How to Stop Tracking Through Your Cell Phone

We all know that companies and even government agencies track us through our mobile phones. Most of us know to turn off the WiFi connection when not in use. But did you know that you can still be tracked even with WiFi turned off? However, this short video will show you how to still be able to use your phone but keep it from being tracked.

So now you can see how with most phones to have some privacy. I personally find it amazing that the younger users (10 years to 25 years) don't seem to care if they are tracked or recorded on social media. Just a reminder: something that is posted as well as tracked is a permanent record and theoretically could be accessed 50 years from now.

Another issue is avoiding or blocking internet tracking. However, let's take up that issue in another blog.

Dangers of Texting While Driving

We already know about the dangers of talking on cell phones while driving, and now there are many locations with heavy fines for doing this. At least the danger is strongest when holding the phone while driving. This is one reason to purchase the StarShine Hands Free Cell Phone Holder for your car. Now there is a further danger with texting, much worse than talking because the person is more distracted and more apt to cause an accident. Here's a recent survey taken by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada regarding the incidence of texting and driving among licensed Ontario students in grades 10 - 12, approximately 108,000 teens surveyed.

Dangers of Texting While Driving

The 2013 Ontario Student Drug Use and Health Survey found that more than one-third of licensed Ontario students in Grades 10 to 12 — or an estimated 108,000 teens — reported having texted while driving at least once in the past year.

For Grade 12 students alone, 46 per cent of those who drive say they also texted at least once while operating a vehicle.

"This was a big surprise to us," said Robert Mann, a senior scientist at CAMH in Toronto. "We know that this is a very hazardous behaviour and some of the reports in the literature suggest that texting while you're driving can increase your chances of being involved in a collision by about 20 times or more.

"I think that texting is considered to be considerably hazardous because you have to actually type on the keyboard while you're driving," he said.

Such distracted driving is illegal across Canada, yet many adult and teen drivers continue to communicate by keyboard while in the driver's seat.

Yet the student surveys have found that the percentage of students who reported drinking and driving has declined dramatically over the past 20 years, he said.

To read more, click here.

Here is a video explaining this interesting survey and how the surveyors showed the teens the danger of their behavior.

While most of the "texters" are young people, it is becoming more popular as the communication is so instant yet stays recorded for those who are not "on message" (something like "online"). This is an important point. There is not need to instantly read and reply to a text message. It will be there when you are finished driving.

Safety Features for Your Cell Phone

Mobile phones are getting so complex these days they can almost make you breakfast and tie your shoes. Using you phone to navigate across town, take a picture, figure out your accounts, send several kinds of messages, play music, watch movies, set an alarm and record a voice message are all common functions. However, here are a few things about your phone that you may not know.

• Dial an emergency call using 112. This is the international emergency number and can be used everywhere on GSM (Global System for Mobile) phones as long as there is reception for your phone. In some places it will work even if your battery is dead. However, it should not be something you try out.

The message also includes the ill-conceived suggestion that recipients should actually try out the 112 number. As at least one commentator has pointed out, testing 112 - or any other emergency number - just to see if it works is simply irresponsible. Tying up emergency call workers with such useless calls could result in delays in response times for real emergencies. In emergency situations even seconds can make a difference. Emergency call services already have to contend with enough time-wasting prank calls as it is without having to field calls from recipients of this message who have heeded its advice to try the 112 number for themselves.
To read the original click here.

• Record your IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) in case your phone is lost or stolen. If you call this number into your service provider, the phone can be disabled, thus making it useless to the thieves or finder. There is also an international data base called the “blacklist” that will keep the phone from being reregistered, even if the battery is changed.

The black list is a list of IMEIs that are associated with GSM or 3G devices that should be denied service on mobile networks because they have been reported as lost, stolen, faulty or otherwise unsuitable for use. Previously know as the Central Equipment Identify Register (CEIR), the IMEI DB acts as a central system for network operators to share their individual black lists so that devices denied service (blacklisted) by one network will not work on other networks even if the SIM card in the device is changed. Read the original here.

To find your IMEI, either take out your battery and you will find it written underneath or dial #06# on your phone. The IMEI will be displayed on the screen. Write it down and store it in a safe place where you will remember it.
One of the most important reasons to carry your cell phone is in case of emergencies. Having the phone lost or stolen is another emergency, so keep it close in a car holder, your desk or in your pocket. For more information about phone holders, check out the article on the website, Universal  Mobile Phone Holder for Sale.

Security Breach Effects Cell Phone Users

Recently a new cell phone security problem has appeared called Heartbleed. It has especially effected all websites that are using the SSL configuration (https:). It was disclosed on April 7,2014 and it is estimated that at least 17% or half a million of supposed secure websites are vulnerable unless they takes measures to "patch" the access.  Forbes cybersecurity columnist Joseph Steinberg wrote, "Some might argue that [Heartbleed] is the worst vulnerability found (at least in terms of its potential impact) since commercial traffic began to flow on the Internet." (quote source here) It is ironic that these are supposedly the most secure sites that use https:

What does this mean exactly to the average user and what can be done? It is a serious problem because your private information including credit card numbers and passwords is at risk of hackers. It is basically a high-level programming error, which now has a "patch protection" or a new SSL configuration that many companies have now installed. However, not all have protected themselves as yet. There is a test you can apply to see which ones are protected. Simply go to this site and type in the URL of the company you want to test. If the site is corrected, it's a good idea to change your password. However, if the site has not been patched, it's best just not to use it until the situation changes. Here's the testing site: https://filippo.io/Heartbleed/ 

There is another aspect to this problem and this is perhaps why it is considered to be such a threat. The hackers also have access to the SSL codes, a long string of numbers and letters that verify the site as certified to encrypt information on these sites. Apparently this has been a problem for several years already. The outcome is that hackers have access to pretend they are the established sites. Again many of the effected companies using open SSL have established new codes, but not all of them. It seems they should be required to make this change soon. What his means for users such as you and I is that we need to be extra-careful of phishing, both ones that are accessed through bookmarks as well as hackers contacting us through e-mail messages.

By the way, the security company, Codenomicon gave this security bug its name and contributed the logo.  The name stems from the fact that there is "missing bounds check in the handling of the Transport Layer Security (TLS) heartbeat extension", according to Wikipedia. It's just part of tech-speak but an interesting name, don't you agree?