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 A recent experience of an iTandCoffee client highlights an important security warning for all of us.
Don't rely on email / text for communicating bank account details, especially for large transfers If you ever ask someone to transfer money to your bank account, or you are asked to transfer money to someone else - especially where the amount involved is large - be very careful about trusting the bank account details that you provide (or are provided) via email.
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10/8/2018 0 Comments Your Mac's content may not be secure if it is stolen - even if it is locked by a password
Every now and then, iTandCoffee sees a Mac user who does not know their Mac's main administrator password. This so often occurs when the Mac has been set up to automatically sign in without requiring entry of a password.
Yes, that's right. All I had to do was provide the person's first name, last name and email address to do a password reset and gain full access her account.
 We covered this topic in an article in late 2016, but figured it's time to repeat it - given how many times we are asked about it at iTandCoffee.
If you have turned on a security feature for your Apple iCloud/iTunes account - a feature called two-factor authentication - you will find that, whenever you sign in to your Apple account on a new device or from a web browser, you will get a message popping up on another device. 
Here we go again! 2018 has only just started, and the press is flooded with stories of the latest security threats to our devices, called Spectre and Meltdown.
Spectre and Meltdown are security flaws in computer chips in over 3 billion devices - computers, tablets, smartphones. Meltdown only impacts Intel chips, but Spectre impacts billions of devices. All hardware and software vendors - including Apple - have been scrambling to release patches that will 'plug' this security hole.  A new flaw in Wi-Fi security could leave all our devices vulnerable to hackers, according to reports in the press this last week. Here is an article from Fairfax media this week about the flaw, which relates to the WPA2 security protocol that our routers use. Apparently, iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod touch), Windows computers and Android devices are at risk, with Android devices being at higher risk than the others. (The articles I saw did not mention Mac computers.) Microsoft, Apple, Google and router providers are all working on patching this security hole, and will release updates to their operating systems and router 'firmware' in the near future. To ensure that your own devices and computers and computers are not left vulnerable, it will be essential to apply any updates that are released for your devices. I will advise in the iTandCoffee fortnightly newsletter when such updates are available.  One thing that may trip a lot of people up is how to update the 'firmware' of their router - since the router is the device that is the centre of this vulnerability, and the imminent firmware update will be essential to ensuring your ongoing security. If anyone needs assistance with this, iTandCoffee will be able to help - in your own home if necessary (depending on your location). Call 1300 885 420 to make and appointment, or email bookings@itandcoffee.com.au. Need to learn more about Wi-Fi, routers and other basics?We look at lots of basics of technology - what is Wi-Fi, what is a router, what is 'mobile data', and more at the 'Introduction to the iPad and iPhone' class which we are running again at iTandCoffee, from Thursday October 26, 10am. Select the button below to book online, or call 1300 885 420.
 In my daily check of my Apple News app, where I have set up a 'topic' that provides me with daily 'computing and information technology news', I saw a concerning article about the release of over 700 million email addresses online. For some of these email addresses, passwords were also available - hacked from who knows where! Here is the article for anyone wanting to read about this: Have you been 'pwned' As mentioned in the above article, it is possible to visit a website that tells you if your email address is available on any known list of 'hacked' email addresses - including this new massive list. The website is haveibeenpwned.com. Just enter your email address to see if it is on any list. I was surprised to find my own iTandCoffee email address was on this new list! It was not on any list last time I checked, so this leaves me wondering which of the many online services I use has been 'hacked'. So as a precaution, I have changed my password for the impacted email account, and for other key accounts that use the email address. Now I need to see where else I have used this email address, and decide if password resets are needed! Ow. At least I have a different password for every online account, which minimises any 'damage' if anyone does have more than the email address. And I have put all these different passwords into my 'password safe' on my iPhone. This means that I always have easy - and secure - access to my passwords whenever I need them, either from my iPhone or iPad. (If you are an iTandCoffee Club member, you can watch the members-only video about how to set up a password safe on your iPhone/iPad. Here is the link to this video» If you are not yet a member, find out more about The iTandCoffee Club here ») How to change your online passwords If you need to change your password for your various online accounts, here are links to the relevant pages on some of the important ones:
Need further advice or help?
If you need advice on how to change any other online passwords, just leave a comment below. Or if you would like assistance with making changes to your passwords, book a time with iTandCoffee. Book online here or call 03 9886 0814 or 1300 885 420. 11/7/2017 0 Comments What to do when your Apple password is rejected over and over - even though you know it's correct! This has been a common problem encountered by so many iTandCoffee clients. In fact, we have already had seen two clients this week who have had the problem (and it's only Tuesday!). Apple just won't accept my password!The issue arises when 'two-factor authentication' has been enabled on an iOS 10 (or MacOS), but where other devices that use the same Apple ID are running an older version of iOS or OS-X. The older versions of iOS and OS-X don't 'understand' the newer security steps that two-factor authentication bring. As soon as two-factor authentication is enabled on one of their devices, our clients have found that their password keeps getting rejected on other devices - even though they know that the password is correct. They get a message popping up on their 'up-to-date' iOS 10 device (or on their 'up-to-date' Mac) saying that someone is trying to access their account, with an 'Allow' (or 'Don't Allow') option. When they choose 'Allow' to get the 6-digit two-factor authentication code, they find themselves stuck - because the device that rejected their password does not offer a place to enter this 6-digit code. Instead, it just tells them that their password is incorrect. Fear not! There is a solutionFortunately, there is a relatively easy fix for this problem. We covered this issue in our February 2017 Handy Hint newsletter. (Subscribe to our great Newsletter here so that you get to see FREE tips like this ») This tip has since been moved to our Handy Hint Library, which is for iTandCoffee Club members. Here it is - if you are a Club member, just select the link to view the solution. Not yet a member of The iTandCoffee Club?Contact iTandCoffee on 1300 885 420 if you need help to solve this problem. If you are 'not so local' and are not yet a member, why not join The iTandCoffee Club to gain access to our huge library of great tips like this. Related Handy Hints and ArticlesHandy Hints (for iTandCoffee Club members only)
Blog Articles (no membership required)
 I was reading the Innovic monthly newsletter this week, and it included a handy link that I thought readers of our own iTandCoffee newsletter might appreciate.
It is a link to a site that allows you to check if your email address (or username) has been found on a list of details stolen from various well-known websites - for example, Dropbox, LinkedIn, Adobe, Yahoo. This various websites were compromised at different times over the past few years, and email addresses, passwords and other details were stolen. I found my own email address was listed twice on the 'hacked' list - for LinkedIn and for Dropbox. I had already changed my password for these sites, but it was unsettling to see that I was 'on the list'. Its worth checking your own email address, and then ensuring that you have changed your password details for any site for which you DO appear on the list. Here is a link to the website:
*** UPDATE TO BELOW POST 22/5/17: If you have not yet updated to iOS 10.3.2, perhaps 'hold fire' for a few days to see if Apple releases a further 'patch' release this week. It may be that the below message - and further issues since with sign-in to my Apple ID - are due to problems with that update. If you have already updated to 10.3.2 and are having any problems, we would be interested to hear about them - please leave a comment below.
There I was, happily writing this week's iTandCoffee Newsletter, when the following message popped up on my iPad's screen.
It would be very nice to be in London, but I am currently here in Melbourne! So just who was trying to sign in to my Apple ID on an iPhone in London??
I, of course, chose Do Not Allow and promptly changed my iCloud password, forcing all devices associated with my iCloud to be signed out (as a precaution). Thank goodness I had two-factor authentication set up on my Apple account so that, even if someone had gotten access to my password (which I can't believe they did!), they would not be able to break into my account without my iPhone or iPad. Have you set up Two Factor Authentication on your iCloud account yet? If not, it's time to think about doing this - not just on your iCloud account, but on ALL of your online accounts. If you need help with this, talk to iTandCoffee on 1300 885 420. Find out more about iCloud - 'Understanding and Using iCloud' |
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iTandCoffee is at 34 High Street Glen Iris 3146, Victoria Australia
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