Internet

Infopackets Reader Jenna M. writes: "Dear Dennis, Thanks for your article on Being Harassed on Instagram - it was a very informative read. I have a much more complicated issue: I separated from my husband last year and recently decided to give ... Facebook Dating a try. A few days in, I matched with a man who said he was an architect from a nearby city. He was attractive, polite, and claimed his wife had cheated on him. He told me he was originally from Germany and his daughter lives there. His profile said he lives in Minnesota - but his phone number has a New York area code. Not long after ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Sarah B. writes: " Dear Dennis, Please help - I'm being harassed on Instagram . A few months ago, I met a guy on Instagram claiming to be stationed overseas in the US Military. He moves from base to base, which makes it difficult ... for him to stay in touch with people. Initially, he was sweet, charming, and always had a good excuse for why we couldn't video chat - so we exchange some photos instead. At first, he just wanted someone to talk to, but not long after, he hinted that he was struggling financially. He needed money for things like Internet access, food, and other ' ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Mark R. writes: " Dear Dennis, I just came across your article on How to Stop Cyber Harassment and I'm reaching out because my teenage son is brutally being harassed online . He recently met a girl in a chat group on Reddit; she ... seemed nice at first, and claims to live nearby. They chatted for a few days, then things got more 'personal': she convinced him to move to Snapchat, where they exchanged some private messages and pictures. After that, the tone shifted instantly and now she's demanding money. She's taken screenshots of all of his Instagram followers and says ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Sam J. writes: "Dear Dennis, My teenage son got caught up in an online sextortion scam. He thought he was talking to a girl his age on Instagram, but it turned out to be a scammer who tricked him into sharing private photos. He ... already sent the blackmailers $500 in Steam cards. Now, they're threatening to send those images to his friends and family unless we pay more. He's terrified, ashamed, and deeply depressed. As a father, I feel completely helpless. How can I stop cyber harassment and online blackmail in order to protect my son? Please help!" My response: If you or ... (view more)

A new app offers to bring together multiple social media, messaging and content tools into a single "timeline". Tapestry is made by the people behind a previous app that aimed to improve the experience of what was then called Twitter. That app, ... Twitterific, stopped working in 2023 when Twitter blocked third-party access to its service. That ongoing block means the new app doesn't support the rebranded X service. Instead, Tapestry brings together multiple apps into a single chronological timeline showing all posts that meet the user's criteria. The developers believe many users prefer that to ... (view more)

Posts by both Elon Musk and Republican-leaning accounts became considerably more prominent on X (formerly Twitter) after he endorsed Donald Trump for President according to a study. The paper says the change was significant enough to suggest the ... site may have intentionally changed its algorithm. Much of the controversy over the site in the past few years has involved its default "For You" feed, which is created by an algorithm. Rather simply showing all posts from accounts the user follows in chronological order, the feed shows what X implies are the most likely posts to interest and engage ... (view more)

A significant legal battle is unfolding between Google and the Department of Justice (DOJ), potentially reshaping the tech giant's structure. As part of its antitrust case against Google, the DOJ has proposed remedies ranging from business practice ... changes to divesting major assets like Google Chrome. But what might happen if Chrome is sold off? Who could buy it, and would these measures truly foster a competitive landscape? The DOJ's Push for Structural Remedies In its ongoing antitrust case, the DOJ accuses Google of monopolizing general search services and search advertising. After Judge ... (view more)

Gmail users will soon find it easier to avoid spam when signing up to new services. A new "Shielded Email" service will keep users' real email address secret. The idea is to overcome a common problem: many websites, mailing lists and other online ... services require a valid email address, but there's always a risk that providing it could lead to abuse such as unwanted spam or the address being passed on or leaked in a data breach. While Google does a reasonable (and sometimes overly aggressive) job of filtering spam, it's now working on a tool that will create a unique email address to put in ... (view more)

Claims that typing "Are Bengal cats legal in Australia?" into Google could destroy your computer and empty your bank account are somewhat overblown. But beneath the hyperbole, there's an interesting tactic from hackers. Numerous media sources have ... written stories about the supposed dangers of a "six word phrase" that users must not type for fear of exposing their personal data. The implication is that there's some sort of magical booby trap, but the reality is a little duller. The problem was spotted by Sophos which noted that several of the top search results for the query about the cats ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Bill W. writes: " Dear Dennis, Thanks so much for your article on Facebook blackmail . I also read your article on Instagram blackmail . Unfortunately, I have a similar situation. A few weeks ago, I received a random chat request ... from a female with a WhatsApp business account asking if I was affiliated with her company. She claims to work in the shipping department. I responded back stating she had the wrong number, but that didn't stop her from continuing to message me. A few days into it and we exchanged some photos of each other (clothed). She asked where I worked, what ... (view more)