Monday, June 3, 2024

Tech Tips and News for June 5, 2024

 
Your response when someone comments on
getting summers off.  From We Are Teachers.
After receiving notifications from three separate companies in the last two weeks informing me that my personal data, including social security number, has been leaked due to data breaches, I spent my weekend securing all my online accounts. Fortunately I don't typically reuse my passwords accross all my accounts, so I didn't need to change passwords with every online account. I did, however, take the precaution of freezing my credit (it's free to do!) with all three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion), and changing the password for any online account that has a credit card or bank account associated with it. Fortunately this step was made easier because I use Bitwarden, a password manager. All I needed to do was have Bitwarden generate a new secure password, then as I changed the password for each account, I clicked Bitwarden's prompt to update the password in the vault. I didn't need to think of a new password, nor do I need to remember all these new passwords. The password manager does all the heavy lifting, and it's much more secure. Fortunately I already have 2-step verification turned on for my online accounts, so I was able to skip that step as well. I encourage you to bookmark the data breach articles below for when (not if) your data is leaked as well. It's far better to take these steps proactively, than to react to the financial and data loss that comes with identity theft or ransomware. I can sleep better knowing that the steps I took this weekend will prevent anyone from opening new accounts under my identity, or accessing my bank accounts and credit cards. I will continue to monitor all my financial accounts for any suspicious activity, and am fully prepared for a new onslaught of phishing scams. (Note:  No, this is not an endorsement for Bitwarden, it just happens to be the password manager I use. Most password managers work in a similar way - if you are using a different one (yay!) it will work just as well. If you are not, find one that works for you. I receive no commision or reward if you decide to use Bitwarden.)

Security


Tips and Tutorials


Here’s What You Should Do After a Data Breach

Here’s What You Should Do After a Data Breach, from Experian Blog by Jim Akin
Here are instructions for what you need to do after you've been notified your personal info has been leaked due to a data breach. Advice directly from one of the three credit bureaus. It's always better to be proactive, than to be reacting to identity theft or hack. 

Over 500 Million Hit in Massive Ticketmaster Data Breach — What to Do Now

Find out what data was stolen and how it can affect you. 

NSA Issues Warning to iPhone and Android Users — Do This to Stop Hackers

Pick a day during the week and designate it as your restart day for all your devices, including your phone. 

Facebook "Friends" Offering Investments Is a Trending Scam, Here's What to Look Out For

With friends like these, who needs enemies? Be on the lookout for this latest scam on Facebook. Better yet, never click on any link or attachment in Facebook Messenger. Not ever.

Google Online Safety and Digital Well-Being Lesson Collection

Since June is Internet Safety Month, Google is offering a collection of online lessons for you to use with students. You can find the collection of seven lessons here. Lessons include: Build Healthy Digital Habits, Avoid Online Scams, Evaluate Credibility of Online Sources, Create and Safeguard Passwords, Identify Cyberbullying, Understand Your Digital Footprint, and more. Although it may be too late for this school year, these may be helpful resources for teaching digital citizenship next year. 

Free lessons to Support Students' Digital Well Being

We're all well aware that social media plays a huge role in the increased level of anxiety afflicting our students. Common Sense media has a set of lessons to help teach students to form healthy relationships with technology. When you're ready to start planning for next school year (after you've rested up from this one) here's another resource for your digital citizenship lessons. Common Sense media has free lessons to use with your K-8 students to also teach them to create healthy habits with technology, including the following:
  • Learning when (and how) to pause and put down our devices while interacting with people.
  • Tuning in to what, when, and how much we're using media and tech, and reflecting on how this makes us feel.
  • Questioning the design tricks that media and tech companies use to keep us hooked on our screens.
  • And understanding the impacts that our media choices have on ourselves, our communities, and the world.
There are actually lessons for grades K-12, so if you may want to use these ideas with your own kids. 

AI in The Classroom: 10 Essential Ideas Every Educator Needs to Understand

This article outlines why it is important to start teachig students about AI now, and how it will impact their lives as they grow. It also helps us understand the pros and cons, how it can impact learning differences, and how to develop critical thinking in students. 

Elevate Critical Thinking with AI Debates in the Classroom

Elevate Critical Thinking with AI Debates in the Classroom, From Control Alt Achieve by Eric Curts
The classroom teacher sets up the AI prompt with age-appropriate parameters (there's a script to follow), and your class can take turns debating the AI bot on any topic. 

24 Clever Memes You Can Use to Respond to “You Get Summers Off?”

Feel free to use these as clever responses, or just for your own humor. 
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