Understanding Your Web Browser Part III

Understanding Your Web Browser Part III

This is the third article in a series titled Understanding Your Web Browser.

Part Two in the series appeared in my August post; Part One appeared in May.

There are so many features in web browsers that it's tough for this writer to pick what to share. Here I'll focus on two that my clients seem to appreciate knowing more about.

I'll use Firefox in Windows as a reference. Other browsers like Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge have similar features, which are accessed by different menus and clicks points.
 
History - a.k.a. your web tracks
Let's start with the feature called "browsing history." Websites you visit with your browser, whether intentionally or not, are recorded in the History function. To view your "web tracks" in Firefox, click the menu at upper right with three horizontal lines, then Library, then History. You will immediately see Recent History.

At the bottom of the menu you can see all history, which includes today, yesterday, the last 7 days, and this month. You can control how much if any history the browser retains under the Privacy & Security settings in Firefox under options from that menu with the three horizontal bars.

The benefits to seeing your browser history are obvious; but be mindful: anyone with access to your browser can see it too. You can clear individual or multiple sites in this record by selecting the "all history" at the bottom of the menu, then choosing one or more item to delete.

Extensions: wanted and unwanted
Firefox extensions, also called add-ons, are programs that can be installed into the browser to change its functionality. Examples include blocking ads from being displayed, using form fillers, employing third-party security functions (like AVG, Norton), etc. In a previous article, for instance, I mentioned an extension called Ad Blocker Plus.

It's important to state that I have helped many clients remove unwanted extensions in their browsers. These can get installed without a person clearly understanding why. One annoying type of extension I've had to remove redirects all searches to a website created by the company that made the extension. The intention is to spy on your searches, then feed you ads linked to their partners based on your activity.

To view extensions, and remove ones you don't want, in Firefox click the menu at upper right, then Add-ons. You are now in the Manage your Extensions section. You can disable or remove any you don't want, then restart the browser.

In general, the fewer extensions you have the faster the browser runs.

Thanks for reading!
-Sam

Email Trick or Treat

Email Trick or Treat

Halloween is coming soon. I can't wait to see the kids in their costumes and the haunted yard displays in our area.
 
Trick or treat also brings something else to my mind: Every single email that arrives in your inbox.
 
Treat or trick? Yes, that's the issue - every time you check your in-box you have to determine if any particular email is a treat, that is, something you do want, expected, or appreciate. Or if it's a trick - a phishing email trying to con you.

Phishing for suckers (aren't we all)
Phishing, the practice of scammers using email (or text messages) to dupe you into giving them confidential information or infect your computer, has been growing rapidly over the past few years.

When in doubt, throw it out! 
If you suspect a trick email, delete it. Or if you're on the fence because it looks legitimate, like from a friend, colleague or reputable business, call them up. Not from a number provided in the email, but using their actual number of record. 

Scrutinize those weblinks!
The most common way crooks will try to scam you is by sending an enticing email that includes a weblink, which may look legitimate until further inspection.

Many spam filters and security programs will trap such threats. But because big money can be made, the fiends are getting increasingly canny with their lures. So you need to depend on your own wariness, not just your software defenses.
 
Our brain jacked into tech flow
I think it's relevant to consider the psychology of computer use (including phones, tablets, etc.) so we understand how we can be conned. Our tech devices encourage efficient use because they work so fast and reward us so quickly for the many worthwhile things we do on them. 

For example, if you're efficiently working through emails, reading, responding, filing, etc. at a certain pace you may not be in a defensive state of mind. You're in a flow. And a well-crafted phishing email can exploit this guard-down flow state. 

Back out while you still can!
But just clicking the link doesn't mean you're immediately infected or fully exploited. Often the criminals want you to login to a bogus site so they can steal your username and password, or provide a form you can fill in. The good news is you can stop right there.Don't input any info.

If the weblink tries to infect your computer or device and you see something suspicious happening, like an unusual pop up window (which often quickly occurs after an infection), you can shut off the computer, unplug the modem and router, and get local tech support before the exploit worsens. 
  
This scenario is like being exposed to a virus or bacteria: the sooner you take action to treat it, the higher the success rate. 

Spread the word
Below is an informative site about phishing. If you're in a company you might want to print some of the recommendations from this site and share with staff or post on a wall. It's important we all get smart about phishing prevention.

https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams

Thanks for reading!
-Sam

Understanding Your Web Browser Part II

Understanding Your Web Browser Part II 
Keeping your web browser up to date is essential for security and smooth browsing. Up to date means having the latest version of the browser. In Firefox, in Windows, you can check if your version is current by clicking the three horizontal bars at upper right, then Help at bottom, then About. This should be ritual housekeeping for you - checking at least monthly that you have latest version of any browser.
 
Obsolete, say the tech giants
Those of you running older computers have noticed that some browsers refuse to run properly or complain that your operating system is out of date - or worse, the browser you want can't even be installed on your system. You can limp along with this condition, or bite the bullet and get a newer computer.
 
This shows the tail is wagging the dog, meaning Internet technology is dictating whether your computer is sufficient to surf the web. Your computer, though old, may be running just fine. I've seen this with 7 to 10-year-old Macs. They're humming along, but can't run current browsers and are limited on which sites they can access. This is proof that we don't really live in a consumer-driven society, but in a tech-pushed society.
 
Browser buddies
I usually recommend having at least two browsers, as different browsers perform better on certain websites. If you're using Gmail, I recommend Chrome as your browser. Another reason to have a second browser is a backdoor in case the first browser gets infected with malware. In this case, you may need the second browser to research and download a fix.
 
Try a new browser
It's also interesting to experiment with new browsers, like Brave. The Brave browser touts a built-in ad blocker, speed, security and privacy. It's produced by a team led by the inventor of JavaScript and a co-founder of Mozilla. You can get it at www.brave.com. I use it in addition to Chrome and Firefox.

Ad blocking
Speaking of ad blocking, recently some of my clients and I have been enjoying using a browser extension called Ad Blocker Plus. It's free and plugs in to your browser. It blocks many obnoxious ads and pop-ups. By default, it's not an ad-free solution, as the developer partners with advertisers who promise to play nice and not send annoying ads. Per their site, "... you may see some nonintrusive ads that adhere to strict criteria. We identify these ads as Acceptable Ads." But, dear reader, you can choose the option in Ad Blocker Plus to block all ads.
 
Privacy extension
Another useful browser extension is Privacy Badger. It's produced by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit that battles for digital rights. When you install privacy Badger it blocks invisible trackers that follow you as you surf from site to site.
 
In sum, I suggest that you find some browsers you like, keep them up to date, add extensions to them, and take them for test drives. You can always remove the one/s you don't like; but keep in mind, you may lose some of your bookmarked sites and history in that browser if it's uninstalled. Trying out other browsers applies to tablets and phones as well. You are not limited to what's installed as the default on those devices.

Thanks for reading!
-Sam

Understanding Your Web Browser Part I

Understanding Your Web Browser Part I

This is a two-part article, Understanding Your Web Browser. Part two will appear in my next post.

Zoom, zoom
When we want to go somewhere in our car, we open the door, climb in, sit down, strap in, then turn on the engine. Next, we take off the brake, put the car in gear, then push the pedal and off we go. We're mobile - and our windshield is our portal to the world.

Hitting the open road of the web
When it comes to our computer we go through a not dissimilar sequence of sitting, powering on, and engaging (the CPU's power) to get someplace. Usually this entails opening a web browser and hitting the open road of the Internet. The browser is our windshield as we cruise the wild wild web, a.k.a. the world wide web.

Because the browser is our virtual portal it's important to know some essentials about it. This is especially relevant because the web is an increasingly hazardous place to journey. So here are some key points:

Browsers a plenty 
Common browsers include Internet Explorer, Edge, Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari (mainly for Mac), Brave, Vivaldi, etc. No, dear readers, Facebook is not a browser, nor is Google. Google is a company (or an internet empire) that developed the Chrome browser. Microsoft built Internet Explorer and Edge, Mozilla created Firefox, etc. If you want to experiment with a different browser than you're used to I suggest you check out Vivaldi: https://vivaldi.com. I like their philosophy, explained here: https://vivaldi.com/company

Constant translation
A browser's main job is to render computer code, primarily html (hypertext markup language), into a human-intelligible format. If you ever want to view the true code your browser is interpreting, you can view the source of any page. It's all listed in English words but contains lots of characters that direct the browser how to "build the page" layout. That's oversimplifying, but it's the gist. To view the page source code in Firefox click the three horizontal bars at upper right, then Web Developer, then Page Source.

Destination IP address
When you type in a website address into your browser's address bar at top (not the search field if you’re on search site like www.google.com) it immediately gets sent to a name server (a DNS server). This name server translates the typed address into a numeric address which all webservers use to uniquely identify themselves. For example Google's IP is 172.217.15.78. You can type either that IP or www.google.com into your browser to access that site. You can explore more about IP addressees here: https://www.whatismyip.com/

The browser does it all
So, in your browser you access websites and all the resources on the sites such as static text and pictures, video, music, animation, fillable forms, games, etc. If you have a stable internet connection and your computer's hardware and operating system are running properly, the browser is the translator of all experiences you have on the web. This goes for any site you access, from the ultra-common like Facebook.com to obscure sites providing scientific articles.

Hats off to web browsers!

Thanks for reading!
-Sam

Keeping Track of Files in the Era of the Cloud

Keeping Track of Files in the Era of the Cloud

One of the main challenges of living in this fast-paced, tech-infused world is keeping track of where you are storing your data. 

By data I mean the files you consciously make use of on any of your tech devices. This includes word processing documents, PDFs, pictures, music, videos, etc. 

The usual places
In the "old days" it was obvious where you stuff was stored. You would turn on your computer, look in your Documents folder or on the Desktop or on a server drive and there were the icons for the documents; pictures were stored in the Pictures folder; music in the Music folder; server files in a shared folder, etc. This type of data storage is still commonplace.

Beamed to the cloud
But increasingly people are also putting their data on mobile devices and in the cloud, using such products as iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, One Drive, etc. This cloud storage can be done from any device, including the slimmest of smartphones. A giant spreadsheet for instance can be stored on your phone and synced with the cloud. 

Cloud or device? 
What does that mean when a file (word processing document, photo, etc.) is in the cloud? Is it only in the cloud, or also on the device? It depends, but usually the file is both on the device and sync'ed to the cloud. The cloud just means a provider's server in some building, hopefully in the U.S.A. (I mean, if we're going to be spied on, better the NSA and our corporations than Russia or China, right?)

The power of syncing 
One benefit of storing files in the cloud is making them accessible on multiple devices. So, for example, one photo could be synce'd to your phone, your tablet, and your computer. Another bonus of the cloud comes into play if a device the file is stored on is damaged, because then you can recover the file from the cloud backup. 

Treasure hunt 
So now that you have a little background on cloud storage, play a game with yourself or a friend. Make a list of five random files. They could be music files, spreadsheets, whatever. Try find where they are located, including on which devices, and whether they are also in the cloud. To check the cloud, you can login to iCloud or Google or Dropbox or wherever you think the file is stored online. Then if you're feeling gutsy, take a file of low importance and delete it from the device. Then try to restore it from the cloud. 

Freeze frame: find that file
Businesses and professionals ideally should be able to do a freeze frame at any point in time and ask, "Where is file X stored?" And know ALL the locations of that file. 

Security and privacy
The next important questions to pose include inquiring who has access to a certain file, and if that access is limited to only those who should see it, including third parties (like cloud providers). Translation, is file X is stored securely and privately? If not, then move it somewhere safe at once. 

We have a right and responsibility to keep track of our files and decide how to control access and protection. But this is just referring to the data you are aware of - files you consciously interact with like the PDF of your tax return. 

The hidden data flow
There's a whole other world of files/data you may never see, i.e. those which flow from your computer and browser to an internet-based server whenever you are online, even when your devices seems idle. Keeping tabs on that data takes even more complex surveillance on your part, and is the subject for another article, or two or three!

Thanks for reading!
-Sam 

The Right to Access the Internet

The Right to Access the Internet

In this article I want to address the concept of "digital rights", a term which describes those human rights that allow individuals to access, use, create, and publish digital media, or to access and use computers, other electronic devices, or communications networks. 

Per Wikipedia, the term is particularly related to the protection and realization of existing rights, such as the right to privacy or freedom of expression, in the context of new digital technologies, especially the Internet.

It's the law (elsewhere)
Especially of note: The right to internet access is recognized as a right by the laws of several countries. I go further than this right to propose that affordable broadband internet should be a right in the United States. 

Local issues
Here are some related questions for my readers in Hamakua Hawaii to ponder and ask their elected officials about - at the county, state, and federal level. I know these types of issues are relevant in rural communities elsewhere in our country too.

State-sponsored WiFi
Why is government-provided WiFi not available in every town in Hawaii, such as in downtown Honokaa? This would benefit locals and especially tourists who seek information on local attractions but who may get poor cell data service, like in downtown Honokaa. I would extend this request for service to the Waipio Valley lookout and other tourist attractions where visitors could learn in their own language about an attraction and appreciate it more deeply - and get safety advisories about access, including off-limits areas. 

Neighbor out of luck
Why does Hawaiian Telcom have limited DSL internet service in Hamakua? I know of properties where the residents have Hawaiian Tel phone service but cannot get broadband internet. Case in point: my next-door neighbor. We both have Hawaiian Tel phone service, and I have DSL internet, but Hawaiian Tel won't provide DSL to my neighbor. What is this, cold war-era communist Europe? It's a 21st century disgrace. I'm embarrassed for Hawaiian Tel. 

Powerline broadband anyone?
Here's another related question: Why - if Hawaiian Telcom refuses to provide broadband internet in areas where they ARE providing phone service - can't Helco provide internet service? There is a technology called broadband over powerline (BPL). It is a service where customers get high-speed internet connections through their standard electrical outlets. Users simply plug a power line modem into any socket; there is no need for additional special wiring. 

Tablets for the library
On another note, why do our public libraries not provide tablets for patrons to check out in the library for reading e-books, browsing the web, watching movies on, etc.? There are also some useful learning apps for tablets that children could make use of while mom/dad read the paper. It seems a grant could be applied to make this happen, perhaps from ultra-rich Apple Inc. High school kids seeking community service hours could even volunteer time tutoring seniors and younger children on such devices.     

If we, through our elected representatives, don't push for investments in widely available and affordable internet service and device access we certainly don't merit a reputation as a modern and technologically advanced nation, no matter what marvels Silicon Valley produces. 

Thanks for reading!
-Sam

No Power = No Internet = Desperate Times!

No Power = No Internet = Desperate Times!

For those of my readers in Hamakua Hawaii who experienced the Honokaa-area power outage the week of February 10, 2019 you felt the pain of losing access to electricity-dependent devices, appliances, and machines. In our case, we had no power for a week!

We are located right on that strip of highway between Honokaa and Paauilo where several of the power poles were destroyed by high winds and tree branches. We greatly appreciate the efforts of Helco, Isemoto and others for working 24/7 to restore power asap, even in the pouring rain. Would have baked them cookies, but alas, no stove! 

Home camping
A week without power was "interesting". It was like camping at our house. No hot showers, no appliances, no lights at night, etc. We made do with a "navy showers" and showering at a friend's house, using our camping stove, ice for the fridge, and plenty of flashlights. Compared to the lives of millions of refugees around the world our experience was trivial of course. 

Internet Withdrawals
The real problem for me as a home-based IT tech was no power or Internet. I had to make use of WiFi at Starbucks, McDonald's, client offices, my cell phone's hotspot, and the public library. The Honokaa public library has a charging station for laptops and devices, which is a much-appreciated service. The librarian even served coffee to patrons who used the library during the power outage. Now that's aloha!

I was feeling the withdrawals of not having easy access to TV news and weather, and to Netflix - it was interesting to see in me that mental twitch of addiction. One night my wife and I watched a DVD on her laptop. Then her battery died so we switched to mine, which has no speakers, so we used subtitles. Desperate measures for desperate times. 

Community counts
The beauty of not having power is to see what we take for granted, to witness community support, and to be resourceful in getting work done - as in my case hopscotching between WiFi services. I caught up on some reading on my Kindle at night (it had a charge because I rarely use it), and went to be earlier, which is always a good thing. We also enjoyed a meal with our neighbors, prepared on a propane camping stove. 

Routine upended 
I played catch-up with all kinds of computer-related stuff the day after power was restored, streamed a Netflix movie, had a hot shower, and we made meals on the kitchen stove again. The access to Internet and my computers was missed during the outage. But what I found the most unsettling was the change to my daily routine. It wasn't just one thing - it was the overall disruption and uncertainty. 

Resiliency training
The power outage was a good opportunity for resiliency training. Goodness knows what's coming down the pike for humanity in the years to come. I'm certain of this at least: we'll all need to be more flexible, resourceful, and community-oriented. In essence, that's what civilization is all about.  

Thanks for reading!
-Sam