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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Amazon is removing a key privacy feature from its Echo smart speakers — and Alexa+ is to blame
On March 28, Amazon will remove the ability to have Alexa process your voice requests locally and will start sending all of your recordings to the cloud to be processed there, rather [...]
Apple Adds More Child Safety Measures, Including Age Assurance Controls
A new Apple update lets parents adjust account ages and better control what data is shared with app developers. The updates follow growing pressure on tech companies to strengthen online safety measures [...]
Alexa+ (PLUS) finally arrives
After more than a year’s wait, Amazon has unveiled Alexa Plus (Alexa+), an advanced version of its familiar voice assistant. The AI assistant has been upgraded to offer users a more natural and [...]
More than 3.3 million people affected by employee screening data hack!
Job seekers who have gone through employee screening services in the past year should consider identity theft protection services and make sure they’re actively monitoring their credit reports. Last week, the U.S. [...]
Beware Google Chrome Extensions
Chrome extensions add extra features not built into Chrome, like ad blocking, translations and one-click full-page screenshots. Just like apps on your phone, extensions request permissions to track what you do, see [...]
Google rolls out Chrome’s AI-powered security feature to everyone
After three months of testing, Google Chrome has updated the existing "Enhanced protection" feature with AI to offer "real-time" protection against dangerous websites, downloads and extensions. Enhanced protection, which is part of [...]
DeepSeek – the Chinese answer to AI
We're living in a time of great technology advancements achieved at enormously fast speed. DeepSeek continues to change how we look at AI as well as how the future might look for [...]
More personal data to freeze
There’s no such thing as privacy anymore: Someone, somewhere has all the details about us. Even if you take steps to mask your online activity and protect your privacy, you’re still not [...]
Enable Your iPhone’s Stolen Device Protection
As of 2024, there were about 155 million iPhone users in the United States, and approximately 1 million smartphones are stolen yearly. While specific data on iPhone thefts alone isn't always available, iPhones [...]
Microsoft PC Manager
Microsoft PC Manager is a maintenance application that offers fast virus removal, one-click speed boost and a full system security check. It's designed to help keep your Windows 10 and Windows 11 [...]
Google Allows Tracking Of All Your Digital “Fingerprints”
Google announced that as of February 16, (On the radio, David mistakenly says January 16, when it's February 16th. Sorry for the confusion!) companies that use their advertising products/services can use "fingerprinting" [...]
Apple agrees to $95 million privacy settlement
Apple has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that its Siri assistant recorded private conversations and shared them with third parties. The proposed lawsuit alleges that [...]
2024 NORAD SANTA TRACKING
Santa is getting ready to come down from the North Pole and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, has launched its 2024 Santa Tracker website. Today, through satellite systems, high-powered [...]
Windows 11 on Unsupported Hardware
Microsoft ramps up pressure on users running Windows 11 on unsupported hardware and now it's playing hardball to discourage you from doing just that. In an update to a Windows 11 support [...]
What is the Gmail+ Trick?
Have you ever had a need for multiple email addresses but want to avoid the hassle of managing them all separately? Or maybe you’re overwhelmed by a constant influx of emails, from [...]
Cellphones Work Around The World!
Soon, cellphone access will no longer be limited by location – they’ll work around the world. Blooper Alert: During this radio spot, David, Beth and Rob call the AST SpaceMobile "AST SmartMobile." [...]
Keyboard pranks
Tech news this week is very slow because of the Thanksgiving holiday. No major data breaches or cyber criminal reports (let’s hope it stays that way). Keeping in mind that cyber threats [...]
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. [...]
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