ePortfolio entry #5

1.  How can you tell if your computer is safe?

The honest answer is you can tell if your computer is safe if it is completely off and unplugged and also in a safe that has no key. Your computer is a communication device. and is meant for sending and receiving signals. Exploits and normal communications are often indistinguishable from one another. Of course, your computer can devote some processing power to be able to find or filter out things but usually only if it’s known to be bad (IPs, Virus behavior, filenames) or expected to be bad (quarantining or asking permission to use certain programs). Unlike a human a computer doesn’t have instincts and can’t learn to trust things a bit at a time. It doesn’t do the best job at spotting imposters and really sees things as 0’s and 1’s. However, there are things you can do to make sure your computer isn’t left totally wide open. Making sure patches are installed, anti-virus is up and running, your firewall is enabled and configured, perhaps using a VPN, utilizing encryption and full disk encryption. There is no one fix all magic pill solution that will take you from unsecured to secured, unless like I said you never turn on your device.

2. Describe three ways that computers have made the world safer and less safe.

Safer –

The first way computers have made the world safer is by giving us increased communication power. Imagine you need to call emergency services and they need t share data in a quick efficient manner in order to reach you remotely. There was a story of a paddleboarder who was getting swept out to sea and growing too weak to paddle back in. Their apple Watch alerted the proper people in order to save the mans life. Had he been without this technology he may have not lived.

Less safe –

It can be argued computers have had a detrimental effect on overall privacy. omputers enable the collection and storage of vast amounts of personal data. With the growth of online platforms, social media, and e-commerce, individuals willingly or unknowingly share personal information. Companies and organizations collect and analyze this data to gain insights into consumer behavior, preferences, and demographics. However, this extensive data collection can lead to potential privacy violations, as individuals’ online activities are tracked, analyzed, and monetized without their explicit consent.

Dependence. Todays society is COMPLETELY reliant on technology. We live in an artificial system. Every facet of modern life is dependent on the grid and computing power. Society’s increasing dependence on computers and interconnected systems has introduced vulnerabilities. Critical infrastructure such as power grids, transportation networks, and financial systems heavily rely on computer technology. Any disruption, whether through cyberattacks or technical failures, can have far-reaching consequences, potentially affecting public safety, economy, and essential services. God forbid the consequences of a long term frawn out shutdown of these services. Take a moment to imagine yourself in a reality where there is no cell phone service and your battery is quickly dying with fading hopes of being able to recharge. You have limited food in your house, most which will spoil without a refrigerator. You have no power which also means no heat or AC. Water is unsafe to drink b/c the water processing plants have gone offline and you most likely do not have a filter meant for the type of water you will find. Going outside is not safe because hundreds of other people if not thousands are suddenly realizing this is a battle for survival.

So while technology has made life “easier” it has led us to a dependence that if tampered with or unplugged could have dire consequences.