Phishing scams are nothing new, but that doesn’t mean they should be taken for granted. It’s not necessarily the complexity of the scam that will catch you out, it could be the timing of it.
Here’s how I was caught out by the latest phishing scam.
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2020 has seen us all spending a lot more time indoors than in previous years – and with so much time at home, internet searches have surged by between 50% and 70%, while streaming has leaped by at least 12%, according to preliminary statistics from Omdia, the tech research arm of Informa Tech.
Things were bad enough before lockdown when, globally, we spent a combined 7.5 billion hours online every day. This totals 856,164 years spent browsing – that’s long enough to travel from Earth to Mars and back again.
1,426 times!
So, how exactly are we spending so much time connected to the internet? And are we wasting too much time online?
Are you working from home, perhaps due to coronavirus restrictions at your workplace? Do you check your work emails from home? Answer business calls on your day off? Or even maybe just catch up on some office admin when you’re at a loose end?
If so, you could be doing damage to your health!
Are you suffering from tech stress?
It’s a question we frequently ask ourselves, particularity as our over-reliance on phones and tablets and espousing of an ‘always-on‘ culture mean that tech stress is becoming an increasingly common problem in people’s work life and home life – if you’re constantly checking your devices for emails or social media posts, or you lose it when your phone battery loses it, then you’re probably already a sufferer.
It’s a problem that may well have got a lot worse during lockdown, as people turned to their devices even more in an attempt to stay connected with the outside world.
But what are the signs of tech stress, and what can you do to stop it?
The dust has barely settled on the August Bank Holiday, but the kids are back in school, the nights are drawing in and it’s getting noticeably colder. It got so nippy at the end of August that a poll run by our friends over at UKPower found that almost half of householders had already put the heating on.
We don’t usually ask this question until at least September, but have you put the heating on yet? ?
— UKPower (@ukpower) August 28, 2020
And if people are back in the office, you can bet that the thermostat will be whacked in an attempt to keep temperatures near-tropical as staff go about their work – and when the thermostat rises, your business energy bills won’t be far behind.
So here are some top tips to to help keep utility bills down as the outside temperature drops…
If you could put a number on how many years you had left to live, would you want to know what it is?
It sounds like science fiction, but it’s now become science fact thanks to an app developed by the boffins at the University of East Anglia. MyLongevity.org was launched today and uses big data from anonymised electronic health records to calculate life expectancy.
Who wants to live forever, anyway?
Our homes are getting smarter – we control smart speakers all around the home with our voices, control our thermostats from anywhere with smart heating, and control the ambiance with smart lighting. There are even smart fridges that which are programmed to sense what kinds of products are stored inside it and keep a track of the stock through barcode or RFID scanning.
These gadgets all have one thing in common, they’re constantly online. And anything that’s always connected can be used in a cyber attack. And the older the connected tech, the easier it is to hack into.
So, is it time smart tech came with a ‘use by’ date?
It doesn’t seem like the first coronavirus wave has ended and already there’s talk of preparing for the second wave. But with the cold weather on its way back, government support schemes coming to an end, it’s going to be a tough end to the year, regardless of whether or not there is a second wave of Covid-19.
UK businesses are still feeling the effects of the first coronavirus outbreak and lockdown – many still haven’t had the chance to reopen – and are now being asked to prepare for the second wave. If you’re in the payments industry, here are some ways to stay competitive if there is another downturn.
The rumors of the second COVID-19 wave have been circling the market. With a significant number of vendors still battling the consequences of the first siege of the pandemic, keeping in mind what measures could mitigate the impact could be the difference between a ‘crash and burn’ and staying afloat.
It’s not unusual to hate your job, your boss, your colleagues, your commute – even if it’s just the odd moment of despair, we all go through times where we feel like flipping our desk and walking out. The important thing to remember is that you work to live, it’s a means to an end, it’s not the be all and end all – once that dynamic is flipped on its head, and you live to work, it’s time to re-evaluate things, else your work-life could be the death of you.
Whether it’s phishing, Trojan Horses or a DDoS attack, cyber crime is getting more and more complex and efficient
All of which is obviously concerning, but have you ever wondered how hackers actually make their money?