Tag Archive for: browsing

Save printer ink, avoid malware, speed browsing

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You need a timer and you need it fast. Do a Google search for “timer” and one appears right there for you to use. There’s a stopwatch option, too. Easy, right?

Here’s another smart tech tip I’m surprised so many people mess up. Most people fill in the email recipient section before writing the message. That’s a mistake. Make that your very last step — that way, there’s a much lower chance you’ll send an email before it’s truly ready to send.

Don’t stop there. Let’s dive into easy, quick tech tips you’ll use all the time.

Cybersecurity 101: After you download a PDF file online, look at the file extension. You’re looking for .pdf. If the filename ends with .exe, delete it — it’s likely malware.

Get tips like this straight to your email with my free daily newsletter. Join over 509K people and sign up here.

Shhh: You can instantly silence incoming calls on your smartphone by simply pressing the side button, volume up or volume down button once. Nice.

YouTube shortcuts: On your computer, tap keys 0 through 9 to skip to a specific percentage of the video. Press 5 for 50%, 8 for 80% and so on. But wait, there’s more! Press J to rewind and L to fast forward. (“JLo” is an easy way to remember that.) But press K to pause first.

Forgetful? Do this! Are you that person who reads an email or text, mentally reminds yourself to reply later … and never does? Stop relying on memory alone! Mark the text or email as unread. You’ll find this in the options of your email or convo. You can also say, “Hey Siri/Google, remind me to share Kim’s newsletter at noon.”

Skip the garage: Next time you hang a frame, grab your phone instead of finding a level. On iPhone, open the pre-installed Measure app. Tap Level, then hold your iPhone against an object. On Android, open the Google app and search for “bubble level.”

Perfect podcast: Get tech smarts every single day with my award-winning daily podcast. I pass along the latest tech news, tips and give advice to callers like you.

Quick text search: You know you sent someone a pic but can’t find it. On iPhone, open Messages, tap a convo then the person’s profile photo or group name….

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You Should Enable Gmail’s New ‘Enhanced Safe Browsing’

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Image for article titled You Should Enable Gmail's New 'Enhanced Safe Browsing'

Photo: RAY-BON (Shutterstock)

Google’s had an Enhanced Safe Browsing feature in Chrome since 2019—a set of privacy features to help protect against phishing and malware attacks. Basically, if a link doesn’t seem quite right, Google will warn you about it. Recently, they finally brought the feature directly into Gmail.

Here’s how Enhanced Safe Browsing mode works

Enhanced Safe Browsing checks the links and attachments in your Gmail account with its own database of known scam links, where a website pretends to be real to steal your personal information (also known as phishing). Google has a massive database of such bad actors, and it’s updated every 30 minutes. Once the feature is enabled, Gmail will scan incoming emails and attachment downloads against that database and warn you if something looks suspicious.

How to enable Enhanced Safe Browsing on Gmail

If you’re already logged in to your Google account, simply open this link in a new tab and enable the Enhanced Safe Browsing feature from there. Alternatively, you can open your Google Account page and go to Security > Manage Enhanced Safe Browsing.

When you enable this feature in your Google account, it will be enabled across other Google products as well, like Chrome. And in Chrome, this feature extends to Chrome extensions and file downloads.

The downsides of using Enhanced Safe Browsing

The only big downside to using Enhanced Safe Browsing is the sheer amount of personal data that Google will be able to access. It’ll be able to check all the links that come through your Gmail account, and if you use Chrome, that includes links clicked, files downloaded, and extensions installed.

Of course, Google says this data is used only to improve your data security when you’re logged in, and after a short time, the data is fully anonymized. But anonymizing data isn’t perfect—it can still be linked to social media profiles, as one Princeton study illustrates.

If you’re okay with that potential risk, go ahead and enable the feature. It might also be worth recommending to others in your life too, if you think they’re the type of user particularly susceptible to things like phishing scams and malware attacks.

[ZDNET, CNET]

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The best VPN extension for Chrome: Keep your browsing secure!

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VPN stock photo 1

Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

Are you trying to keep your browsing safe and private? The best way to do this is by using a VPN. And if you happen to use Chrome, as over 65% of us do, you have access to Chrome extensions. This means you can take advantage of the best VPN extension for Chrome.

Aside from hand-picking our favorite option, we’ve compiled a list of other great alternatives. Some of these specialize in particular niche needs, while others focus on other specific users. Let’s find out which is the best for you.

Understanding VPNs and how a VPN extension for Chrome

VPN stock photo 3

Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

There are a couple of things we need to touch on before moving forward. You need to understand what a VPN is, and how this tool works when used as a Chrome extension.

VPN stands for “Virtual Private Network.” A simple way to understand it is that it acts as a middleman between you and the internet. Think of it as a messenger of sorts. When using a VPN, instead of your device connecting directly to the internet, all your web traffic will be rerouted through your VPN provider’s servers back and forth.

To put it simply, all data you send will go from your device to the VPN servers, then it will go to the final destination. When you access any site, data will go from the website’s servers to the VPN servers, then to your device. And thanks to encryption, your data will be scrambled and hidden.

Your device’s IP address, location, and other sensitive information will be masked in the process. Not even your internet service provider will know what you’re doing. To the internet, it will look as though whatever server you’re connected to is accessing everything.

VPNs are great for privacy and security, but there are other reasons why you might want to use one. The most popular one is that it allows you to fake your location. This makes it possible to use ge0-restricted websites and services in places you otherwise wouldn’t be able to. Certain streaming services only work in the USA, for example. A lot of people use a USA-based VPN server to access these services remotely. Other users use VPNs to get deals from other locations, avoid internet restrictions, or bypass…

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2023 Browser Security Report Uncovers Major Browsing Risks and Blind Spots

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Mar 02, 2023The Hacker NewsBrowser Security

Browser Security

As a primary working interface, the browser plays a significant role in today’s corporate environment. The browser is constantly used by employees to access websites, SaaS applications and internal applications, from both managed and unmanaged devices. A new report published by LayerX, a browser security vendor, finds that attackers are exploiting this reality and are targeting it in increasing numbers (download report here).

The key report findings

  1. Over half of all the browsers in the enterprise environment are misconfigured. While a configured browser is nearly impossible to compromise, stealing data from misconfigured browsers is like taking candy from a baby. The Leading misconfigurations are improper use of personal browser profiles on work devices (29%), poor patching routine (50%), and the use of corporate browser profiles on unmanaged devices.
  2. 3 of every 10 SaaS applications are non-corporate shadow SaaS, and no SaaS discovery/security solution can address its risks. Shadow SaaS, and more than that, shadow identities, are the number one source for enterprise data loss. No existing data security tool (whether it being a traditional DLP or a DSPM) has access or control to what employees can do on their own personal applications.
  3. Attackers adopt evasive attack techniques that neither email security nor network security tools can detect. Advanced browser-borne attack techniques, such as the use of SaaS applications to distribute malware or abusing high-reputation sites for phishing, have become a threat commodity.
  4. Traditional security tools miss over half of those attack vectors at zero hour, making targeted browser attacks into a leading cause for enterprise breaches.
  5. Most browser risks may lead to identity theft. Weak passwords, misconfigurations and SaaS security issues all circulate around the digital identity. This depressing finding outlines a main pain point – the digital identities are still the corporate Achilles heel.

The report also details the top browser security threats of 2022, which include phishing attacks via high reputation domains, malware distribution via file sharing systems, data leakage exploiting…

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