David Snell, Rob Hakala and Beth Foster at the new 95.9 WATD studio
For more than 20 years, David Snell’s Tech Talk has been a regular spot on The South Shore’s Morning News on 95.9 WATD fm. At 8:11, David chats with show hosts Rob Hakala and Beth Foster about what’s happening in IT today. The subjects range from computer viruses, scams and cybercriminals to what Amazon, Apple or Microsoft are planning next.
He often shares new product information and reviews software that may help you, especially when there is a free version to try!
On this blog, he provides links, sources and other necessary information. And, on the Tuesday before Christmas, you can expect his annual NORAD Santa report!
If you have a question that you’d like him to answer on the show, please email him.
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Fraudulent Chinese network uses 4,700 fake shopping sites to steal credit cards
A large-scale fraud network has been uncovered, using over 4,700 fake shopping websites to steal credit card information from unsuspecting online shoppers. According to a report by security researchers, the operation involves [...]
Chinese Organized Crime and Gift Card Fraud
With the holidays just around the corner, it's a good time to remind everyone about the potential of Gift Card fraud. Gift card fraud has become a growing concern for consumers and [...]
LastPass warns of fake support centers trying to steal customer data
LastPass is warning about an ongoing campaign where scammers are writing reviews for its Chrome extension to promote a fake customer support phone number. However, this phone number is part of a [...]
As if reality isn’t confusing enough…..
The United States’ Special Operations Command is looking for companies to help create deepfake internet users so convincing that neither humans nor computers will be able to detect they are fake. The [...]
NPD (National Public Data) files for bankruptcy
We talked about this breach when it became public knowledge on August 12, 2024. (https://actsmartit.com/data-breach-national-public-data/) The breach occurred in December 2023 and exposed approximately 2.9 billion records. Last Wednesday, The Register reported [...]
NIST Recommends New Guidelines For Password Security
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recommended changing passwords only when there is a known compromise or every 365 days. NIST no longer recommends requiring users to change their passwords regularly because [...]
Kaspersky ‘s Abrupt Exit from the US Market
Let’s start with BleepingComputer’s headline: “Kaspersky deletes itself and installs UltraAV antivirus without warning”. Ask yourself what you would think if something completely new and totally unknown suddenly appeared in your computer. [...]
Beware password reset phishing emails
I’ve been receiving an increasing number of this type of email scam lately so I have to assume that many others are as well. I get emails supposedly from Microsoft to reset [...]
Grok AI and Your Privacy
What You Need to Know About Grok AI and Your Privacy In 2015, Elon Musk and Sam Altman cofounded OpenAI based on a seemingly ethical ethos: to develop AI technology that benefits [...]
It’s GlowTime !!!
Apple’s “It’s Glowtime” event has just come to a close. While the iPhone 16 was the headliner of yesterday's showcase, Apple had several other announcements to share, including some exciting new additions [...]
Warning – Chinese sending texts to lure you into scams
A new wave of fraudulent activity committed by the Chinese cybercriminal organization known as the "Smishing Triad" gang has been identified by security researchers. The group targets people by using fraudulent SMS [...]
Unprecedented Data Breach: 2.9 Billion Records Compromised
NEW INFORMATION: Below is a legitimate website where you can check if your data was included in the breach. The compromised data appears to be from an older backup, as it may not contain [...]
Amazon’s used goods marketplace is now rebranded as Amazon Resale.
The company revealed the rebrand in a blog post on Monday. The store, which offers discounted items on used, pre-owned, and open-box products, was previously known as Amazon Warehouse. What is Amazon [...]
Google loses its anti-trust case!
On Monday, August 5th, 2024, a judge ruled that Google's search engine has been illegally exploiting its dominance to squash competition and stifle innovation in a decision that could shake up the [...]
95.9 WATD-Disposable and Anonymous Email Addresses
You can’t survive on the internet without an email address these days. Need to download an ebook? Enter your email. Want to view content on a social forum? Enter your email. You [...]
Learn From the CrowdStrike Crash
Last Friday’s CrowdStrike outage led to over 5,000 canceled flights, affected 8.5 million Windows devices, and could ultimately cost Billions of dollars when the litigation is finalized. Though CrowdStrike has not revealed [...]
Another AT&T Data Breach!
Another AT&T Data Breach! A breach of an AT&T cloud workspace has exposed phone numbers and metadata relating to calls and texts for nearly all AT&T wireless customers, as well as customers of other [...]
United States Bans Kaspersky Antivirus Software
The US has announced plans to ban the sale of antivirus software made by Russian firm Kaspersky due to its alleged links to the Kremlin. Moscow's influence over the company was found [...]
Don’t Let Meta Use Your Data and Posts to Train Its AI
The company said it will use publicly available content from its social media platforms, such as Instagram and Facebook, to train its foundation models. However, it will not use private user messages [...]
Microsoft Pulls Windows 11 24H2 Release Preview Build Amid Recall Controversy
The Release Preview version of Windows 11 24H2 was the first version where the Recall feature could be enabled. Recall is a new feature of Windows that continuously takes screenshots of what [...]
Microsoft Introduces a New Security Challenge!
Microsoft is launching Recall for Copilot Plus PCs, a new Windows 11 tool that keeps track of everything you see and do on your computer and, in return, gives you the ability [...]
Microsoft stoops to a new low with ads in Windows 11
More ads for Microsoft products are finding their way into Windows 11: Microsoft utility PC Manager is now telling some users their systems need to be 'repaired' if Bing isn't set as [...]
Apple finally adds iPhone alerts for third-party Bluetooth trackers
Good News from Apple!!! With iOS 17.5, iPhones can now alert users when unauthorized Bluetooth trackers follow you, even if they aren’t AirTags. Apple and Google have worked together to create an [...]
Get ready for the May 7 Apple ‘Let Loose’ livestream
After what seems like forever, Apple is finally holding an iPad-focused press event. The “Let Loose” event is scheduled for today, May 7. The last iPad release was in October 2022, which [...]
Deliver David's Tech Talk to my inbox
We'll send David's weekly Tech Talk to your inbox - including the MP3 of the actual radio spot. You'll never miss a valuable tip again!
