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Metadata: The Hacker's Breadcrumb Trail (And How to Wipe It Clean)

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  What is metadata? Common files have ‘data about data’ known as metadata, which shows information such as where an image was taken or who the author of a PDF is. These are known as attributes and they are also valuable data malicious actors can exploit. Here is a table on common file types, what metadata they contain, and the purpose of the metadata. File Type Common Metadata Purpose/Details Documents (.docx, .pdf, .xlsx, .pptx) Author/Creator, Creation/Modification Dates, Last Saved By, Company/Organization Name, Comments/Tracked Changes, Document Revision Number, Software/Application Version used to create it, Print Date, Template name. Tracks document history, ownership, creation environment. Comments and tracked changes are often hidden, but remain in metadata. Images (.jpg, .png, .tiff) Exif Data (Exchangeable Image File Format): Camera Make/Model, Date/Time the photo was taken, Geolocation (GPS coordinates), Exposure settings (shutter speed, aperture),  Image resoluti...
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Protecting Our Elders: A Comprehensive Look at Social Engineering Threats and Proactive Steps for Families

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As our parents get older we will often find our roles reversed. Us (adult) kids aren’t just tech support, now it’s our responsibility to parent our parents through monitoring their online activity and protecting them from scams. Social Engineering Scams It’s not just tech. Criminals know it is easier to trick a person than to hack a computer. From the age old ‘ don’t talk to (internet) strangers ’ to ‘ don’t click suspicious ’ links, here are the seven social engineering psychology principles scammers will use (which I learned from studying for the CompTIA Security+ Exam), the possible scams they’ll try to pull, and how to thwart or prevent the scams. Psychology Principle Scam Example (Targeting Senior Citizens) How to Thwart or Prevent the Scam Authority IRS or Social Security Impersonation: Attacker calls claiming to be from the IRS or Social Security Administration (SSA).  They state the victim owes back taxes or that...
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