert (just below) go to this other article at How To Geek (Mac OS X isn’t safe anymore. The crapware/malware epidemic has begun). See illustrated examples of screens that are “like the Old Faithful of bundled crapware.” Examples show Yahoo, CNET downloads, OpenOffice, fake Java messages, MacKeeper, etc. It discusses the plist file, and says to restrict Apps that aren’t from the App store.
How to Remove Malware & Adware From Your Mac
From the How-To Geek website Jim Hamm finds some helpful info on viruses, worms, and Trojans, along with adware, crapware, and spyware programs. The writer outlines the problems and the possibilities. He also warns, “Don’t have the Java plug-in enabled, either . . . “ This article was published 7-25-15.
Helpful for Mac and PCs
Your PC friends will find this useful, too, according to Jim Hamm. He begins with, "Here is a good article on antivirus programs. I've used the free version of Avast for years, both on PCs and Macs, and it's worked well for me." (Full article here.) Jim adds, "All the info in the article would apply to the Mac as well. Here is the link to a free download for the Mac."
Car Hacking
"Here is an article about yet another hacking attack," yes, Jim Hamm gets our attention! He continues, "This time on a car! Now this isn't something you or I need to be worried about at this time, but it does make one wonder. What if your car was hacked, engine turned off, and held for ransom? Admittedly, not a likely scenario, but possible.
"One item the article mentioned, which I hadn't thought much about, is your car may communicate with your dealer and monitor when your next oil change or service is due. Both our cars do this, and we'll get an alert on our car's dash when an oil change is due. So our cars are periodically checking back with 'home base'. This is very similar to what most of the programs do on your computer -- they all want to check 'home' and see is an update is available."
And Jim is closing with this thought, "Driverless cars, hacking cars, electric cars -- it's an interesting time we live in."
Apple Music "Nightmare"
The article begins, "I love Apple. I love them because they take difficult problems and come up with innovative, simple solutions. The things they make just work and we trust them. Unfortunately, my experience with Apple Music has been exactly the opposite. As of today, I’m missing about 4,700 songs from my library with little hope of getting them back." This link comes from Jim Hamm who goes on to add, "Here's another sad tale about Apple Music -- one of several I've read. My music transferred over mostly OK, except that the album art didn't always make it over correctly. One big lesson here -- always back up everything first before trying something new." The article is followed with 102 comments as of 7-22.
Need Help? Siri Can Call Emergency Services
Siri can call emergency services for you with iPhone, if need be. Jim Hamm comments, "Here's some info that's good to know, but hope you never need to use it."
Might Want to Delete Old iCloud Backups
"If you'd want to delete old iCloud backups to free up more storage space on your iPhone or iPad, take a read on this article," Jim Hamm informs us.
"Looking at my iPhone 6 I saw that 462 MB of data was stored there from my old iPhone 5. I didn't really need that backup anymore, so I could have freed up this storage space if I'd needed/wanted to.
Jim Hamm goes on to say, "Also, as you scroll down the list of apps you have on your device you can stop any of them from being included in future iCloud updates, should you want to. Since I have plenty of storage space available I let them all continue to be included in future updates. But this is good to remember if, in the future, I start running tight on iCloud storage space."
Still Got Flash?
"By now hopefully you're removed Adobe Flash from your browser, or, if you need to run Flash, you're using the Chrome Browser," begins Jim Hamm. "However, if you've still got Flash installed, here is an article on how to use plugins to help control Flash from playing."
And you'll want to read this. Jim goes on to add, "Now even the Federal Government is getting involved. You probably don't need/want to read the alert, but here it is -- from the 'United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team.' Impressive, huh?"