How many of you take the time to “eject” your USB devices before you remove them? I know some of you didn’t raise your hand. Does it really matter? Yes it does. Why? Because you can end up with corrupt data if you yank a device out while data is still being written to it.
Some devices will have a flashing LED that tells you when data is being written to the device, but many devices do not. And even on devices that have a flashing LED, you can’t always tell when the data writing is complete. If the computer is multitasking, the LED may even stop flashing before all the data is written.
The lesson here is simple: Take a few extra seconds and eject your devices properly – don’t tempt data disasters.

Cyber criminals and identity thieves want to steal your personal information to commit fraud. They may try to get a credit card in your name or to access funds in your bank account. On top of directly losing money, your credit status can be damaged and it can take a great deal of time and expense to restore your good name.
And this goes beyond being an issue of personal concern. LAWPRO has seen situations where law firm bank accounts were hacked and where law firm bank account information was used on counterfeit cheques.
There are many different ways to steal personal information. Identity thieves will target you online and by “dumpster diving” in your garbage. You should also be familiar with the common ruses that criminals use to trick you into disclosing personal information.
Here are some simple steps you should take to protect yourself from identity theft and online fraud:
1 Protect your Social Insurance Number: It is a cornerstone of your identity and one of the best pieces of personal information an identity thief can have to create a new you. Don’t carry your SIN card in your wallet or write your SIN number on your checks. Only give out your SIN when absolutely necessary for tax purposes, and never for identity purposes.
2 Keep your PINs private: Never write the PINs for your credit/debit cards on the cards themselves or on a slip of paper kept in your wallet. Watch for “shoulder surfers” and always use your free hand to shield the keypad when using an ATM or paying a cashier.
3 Don’t let your mail fall into the wrong hands: Thieves can get a considerable amount of personal information from your mail. Empty your mailbox promptly, or better yet, install a mail slot that goes directly into your house. Ask the post office to hold your mail or get a neighbour to collect it when you are away. Pay attention to your billing cycles and if bills or statements are late, contact the sender.
4 Keep your receipts: Receipts are essential for cross-checking your billing statements (see the next tip). Keep receipts for refunds and incorrect charges as well.
5 Review bills and statements: Carefully review your bills, credit card and banking statements for unauthourized charges or transactions. They are an indication that your credit card has been compromised or that someone has access to your account.
6 Store personal information in a safe place at home and at work: Never leave sensitive personal information lying around. This just makes it easier for a thief to steal your information.
7 Tear up or shred unwanted or discarded receipts, credit offers, account statements, expired cards, etc.: Destroying these documents will prevent dumpster divers from easily getting a wealth of personal information.
8 Never respond to “phishing” requests for personal information in the mail, over the phone or online: This includes cold-calls asking you to complete a survey or offering a prize. And most importantly – this is probably the most common way that personal information is stolen – never ever reply to unsolicited or suspicious emails, instant messages or web-pages asking for your personal information (e.g., usernames, passwords, SIN number, bank account numbers, PINs, credit card numbers, mother’s maiden name or birthday), even if they appear to be from a known or trusted person or business. These “spoofed” messages or websites (see the next tip) will suggest your account has been compromised and will ask you to reset your password. By replying to them you are giving your personal information directly to the thieves.
9 When logging in always check for a secure connection to the correct website: First, look at the address bar in your browser or place your mouse over the link to see if the URL looks correct. It should start with the proper URL (e.g. cibc.com) and not a URL that appears unrelated (e.g., http://12.67.876.5/aed/bnklogin). You should also check to see if the web address begins with https://, as opposed to http://. Look for the “s” which signals that your connection to the website is encrypted and more resistant to snooping or tampering. It’s always better to go directly to a site by using a bookmark or typing in the site’s address directly into the browser address bar.
10 Be careful with odd messages from people you know: If you get a message from someone you know that has odd information in it, their email account may have been compromised by a cyber-criminal who is trying to get money or information from you. These usually take the form of an urgent request for money because the person is stranded in another country and their passport or wallet has been stolen. Don’t reply to or click on links in these messages. Contact the person by phone or use an alternate email address to tell them this has happened.
11 Install anti-malware software and firewalls on your computers: Computer viruses, spyware and other types of malware are a fact of life. Just clicking a link in an email or on a website can infect you. All your computers should have anti-malware software installed on them. And to keep up with current threats, make sure your anti-malware software is configured to automatically update itself. When you are connected to the internet, the internet is connected to you. Information can flow freely both ways across your internet connection. You also need a firewall to act as a gatekeeper to prevent unauthorized access to your computers and network.
12 Learn how to safely surf the web: Your internet browser is one of the more dangerous tools in your office. Even casual surfing on the web can expose you to malware and divulge personal data. Learn
how to safely surf the web and how to configure your browser so that surfing is less dangerous. This involves disabling some browser features, controlling which cookies can be stored on your computer, and preventing pop-ups.
13 Use “strong” passwords: Don’t use a common word or name – and especially one connected with you. Any new password should be significantly different from passwords you have used previously. Make your passwords at least eight characters long – the longer the better. Use a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, plus numerals and symbols. Use different passwords for different programs, and especially for bank accounts and other sites with sensitive information.
14 Protect the confidentiality of your passwords: Never share your passwords (even with family or friends) and be careful that no one sees you type in a password. If you absolutely have to write down passwords, write them out so they have to be translated in some way. Don’t save passwords on your hard drive unless you use a password manager (e.g., LastPass, RoboForm, 1Password). Change any compromised password immediately, even if you only suspect it has been compromised. Change important passwords every 60 to 90 days. Don’t let your operating system, browser or other programs cache your passwords.
15 Check your credit report once a year: This can help you spot if someone is using your identity without your knowledge. Check it more frequently if you suspect someone has gotten access to your personal information.
This article originally appeared in LAWPRO Magazine “practicePRO: 15 Years Of Claims Prevention (Vol. 12 no. 2).

Lance Ulanoff did an op-ed post titled “iPad Obliterate: A Tech Tale of Disaster” on Mashable last week. In the post he relates his personal story of how he lost all the data on his iPad.
His post should be required reading for anyone with a mobile device as there are some very important lessons in it. First and foremost – you must backup the data on all your devices. Second, the point that on an iPad or other iOS device, a “Restore” is really a “factory reset” which deletes all data (as it does on most electronic devices).
Do you have a recent backup of the data on your iPad, Pod or any other device you own? If you answered no, please take steps to backup your data now. If you need a little push and persuasion to make the effort, read Lance’s post. A backup is especially important if you are going to update the operating system on your device or make other configuration changes on your device. Most of the time you won’t need a backup – but if you do – it can be a life saver.

Some of us have older iPhones, iPods and iPads which will not run newer versions of iOS. Needless to say, newer version of many apps also won’t run on these older devices. That changed today. Apple now lets you access earlier versions of apps for your older hardware.
This is how it works: Select the app you want. If it is incompatible with the iOS version on your device, a prompt will offer you a earlier compatible version of the app.
Interesting move for Apple as they prepare to release iOS 7, which presumably would leave many devices and apps behind but for this change.

Any program on your computer can be “pinned” to the Taskbar. This makes it visible as an icon on the Taskbar and allows easy access without having to use the Start Menu. To pin a program to the Taskbar, right-click on the program or shortcut to the program and in the menu choose the Pin to Taskbar option. Alternatively you can also drag the icon to the Taskbar.
If you want to remove a pinned program, right-click on the Taskbar icon and click Unpin this program from the Taskbar. Alternatively you can also drag the icon off of the task bar and then click Unpin this program from the Taskbar.
Any pinned or opened program on the Taskbar can be moved and arranged. Left-click on any icon on the Taskbar and drag it to the location you want it to remain.
Pin your favorite or most frequently used programs to the Taskbar – you will find this very helpful for the programs use on a daily basis.

All of us should check our credit report on an annual basis. Not only is this a good idea to cheto to  make sure there are no mistakes on your credit record,   it can also protect you against identity theft. If someone has stolen your identity, the transactions they have completed can tip you off that your identity has been compromised.
You can check your credit report once a year for free.

Unfortunately, most new computers come preloaded with a tons of junk software you don’t really want or need. These can be trial versions of various programs, including widely used programs, toolbars, utilities, games and other programs you have never heard of (and will probably never use).
And if you have an older computer, odds are there are programs on it that you also don’t want, need or use.
Nice to have a chance to try some of these programs out on a newer computer, but in the long run you just don’t want these extra programs on your machine. Why? Your computer will take longer to boot-up and run more slowly. These programs will bug you with annoying pop-ups, they can use significant amounts of space on your hard drive and they may slow down your access to the internet. You want them off your machine ASAP.
You can manually remove the programs you don’t want, but there is an easier way. PC Decrapifier is an easy to use tool will help you remove all the crap you don’t want on your machine! It also does a great job of helping you disable unnecessary startup items that can slow down your computer when it boots up. A wizard takes you step-by-step through the process, giving you recommendations on what to remove. PC Decrapifier works with all versions of Windows 7, Windows XP and Vista and is free for personal use. A commercial version is very inexpensive.
You will likely see a noticeable performance improvement after running PC Decrapifier on an older computer.
A small word of caution: You need to be a bit careful about what you remove. PC Decrapifier will help you make some of the decisions. A Google search can help you with programs you don’t recognize or are unsure of. If in doubt, don’t delete a program or delete it only after you have created a Restore point so you can easily revert back to a previous configuration.
Download PC Decrapifier here.

Most of us have lost a phone at some point, even if only temporarily at home (between the couch cushions or in another room). Always frustrating when that happens, especially if you are rushing out the door or have absolutely no clue where your phone is.
Finally (as of just yesterday) Android users now have what iPhone (Find My iPhone) and Blackberry users (Blackberry Protect) have had for years: an app that will help you find your lost phone, and wipe the data remotely if necessary.
If you lost your phone in the couch cushions or in another room in the house, Android Device Manager lets you ring your phone or device at maximum volume, even if it’s been silenced. And in the event that your phone or tablet is out of earshot (say, at the club you were at last night), you can locate it on a map in real time.
Android Device Manager can also help you keep your data from ending up in the wrong hands. If your phone can’t be recovered, or has been stolen, you can quickly and securely erase all of the data on your device.
This service is now available on devices running Android 2.2 or above. Go to www.android.com/devicemanager to get Android Device Manager.

There are loads of photo sharing and collection sites on the web. One can spend many hours wondering around looking for great pictures. One site worth a visit is WhereCoolThingsHappen.com. It has collections of photos of “cool” places, stays, art, photos, gadgets, transport, outdoor advertisements, food and architecture. If you need a bit of a break, stop by WhereCoolThingsHappen.com for some great pictures of cool things. It is updated daily and bloggers note – WhereCoolThingsHappen.com encourages other bloggers to use its photos.

There are loads of music streaming sites on the web. One of the best is Songza.com. It suggests different playlists for the mood you are in and it has playlists for every conceivable music type.
There is a Music Concierge that will give you options like Brand New Music, Working to a Beat, Working (no lyrics), Boosting your Energy, Basking in the Sun, Cooking, Unwinding and many more. There are Popular playlists, including Today’s Pop Hits, Today’s Upbeat Country Hits, Hot 100, Today’s Dance Club hits and so on. You can browse lists by Genre, Activities, Moods, Decades and Culture. If you create an account it will create playlists to match your personal tastes.
It is 100% free and there are no listening limits. There are apps for iPhone, Android and Kindle Fire.
Checkout Songza for some great music.

• Nicholas on Software Tools for Editing
• Jamie on Software Tools for Editing
• Steve Coughlan on ‘I Hope This E-Mail Finds You Well’
• Lyn on Womxn
• Celia Chandler on Gross Negligence

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