Facebook is forever, but sometimes, you’d like to forget a picture or post from the past. Maybe it’s an embarrassing picture that could be spotted by a future employer, or something you wrote about someone in a moment of anger.
You’ve always been able to delete your posts, one at a time. But now, Facebook has finally created a bulk deletion tool, called Manage Activity that allows you to delete or archive posts based on dates or people.
A Digital Photo Album
A lot of people use Facebook as their digital photo album. For those who do, the new Manage Activity tool provides the solution to remove unwanted posts from the past.
You need to call customer service, but don’t have the number. So, you do a quick online search or ask your smart speaker to dial it for you. Be careful, you could wind up talking to a fraudster who’s pretending to be a customer service representative.
Scammers can have their fake numbers show up at the top of online search results, so you wind up calling them instead of the legitimate company—and you may not know it.
How can you tell?
The safest way to find a customer service number is to check a sound source, such as a bank statement, credit card, or warranty card.
If you connect with customer service and are asked for your password or PIN or other sensitive personal information, hang up. You’ve dialed a fraudster.
At Ticor Title, our people and clients are our top priority and we are committed to doing what we need to do to protect them while helping stop the spread of COVID-19. As a result, we continue to closely follow guidance issued by the CDC, WHO, and other state agencies as it relates to safety protocols and virus protection. With this in mind, we have implemented alternative work arrangements across all of our offices and have approved as many of our people as possible in each office to work remotely.
We have spent time both testing and expanding our remote working capabilities to minimize any disruption of the service levels you have come to expect. However, in this unprecedented time, we ask for your patience as we diligently work to meet these new challenges and the needs of our people, our clients, and our communities.
During these alternative work arrangements, we also wanted to make sure that you are aware of the following practices that are in place in our title operations to help continue closing real estate transactions.
Earnest Money Deposits: You can send Earnest Money Deposits by wire transfer or via our Mobile Earnest Money Deposit. As with all wires, remember that wire fraud is real and home buyers and sellers are the biggest targets. As a best practice, confirm all wiring instructions, including specific banking information, by phone before transferring funds. Use the phone number for your closing agent/escrow officer provided on their website or from a business card. Never rely on phone numbers in email communications.
Virtual Signings and eSign Tools (where and when available): To eliminate or significantly reduce reliance on in-person closing and signings, Virtual Signings and eSign tools are available for customers to sign eligible documents from their homes.
Video Consultations: Our operations have access to video conference technology to facilitate consultations with customers to review documents and answer questions prior to or as part of the closing process.
Efficient Closings: Our goal is to streamline the amount of time you are in our offices or required for closings. We are customizing solutions for each office to accommodate customer needs.
eRecording: At this time, the majority of county recorder offices appear to be functioning, or are only closed to the public, so that documents continue to be recorded, and online records remain searchable and up-to-date. However, that is not true in all cases. As a result, we are providing local managers with authority, where appropriate, to issue policies providing coverage during the gap created by recording or posting delays created by government office closures.
We are in a rapidly changing environment as a result of COVID-19, and the impacts on our national and local communities are changing hourly, including the closing of some local government recording offices. At this time, the majority of these offices appear to be functioning, or are only closed to the public, so that documents continue to be recorded, and online records remain searchable and up-to-date. We are closely monitoring this pandemic situation, and you are encouraged to contact our office with any concerns or questions related to your transactions.
Safeguarding the health and safety of our customers and employees is our top priority.
Ticor Title is open for business and staff are here to help our clients/customers but by appointment only. With the current health concerns regarding COVID-19, we ask that you call to set appointment if you are coming into our office.
Thank you,
John Bloomquist Senior Vice President | County Manager
Your e-mail inbox is overloaded – advertisements from retailers you shop with, newsletters from organizations you support, and a whole lot of spam that you don’t want and don’t plan to read. But it just takes time to go through all of this.
Should you click on the unsubscribe links? Or is that just asking for trouble?
It all depends…
According to digital security expert Paul Ducklin, a principal research scientist with Sophos who is based in England. His big concern: That unsubscribe link could be designed to trick you into giving up your email password.
“If you click on an unsubscribe link and it doesn’t just go, ‘you’re unsubscribed,’ but it goes, ‘now you need to put in your email address and your password,’ keep your wits about you, and don’t get phished,” Ducklin cautioned. “Obviously these are people who are not spamming you, they’re using the unsubscribe as a hook to try to get your password which is a risk that did not exist in the early days of spam.”
Scammers are getting craftier with their pitches by using new technology to steal your information and money. Believe it or not, most Washington consumers don’t report robocalls or fraud attempts. However, you should report any attempted scams, says Chuck Hardwood, Regional Director of the Federal Trade Commission.
Why you should report fraud…
Any efforts, whether it’s by phone, email, online, or in person, should be reported. People must tell their stories because they add pieces to the puzzle that authorities are trying to put together. The larger the picture becomes, the easier it will be for law enforcement to protect consumers. When you choose not to report fraud, you’re helping scammers.
Even if you don’t fall for a fraudsters tricks, it’s still helpful to report the situation because this crucial information can help authorities. Every story is important to them. Report scams to the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov/complaint, or with the State Attorney General’s Office at www.atg.wa.gov/file-complaint or toll-free at 877-382-4357.
We are proud to say we have partnered with long time local area consumer protection advocate Herb Weisbaum of KOMO to bring you Technology and Title Tips.
Chances are you have old online accounts that you haven’t used for a long time, maybe years.
Old Online Accounts
And the odds are that the old passwords on those unused accounts are weak ones. If you can remember other places you used them, this is a good opportunity to generate some new and secure ones.
Signing up for an account is easy. That’s not always the case when you want to cancel. Some sites hide this information, so you won’t leave. If you run into a roadblock, rather than give up, do a search for “how to cancel” or call customer service.
We are proud to say we have partnered with long time local area consumer protection advocate Herb Weisbaum of KOMO to bring you Technology and Title Tips.
When someone calls you on the phone, it’s not always easy to tell if they’re a con artist pretending to be with a government agency, your bank or credit card company.
If you reuse the same password on a lot of accounts – as so many people do – you’re putting all of those accounts at risk, if just one of them is compromised. You should have a strong and unique password for each of your accounts. You can use a password manager to remember them for you.
At the very least, it’s imperative that you have a secure and unique password for your key accounts: email, bank, credit card, financial and social media accounts. Then set up multi-factor authentication (MFA) whenever possible.
MFA can help to protect your accounts.
MFA requires you to enter a code – sent to you by phone or email – as well as the password, to verify it’s really you. Yes, this slows you down a few seconds, but it can stop a fraudster. It can also save you from the hassles of having to deal with a compromised account.
When a long-lost friend contacts you via Facebook Messenger, you need to stop and make sure they really are your friend and not a fraudster in disguise who hopes to get you to send them personal information or possibly money.
“Hi, it’s your uncle Bob. I just wanted to tell you there’s this new government grant that you can get more information about, just text me your number and we’ll talk to you about it.”
If you get contacted by someone via Facebook Messenger, whether you know them or not, and they immediately want you to text or email them, and they ask for money or personal information – you’re dealing with a fraudster.
We are proud to say we have partnered with long time local area consumer protection advocate Herb Weisbaum of KOMO to bring you Technology and Title Tips.
When someone calls you on the phone, it’s not always easy to tell if they’re a con artist pretending to be with a government agency, your bank or credit card company.
These imposters can be mighty convincing.
“I’m with the IRS and if you don’t pay right now with a gift card, you’re going to be arrested.”
“I’m calling from the courthouse and you owe a fine. You need to go out, buy a gift card, and pay it right now, or else.”
Before you listen to the call and run to the store to buy gifts cards, think about what you’re being asked to do and why it’s so ridiculous.
