We are unprotected in this protected world of technology – Apni Tech

Have you ever imagined how much we are unprotected in this so called protected technology world?

Do we know effects of mobile apps, smartphones and computers in our daily life? How do these gadgets and apps interfere with our privacy?

What would you say if someone told you that he will keep an eye on you all the time?

Will he monitor you and see what you do? Where you go, who you meet and what conversation you will have with your wife, friend or someone else. He will keep you under observation 24/7 and a full 365 days a year.

I'm sure no one will like to be monitored or observed all the time.

But what if you personally authorized apps and gadgets to monitor and somehow control you. Yes, you are the one who made yourself prone to surveillance. It's happening right now. Yes it's true. We are in high observation through our misinterpretation of new technology and rely on social media presence. Intentionally or unintentionally, we provide over itself to be accessed by service providers. We use their apps and gadgets, and they use our data.

Mobile and computer users are unprotected and under surveillance

Smartphones, computer software, mobile applications, tools, browsers and other gadgets that are now an integral part of our daily lives make us more prone to security breaches. Technology is changing our lives and will change the entire social system of the world very soon.

Let's see where and how these applications and gadgets provide our information to companies and businesses. How service providers store our data (text, audio, video, movements, location, addresses, interest, etc.) and how each individual's personal life is at stake. The social system in society is changing without knowing the dangers of technology and presence on social media.

Although rules and regulations are in place to some extent. However, like the technology itself, these policies and regulations are still in the development phase and need a lot of consideration by governments and regulators.

Online user data is compromised daily, in too many places at once to count.

First, let's see how our privacy is compromised from some real events and news.

“Virus turns off the lights in South Africa”
14:50 25 Jul 19 – BBC

“How a ransomware attack cost a business £45m“
4:03 25 Jun 19 – BBC

“Android Users Warned of Notorious Spyware App Coming to Google Play Store”
August 23, 2019 – Cyware Hacker News

“In September 2016, the Yahoo attack compromised the real names, email addresses, birth dates and phone numbers of 3 billion users.”
September 2016 – Yahoo.com

September 2016 – James Comey – FBI Director
US senators asked him why did you cover your laptop's webcam with tape?
His response was “Heck yeah, heck yeah. I get mocked for a lot of things too, and I'm mocked a lot for it, but I hope people lock their cars…lock your doors at night. I have an alarm system, do you an alarm system you should use it, I use mine.”

“Microsoft is warning Windows 10 users to update immediately due to two critical vulnerabilities“. “potentially hundreds of millions of vulnerable computers,”
CNN August 14, 2019

Your laptop, smartphone camera and microphone are spying on you

Smartphone and computer systems are everywhere from deserts to mountains and from major cities to smaller villages on the planet.

These digital devices can reveal more about you than you thought. Social media, apps, malware, and government agencies can all access and obtain information from your smartphone or laptop.

Smartphones are with us all the time wherever we go and everything we do. We have installed third party apps, like Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, etc. and along with this installation we have given them access to our device camera, microphone, contacts, photo gallery and sensors installed in the device.

We trust our cell phones to do everything for us: transact money, hold credit card information, recognize our voices and transcribe our speech, take pictures of us, and communicate with friends and work colleagues, et cetera. It is natural to worry that all this information will be stolen.

Smartphone applications like – WhatsApp, Facebook, Google Plus, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and IMO

A report by the famous Guardian general reveals that ‘when a user installs these apps, the user allows them to do the following on the smartphone. we accept everything that appears on the screen when you install these apps. If you read the terms of the app, you will know that what they can do':

• they can access both the front and rear cameras.
• they can record you at any time without further approval.
• They can use your camera to take pictures and videos without telling you.
• they can upload images, videos and documents.
• they can detect your movement in real time and do facial recognition to detect facial features or facial expressions.
• they also live stream the camera on the internet.
• they know your location, your address, your friends, your family and any other information that you have intentionally or unintentionally provided.

Mobile sensors and GPS

GPS OR Global Positioning System

If you're carrying your cell phone, which you are, you can be detected by apps, government agencies, hackers, and mobile companies.

One type of sensitive information that our phone accesses is our location. In fact, even with GPS turned off, when we connect to cell towers and Wi-Fi points with geolocation data related to them, our smartphone sends data about our location and presence. But even without access applications installed on our phones, a hacker can still access our location by using other sensors pre-installed on devices.

Light sensors on your smartphone

The ambient light sensor estimates the light in your environment and adjusts for perfect review. This sensor, which is not usually thought of as a potential risk, can be used for hacking purposes.

Proximity sensor – Identification of users and objects nearby

Most of today's mobile phones are installed with a proximity sensor. These sensors are used to turn off your touch screen when you are in a call – otherwise your face would accidentally come into contact with the screen to interrupt or hang up the call. These sensors are also the gateway to several threats to the user of the phone.

Hacking and virus attacks

The Internet is a network of networks. Devices or nodes on the Internet are connected using communication lines and protocols. These lines of communication and protocols are the essence of communication. Malicious software or physical devices can interfere between two connected parties and can take advantage of insecure links.

Hacking is a multi-billion dollar industry. Did you ever think that everything you use to communicate via the internet or mobile devices is DATA (text, photos, voice, videos, location, etc.)? It is the only way to create a connection between two parties on the Internet. Whatever you said to your friends, family, banks or lawyers while online can be hacked by any middle man who knows the codes and methods.

Recommendations for staying safe online

Recommendations for Mobile and computer users

• Keep your mobile, computer and all other gadgets up to date.
• Always use an antivirus program on gadgets and stay up to date.
• If you are not using a device, turn it off.
• Never click/install any irrelevant software or apps while browsing the internet.
• Never reply to unsolicited emails. Share your email id online only if it is necessary and you are sure about the authenticity of the website.
• Think twice before installing a new app from the Play Store.
• Free Wi-Fi can be dangerous – there is no such thing as a free lunch in the world.
• If you are more conscious about your data like me, never sell your hard drives, memory cards, external drives along with your mobile or computer. Formatting your devices or memory card is not an answer and data can be easily recovered with software.
• Keep your browser updated.

Recommendations for Social media users

• Remember that social media is not your private place. This is the community of billions of people with different backgrounds and different priorities. Be in your circle.
• Never share your personal information on social media. The information once shared will never be deleted from the online portal.
• Not everyone on social media is your friend, so don't accept a friend request from an unknown profile.
• Use the security features of Facebook, Twitter, etc. and turn off all unwanted options.
• When browsing social media, if you like a link or page, confirm the authenticity of the link before sharing it with your friends or friends of friends.
• Always remember that social media is social media, not your personal diary.

Your comments are valuable to us. Stay safe and healthy.

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