Finding the Truth

Have you noticed how many news outlets slate the news stories to their own liking regardless of the facts or the lack of details? To get a good source of the news requires some digging for the truth. Some sources I use to get the news without some much bias, here’s what I read.

1. For national and international news you can go to Reuters.com
2. Build your own news site using my.Yahoo.com, MSN.com, or similar web site
3. Look for web sites that analyze the data to produce news reports that provide an accurate story, one example is americanthinker.com

Everyone has biases, so every author of a story will either purposely or accidently insert their own bias just like I’m doing; my bias is that so many news stories are dramatized and includes so much speculation, I just want the facts! If a news organization wants to speculate, they should state that this is their theory or what they think might have happened.

Smart Phone Security Smarts

Having recently lost my smart phone for a period of time (I did recover it intact), I realized that many smart phone users have a lot of information stored in their phones, including myself. With the increased proliferation of smart phones, there will be increased cases of lost or stolen phones. All that data in the phone allows access to emails, web sites, text messages, photos, and your address book/contact list not to mention any Apps that give access to bank accounts and other services. Here’s some ways of limiting your exposure if your phone is lost or stolen.

- Use a password on your phone, make it something that’s not easily guessed

- Know what accounts and passwords are on your phone so that you can rapidly change them if the need arises

- Delete your text messages every few months (or more often depending on how much you text)

- Transfer your pictures to your home or work computer on a regular basis and delete the old ones

- Back up your address book/contact list on a regular basis

- Check to see if your smart phone supports encryption of your memory card, if so, enable encryption

- Put a contact number label on your phone or its case (such as a belt holster) where someone could call if they find your phone; consider an office number or home number. This will help in the recovery of the phone, especially if it’s locked

- Pay attention to where you sit it down at and how you carry it, make sure its securely stored

Hope you find this helpful. Other sources on this topic are listed below.

Rose, Brent. (January 10, 2011). Smartphone Security: How to Keep Your Handset Safe. PC World

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/216420/smartphone_security_how_to_keep_your_handset_safe.html