SecureMac presents The Checklist. Each week, Nicholas Raba, Nicholas Ptacek, and Ken Ray hit security topics for your Mac and iOS devices. From getting an old iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, and other Apple gear ready to sell to the first steps to take to secure new hardware, each show contains a set of easy to follow steps meant to keep you safe from identity thieves, hackers, malware, and other digital downfalls. Check in each Thursday for a new Checklist!
If you’ve been listening to the news recently, you’ve probably heard the name “Cambridge Analytica” come up — and all kinds of stories about the data firm’s former executives claiming they could manipulate and intimidate large numbers of people with crafted, targeted social media content.
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For all our listeners of The Checklist, it is no secret that we are strong advocates for security. Usually, we come on this show to talk about how to secure your digital life and keep unauthorized individuals from snooping through your information. Security is important, and in just about every situation, it’s not just desirable — it’s necessary. There is one unfortunate scenario, though, when it quickly causes problems: when …
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Last year, we visited the subject of Bitcoin and the technology behind it, the blockchain, in Episode 59 of The Checklist. In just a few short months since that episode, the price of one Bitcoin exploded, hundreds of new cryptocurrencies appeared, and company after company seems to be jumping on the bandwagon. By the way—you’re now listening to The Blockchain Checklist by SecureMac!
We’re only kidding — but blockchain …
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In the time since we started The Checklist, we’ve reported on and discussed a variety of stories that, time and time again, come back to the same foundation: hackers breaking into the computers in our homes and businesses by exploiting weaknesses in old hardware or software. While not everyone can always afford to keep their computers upgraded to the latest, greatest hardware, there are many reasons users may want to …
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As 2018 continues, so does the flood of new stories, threats, and developments in the security world. Just recently, we reached into the grab bag to take a quick look at a variety of different stories; this week, we’re going back again to pull out a mixture of the most prominent topics making a splash in the headlines over the past couple of weeks. From the consequences of tracking your exercise with an app to the pitfalls of perfectly proper grammar, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover in today’s show
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Way back in 2007, Apple released the iPhone and changed the world overnight by putting the power of an iPod, a phone, and the Internet right in our pockets. The iPhone quickly relegated the iPod to the annals of history, and for better or worse, it all but killed the wristwatch too. Then Apple decided it was time to bring the watch back to life — and thus, the Apple Watch was born.
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Spectres, Meltdowns, and an endless parade of patches — 2018’s already off to quite a start, and it can all be just a little overwhelming. This week, we’re pulling back to the bigger picture and reaching into the grab bag for a Mix & Match episode as we cover a slew of stories from this past month!
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Your iPhone is secure, right? That’s the general impression, anyway — and it’s certainly an impression Apple has worked hard to maintain over the years. It’s easy enough to call it secure, but what is in place to keep you safe? What does Apple do to protect its users day after day, and do we ever need to go beyond the “out of box” security experience? On today’s edition of The Checklist, we’re talking about the overall security features you’ll find in iOS, whether you’re an iPhone or an iPad user
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On today’s edition of The Checklist, we’re tackling the complex topics of Spectre and Meltdown, arguably two of the biggest and most far-reaching security vulnerabilities we’ve ever seen. Among those impacted are everyone from iOS and macOS users to Windows machines and just about anything powered by an Intel processor around the world!
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Last week, we brought you Part One of our 2017 Security Year in Review. This week, we’ll wrap that up with Part Two! If you didn’t get a chance to check out Part One yet, the episode and its accompanying show notes are available right here in our archives. In it, you’ll find out about the highlights of the past year in both iOS and macOS security, including all the …
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For this, Episode 71 of The Checklist, we sat down during the first week of January 2018 to put a magnifying glass over the year that just ended. For part one of our discussion, we’re taking an in-depth look at the biggest security issues that affected macOS and iOS in 2017. With so many things going on — and there were quite a lot — it can be tough to remember all the details. To start our recap, we’ll go all the way back to this time one year ago: the beginning of January.
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For more than a year, we’ve been taking a little time every week here at The Checklist to bring you a podcast focused on and around the security of the Mac, iOS devices, and the Apple platform in general. We all know that was silly, though — after all, there aren’t any major security problems with Apple, right?
There is no such thing as 100% safe & secure, although …
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In Episode 68, we spent some time talking about all the ways the bad guys can try to target the elderly online and over the phone. This week, we’re running all the way down to the other end of the age spectrum to look at the ways troublesome bad actors might target your kids. We’ll also discuss how these nefarious rogues may set their sights on your children as a way to target you, the parent, as their endgame.
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As we went into Thanksgiving a few weeks ago, we urged you to have some proactive talks with your family about how to stay safe while using their computers, especially on the Internet. We also covered how you could take action to lay the groundwork to make sure everything stays in good working order. Now, as we head deeper into the holidays, we’d like to ask our listeners to …
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Recently, in episode 66, we looked at the latest security features Apple has built into macOS. Last week, we began to explore what’s new and different in iOS 11. While the basics of iOS haven’t changed in some time, time and different development approaches mean that all kinds of features transform behind the scenes with every update. We looked at the innovative FaceID system, improvements to backup security, and …
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Have we ever talked about the security features built into iOS itself? Of course — we’ve covered that subject in many previous episodes, but things change. When The Checklist began, users were still walking around with iOS 9. Now we’re up to iOS 11, and Apple continues to make things more secure as they go. Even before iOS 11, Apple’s mobile system had some serious security protections and features, but they’ve added some new ones and refined others, so it’s time to revisit the topic.
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For this week’s show, we’re back to talking about the Mac — more specifically, addressing some of the most important security features baked directly into macOS. What steps has Apple taken to keep users safe, and what tools are there to make sure we’re all enjoying our Macs safely and securely? Perhaps you know someone who is about to get a new Mac, or maybe you’re even the one giving …
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The holiday shopping season has arrived again — and with this episode, we’re turning our attention to some security issues specific to this time of year. With Christmas coming up, you might be looking at all kinds of electronic gadgets for your friends and family. From tech-based toys to Internet of Things products, retailers have more web-connected devices available for us every year.
While it’s certainly a fun time …
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During last week’s episode, our discussion centered around talking to your parents about the importance of computer security, and how to educate them on essential steps to take. This week, we’re going to move beyond the parents and look at their computers ourselves —with their permission of course! After your pep talk about strong passwords, you should hope to find their computer protected with a password you can’t guess.
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Remember back when you were a kid, and someone sat you down to have “The Talk”? It might have been your parents, or it could have been a teacher, but we’ve all been through the experience of learning about “the birds and the bees.” It’s a pivotal moment, and learning about the facts of life can be, well, life-changing. It’s also essential for keeping you safe as you continue to grow up. Well, now you’re grown — you’re older and definitely a little wiser. It might be time to sit down with your parents and have your own version of The Talk with them.
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