HAPPY NEW YEAR!

MAY YOUR GLASS ALWAYS BE FULL!

 

PHONE CALL SCAM WARNING

 There are some scam calls going around that someone calls and says they are from your banks fraud department.  Do not give them any personal information.  Even if they say they are trying to verify some kind of information.

IF SOMEONE FROM A BANK CALLS

• Never give your credit card number
• Never give your social security number
• Never verify your bank's pin code
• Never give your account number
• never answer a security question

Instead, hang up and call your bank directly.

You will most likely find that the call was a scam.  You should then block the phone number going forward.

YOUR BANK WILL NEVER CALL YOU DIRECTLY ABOUT FRAUD.

THESE FREE GIFT CARDS ARE NOT FREE

 You receive an email to participate in a survey.  All you need to do is sign up and participate and you will get a $50.00 gift card.  DON'T DO IT.  Even if the email comes from a friend, it's a scam.  Just delete the email.  They are looking for email addresses that they can sell.

This is called fishing.  They cast a line out looking for email addresses.  They hook your email address when you respond and then they add you to their mailing list.  Or they add you to a list and then sell the list to other scammers.

Another method is to send you a spam email with a link to "unsubscribe."  But when you unsubscribe, you really get added to other lists.

Just delete and move on.

WEB SITE SPAM WARNINGS

 There are a great number of posts with links to google sites.The address will look something like http://sites.google.com.  In most cases, these sites are spam.

Example:  A company is looking to hire someone.  They show a good salary and a legit company name.  But the web address points to http://sites.google.com.  This is a fake posting and is trying put spyware or something else similar on your PC.  DO NOT CLICK THE LINK

If the post was legit, it would contain an actual company sponsored web page.

Tell me if you've run across these or other similar posts.

POST COMMENTS

I have turned on commenting and will allow them going forward. If we get spammed, I reserve the right to turn it off again. Also, I reserve the right to delete or deny inflammatory comments. Please keep it civil.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF TEXT SPAM

This is a text that I received today.  In this case, I don't have an account with M & T, so it's blatant spam.  If you receive a text like this, don't open the link.  If you are concerned about it being real, log directly to your bank's Web page without opening the link.   If it is legit, there should be a message on your bank's actual page.  

Delete the original text without opening the link.

 

Christmas Parade - Strawberry Ridge Style

 This is how we roll here.
2021 Christmas Parade - Day 1

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE HERE IN STRAWBERRY RIDGE!

You can click on the images for full size

FAKE FRIEND REQUESTS ON FACEBOOK

 There are a lot of fake friend requests happening on Facebook.  When you get a Friend Request from someone you don't know, you can view their profile in order to see if it is real or not.

Here are the signs that they are a fake friend request.

1. Could be from someone already on your friend list
2. The request comes from a brand new profile with almost no activity
3. They are almost always a cute young female seeking a male friend

Just delete the request and move on

DO NOT CLICK THE LINK ON TEXTS THAT YOU GET

This may look legit, but it's not.  Just delete the text and move on.

 

 I actually got 2 of these from different numbers - NOTE:  The number doesn't matter.  It could be anything and usually is random.  The point is they are spam.  Even if you get a legit email from a phone company, just delete it and move on.  It's safer that way.

 

Here's another one.  Since I don't have a Wells Fargo account, I won't open it.

BACKUP YOUR IPHONE TO THE CLOUD

 Here's a simple video on how to make a backup of your iphone.

 

 

Links are disabled

 

 

DON'T OVERSPEND ON A COMPUTER

 I used to work for Radio Shack back in the late 80's.  I had a customer come in who was a senior in her 70's.  She brought in a smoke detector that my boss had sold to her and she wanted help making it work.  I took one look at it and gave her a refund and sold her a better detector for much less.  You see, the one she brought back was a wired detector - commercial grade.  All she wanted/needed was a simple unit with a battery for her home.  To say I was irritated is an understatement.  I never wanted to be that guy who sold just for profit.  I wanted to be the guy who gives them the right tool for what they needed.

That still goes today.

So, ask yourself this.  Why do you need a new computer?  If the one you have is still running and has a modern and supported operating system, with plenty of free space, then there is no need to upgrade.

If you do need to upgrade, then ask yourself what you need.  Most seniors aren't gamers.  We just need something to send and receive emails.  We also need something to write letters and keep lists and maybe recipes.  If this is what you need, then find a decent modern system for under $800.   Even laptops can be less than $1000.00.  Also, you shouldn't have to upgrade your printer or monitor either.

What kind of system do you need?

• Laptops - Are portable.  You can take them anywhere you need to
• Desktop - Not portable, but they usually have larger hard drives
• Tablets - Also portable.  Smaller screens, but they are easy to learn
  

What programs will you need?

Microsoft Office - with the following

• Microsoft Outlook - Allows you to send and receive emails
• Microsoft Word - Allows you to write documents and letters
• Microsoft OneNote - Allows you to keep lists and recipes
• Microsoft Excel - Allows you to computer a budget and maintain organized lists like names and phone numbers

Note:   When you buy Microsoft Office, make sure you use the actual software version that gets installed on your PC, and not the cloud version

Internet Browser - Allows you to view Web pages.  Chose 1 or 2 of these

• Microsoft Edge - Comes bundled on all Windows PC's
• Google Chrome - Find and download this browser
• Firefox - Find and download this browser