Every weekend on Mario’s Top 3 I walk you through all the hottest tech news from the past week. Here’s what I talked about on the TODAY show this past weekend:
Beware of Malware
· A type of malware known as Zeus has infected millions of computers, most of them in the United States.
· Once Zeus has compromised a computer, it stays dormant until a victim logs into a bank site, and then it steals the victim’s passwords and drains the victim’s accounts. In some cases, it can even replace a bank’s Web site with its own page, in order to get even more information- such as a Social Security number- that can be sold on the black market.
· The Trojan, which was first detected in 2007, is only getting more active. According to researchers at the security firm Trend Micro, incidents of Zeus have risen steadily this year and peaked in May.
· Eric Feinberg, founder of the advocacy group Fans Against Kounterfeit Enterprise (FAKE), has noticed an uptick in Zeus-serving malicious links on popular N.F.L. Facebook fan pages such as one created by a group called “Bring the N.F.L. To Los Angeles.”
· Mr. Feinberg said he had noticed an increase in such pages and malicious links in recent weeks. He sent those links to Malloy Labs, a security lab, which confirmed that the links on these pages were serving up Zeus malware. The malware was being hosted from computers thought to be controlled by a Russian criminal gang known as the Russian Business Network, which has been linked to various online criminal activities, ranging from malware and identity theft to child pornography.
· Many of the corrupt FB links had “.tk” extensions on them signifying the websites countries code as Tokelau, a South Pacific territory and a domain used by these Russian criminals. Read More
Steve Harvey asked me to come on to his show recently to talk to Lamar, a father whose heart is in the right place but is having trouble understanding how to raise kids in this new, digital age. He doesn’t use the Internet, or technology at all really, and as such is having a hard time communicating with and relating to his kids. What I explained to Lamar is that in this digital age, the mall for today’s teens is the Internet. The playground is the Internet. So to be an effective parent, you need to be digitally literate to follow and interact with your kids online!
Don’t forget!!! Father’s Day is Sunday, June 16, and if you want to get Dad a killer tech gift NOW is the time to shop! Same goes for all those grads in your family—don’t wait until the last minute to pick up something fun.
Whether you’re losing power on your cell phone, looking for a new and cool way to listen to music, or just looking for a new smartphone, I got you covered. Check out the video above to learn what I told Steve Harvey’s crew behind-the-scenes at his show!
Technology has the power to transform our lives, to help us work and play better and smarter. But people always ask me, how do you get someone who isn’t a techie into technology? Because of course, tech isn’t just something for the gadget heads out there, everyone can benefit! Behind-the-scenes at the Steve Harvey show, I talk about how you need to find an in, a concrete benefit you have to show someone to get them excited about tech. In the video above, I explain how you can identify someone’s passions or hobbies and leverage that to show them new tech that can improve their lives to get them excited about using the latest and greatest technology!
Is there an age-limit on Facebook and can you ever be too old to use the social network? Behind the scenes at the Steve Harvey show, I did a quick video where I explain that the answer is HECK NO. I got my grandmom to look at Facebook, and she’s in her 80’s. Does she use it every day? No, but that doesn’t mean she can’t still use the social network from time to time. Check out the video above for more insight into whether or not it’s possible to be “too old” for Facebook.
First, cutting the cord meant cutting off your expensive cable bill and relying on streaming sites like YouTube, Netflix and Hulu to replace traditional TV viewing with the latest online tech. Now, folks are cutting the cord on their Internet connections. Some people are turning to the abundance of free WiFi hotspots at coffee shops, restaurants, hotels, libraries, and the millions of other places that offer WiFi to get their fix. Others are finding that the Internet connections on their smartphones or tablets are more than enough for them to cut the cord at home.
