Armed Forces Day, In the News, Scam Attempt, and Enjoy

Armed Forces Day - Today is Armed Forces Day!

President Harry S. Truman led the effort to establish a single holiday for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country.

On August 31, 1949, Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace separate Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force Days.

The single day celebration stemmed from the unification of the Armed Forces under the Department of Defense.

In the News - They walk among us!

U.S. Utility's Control System Was Hacked, Says Homeland Security

Swiss Court Okays Nazi Salute

College Student Vanishes From Chicago Airport

Naked Man Dives Through Open Sunroof, Attacks Dallas Driver

Fast & Furious 7 Using Face-Replacement Technology for Late Star

Scam Attempt - An idiotic scofflaw attempted to inveigle me yesterday! My office telephone rang. I looked at the Caller ID display and saw that the caller was reported as "Unknown Name," and the number as 516-467-0847.

I routinely check calls from unknown sources by using Why Call Me? (www.whycall.me). I accessed Why Call Me?, entered the number, and quickly verified the caller was a scammer. My schedule was open, and I decided to have sport with this cretin.

(I spoke in a high-pitched voice—greatly variant from my natural voice.)

ME: Good morning. Thank you for calling California Technologies. How may I direct your call?

SCAMMER: Please to talk to manager or owner.

ME: Thank you. Whom shall I say is calling?

SCAMMER: Yes. John.

ME: Thank you. I will transfer your call. Your call may be monitored for quality purposes.

(I began using my natural voice at this point.)

ME: This is David. What is the nature of your call?

SCAMMER: Banking account error and locked. Must change password to unlock.

ME: Oh, you are from the bank. That is great. You must have my account there and can help me change my password?

SCAMMER: Sure. That's why I call.

ME: That is wonderful. I am so happy that you called. I managed to misplace my Social Security Number. Please check my Profile and give me my Social Security Number. Thank you.

SCAMMER: How do I know this is you?

ME: YOU called ME.

SCAMMER: How do I be sure of that?

ME: How do you know anything?

SCANNER: Plonk!

Cellphone Scam, In the News, and Enjoy

Cellphone Scam - There is a new scam about which I wish to warn everyone: If you get a call on your cellphone directing you to return a call, and the number shown is unknown to you—particularly should the number appear to be an international number!—do not return the call!

I received such a call recently:

I did not play the voice mail, nor did I return the call. Had I returned the call, I would have incurred costly charges—$25 per minute or more! Never return any call from an unrecognized number—particularly should it appear to be an international call!

In the News - They walk among us!

Airpot Security Seizes Toy Gun from "Woody" Doll

Dog Bursts into Flames As Owner Tries to Burn Tick with Lighter

Nervous New Dad Arrested for Smoking Pot in Delivery Room

Nightclub Cleared After Woman Mistakes Pepper Spray for Deodorant

Woman Forced Out of Apartment After Inundated with Hundreds of Bats

Enjoy - Relax and enjoy these images and videos!

Beware!

Beware! - One must be very cautious when online. The Internet is a wonderful resource for research, certainly, but it is also a vast miasma of scofflaws eager to take advantage of you financially!

This email message appeared in my Outlook Inbox this morning. It certainly looks legitimate. It is nearly identical to the messages sent by Verizon Wireless.

GREED is often the first indicator one is dealing with a criminal. In this instance, it seems ridiculous that someone expects me to read the message and remit $3587.71! Nonetheless, if these scams did not work at least some of the time, they would soon fail to be sent.

There are several indicators for which one should look when determining the legitimacy of such emails:

Greed - Suspect any email that is based on greed—either the greed of the sender (as in the example above) or the greed of the recipient (the phony inheritance scams, banking scams, etc.)

Poor grammar - Suspect any email that contains misspellings, syntax errors, etc. Generally, these messages originate in non-English-speaking countries and are composed by people with poor language skills.

Companies with whom you do not do business - Obviously, any message that appears to be from a bank, wireless company, etc., with whom one has no account is a fraudulent message.

Reply or destination location - If you suspect an email, the quickest, simplest, and surest way to determine its legitimacy is by checking the reply or destination location. It is a simple matter to fake an email address so that a message appears to come from a trusted source (for example, "customerservice@microsoft.com), but the reply or destination location email address or URL will tell the true story. By hovering the mouse over links in an email, one can easily see where a reply will go or where a user will be taken by clicking a URL. Generally, the email address or URL will terminate in an extension indicating a server in a foreign land.

It is not yet 9 AM, and already this morning I have received six potentially dangerous emails.

Scam Call, Gun Appreciation Day, and Using Android Tablet to Paint with GIMP

Scam Call - My office telephone rang. I looked at the Caller ID, and it reported, “Private Name” and no telephone number. Generally, I do not answer these calls. It was slow at my office, and I was in a playful mood, so I answered, "Hello."

CALLER: Is David there, please?
ME: Yes.
CALLER: May I talk to him, please?
ME: Yes.
(Following a silence of approximately 45 seconds:)
CALLER: Is this David?
ME: No.
CALLER: Is David there?
ME: Yes.
CALLER: May I talk to him?
ME: Yes.
(Following a silence of approximately 45 seconds:)
CALLER: Is this David?
ME: Yes. Who is this?
CALLER: This is Cynthia from HRI Net. (I Googled “HRI Net” and quickly determined there was only a health-services company by that name.)
ME: Hello, Cindy.
ME: Good. Now, Cindy, how are you today?
CALLER: I’m fine, thanks.
ME: You do not mind if I call you, “Cindy,” do you, Cindy?
CALLER: No. That’s fine.
ME: That is wonderful. I am glad to hear that. How is the weather there?
CALLER: It’s fine.
ME: Great. Now, Cindy, I know you are very busy, so I will make this brief.
CALLER: Uh. Uh. I called you.
ME: Well, it really matters little who called whom, do not you agree?
CALLER: I called you.
ME: Well, of course you did. As I said, that is of no importance. I know you are busy, so I will make this brief.
CALLER: I called you.
ME: If you prefer, by all means do so. (I cradled the receiver.)
The phone rang. The same Caller ID displayed.
ME: Howdy, Cindy. Now, what I can I do for you today?
CALLER: Your computer’s got a virus and it’s just going to get worse. I can fix it for you quick from here. Just do what I say so I can access your system files and fix the problem.
ME: Cindy, it is truly disheartening that your computer is infected, but that would be an issue you would want to hand over to your IT people. Now, if you are ready, I have the figures you requested.
CALLER: Not me. You’ve got virus infecting your computer and I can fix it for you.
ME: I have given it some thought, and I think I like “Cynthia” better. I will call you, “Cynthia” if you do not mind.
CALLER: What?
ME: If you do not like your full name, I can call you, “Cindy.” It makes no difference to me.
CALLER: What?
ME: I am glad you agree. Now, how may I be of service, Cynthia?
CALLER: Your computer’s got a virus and it’s real bad but I can fix it if you just type in what I tell you to.
ME: Cynthia, how do you know your computer has a virus? Did you scan your system? Are you using anti-virus software? What anti-virus software are you using?
CALLER: YOU have the virus. I don’t have it. YOU do!
ME: Well, I think I told you, Cynthia, that is for the IT guys to fix. Do not try to fix it on your own. You might make it worse. Just call your IT guys.
CALLER: You don’t get it. Your computer’s messed up and I can fix it for you if you just type in what I tell you to.
ME: Cynthia, all this computer talk is boring me. I say we move on to something more interesting. Do you like guns, Cynthia?
CALLER: What?
ME: Do you like guns? We’re having a wild pig hunt this weekend, and you are invited. What guns do you have?
CALLER: What are you talking about?
ME: The hide on those critters is tough. I will be using a Desert Eagle .50 AE semi-automatic pistol and an HK-91 .308 cal rifle. What guns do you have, Cynthia?
CALLER: Guns? I hate guns. They should all be banned.
ME: Well, Cynthia, I think we should go our separate ways now. A wild pig hunt is NOT for you, Cynthia. Have a nice day.
(PLONK)



I am getting ready for Gun Appreciation Day!