You may have noticed it’s a presidential election year. I don’t post about politics in this blog and I won’t be approving any comments that have anything to do with those who are running for office. However, what I do talk about in this portion of my website is computing, including hacking which is a concern regarding the election.

One advantage of the Internet and Social Media is that information can be spread to multitudes of people, rapidly. Unfortunately, this great strength of the Net is also its greatest weakness. Misinformation can be spread in the same manner. Hackers and others who would do evil things online love to spit out untruths and panic – usually in an effort to get our money. In the case of the election, these falsehoods may be more about convincing us to vote one way or the other or not vote at all.

What can you do to not be swayed by misinformation? First, remember those famous words Edgar Allan Poe penned in 1845 when he wrote “The System of Dr. Tarr and Prof. Fether” – “Believe nothing you hear, and only one half that you see.” Second, don’t allow panic or fear to affect your thinking (Social Engineering). Third, rely on information from those who should really know. For instance, although the upper levels of the FBI have been under fire for some time, it would seem that the organization itself is a good source of information. With that in mind, I highly suggest you read the Public Service Announcement dated September 28, 2020 regarding false hacking claims. Pay particular attention to the “Recommendations” section and to the ‘Victim Reporting” area at the end. Here it is: