c/diy-cyber-defense

2

park.miles•8d ago

Spotted a weird thing at my local library's public computers

Was at the downtown branch in Portland last week printing a return label. Noticed the guy next to me logging into his bank account on their shared machine. He just walked away after, leaving the page open. I told the librarian and she said they clear sessions every hour, but that's 60 minutes of risk right there. Anyone else see folks treating public computers like their personal devices?

9

val_bailey66•9d ago

Used to ignore software updates until a phishing scam hit my email

I used to click "remind me later" on every Windows update for months. Then last summer I got a fake email that looked like my bank, and my old phone couldn't block it because the security patch was from 2022. A buddy at work told me how hackers exploit those gaps in old versions. Now I let updates install overnight once a week, saved me twice already from sketchy links. Anyone else finally give in and start updating regularly?

5

blair_nguyen•11d ago

Bought a used router off Facebook Marketplace, thought I got a steal until I found a hidden keylogger

Picked up a cheap TP-Link router from some guy in Brooklyn for $20 and it worked fine for a week. Then my bank alerted me about logins from a random IP in Russia, and after digging I found the firmware had been swapped with a malicious version. Who else has gotten burned buying secondhand networking gear like that?

20

lunah12•17d ago

Unpopular opinion: password managers are overrated for the average person

I know everyone on here swears by them but I think a physical notebook beats any app for most people. I run a painting crew of 12 guys and half of them can't remember their email password without writing it on a sticky note. Last year my cousin got his whole vault hacked because he used the same master password for his email and lost everything. I keep my important logins in a small spiral notebook in my fireproof safe at home cost me $4 at Walmart. For work accounts I use a different notebook that stays locked in my truck toolbox. Sure its not fancy but no one can phish a piece of paper from 3000 miles away. Has anyone else gone back to paper or am I the only one whos tired of chasing app updates and sync errors?

3

blakestone•17d ago

The free password managers are better than the paid ones I wasted money on

I paid $40 a year for LastPass for 2 years before switching to Bitwarden's free tier. It does the same stuff, auto-fill on my iPhone and desktop, and I can share passwords with my wife without extra fees. LastPass had that breach in 2022 anyway. Has anyone else found a paid tool that's actually worth the cash over the free version?

19

allen.iris•19d ago

Can we talk about why everyone still uses "password123" in 2024?

I checked my company's leaked credentials on haveibeenpwned last week and 14 out of 40 accounts still had the same password from 2019. Two of those were managers who got phishing training twice. What's the point of all those security webinars if nobody actually changes their habits?

23

blake792•26d ago

Pro tip: I ditched my password manager for a notebook and it's way better

I used LastPass for like 3 years because everyone says you gotta have an app. Then that big breach happened and I freaked out. Switched to a plain old spiral notebook I keep in my desk drawer. No cloud, no wifi, no chance of getting hacked. I write down every login with a code system only I understand. Took me a weekend to transfer everything but now I sleep better. Sure I can't autofill on my phone but typing in passwords manually made me actually remember them. Has anyone else gone analog for this or am I just being paranoid lol.

17

samflores•26d ago

Warning: I picked a free VPN over a paid one and got burned

Ngl I thought I was being smart using a free VPN for six months until I checked my bank and saw $80 in bogus charges from some sketchy site. I switched to Mullvad for $5 a month and hasn't been a single issue since. Anybody else get hit by a freebie?

14

thomas_sanchez•27d ago

Finally tried those free password managers after years of doubt

I always thought password managers were just another thing to break or get hacked. But last week my cousin showed me how she uses Bitwarden and it took maybe 10 minutes to set up. Now I don't have to remember 20 different passwords and I even found out my email was in a data breach from 2 years ago. Has anyone else switched and felt stupid for waiting so long?

15

adams.uma•27d ago

Overheard a guy in line at the grocery store tell his friend 'just use your dog's name for every account'

Man I was right behind him buying milk. Wanted to tap his shoulder so bad. My cousin did that with her cat's name 'Whiskers' and a scammer cleaned out her rewards points in like 10 minutes. Has anyone else heard people say stuff like this in public?

18

brianreed•27d ago

My cousin keeps typing her password into the search bar instead of the login box

Saw her do it three times last week on her laptop in Chicago, then she wondered why she kept getting 'page not found' errors. Anyone else deal with family members who just skip the login form entirely?

16

ryanm60•28d ago

Spent 4 hours trying to secure my router, turns out it was the default admin password all along

I finally locked down my home WiFi after ignoring it for 2 years, but the dumbest part was logging into the admin panel for the first time and realizing the password was still 'admin'. Has anyone else found a hidden setting in their router that made a huge difference?

8

ryanm60•28d ago

Hot take: password managers aren't the only safe way to handle logins

I tried using a paper notebook for my passwords after getting locked out of my email last spring, and it's been way more reliable than any app I tested. Has anyone else gone analog and found it stops phishing dead in its tracks?

23

ward.kim•1mo ago

Kept seeing people use the same password for everything, even after that big data breach in 2017

My cousin still uses 'password123' for his bank account and his email, and he works in IT. When I asked why, he said it's just easier to remember. I started using a password manager after I got locked out of my old AOL account back in 2015 and it's saved me a ton of hassle. Has anyone else run into someone who refuses to change even after getting hacked?

26

ward.jamie•1mo ago

Rant: That "free" USB drive I got at a conference in 2019 nuked my work laptop

I picked up a free USB drive at a trade show in Chicago back in 2019. Looked legit, had the company logo on it. Plugged it into my work laptop to check a file. Instant blue screen of death. IT told me later it had a bad firmware that installed keylogging software. Cost my company $1200 to replace the hard drive and reset everything. I got a written warning for plugging in unknown devices. Now I tell everyone: those free drives at events are like accepting candy from strangers. They might look cool but they can destroy your system. Has anyone else had a scare from a random USB?

15

sagecooper•1mo ago

Got phished at a coffee shop in 2018 and it cost me $400

I was sitting at a Starbucks in Dallas using their free wifi to pay some bills. Clicked on a link that looked exactly like my bank's login page, typed in my info, and didn't think twice. Next morning I saw $400 gone from my checking account to some random PayPal in Nigeria. My bank refunded it after two weeks of paperwork, but now I never use public wifi without a VPN app on my phone. Has anyone else had a close call with fake login pages like that?

15

evan_cooper73•1mo ago

My mom almost lost her Facebook account because of a burner email I never knew about

I was helping her clear old notifications last Sunday and found a password reset email from two days ago sent to some hotmail address she stopped using in 2009. If I hadn't spotted it, someone would have locked her out for good and probably scammed her friends. has anyone else found old accounts hiding recovery options like this?

11

ivanbell•1mo ago

Just realized my $3 phone case almost cost me $800

Bought a cheap silicone case off Amazon and it bent so bad the whole phone popped out when I dropped it on concrete last Tuesday, has anyone else had a cheap case fail like that?

16

gavin228•1mo ago

My brother told me I was too paranoid with 2FA and it made me rethink everything

He said I was locking down my accounts so tight I'd get locked out if my phone died, which happened to him once. I had 2FA on every single thing, even my gaming logins, and he showed me how his phone breaking meant he lost access to his bank for 3 days. Now I keep backup codes in my wallet and only use app-based 2FA for banking, email, and social media, not my 15 forum accounts. Anyone else gotten pushback from family about being too strict with security? What did you change?

26

anna491•1mo ago

Spent $15 on a password manager last month and it already paid off

I finally got tired of resetting my email password every few weeks so I paid for a year of Bitwarden premium. It auto-filled my login on a fake banking site I almost clicked and saved me from giving my real credentials to a scammer. Has anyone else had a cheap tool catch something like that for them?

14

phoenix_bailey•1mo ago

Pro tip: My kid's school email got hacked last Tuesday and it turned out they were reusing the same password since 2019

That password was on three data breach lists from old shopping sites and the hacker sent out 200 phishing links to parents before IT locked it down, so how often do you actually check your family's accounts on haveibeenpwned?

16

jamief67•1mo ago

Paid $40 for a password manager and it caught a fake login from Russia last month

I used to just use the same password for everything because I figured nobody would bother hacking me. Then I noticed weird login attempts on my email one day. I got a family plan for Bitwarden for like $40 a year. Last month it blocked someone trying to get into my Amazon account from Moscow. Has anyone else had a cheap password manager actually stop something scary?

14

king.val•1mo ago

Took me 3 months to realize I was using the same password for everything

I spent a whole weekend last fall making a spreadsheet of my accounts after my email got hit by a phishing scam, and it turned out I had 47 logins all using the same recycled password from college. Finally switched to a password manager I got for free through my library card and now I just have to remember one master password. Has anyone else found their old accounts buried deep that they totally forgot about?

0

thomas_sanchez•1mo ago

My old router died mid-streaming last night and I had to dig out a 10 year old spare from a closet

Lost the whole 4th quarter of the game before I found the thing and it took 20 minutes to boot up, anyone else keep a junker around just in case your main hardware bricks?

15

lunah12•1mo ago

Switched from password manager to a notebook 3 months ago, way less stress

I used to use Bitwarden for everything but after that big breach last year I got nervous. Started writing down all my passwords in a small spiral notebook I keep in my desk drawer at home. No cloud, no sync, just me and a pen. I have like 40 accounts in there and it takes two seconds to flip through. Anyone else ditch digital for paper?