iPhone and data security

Recently, a client wrote asking the following:

Can someone access my iPhone's address book data through Bluetooth?  For example, if I have a sensitive ID number listed in a contact, can someone steal it off the phone?

Our reply:

You'd have to jailbreak and hack your own iPhone first to allow it to use BlueTooth technology for data transferring. It's defaulted by Apple to explicitly use BT for devices only (headsets, printers, keyboards). 

However, your data is susceptible to relatively easy theft when using public WiFi (cafes, libraries, etc). The big online banking apps, websites, Gmail and the like use secure protocols (you can tell by the https:// as opposed to http://) to prevent this.

If you keep sensitive information in your iPhone's Address Book, you should at least passcode lock your iPhone and enable Mobile Me's (free) Find My iPhone service, so you can remotely send messages, GPS locate, or brick (lock and/or erase it) in the event of loss/theft.

What to do when your email password has been compromised

This is such a wonderful resource, not only do I wish I wrote it, I wish I'd read it 5 years ago.

I've considered all space... and literature

Exciting programming and events at the Griffith Observatory, including the monthly lecture series "All Space Considered." 


Google's ngram viewer allows you to enter terms and compare their prevalence in all printed material scanned by Google (over 4 million books dating back to 1600AD).

iMac: overheating display issues, symptoms, & a band-aid

The white iMacs (3+ years old, out of warranty) are starting to have overheating issues, symptoms include strange display issues- shapes, color-shifts, "smudges" and "tears" in the screen may flash or remain present. There is a utility that will help, and we are monitoring for any recalls or warranty exceptions issued by Apple. Please give us a call if you need help for this!

How to block spam text messages on your mobile phone

Great how-to article from the NY Times, works like a charm on Verizon iPhone!

Google, search personalization, and filter bubbles

[or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Turn Off Search Personalization]

Eli Pariser gives a great TED Talk about the way we search:

As web companies strive to tailor their services (including news and search results) to our personal tastes, there's a dangerous unintended consequence: We get trapped in a "filter bubble" and don't get exposed to information that could challenge or broaden our worldview. Eli Pariser argues powerfully that this will ultimately prove to be bad for us and bad for democracy.

then...

Click here for a great how-to on disabling personalized Google search results.

Extend

Xmarks is a free utility that keeps your bookmarks, passwords, and even open tabs synced across multiple computers/mobile devices. They also have a great, easy-to-use extension for all your favorite browsers.


...and while we're on the topic of browser extensions: the goo.gl URL shortener, Email this Page, and Google Voice add-ons for Chrome are all quite convenient. Find extensions for your browser here:Chrome (our recommended browser), Firefox, and Safari.

If you're wondering what an extension is, it's an easy-to-use add-on that makes your web-browsing experience more useful and functional; watch a tutorial here.

Googley-eyed back ups

There was a Gmail crash back in February, with 40,000 of their users affected (0.02%), which got us thinking: not enough people are backing up their web-based email. Google publishes a tutorial for backing up Gmail; please don't hesitate to call if you need help with this or any other web-based email providers (don’t forget to export/backup those Contacts too!). For backing up Google Docs, there are a few 3rd party applications out there, but the best all-around goes to Syncplicity, which was simple to setup, inexpensive, fast and easy to use. Finally, if you make changes to your contacts that you want to undo, you can restore your full Google contacts list to an earlier saved version.

cell phone + speaker buzz = twitchbrain

Choke Cores, available for about $3 at Radio Shack, can help cut back on that annoying buzz (EMI, or electromagnetic interference) caused by some cell phones when they are close to speakers.They are easily attached to your speaker cables (slide them right up to the back of each speaker). Some GSM-type cell phones have extremely strong signals– try two on each speaker if necessary, or move them around to different places on the wire (CDMA phones generally do not cause this buzz).