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Security Wonk, Thy Name is Karen

Posted on Posted in Technology 10 Comments

reason 1I am doing my quarterly security check, which is a bummer.

I backup everything that’s already backed up twice online and on a separate drive. Then I cull my cloud services. I never put anything out there I don’t want to share – like credit card numbers and passwords – but I make sure I haven’t put other personal information out there as well. Then I double check all my passwords to make sure there are no duplicates and I’ve changed all the financial ones once a month. All of this is a pain, but these steps, plus some other ones, make me a bit more secure.

I’ve asked myself two questions:

1. What would happen if the web went down? What would I absolutely have to have that’s on the internet and not on my local drive? Whatever answer that is, I pull it off the web and store it on my local drive. All my local drives are backed up, but in case of important information I back up to a flash drive.

2. What would happen if any of my cloud servers were hacked? (Amazon, Apple, Dropbox, Todois, Evernote, etc.) What information would the hacker discover about me that I don’t want him to know? Whatever the answer is, I pull that information off the web and put it on my local drive. Also, I use third party encryption to guarantee that my stuff on the cloud can’t easily be read if it’s borderline personal. (Nothing is completely safe.)

And, to complete my paranoia, I back up each of my four computers, both locally and in the cloud (with the above criteria).

With more and more hackers promising more and more problems, I think it’s a question of WHEN rather than IF your data is stolen or your accounts compromised. A little paranoia about the internet is a healthy thing.

Tech Addiction – A Six Step Program

Posted on Posted in Header, Technology 12 Comments

Hi, my name is Karen, and I have a tech addiction.

tech_addictionI read about the new Kindle Fire and immediately began to salivate. Then, I had to do a head bang on the desk. Hello, Karen? Do you NEED another flipping device? Oh, and Apple has a new phone. I don’t even USE my phone when I’m working, so what do I care?

Let me put it this way:

Hi, my name is Karen and I’m a Tech Addict.

I think I need a program. If the 12 step program can work for other addictions, maybe I can use it as a template for mine:

My Six Step Program for Tech Addiction:

  1. I’ve admitted that I am powerless over the siren call of new technology. It makes my heart beat faster and my eyes widen. I’m like that cartoon character dragged along by his nose when he smells a pie.
  2. I believe that I have to handle this situation or just send all my money to Amazon/Apple. Seriously, not another purchase.
  3. I’ve made a searching and fearless inventory of all my “stuff”. And I’m a little embarrassed to admit I have NINE devices. Hello? Can you use more than one device at one time? Well, I’ve used two at the same time. And one is dead and I just haven’t thrown it away, but still…
  4. I’ve admitted that this is a problem.
  5. I’ve decided that I’m not buying anything for a year. Yep. One whole calendar year. I’m not listening to the siren call of new technology. I’m not watching the Apple videos. I’m not looking at the Amazon Kindle Fire pages. Oh, and that includes the new robot vacuums or robot anythings.
  6. Having had this tech addiction awakening, I’m passing along the word to all of you. Would you like to join me for a meeting in the church basement. Bring snacks.

And, just in case you’re curious:

How to tell if you have a tech addiction.