Technology & Learning - February 2009 - (Page 42)

THEY SAID IT T&L Bloggers take on hackers and scammers Don’t be a sucker to scammers By Bob Sprankle After all these years of online come-ons, you’d think we’d know better. But one of the teachers in my district just fell for a scam last week. It went something like this: Some sources to start educating yourself/your students with: ISAFE.ORG (offers an intensive curriculum and training and has an excellent unit on Phishing and scams) FBI: New E-Scams and Warnings Snopes.com (a site many use to verify viruses and scams) Scamdex (use email from their HUGE archive of scam-mail to offer your students a “SPAM of the week” to analyze). Federal Trade Commission: Spam Hoax-Slayer (latest scams and hoaxes; move over Buffy!) Dear Email Owner, This message is from messaging center to all Email owners. We are currently upgrading our database and e-mail center. We are deleting all unused email to create more space for new one. CONFIRM YOUR EMAIL BELOW: Email Username: EMAIL Password: Warning!!! Email owner that refuses to update his or her Email, within Seven days of receiving this warning will lose his or her Email permanently. You are to send your email username and password to the webmaster via this email: e-update2009@hotmail.com Regards Mrs. Anderson Mary Webmaster (ORG) Sadly, she did it. She gave away her username and her password. Now, this is a smart person who fell for this. So, the question is: Where was the breakdown? How do these scams work, and why do so many of us fall for them? I think we’re probably all born suckers—that is, until someone schools us in ways not to be. It’s about becoming “street smart.” It’s about becoming literate. If we just leave it to chance and hope that our students get the skills they need to avoid scams, then clearly we’re doing them a disservice. Part of protecting their future well-being is showing them actual scams: Have them analyze how scams work, how to verify information, where to go for help. It has to become part of the curriculum—and not just confined to technology class. And remember: Your bank, your Internet provider, Amazon, PayPal, the government, etc. will NEVER send you an email asking you for your password. Facebook Attack! By Cheryl Oakes One afternoon during our days without electricity and heat in an ice storm, I received frantic messages from my college friends. “Did you know your Facebook was hacked?” When I was finally able to view my page, a sinister message replaced my photo: “tell her, her page has been hacked, ha, ha, ha.” What had I done to invite a hacker? I had accepted a snowball fight, one of those cute third-party applications Facebook always warns you about! The next day my page was hacked. Here are some things to do to prevent any of your online accounts from being hacked: ■ Use different passwords for your online Web 2.0 tools/games/sites than the ones you use for personal banking and online ordering. ( I know, I know, it is hard to remember all the passwords you need, but nonetheless important.) ■ Change your passwords for your personal online banking, credit cards, personal ordering on a regular basis. ■ Use applications that you are familiar with, and read the fine print. ■ DO NOT USE the standard remember-your-password Question! Why? Your mother’s maiden name, your birthplace, etc. is in the public record. Sure, it is easier to remember, but it’s also easy for hackers to find. ■ Make up your own question and answer in order to retrieve your forgotten password. ■ Keep your identity yours. 42 | TECH & LEARNING http://www.ISAFE.ORG http://www.Snopes.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Technology & Learning - February 2009

Technology & Learning - February 2009 Contents Editor's Desk News & Trends How It's Done - The Science of Class Collaboration Put to the Test: T&L Editors Take Some New Products for a Test Drive NComputing X550 Epson DC-10s Samsung UF-130DX Digital Presenter Brother MFC-6490CW All-in-One Adaptive Curriculum: Science Dukane AirSlate 3 A Second Life for Professional Development Control Room 11 Tips for Better Laptop Learning One-to-One Veteran Advice What's New They Said It

Technology & Learning - February 2009

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