Your daily dose of practical, easy to follow tech tips!
Question from Deborah: I’ve been using my Dlink wireless router without a password on the WiFi connection for several years.
My boyfriend told me I need to put a password on the WiFi connection but I don’t think it’s necessary because I don’t have any neighbors living close by to piggyback off of it.
I like being able to let guests connect to my network without having to hassle with a password.
Do you think it’s ok if I leave it without a password, or is my boyfriend right? [Read more…]
Question from Sandy: Rick, I read your warning about getting Facebook Protect enabled on my account.
I tried to find it on both my 6s Plus iPhone and tablet, but I never found it on either device.
My tablet is several years old.
Am I doing something wrong or is it possible that my devices just don’t offer it? [Read more…]
Question from Rhonda: Rick, I have a question about something that’s been bothering me.
My brother was joking around the other day and he said I should be careful because he knows my IP address and he could get me into trouble if I don’t behave.
I know he was just joking, but it got me to wondering if someone could cause problems for me if they know my IP address? [Read more…]
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Question from Tina: I’ve noticed that the lights on my modem are blinking more or less constantly.
In fact, they even blink when I’m not using a web browser, checking my email or doing anything else on the Internet.
Is it normal for all those lights to be constantly blinking or should I be worried?
Rick’s answer: Tina, there is always data being passed between your computer and the Internet any time you have a live connection established, so yes, it is normal to see the data lights on your modem flashing pretty much all the time.
Your ISP is responsible for much of the data being sent back and forth because they love to “check in” to see if your connection is healthy along with other mundane housekeeping tasks. [Read more…]
As I explained in this post, apps are the sources of many of the problems that afflict Facebook users on a daily basis.
Well, there’s a very popular set of apps and games that are spreading like wildfire among Facebook users, and you should know that using one of them could well put your personal information at risk.