Digital Smarts Blog

Compulsive technology use is getting a lot of media attention for the addictive dangers it poses. While there is no clear definition for internet addiction, including its symptoms and its causes, some parents are seeking forms of rehabilitation for their children. An article exploring what internet addiction entails and how some doctors are trying to treat it is discussed in The Washington Post article This dark side of the Internet is costing young people their jobs and social lives.

Compulsive technology use is getting a lot of media attention for the addictive dangers it poses. While there is no clear definition for internet addiction, including its symptoms and its causes, some parents are seeking forms of rehabilitation for their children. An article exploring what internet addiction entails and how some doctors are trying to treat it is discussed in The Washington Post article This dark side of the Internet is costing young people their jobs and social lives.

Do you ever wonder if someone has tapped into your WiFi network? Take a look at J.D. Biersdorfer’s Tech Tip post in The New York Times entitled I Spy on My Own WiFi for a list of ways to check it out.

Do you ever wonder if someone has tapped into your WiFi network? Take a look at J.D. Biersdorfer’s Tech Tip post in The New York Times entitled I Spy on My Own WiFi for a list of ways to check it out.

Social networks have erupted in recent weeks with complaints about a tricky way Microsoft is using to get people to upgrade (for free) to Windows 10. According to a variety of reports, it seems that when users are prompted by the pop-up notification informing them of the upgrade, clicking the red “X” button in the top right hand corner will actually begin the upgrade process instead of closing the box. No doubt this has caused confusion to users as many, for decades, have equated clicking the “X” to mean no or to cancel. If you don’t want to receive the upgrade, or want to do it on your own time schedule, you might be interested in these instructions on how to prevent it.

Social networks have erupted in recent weeks with complaints about a tricky way Microsoft is using to get people to upgrade (for free) to Windows 10. According to a variety of reports, it seems that when users are prompted by the pop-up notification informing them of the upgrade, clicking the red “X” button in the top right hand corner will actually begin the upgrade process instead of closing the box. No doubt this has caused confusion to users as many, for decades, have equated clicking the “X” to mean no or to cancel. If you don’t want to receive the upgrade, or want to do it on your own time schedule, you might be interested in these instructions on how to prevent it.

Have you tried to use your usual, easy to remember password when logging into Xbox, Skype, or even Microsoft Word and it didn’t work? That is because Microsoft is banning them. Microsoft will now require users to have an eight character password that will be checked against common passwords typically targeted by hackers. Although these efforts are intended to reduce the number of successful hackings, there are no signs of hacking attempts ending anytime soon - Microsoft says that 10 million of its users’ accounts are attacked each day.

Have you tried to use your usual, easy to remember password when logging into Xbox, Skype, or even Microsoft Word and it didn’t work? That is because Microsoft is banning them. Microsoft will now require users to have an eight character password that will be checked against common passwords typically targeted by hackers. Although these efforts are intended to reduce the number of successful hackings, there are no signs of hacking attempts ending anytime soon - Microsoft says that 10 million of its users’ accounts are attacked each day.

As data collection becomes more and more prevalent through devices ranging from your cell phone to your refrigerator, the need for Internet security is higher than ever. Experts meeting at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) recently spoke out about how regulations – broad and varied, coming from state, federal and foreign jurisdictions – are causing the workload of cybersecurity officials to get out of hand. At the meeting, experts could not agree on whether the forces of good are prevailing against hackers, or whether breaches are increasing or are just more public than in the past. There was a consensus, however, that recent hacking attacks coming from ideological nation states is by far a change for the worse.

As data collection becomes more and more prevalent through devices ranging from your cell phone to your refrigerator, the need for Internet security is higher than ever. Experts meeting at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) recently spoke out about how regulations – broad and varied, coming from state, federal and foreign jurisdictions – are causing the workload of cybersecurity officials to get out of hand. At the meeting, experts could not agree on whether the forces of good are prevailing against hackers, or whether breaches are increasing or are just more public than in the past. There was a consensus, however, that recent hacking attacks coming from ideological nation states is by far a change for the worse.

Recently the US Commerce Department set out a set of guidelines for those who fly drones. The full document is a long one, but there is a quick summary at the end that could serve as good addition (at least the non-drone specific items) to any family list of digital rules as well. Here it is:

1. If you can, tell other people you’ll be taking pictures or video of them before you do.
2. If you think someone has a reasonable expectation of privacy, don’t violate that privacy by taking pictures, video, or otherwise gathering sensitive data, unless you’ve got a very good reason.
3. Don’t fly over other people’s private property without permission if you can easily avoid doing so.
4. Don’t gather personal data for no reason, and don’t keep it for longer than you think you have to.
5. If you keep sensitive data about other people, secure it against loss or theft.
6. If someone asks you to delete personal data about him or her that you’ve gathered, do so, unless you’ve got a good reason not to.
7. If anyone raises privacy, security, or safety concerns with you, try and listen to what they have to say, as long as they’re polite and reasonable about it.
8. Don’t harass people with your drone.

Recently the US Commerce Department set out a set of guidelines for those who fly drones. The full document is a long one, but there is a quick summary at the end that could serve as good addition (at least the non-drone specific items) to any family list of digital rules as well. Here it is:

1. If you can, tell other people you’ll be taking pictures or video of them before you do.
2. If you think someone has a reasonable expectation of privacy, don’t violate that privacy by taking pictures, video, or otherwise gathering sensitive data, unless you’ve got a very good reason.
3. Don’t fly over other people’s private property without permission if you can easily avoid doing so.
4. Don’t gather personal data for no reason, and don’t keep it for longer than you think you have to.
5. If you keep sensitive data about other people, secure it against loss or theft.
6. If someone asks you to delete personal data about him or her that you’ve gathered, do so, unless you’ve got a good reason not to.
7. If anyone raises privacy, security, or safety concerns with you, try and listen to what they have to say, as long as they’re polite and reasonable about it.
8. Don’t harass people with your drone.

Parents agree that rapidly changing technology is a reason to worry about the nature of online bullying, but parents are also aware that technology today makes things so different from anything they experienced growing up that it makes it tough to help kids deal with cyberbullying. It also means that many kids don’t tell a parent what is happening to them because they don’t think they will be understood. Schools have come to similar conclusions and many are backing off from their zero tolerance policy on bullying, recognizing that both the bully and the victim are at risk. Many bullies have misdiagnosed or undiagnosed mental health concerns or are imitating behaviors learned at home or school, and it is important to get at the cause to help the bully change their behavior, experts say. The issue can be even more challenging when parents of the bullying child are in denial or refuse seek help.

Parents agree that rapidly changing technology is a reason to worry about the nature of online bullying, but parents are also aware that technology today makes things so different from anything they experienced growing up that it makes it tough to help kids deal with cyberbullying. It also means that many kids don’t tell a parent what is happening to them because they don’t think they will be understood. Schools have come to similar conclusions and many are backing off from their zero tolerance policy on bullying, recognizing that both the bully and the victim are at risk. Many bullies have misdiagnosed or undiagnosed mental health concerns or are imitating behaviors learned at home or school, and it is important to get at the cause to help the bully change their behavior, experts say. The issue can be even more challenging when parents of the bullying child are in denial or refuse seek help.

There have been several articles in the press lately about how kids’ team coaches have decided to step down after being harshly criticized by some parents on social media. Social media does give parents a place to voice their complaints, without ever going to a coach directly, and some would say that districts are so hyper-conscious of their image on social media these days that they may be willing to sanction or fire a coach based on the comments that appear online. If you have a problem with a coach, try to talk to them in person before communicating in an offensive way online. Remember, this kind of one-sided commentary is akin to cyberbullying. Model the kind of behavior online you would like to see your children display before resorting to bashing others behind your keyboard.

There have been several articles in the press lately about how kids’ team coaches have decided to step down after being harshly criticized by some parents on social media. Social media does give parents a place to voice their complaints, without ever going to a coach directly, and some would say that districts are so hyper-conscious of their image on social media these days that they may be willing to sanction or fire a coach based on the comments that appear online. If you have a problem with a coach, try to talk to them in person before communicating in an offensive way online. Remember, this kind of one-sided commentary is akin to cyberbullying. Model the kind of behavior online you would like to see your children display before resorting to bashing others behind your keyboard.

One of the first rules of sending a text or email when you are angry is to write it, stop, breathe for 5 minutes, and then seriously consider how the person on the other end is going to “receive” it before pushing send. When you forget that rule and experience immediate regret upon sending a text, is there any way to get it to stop?

It is difficult to do, but if you have an iPhone, here is the trick: while your text message is in the process of being sent -- that is, when ‘Sending Message” is still shown at the top of the Messages app along with the blue status bar creeping its way across the screen -- quickly swipe up from the bottom of the screen to pull up the Control Center and tap the Airplane Mode button. After a few seconds, you'll get a notification that your message failed to send, and when you exit Airplane Mode, the text message will not resume sending and will show up as Not Delivered. But hurry, it can be really hard to move faster than the speed of your angry text, especially if it is short or you have great signal.

One of the first rules of sending a text or email when you are angry is to write it, stop, breathe for 5 minutes, and then seriously consider how the person on the other end is going to “receive” it before pushing send. When you forget that rule and experience immediate regret upon sending a text, is there any way to get it to stop?

It is difficult to do, but if you have an iPhone, here is the trick: while your text message is in the process of being sent -- that is, when ‘Sending Message” is still shown at the top of the Messages app along with the blue status bar creeping its way across the screen -- quickly swipe up from the bottom of the screen to pull up the Control Center and tap the Airplane Mode button. After a few seconds, you'll get a notification that your message failed to send, and when you exit Airplane Mode, the text message will not resume sending and will show up as Not Delivered. But hurry, it can be really hard to move faster than the speed of your angry text, especially if it is short or you have great signal.

After a recent study in which 68 teens spent two months keeping a diary about their online experiences, researchers have concluded that if adults want to help teens learn how to handle the risks of an online life, the best thing they can do is to let them get used to handling smaller issues themselves. Researchers recommend that the adults in teens’ lives should take on the important role of "trusted confidantes" and "educated advisors" when it comes to online issues, and not try to be the ultimate solution provider up front.

The study also noted that teens frequently dismiss the notion of asking adults how to deal with the problems they're having online because they often come across as clueless. "Often, as adults, we tend to overreact to some online situations since we didn't have the same experiences the current-day teens have online," Pamela Wisniewski, the author of the study has written. "By overreacting to less serious situations, this closes the door on us being considered trustworthy when teens face even more serious online threats.”

After a recent study in which 68 teens spent two months keeping a diary about their online experiences, researchers have concluded that if adults want to help teens learn how to handle the risks of an online life, the best thing they can do is to let them get used to handling smaller issues themselves. Researchers recommend that the adults in teens’ lives should take on the important role of "trusted confidantes" and "educated advisors" when it comes to online issues, and not try to be the ultimate solution provider up front.

The study also noted that teens frequently dismiss the notion of asking adults how to deal with the problems they're having online because they often come across as clueless. "Often, as adults, we tend to overreact to some online situations since we didn't have the same experiences the current-day teens have online," Pamela Wisniewski, the author of the study has written. "By overreacting to less serious situations, this closes the door on us being considered trustworthy when teens face even more serious online threats.”