We are now on Signal (in addition to Discord). If you want to join us send an email message to sgt-d@sodpit.com and I will give you the link to join.
Tag Archives: Featured
We are on Discord!
The old gaming crew Stormtroopers of Death are now on Discord.
Well, we’ve been on it for a year or so. I recently sent email and ICQ invites to everyone I still had contact information for.
If you would like to talk with us use the widget (below) or send us an email message and let one of us know what your gaming nick used to be and one of us will send you an invite.
Quick note: sometimes the channels are moderated which means when you first join you might not be able to type messages. If that happens send a private message to Goob, Wickedlyx, sgt-d or a manager or moderator and ask to be added to the Members role.<
See you soon!
Computer Protection
I get asked a lot of questions about the best tools for cleaning an infected computer and thought a quick article might help.
This article provides a hands-on list of utilities that I rely on for cleaning infected computers.
Safe Computing: Best Practices
I get asked questions about best practices for safe computing all the time and thought it would be a good idea to outline some policies that you can follow easily to help minimize damage to your computer.
Heartbleed (CVE-2014-0160)
Before you started using the internet for paying bills and online banking… do you remember initially being paranoid and refusing to do these things because you didn’t think it would ever be safe?
You were right.
Time Marches On (Part Two)
I decided to make a series of subfolders “Time Marches On (Part Two)” because some family members and close friends have already seen the first four chapters. Chapter 5 is brand new! Enjoy!
Time Marches On (Part One) (33 photos)
Time Marches On (Part Two) (All 105 photos)
Chapters:
1 – Random Recent Photos (25 photos)
2 – Just Another Day (20 photos)
3 – More… (16 photos)
4 – Even More… (14 photos)
5 – End Of Days (30 photos)
goto fail; Major Security Flaw in Apple iOS and OSX
If you are an Apple user, stop what you are doing right now, disconnect from WiFi, and take 5 minutes to read everything on this page.
I read several articles yesterday about a serious security flaw in Apple’s iOS (iPhone, iPad, etc.) and OSX (Mac) that has existed since September… of 2012. Internally Apple has been well aware of this problem for almost a year and a half (17 months), yet for some reason (shocker) they chose not to disclose this flaw publicly… so most users never knew there was a problem.
The flaw allows a hacker to intercept all of your data even though you might see a secure link (padlock) icon which means SSL (Secure Socket Layer) is enabled. This flaw can normally only be exploited when you (and a hacker) are on a public WiFi hotspot and it only affects iOS 6.0 through 7.0.5 on iPhones and Macs running OSX. There is a fix for iOS but currently there is no fix for Mac OSX.
Let’s just hope pray you haven’t been checking your bank account at Starbucks or Facebooking at McDonald’s.
iPhone users: until the iOS 7.0.6 update is installed please do NOT use WiFi in any public places.
Mac users: avoid using publicly accessible WiFi until Apple releases an update.
Go to your iPhone/iPad and open Settings > General > About. Scroll down to see your device’s version information. If your device is running anything between 6.0 and 7.0.5 you need to upgrade to 7.0.6 NOW. To upgrade, connect to your personal or trusted WiFi hotspot (only use WiFi at your house or work) and open Settings > General. You should see an available upgrade. Install it immediately.
Please send a link to this page (using either of the two links below) to friends and family who might be using Apple products:
https://sodpit.com/2014/02/24/goto-fail-major-security-flaw-in-apple-ios-and-osx/
Update #1 – 2/24/14 – Mostly for OSX users:
Apple quietly issues iOS update to patch faulty SSL authentication (update 2: OS X patch coming)
Protect a Mac from the ‘GotoFail’ SSL / TLS security bug (until fix arrives)
Help Protect a Mac from the SSL / TLS Security Bug (Until a Fix Arrives)
Hint… the next two links should be clicked from your Mac: Use Mozilla Firefox for OSX or Google Chrome for OSX until an OSX patch is released.
Update #2 – 2/26/14: Mac OSX Patch Finally Available!
Apple releases OS X 10.9.2 update, patches severe SSL bug
About the security content of OS X Mavericks v10.9.2 and Security Update 2014-001
Resources:
Why Apple’s Recent Security Flaw Is So Scary
Apple Security Flaw Is “As Bad As You Could Imagine”
Extremely critical crypto flaw in iOS may also affect fully patched Macs
goto fail;
A sample of the code showing where the problem occurred.
fail:
The second instance of “goto fail;” (above) is what caused the flaw. Supposedly it was accidentally copy/pasted before the OS was released.
Samsung Galaxy Note 3
A not so quick post about the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 with tons of links and other stuff. Some of the information here might work for older Galaxy devices as well.
I will update this post as time permits. I have tons of screenshots with additional tips. Coming soon someday. I started this post on 11/5… it’s just taking forever to get it all done.
On to the chaos…
Google Experience Launcher (GEL) and Google Search 3.1.8
Google Experience Launcher (GEL) and Google Search 3.1.8 (massive update) are now available for download and work well on any Android 4.1+ device. I don’t know if or when these will hit Google Play since they are just now being rolled out to the Nexus 5 with Android 4.4 (KitKat). So basically, this is the Nexus 5 launcher/experience.
Continue reading Google Experience Launcher (GEL) and Google Search 3.1.8
SMRTphone Showdown 2013
Showdown!
In order from smallest to largest display size (diagonal):
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