Hacks, Phishes and Security: Part Two- Beware of Texts and Emails: How to tell they are not real

 

Phishing. Certainly not the same as fishing, but the hacker is certainly "fishing" for information from you. Hence, phishing is "a type of social engineering where an attacker sends a fraudulent message designed to trick a person into revealing sensitive information to the attacker or to deploy malicious software on the victim's infrastructure like ransomware."-Wikipedia

We have all recently received emails and texts claiming that an account will be deactivated due to some circumstance or another. I'm going to show you how to instantly know that the sender is a fraud.

TEXTS
I have personally been receiving several of these per week, and it seems that the majority are from those who are trying to impersonate Apple. Here is what one looks like. Notice the highlighted red squares--- the sender's address makes no sense and shows nothing with anything related to Apple. The link they are asking you to click on is a shortened URL with no information telling me it's Apple computer.

Now look at the copyright section at the bottom of the text. Apple Computer is located in Cupertino, California. Hollyhill Industrial Estate is located in Ireland, and although Apple has a location there, they would NEVER send a text or email for verification if there was a problem with you account.

EMAILS
Whenever you receive an email with either a special prize offer or a warning about a problem with your account, click on the sender's email so it opens for you to view the full address. Notice that Kohl's is really not Kohl's based on the ridiculous and non-sensical address shown at the right. The sender also cc'd a jgreller at aol and Sprint did not encrypt the message. I reported the email as spam and blocked the address from future emails.

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Hacks, Phishes and Security: Part One- Facebook and Facebook Messenger

 

Have you been ever been hacked? Received texts or emails which looked fake? Wondered how to know what's real or not? Look no further, I will cover that and many other things connected to security in this series of special posts. Let's begin this first post and talk about...

FACEBOOK  AND FACEBOOK MESSENGER
I'll begin by warning everyone to NEVER USE THE FACEBOOK MESSENGER APP. As per a December 2020 Forbes Magazine article written by Zak Doffman, "Facebook Messenger doesn’t offer end-to-end encryption by default. This isn’t some niche security setting for you to overlook, this is absolutely fundamental to the security and privacy of your information."

I can't tell you the number of times that a Facebook friend has had their account hacked. The reason for this can fall into a few categories: poor password, the person used Messenger, or they used third party apps they connected with through the Facebook app. Here are a few examples:

Any time I personally see a notification that someone messaged me on FB, I immediately check with them to see if they actually sent me something. Nine out of ten times they hadn't.

To protect your Facebook account, it is also important to go over your own personal settings. Many are hidden, and it will take a while to do, but it will be well worth it. You can follow the video below and go step-by-step through the process.

I'll close this first part with how to make a proper password. DO NOT EVER use the same password for more than one of your accounts. You can follow this infographic I created to assist you:

Guest Post: Author Jeff Gottesfeld

All the way in March, the children's book publisher Candlewick Press (full disclosure: that company is publishing my next picture book, TWENTY-ONE STEPS: GUARDING THE TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER in March, 2021, with illustrations by the immensely talented Matt Tavares) brought out a free, downloadable picture book for kids, explaining the Covid-19 crisis to them. I was impressed by how quickly it must have come together, and the good that could be done with a PDF download.

And it got me thinking. 

I have a pretty active Jewish life. Between my synagogue, family, and study, it was a big anchor for me. Then came Covid-19. And I realized that as much as my Jewish life was disrupted, it was worse for children in Jewish homes. So much of Jewish life is communal. The holidays, observances, festivals, events...it's always the more the merrier. The pandemic made the more the merrier the more the super-spreadering, or something. In any case, kids all over the world were stuck at home, including Jewish kids. They couldn't even mask up and go for a walk on their own. I figured it had to feel pretty joyless.

But the thing is, there is plenty of Jewish joy at home. It just has to be made. So I decided to see if I could enlist some talented Jewish friends and create a free, downloadable PDF book of our own. A coloring book, that would be positive and upbeat, whimsical and inspired. I talked to young artist Jonah Cohen, who went to high school with my de facto stepdaughter and is now at Rhode Island School of Design. Would you be interested, Jonah, in joining in a volunteer chesed project?  He said yes. I talked to my old Teaneck NJ junior high school chum Julie Greller, who's my webmaster. Would be you interested, Julie, in joining a volunteer chesed project, and design this book?  Julie said yes. 

Of course, everything takes longer than expected. Jonah had school, I had my writing life, and Julie had her designing life. But longer doesn't mean never. And maybe it is a besherit that just as America and much of the world is mired in this December wave of Covid-19 that's got so many of us on lockdown again, and Hanukkah is starting on Thursday night, that When We Can't Go Out: Jewish Joy at Home is ready.

It's free to download here. Go and enjoy.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: 18 Articles, Lesson Plans and Videos

ARTICLES
Academy of Achievement: Ruth Bader Ginsburg- biography, profile, gallery, interview

Examining the Impact and Legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg- from School Library Journal; 6 books are reviewed for grades 3 and up.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Biography- from Biography.com

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Facts for Kids- from Kiddle

TIME 100- 1996: Ruth Bader Ginsburg

LESSON PLANS

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Legacy on the Supreme Court- PBS News Hour Extra's lesson for grades 6-12; video with questions provided.

My Hero- celebrating Ruth Bader Ginsburg, includes discussion questions

RBG (film) Classroom Guide- discussion questions, post-viewing activities, supplemental resources, movie reviews.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg- Share My Lesson has many documents to download with reference to the lesson plan.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Biography Worksheet- biography is followed by questions (grade 5)

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Coloring Pages

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court's Feminist Icon- lesson of the day from The New York Times Learning Network; although the grade level is not listed, it looks like grades 8-12.

Women Who Shaped the Supreme Court- lesson for grades 6-12 from NewseumED

VIDEOS

7 Tips to Create Strong Passwords

 

It's always been important to have strong passwords. Too many people choose their birthday, anniversary, name of a pet or easy number pattern. (Yes, there have been those using 1, 2, 3, 4 ! ) Hackers live to crack your accounts, people! A few popular apps include Facebook, Hotmail, (Microsoft is big on their attack radar) Twitter,  and Instagram. The list is endless, so before you are the next to be hacked, here are some suggestions which will provide a strong password. 

1. Do not use the same password for all your accounts.
The reason is obvious, so just don't. Period.

2. Use a mix of upper and lower case letters with numbers and symbols.
You can choose a word you will remember, but really mix things up. For example, the number 1 can be the letter I or i. The $ sign can represent an S or s. Remember, letters in a password are case-sensitive. You get the idea.

3. Do not use spaces.
Spaces are not permitted most of the time.

3. Misspell a word on purpose.
Gr8PuRr$uN = Great person

4. Never use keyboard sequences, such as QWERTY or CVBNM.
Too easy to crack, right?

5. Never enter your password into a public computer.
Hackers will love you if you do that...

6. Don't leave password hints on site accounts.
It's nobody's business but yours!

7. Use two-step authentication.
For example, when logging into your online bank account, have them text you a code to sign in.

G00b lUk, y00$3R
Good Luck, User

Right-click to download the infographic I created from the list above. It is larger than it appears on this post.

10 Must-Haves for Your Media Center's Virtual Website

 

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay 

Now that we are 6 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, it is more important than ever for school media specialists to have information-rich webpages which their students can access 24/7. The following list provides the most important elements you need to place on your media center's site. Media specialists can also go HERE to find everything related to the many hats you wear in your teaching position.

1. Your media center's webpage needs to have a direct link on the home page for your school.
     It should not take several clicks to get to the page, i.e. District Home > Your School > Extra Resources >Your School's Media Center Home Page. Unfortunately, that's exactly the where my school put our link. 😞

2.  Make the home page easy to navigate.
     Remember that you will have students of all ages and levels, whether you teach in an elementary,  middle or high school. Ease of use will not frustrate your kids. Knollwood School Media Center (Elementary) has a clean main page, although I wish the resources page was alphabetically organized within categories, such as subscriptions, reading and research. I would not post user names and passwords for the world to see.

3. Make your website content rich and visually appealing.

    In order to keep students interested and focused on learning, your site's interface should keep students coming back to explore more and more of resources you have posted. Convince them that your site can offer them more than a Google search. I created a page devoted just to pathfinders, covering 135 subjects, from African American Inventors and Scientists to Young Adult Authors. With an icon for each subject, the page is not just a list; it's a visual listing. 

4. Utilize tutorials and infographics.

    Putting tutorials on your site will allow anyone who needs assistance 24/7 help. Tutorials can be in the form of videos, (visual learners love this method) or infographics. Explain the rules of the media center, show how to search the card catalog etc. My media center had 20x30 enlargements of infographics I had created, and others I was able to download for classroom use.  The first one by EasyBib should be on your website:

The next one covers the difference between paraphrasing and plagiarism. Note the Creative Commons license at the bottom of the infographic:

I created this next example with SnagIt for Education, and because it was done quite a few years ago, this might not look the same on the EasyBib site. I wanted to show how helpful SnagIt is when you are a teacher.

Here's a video example of a tutorial to embed on your media center website:

5. Put a direct link to your online card catalog.

    Students and staff should be able to view your collection from anywhere. Books can be easily reserved if they are listed as checked out.

6. Resources should hand-picked by the media specialist and posted on your site.

    Important to cover: study skills, research paper formatting, tips for taking tests, recommended reading lists by grade level, website evaluation and cyber safety.

7. Provide contact information so that students and teachers can communicate with you.
    Use either a contact form, email address, or school phone number, if you are in school.

8.  Provide either a photo or emoji of the media center staff:

9.  Provide your mission information for the media center, as well as policies and procedures.

10. Provide book suggestions by grade level.

UPDATED: 100 Online Museums to Visit Without Leaving the Classroom

 

Taken at the Museum of Tolerance

Here's a pretty extensive listing of museums for you to use in your curriculum. I've covered subject areas of art, culture, history, natural history, science, technology and miscellaneous. Please add any suggestions you have to the comments section.

UPDATED: 9/4/20

Art and Our Culture
Art Institute of Chicago

Artsonia- world's largest art museum for young artists; this is an excellent place "to post and find student art"; all graphics are done by students.

The Barnes Foundation- an art collection and educational institution promoting the appreciation of art and horticulture

Bling Universe- art museum in Maryland

Contemporary Arts Museum Houston

Denver Art Museum

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Fowler Museum at UCLA

J. Paul Getty Museum

Louvre Museum

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Musee d'Orsay-very large galleries

Museo Nacional Del Prado- Madrid, Spain

Museum of Fine Arts- Boston, MA

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

Museum of Modern Art (MOMA)- multimedia site

Museum of Tolerance

National Archeological Museum of Athens

National Gallery of Art- online tours of the Washington, DC museum

National Museum of Women in the Arts- more than 3,000 works from the 16th century to the present

National Portrait Gallery: London- digital history resources

Philadelphia Museum of Art- explore online collection database

The Rodin Museum- With nearly 150 bronzes, marbles, and plasters, the distinguished collection housed in the Rodin Museum represents every phase of Auguste Rodin’s career.

Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery- houses 12,000 records

State Hermitage Museum- St. Petersburg, Russia

Tate Online- British & International Modern Art

The Van Gogh Museum- located in the Netherlands

Uffizi Gallery- Florence, Italy

Vatican Collections Online-virtual tour of the Sistine Chapel

History
American Memory Historical Collections

The Anne Frank Museum

The British Museum

Colonial Williamsburg Museums

Conner Prairie Interactive History Park- Indiana

The Hermitage- located in Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ
Imperial War Museum

Memorial Hall Museum Online: American Centuries, View from New England- for researcher, educators and students; explore American History with hands-on activities, exhibits, lessons, historic documents and artifacts.

Museum of Tolerance

National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum

National Museum of the American Indian

National Women's History Museum- digital resources, biographies, electronic field trips and more

Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum

Salem Witch Museum

The Secret Annex- Anne Frank's hiding place

Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza- tribute to John F. Kennedy
Smithsonian Institution

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 


Miscellaneous
American Red Cross Museum

Boston Children's Museum- The Boston Children’s Museum welcomes online visitors into its exhibits (no lines!) and you can supplement the images with your own at-home activities and games.

The Freud Museum (London)

Mathematics Museum (Japan) 
National Inventors Hall of Fame

Roald Dahl- the author's museum is for teachers, kids, and grown ups

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Robert C. Williams American Museum of Papermaking 

Natural History
American Museum of Natural History

The Archaeology Channel

Canadian Museum of Nature 

Museum of Paleontology- Univ. of California, Berkeley

Natural History Museum- Los Angeles County- activities and programs; teacher resources

Natural History Museum of Florence University- botanical

Nature Online- Natural History Museum; London

Ology at the American Museum of Natural History- for young children

University of Michigan Exhibit Museum of Natural History-virtual tour 

World Wide Museum of Natural History- An online museum featuring photo galleries and quality educational products for homes, schools and museums.

                                          


Science and Technology
The Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University- the oldest natural science research institution and museum in the Americas; features Science from Home page, Academy Kids and more.

Computer History Museum

Exploratorium- this is a hands on science museum which has online versions of some of their exhibit

The Field Museum-several permanent exhibits

The Franklin Institute Online

IEEE Virtual Museum-the history of electronics, electricity and computers

Imagination Station Science Museum

Kennedy Space Center

Marian Koshland Science Museum of the National Academy of Science

MIT Museum- multimedia

Museum of Broadcast Communications

Museum of Flight

Museum of Science-Boston

Museum of Science and Industry- Chicago

The Mütter Museum of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia- a medical museum which contains a collection of anatomical and pathological specimens, wax models, and antique medical equipment

NASA for Students

National Air and Space Museum- Smithsonian

The Paley Center for Media (formerly The Museum of Television and Radio)

Robotics- part of the Tech Museum

San Diego Aerospace Museum

The Science Museum of London- students can explore over 250,000 objects and archives from the collection of the Science Museum Group.

Science Museum of Minnesota-online activities

The Tech Museum

Try Science- virtual field trips for kids

Wilbur R. Enns Entomology Museum