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Think twice before taking that social media quiz

Oct 16, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#security #scams #tips #education

Your childhood pet’s name, your mother’s maiden name, your first car. Why would a random social media quiz about which Harry Potter character you’d most relate to need to know these things? Well, there’s a chance it’s a scam.  These types of topics are all common account security questions...

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Watch out for package delivery confirmation scams this holiday season

Sep 27, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#security #scams #tips

As the holidays approach and more folks order items for delivery, scams like the one in the image above tend to increase. The sender pretends to be a company reaching out to confirm or schedule the delivery of a package.  These kinds of messages almost always have a button or link that they...

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Scammers impersonate well-known companies, recruit for fake jobs on LinkedIn and other job platforms

From the Federal Trade Commission Consumer Protection Blog

By Larissa Bungo, Senior Attorney, Federal Trade Commission

Aug 16, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #security #scams

Scammers are lurking on LinkedIn and other job sites, posing as “recruiters” for well-known companies. But instead of looking to hire you, they’re really looking to take your money and personal information. It starts with a direct message on a job search site like Indeed or LinkedIn. The...

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Watch out for automatic account renewal scams

Jul 20, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #security #scams

Have you received an email or text message that looks like the image above? In this scam email that was sent to a BCT team member, the sender is posing as Norton, a company that offers anti-virus software. An invoice has been included in the email that details a subscription to "Norton 360...

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Tech Term of the Month - July 2023: DoS/DDoS Attack

Jul 19, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #security

A  Denial of Service  or  Distributed Denial of Service  attack is an attempt to make a network-connected device or resource, like a computer or website, unavailable to its intended user(s). DoS/DDoS attacks usually target websites or services hosted on better-known web...

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Scammers Are Impersonating Best Buy’s Geek Squad: Here’s What You Need to Know

By Office of the Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum

Jun 19, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #security #scams

Don't fall for these phony Geek Squad invoices and customer service numbers. Consumers and small business owners are being targeted by a scam that involves fraudulent invoices and customer service numbers posing as Best Buy’s Geek Squad. Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is urging...

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Watch Out for Gift Card Scams

May 18, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #security #scams

Scammers continue to evolve their methods in the hopes of getting people to fall for their schemes, and sometimes they can be hard to spot. But one telltale sign of a scam is when someone asks you to pay for a service or help with a gift card. They might say to put money on a certain kind of...

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Be Careful When Using Public Device Charging Ports

Apr 20, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #tips #technology #security

The list of things to be careful plugging into your devices grows as officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation warn travelers and shoppers to avoid public free phone charging ports. They warn that scammers or bad actors could use these ports, which usually include USB or USB-C, to...

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Keep Your Personal Information Safe When Spring Cleaning

Apr 19, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #tips #technology #security

Ashley found an old Roku in the back of the closet while she was spring cleaning. She had a neighbor that wanted one, so it seemed like a perfect fit. It seemed like the only thing to do was to plug it in and see if it still worked.  Ashley was navigating through the settings...

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Watch Out for "Account Suspended" Scams

Feb 15, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #tips #security #scams

A new favorite tactic of scammers is to try and convince you that one of your accounts has been suspended and that you need to take action to regain access or lift the suspension. The image above is from an email recently received by a BCT staff member that says, in rather poor grammar, their...

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Tech Term of the Month - February 2023: Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Feb 15, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #tips #security

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) or Two-Factor Authentication is an online account security protocol that adds an extra step to the login process to ensure the right person is accessing an account. MFA usually involves a code being sent to a smartphone or email address after the username and...

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Update Your Passwords to Keep Accounts Secure

Feb 1, 2023 | posted by Conner Williams
#education #tips #security

Today on National Change Your Password Day, we want to share a few tips for creating strong passwords, keeping them secure, and most importantly, remembering all of them. Try to use a pass phrase rather than a pass word. Pick a 4-5 word phrase, and then include capital letters and symbols...

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'Tis the season to spot and avoid gift card scams

By By Kira Krown, Federal Trade Commission Consumer Education Specialist

Dec 12, 2022 | posted by Conner Williams
#scams #tips #ftc-article #security #education

Article courtesy of the  Federal Trade Commission Consumer Advice blog Looking for a New Year’s resolution? Here’s one for you: Keep your hard-earned money safe from scammers by spotting and avoiding gift card scams. Then help others spot and avoid them, too. Scammers want you to pay with gift...

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Amazon "Prime Account Report" Email Scam Alert

Oct 18, 2022 | posted by Conner Williams
#news #security #scams #email

❗ Amazon scam alert ❗ The holidays are approaching, and folks are making more purchases online. Scammers take this opportunity to do what they do: try to trick you into giving up your money or personal information. Be on the lookout for scam emails from seemingly-reputable...

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Stay Safe from Many Online Threats with Umbrella Defense

This online safety feature is included with every BCT Internet subscription.

Sep 1, 2022 | posted by Conner Williams
#security #technology #company information #wifi #announcements

BCT has implemented Umbrella Defense - a cyber security solution from Cisco - to help protect internet subscribers. Umbrella Defense is a complimentary, included service that protects all subscribers on a BCT internet connection from accidentally visiting reportedly known websites that may...

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Don’t click on that random text. It’s a scam

By Gema de las Heras, Federal Trade Commission

Aug 16, 2022 | posted by Conner Williams
#scams #news #tips #ftc-article #security

Sorry to burst your bubble. That unexpected text from the Postal Service (USPS), Costco, or The Home Depot telling you about an unclaimed package or a survey you can complete to claim a freebie is NOT from them. It’s a scam. The FTC has seen a spike in reports from people getting text messages...

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Create and Store Strong Passwords with a Password Manager

May 5, 2022 | posted by Conner Williams
#technology #tips #security

Let’s talk passwords – it’s World Password Day! We all know having strong passwords is important, but are you reusing the same one across multiple websites? This opens the door for vulnerabilities in the event of a data breach.  Image caption:  The LastPass password generator tool...

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