Reel Time

Published on Sunday, 19 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

True enough, the rise of social media and networking use brought forth a rise in social benefits, such as an increase in convenience in social connectivity. However, it has too, made way for dangers and discomforts regarding a person's privacy, as I have also been saying and discussing in my previous blog posts.

That is why the issue of privacy in the digital world should be taken anything but lightly and as a joke. It's time for us to wake up because online identity theft, bullying, stalking, and predators actually do exist in the world. Privacy, or the lack there-of, gives us and society all the more reason to be aware and spread awareness to our peers; and parents- to their children. 

And what better way to stead awareness than to depict reality of today in a movie? Below are the story lines and trailers for the two movies:


Trust directed by David Schwimmer - Safe and sound in their suburban home, Will and Lynn Cameron used to sleep well at night, trusting their children were protected. Will, in particular, was comforted by the fact that he and Lynn raised three bright children, and that once the doors were locked and the alarm was set, nothing -- absolutely nothing -- was going to harm his family. When his fourteen-year-old daughter, Annie, made a new friend online -- a sixteen-year-old boy named Charlie that she met in a volleyball chat room -- Will and Lynn didn't think much of it. They discussed his friendship with her, assuming that this is normal with teenagers who connect through the internet.After weeks of communicating online, Annie becomes enraptured by Charlie and finds herself drawn to him more and more. Slowly she learns he is not who he claims to be, yet Annie remains intrigued by Charlie even as the truth about him is uncovered. The devastating revelation reverberates through her entire family, setting in motion a chain of events that forever change their lives in ways that no one could have ever predicted. - Moviefone


CyberBully directed by Charles Binamé - Cyberbully follows Taylor Hillridge (Emily Osment), a teenage girl who falls victim to online bullying, and the cost it takes on her as well as her friends and family. Taylor is a pretty seventeen-year-old student dealing with her parents' recent divorce and painfully aware of her lower social status in high school. When her mom gives her a computer for her birthday, Taylor is excited by the prospect of going online to meet new friends without her mother always looking over her shoulder. However, Taylor soon finds herself the victim of betrayal and bullying while visiting a popular social website. Obsessed with the damaging posts, she begins to withdraw from her family and friends, including her life-long best friend, Samantha Caldone (Kay Panabaker). Tormented and afraid to face her peers at school, Taylor is pushed to an extreme breaking point. It is only after this life-changing event that Taylor learns that she is not alone – meeting other teens, including a classmate, who have had similar experiences. Taylor's mom, Kris (Kelly Rowan), reels from the incident and takes on the school system and state legislation to help prevent others from going through the same harrowing ordeal as her daughter. - ABC Family
Trust and CyberBully are just two of the many movies out there that demonstrate how the cyber world can interfere with one's personal life and privacy. Definitely, these movies serve as an eye-opener for all of us. Watching the movies in full will definitely make you stop and think of the own privacy measures you have taken when it comes to releasing personal information online. However, If you can't find a way to watch the full-length movies, trust me, the trailers can shake you to awareness enough.
And so, this marks the end of my venture in blogging about privacy in the digital world. You can think of these two movies as a farewell gift from me to you. In this day and age, I hope you found at least some of the information posted here useful for your growing privacy needs! Thanks for keeping up! 

Create a Powerhouse Password!

Published on Tuesday, 14 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Hey guys! Since passwords act as the very key to our online privacy, I thought I'd share a guide and some helpful tips for creating a powerhouse password! Below is Ramesh Natarajan's "Ultimate Guide for Creating Strong Passwords":

I. Two essential password rules: Following two rules are bare minimal that you should follow while creating a password.

Rule 1 – Password Length: Stick with passwords that are at least 8 characters in length. The more character in the passwords is better, as the time taken to crack the password by an attacker will be longer. 10 characters or longer are better.

Rule 2 – Password Complexity: Should contain at least one character from each of the following group. At least 4 characters in your passwords should be each one of the following.

1. Lower case alphabets
2. Upper case alphabets
3. Numbers
4. Special Characters

The above two rules combined as “8 4 Rule” (Eight Four Rule):

8 = 8 characters minimum length
4 = 1 lower case + 1 upper case + 1 number + 1 special character.

Cartoon courtesy of Chris Slane 
II. Passwords you should not even consider using:

1. Password same as username or part of the username
2. Name of family members, friends or pets.
3. Personal information about yourself or family members. i.e. birth date, phone number, vehicle license plate number, street name, apartment/house number etc.
4. Sequences. for e.g. abcde, 12345, qwert.
5. Dictionary words. Dictionary words with number or character in front or back
6. Real word from any language
7. Word found in dictionary with number substitution for word look alike. for e.g. Replacing the letter O with number 0. i.e passw0rd.
8. Any of the above in reverse sequence
9. Any of the above with a number in front or back.
10. Empty password

Source: TheGeekStuff

A Very Fine Line

Published on Sunday, 12 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

As far as we know, a very fine line exists between work and personal life. Employees and employers alike prefer to keep both aspects separate, right? Well, today, the case seems to be the opposite, at least, as much to the employee's dismay. If applicants dread to hear and answer some job interview questions, how more could they react if the employer asks: "May I have your Facebook username and password?" And yes, this is not a joke. 


"Some employers will ask a candidate for their username/password, while others may request a candidate “friend” an HR manager or request they review their account on a company computer. Continuing this social media monitoring, once you get the job, some companies make employees sign contracts stating they will not disparage the company on social media.

"These new policies have left many uneasy and raised concerns about the issue of privacy invasion, professional vs. private life boundaries, and even identity theft. Employers maintain they are simply vetting candidates more efficiently, particularly in certain fields such as law enforcement, security, or for public agencies. Still, the practice has not been fully condoned or accepted, and more and more candidates are facing a dilemma. Job seekers uncomfortable with giving their information out may sacrifice job opportunities that are much needed in the current economy, meaning they may be trading privacy for a paycheck". 

"Luckily, the issue has attracted the attention of lawmakers. Both Illinois and Maryland have proposed legislation that would forbid public agencies from asking for access to social networks. And at the federal level, New York Senator Chuck Schumer and Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal have requested further investigation by the Department of Justice and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

“Employers have no right to ask job applicants for their house keys or to read their diaries – why should they be able to ask them for their Facebook passwords and gain unwarranted access to a trove of private information about what we like, what messages we send to people, or who we are friends with?” Schumer said in statement.

"Requesting private passwords as an employment requirement may violate the Stored Communications Act or the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, making leaders eager to examine the issue more closely.

"In the absence of legislation protecting potential employees from this specific practice, it is up to the individual to decide whether or not to comply. In general, sharing usernames and passwords can be a very dangerous practice. Whether or not you plan to acquiesce to an employer’s request, it’s always a good idea to review and “clean” your profile by removing messages, photos, or content that might be inappropriate. You may also want to change your password (if you happen to use the same password for other things like online banking or email).
Article from ZoneAlarm

Take This Lollipop

Published on Friday, 10 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Sorry to start off this post with a story from my not so eventful life,  but I guarantee that this will be relevant to the topic of privacy. Okay, so now on to retelling!

I was scrolling down my newsfeed on Facebook, when I saw this update:


Admittedly, I couldn't help but get a little excited over this fact since Take This Lollipop has been, so far, the only Facebook app that has managed to surprise and impress me. Finding out that the could be a sequel made me so curious on what the application could offer next. Have you used the app yet? If not, I'll try to keep the app description as discrete as possible. 

Take This Lollipop is an interactive short horror film and Facebook app, written and directed by Jason Zada. Upon opening, the app presents you a film with the "Facebook stalker", creepily hunched over, typing and clicking away, landing on a Facebook user's profile, and doing what he does best, stalking.

At the end of it, Take This Lollipop will definitely make you think about what you share or post online. I won't discuss much on it to not spoil anything, but for those reading who have tried it already, did it leave the same impression on you? 

For those who haven't tried using the app yet, click here, like, load, and enjoy! 


Protect Your... Face?

Published on Wednesday, 8 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

I'm sure you've already heard of one of Facebook's newest features, face-recognition. But if you haven't yet, other than being basically what its name entails, face-recognition, in Facebook heavy terms, is a suggestion software used to suggest people's names to tag in pictures-- without the person's consent and permission. 

Although you do receive a notification after you get tagged, the program still tags photos of you automatically; which means you have no control over it appearing on your profile; and, your other friends might see the picture first before you even have the chance to for yourself.

If you're worried about getting automatically tagged in any photos of you in embarrassing and compromising poses, don't fret. You can still "protect your face" and disable these tag suggestions! Here's how: 


and you're welcome! 

Info-graph courtesy of ZoneAlarm

Protect Your Facebook Timeline's Privacy

Published on Tuesday, 7 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Cartoon courtesy of Chris Slane
A lot of Facebook users have expressed their dislike for timeline because of its seemingly cluttered interface and the increased exposure it has given on personal information such as our most celebrated events and moments. The first time it was released, we had the option of choice in getting the Timeline for ourselves or not. But just recently, based on the stories (which were really complaints) from some of my friends, Facebook has officially imposed the timeline to all its active users. 

"The new format has garnered praise, and criticism from users concerned about their profile privacy. Previously, there was no way to review a profile’s history without clicking into oblivion. Now, Timeline makes your entire Facebook activity history easily searchable—and highlights the stand-out moments (including the posts that received the most attention, which could be a drunk party photo that you’d prefer your new coworkers not see). The bad news for those not eager to revisit their past is that eventually all Facebook users will have to adopt the Timeline format. The good news? You can do some damage control before your Timeline goes live. Here’s a cheat sheet to protect your privacy on Timeline." - ZoneAlarm

"Make Changes Within Seven Days. You can choose to activate Timeline now or wait until Facebook converts all profiles, but the most important thing to know is that whenever the transition happens, you will have seven days after notification to make all necessary edits to your profile before it goes live. You can push your profile live at any time during these seven days, but after that it will publish automatically.

Review Your Activity Log. The Activity Log is where you can see all your Facebook activity from the beginning, review the privacy settings of certain posts, and feature, hide, or delete all posts. Only you can see your Activity Log, so use it as your dashboard to review your content. One good first step before you start adjusting is to automatically make all posts viewable only to friends (this way only your personal network can see your Timeline when it goes live, regardless of previous privacy settings). Go to your Privacy Settings page, click “Limit the Audience for Previous Post,” click “Manage Past Post Visibility,” and select “Limit Old Posts.” You can then adjust the visibility of individual posts later.

Hide Posts You Don’t Want Anyone to See. As you review your profile, you can hide—or delete—anything cringe-worthy or questionable content, including photos, comments, status updates, etc. In the Activity Log, click on the circle icon, and select “Hidden on Timeline” or “Delete Post.” If you’re reviewing the post on your timeline page, hover over the top right corner of the post and click the pencil icon to see your visibility options.



Limit the Posts You Want Some People to See. For those posts you only want specific people to see, go to your timeline page, click the “people” icon by your name, and select the appropriate group you want to grant visibility to (including custom, in which you can select particular people).

Preserve Posts Only You Want to See. If there is a post in your Timeline you want to keep, but you don’t want your network to see, you can make it visible only to you by clicking the pencil icon and selecting “Only Me.” Note: You can only do this to your own posts, not those made by others.


Review Your Timeline. When you’re ready to publish, you can review what your timeline will look like to other people by clicking the gear icon and selecting “View As.”

"Whether you hop on the Timeline train today or wait until you have to, consider carefully what information you share on Facebook and all your social networks." - ZoneAlarm

How To Stay Safe On Facebook

Published on Sunday, 5 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Facebook is now the world's leading social networking platform with you and some other 800++ million people who use it everyday. And among the millions of people using it for connectivity, are the thousands who use it for cybercrime. 

Like every other corner in the internet, Facebook is experiencing their fair share of attacks too. Out of the daily 800++ million number of people on Facebook, 4 million people experience spam, and 600,000 attempts of hijack logins are being made on a daily basis. Apart from this, 20% of Facebook users have already been exposed to malware.

One way or another, we are exposed to crooks on Facebook. These crooks take in the form of personal-information-scouting-applications and "friends" who look suspicious. But don't let them get in the way of you reconnecting and sharing with your real friends! You can still have fun and stay safe! Here are some tips to keep you secure and private from Facebook cybercrime:

1. Get to know not just new people, but your privacy settings as well

a. Search Settings: Who can find you when they search for your name? You can limit people who can find you, or you can just completely disable the function!

b. Photo Settings: Who can see your photos? Make sure to separate young personal life and work life. You wouldn't want your boss to see those drunken pictures of you now would you? (kidding)

c. Keep in mind that your friends can share your information to their profiles as well. If you don't want this happening, you can edit those privacy settings under "Applications and Websites". 

2. Don't add people you don't know - Suspicious and fake accounts exist for a reason, and that reason usually being-- stalking and spying. Accounts and users you are not familiar with are most probably cybercriminals looking for their next victims online. 

3. Limit the use of applications - Some applications have been admitted by Facebook to actually send out our personal information to external servers. as I've talked about in my previous blog post, 'Cookies, anyone?', these applications send out out personal information to ad firms. 

4. Protect your location - I personally, am very much annoyed and creeped out with the location feature on social networking sites now. Some tips:

a. Don't ever check-in at home - To keep our exact house address private from every person on our friend's list.

b. Never check-in at a friend's or family member's home - To avoid compromising their own privacy and safety.

c. Don't link to Twitter - Twitter feeds are usually public and out in the open for everyone to see. At least in Facebook, only our friends guaranteed can see the places we've checked-in at.

5. Don't Overshare - Always keep in mind that it's harder to take back information rather than not sharing information at all.


Sources: ZoneAlarm Blog and FoxNews

From a Stalker's POV

Published on Saturday, 4 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Have you ever wondered why stalkers decide to…. well, stalk other people? Here, their reasons, whether they admit to it or not, are provided as to why they were driven into stalking in the first place:


1. I envy you
2. I need to fulfill his/her wishes or cravings… I might be a tad (or a lot) obsessed
3. I am invincible because no one can “see” what I am doing
4. I am unemployed/not happy with my current job/career. I need a distraction
5. I want make you feel inferior
6. I am a tad bit (try a lot) delusional
7. I just want to justify my status. So I'll instill fear in you
8. I want to embarrass you
9. I cannot deal with my own problems, so I will give you a problem too
10. I am just curious


So why provide you with their point of view? What I'm trying to get to here, is that it's not our fault as to why we have stalkers. But even so, I'm  not saying that we should go post whatever we want online now and start keeping everything on public. Ultimately, it's the stalkers curiosity that leads him to his own frustration and obsession of stalking and threatening. So it's never our fault if someone out there decides to stalk us. However not our fault, we should still take extra precautions as to how we can lessen the likeliness of having a stalker. And we can do just that by:
  • Not sharing personal information in public spaces anywhere online, nor give it to strangers, including in e-mail or chat rooms. Do not use your real name or nickname as your screen name or user ID. Pick a name that is gender- and age-neutral. And do not post personal information as part of any user profiles.
  • Being extremely cautious about meeting online acquaintances in person. If you choose to meet, do so in a public place and take along a friend.
  • Making sure that your ISP and Internet Relay Chat (IRC) network have an acceptable use policy that prohibits cyberstalking. And if your network fails to respond to your complaints, consider switching to a provider that is more responsive to user complaints.
  • If a situation online becomes hostile, log off or surf elsewhere. If a situation places you in fear, contact a local law enforcement agency.

Avoid Cyber-Bullies

Published on Thursday, 2 August 2012 Leave your thoughts »

In my previous post, I have addressed the existence of the bullies of the digital world, or as they are most commonly called: cyber-bullies. Bullying has been even more widespread than before now that the act has reached the online world. Take false gossip into consideration for example. If spreading it around school through word of mouth was fast enough, can you imagine what texting, posting it on Facebook, or Tweeting about it can do? If experiencing to be bullied in person is horrible enough, how much more worse could the situation be if it was done to a person online as well, with not just our personal lives, but also our online identities and privacy shaken? If you know someone, or if you yourself, are being cyber-bullied, here are some tips and advice for preventing the cycle of aggressive attacks:


Don't respond. If someone bullies you, remember that your reaction is usually exactly what the bully wants. It gives him or her power over you. Who wants to empower a bully?

Don't retaliate. Getting back at the bully turns you into one and reinforces the bully's behavior. Help avoid a whole cycle of aggression.

Save the evidence. The only good news about digital bullying is that the harassing messages can usually be captured, saved, and shown to someone who can help. Save evidence even if it's minor stuff - in case things escalate.

Block the bully. If the harassment's coming in the form of instant messages, texts, or profile comments, do yourself a favor: Use preferences or privacy tools to block the person. If it's in chat, leave the "room." This may not end the problem, but you don’t need harassment in your face all the time, and no reaction sometimes makes aggressors bored so they’ll stop.

Reach out for help. You deserve backup. Of course you know there are different kinds of help, from talking with a friend to seeing if there’s a trusted adult who can help. It's usually good to involve a parent but - if you can't - a school counselor can sometimes be helpful. If you're really nervous about saying something, see if there's a way to report the incident anonymously at school. Sometimes this can result in bullies getting the help they need to change their behavior.

Use reporting tools. If the bullying took place via a social network, use that service’s reporting or “abuse” tools. The social network may also have “social abuse-reporting” tools, which allow you to forward hurtful content to a trusted friend or directly ask someone to take offensive content down. If the abuse threatens physical harm, you may have to call the police, but think about involving a parent if you do.

Be civil. You're doing yourself a favor. Even if you don't like a person, it's a good idea to be decent and not sink to his or her level. Research shows that gossiping about and "trash talking" others increase your risk of being bullied.

Don't be a bully. You know the old saying about walking a mile in someone's shoes; even a few seconds of thinking about how another person might feel can put a big damper on aggression. That's needed in this world.

Be a friend, not a bystander. Forwarding mean messages or just standing by and doing nothing empowers bullies and hurts victims even more. If you can, tell bullies to stop, or let them know bullying is not cool - it's cruel abuse of fellow human beings. If you can't stop the bully, at least try to help the victim and report the behavior.

Tips directly from ConnectSafely.org

A Whole New Level

Published on Tuesday, 31 July 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Technology is taking everything to a whole new level. What we knew of existing only tangibly before, now exists in "soft copy" and in the digital world. And I don't mean just songs, videos, pictures, documents, books, etc. Yes, the digital world really is taking everything to a new level-- now that even stalkers and bullies lurk around online. 

If it was bad enough to have to face them in real life, how and what more can we possibly tolerate of them now? Also, if I may add, the job of stalking and bullying seems to be made easier for them because of the convenience of using the World Wide Web. The benefit of staying faceless and un-identifiable may be theirs, but the burden of utter discomfort is definitely on us.

Although this might be the case, the last thing I would want is to scare off my readers (Hello! If you guys actually exist)! As every problem works, it is always easier to prevent it from happening and blowing up first. The stalking, bullying, and discomfort wouldn't even take place if we don't provide potential predators firsthand with information they can use to act sinister, now would it? This is why keeping our personal information private and our publicly available information limited is the best safety measure we can take. And of course, let us not be afraid to report these stalkers and bullies. Social networking sites are actually and already taking their part in ensuring our online safety and privacy by providing a "Report" button in every user's profile for us to click on if the identified user threatens us in any way. 

Also, thanks (again) to ZoneAlarm, I have included in this post another info-graphic, this time on "The Online Reality of Stalker and Bullies". Same old drill: click on the image to enlarge. 

Happy helpful and informative reading! 

While Teens Share, Parents Care

Published on Monday, 30 July 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Any teenager would just like to fit in. At first the want to fit in only applies in school with peers. If you wore this latest trend, read this popular series, liked this band, had this gadget, you were good to go. However and with the growing popularity of social networking and sharing sites on the internet, teens today are faced with the added pressure of sharing personal information online. 

Have you ever lied about your age online? Guilty as charged, I did so once. Hey, I was 11 years old and I wanted a Neopets account. I never thought that it would do me any actual harm (and thankfully it didn't). I mean, I did it just to get the same Neopet privileges as 13 year olds and people older! Also, I remember not really wanting to bother my parents to give their consent and approval upon entering the site. And now I realize how wrong what I did just sounds. It may have not been a big deal for me then, but seeing all the possibilities and dangers that could happen over the net today, I wish I'd known better. And I could only wish that kids today know best. 

Sharing (not to mention, lying) over the internet can more likely lead you to negative experiences online."For some teens, sharing personal information is a sign of trust. The good news is that a large majority of teens and parents say they have had a conversation about what not to share online". Thanks to  ZoneAlarm, I am able to provide you guys with yet again another helpful info-graphic. This time, the graphic examines the online activity teens engage in, and at the same, explain how we can avoid different privacy issues. 

Don't forget to click on the image to enlarge and read on! 

Protect Your Privacy

Published on Sunday, 29 July 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Currently, Facebook is the number one social networking site known to generations across the world. We use it to connect, to re-connect, and to catch up with family and friends. And today, along with the rise of Facebook's popularity and registered users, comes, thankfully, the rise of attention given to protecting the privacy and management of a person's Facebook account. 

With this blog post, I present to you guys an info-graphic reporting the safety management measurements that have been taken by Facebook users, male and female, young and old. Find out the quirks of privacy for these users and get tips on how you can manage your social media privacy by clicking on the image provided at the left side of this blog post. 

Hope you guys find the graphic informative, reminding, and helpful! 

Like, Reblog, Tweet, Post, Repeat

Published on Saturday, 28 July 2012 Leave your thoughts »

Nowadays, logging in on social networking sites is second nature to most of us; specifically and especially, to the kids- or should I say teens, of my generation. 

We "like", "reblog", "tweet" and "post" all over the internet, whenever and wherever we are. Of course, it helps that our mobile carriers and devices now provide 24/7 internet access and applications to our most preferred social networking sites. Everyday, we share almost anything and everything that fits our opinions and interests which are basically, and usually, the most personal and private pieces of information relating to our lives. 

True, communicating with our peers digitally has never been easier; sharing our lives online has become so rampant among us. I admit, even I go online everyday to check my Facebook, update my Twitter, and reblog on Tumblr. However, sometimes I ponder on the fact of how us being so dependent and "at home" with social networking has inevitably reduced our rights to privacy.

I'm pretty sure that you have the same, if not, to some extent, similar sentiments as mine. However, I would still very much like to hear it directly from you. 

What seems to be simple fun and leisure for us could actually turn out to be, in all honesty, quite the opposite. That is why, in my few next blog posts, I would be talking about social networking, its benefits, probable dangers, tips and tricks. 

So I suggest you guys stay tuned… or in the case of you guys finding this blog post at the time the entries are already posted… then keep reading! 

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