Distracted Drivers Pose a Greater Challenge on our Roads than Driverless Cars
Google announced last Friday that a prototype of its own self-driving car will hit the streets in its hometown of Mountain View, CA in a pilot test. Each car will be equipped with a human ready to...
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Three reasons to be excited about: 3D printing
The fledgling industry has grown rapidly and is estimated to be valued around $16 billion by 2018. Now it seems that almost anything is possible. Here are some of the three great uses of 3D printing...
View ArticleIdeas for Families to Celebrate Memorial Day 2015
But the real reason we celebrate Memorial Day is to honor the memory of those who have served and fall in the U.S. Armed Forces. As a product of the U.S. Army, it has always been a special observance...
View ArticleSmart Gift Ideas for Grads
A newly released annual Graduation Spending survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF) found the majority of us will give money, with more than 50% giving cash and another 30% presenting gift cards...
View ArticleThree reasons to be excited about: drones
Much like selfies, drones have a love/hate status with the public. On one hand, they are fun and useful tool for hobbyists and scientists but their popularity has been hampered by privacy and security...
View ArticleA $1,600 fine for children spending too much time online?
Taiwan have legislated on ‘screen time’ for children under 18, making it illegal for them to use electronic devices for excessive periods of time. The fine for breaching this law is around $1,600,...
View ArticleImpact of Healthcare Data Breaches Goes Beyond Financial
This past week, CareFirst, a U.S. based BlueCross and BlueShield insurer with coverage in Mid-Atlantic States, revealed that 1.1 million user accounts were compromised. CareFirst is the third U.S....
View ArticleWomen Gamers Celebrated and Encouraged
Games are playing an increasingly large role in the tech industry. An estimated 59% of Americans play computer games according to the Entertainment Software Association — and we’re talking about an...
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Tech Gifts for Dad 2015
Not surprisingly, nearly two in ten gift-givers this year have said they will be bestowing tech-related gifts on their Dads for the occasion, according to the National Retail Federation. So, what...
View ArticleTime to Hang Up? Parents Should Look into Latest Smartphone Studies
Our children are spending more and more time with smartphones, and with good reason. They give parents a line of contact, and give kids access to loads of great games and apps. But a recent study from...
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What the Fourth of July Means to Me
It involves commitment and understanding that one is part of something greater than oneself and recognition that when the uniform went on it was not just for show but also for defending a way of life....
View ArticleHow can we encourage girls to pursue a career in tech?
My career in the technology sector is a fortunate accident but it remains far too rare an outcome for women entering today’s workforce. This week I addressed an audience at the Child Internet Safety...
View ArticleFire Department drone warning: if you fly, we can’t.
In the United States, California as well as parts of the Midwest and Southwest are experiencing some of the worst drought conditions on record and facing severe wildfire risks. An as of early this...
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10 Tips to stay safe online this summer vacation
I recently got back from a family holiday in Yellowstone where there was no Internet connection at all. For me it was a blissful digital detox but my son didn’t take so kindly to it. He would jump onto...
View ArticleUndo Send: a Gift to Email and the Workplace
The Internet, email and mobile devices are the most essential connectors in today’s workplace. Between meeting alerts, necessary attachments, and up-to-date correspondence, most of us depend heavily...
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App developers still need to win the trust of older generations
It is, perhaps, natural to think about apps as a young person’s playground. Though much research shows that 50+ are one of the fastest growing markets for mobile devices, there is a dearth of mobile...
View ArticleDigital Diaries: Teens are Photoshopping their images before sharing
Our latest Digital Diaries research shows that more than two in ten children said they had edited photos of themselves before posting them online. Photoshopping at age 11 -13? Twenty-two percent of...
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Three reasons to be happy that Apple Pay has arrived in the UK
I’ve long been a fan of Apple Pay and the fact that it is finally available in my homeland, the UK, is a good thing. While most Americans are still using credit card magstripes to make payments, a few...
View ArticleWhy “Chip and PIN” is more secure than “Swipe and Sign”
This change to “chip and PIN” has already occurred in many other countries and has reduced credit card fraud – in particular “card skimming” and “cloning” whereby somebody can make a copy of your...
View ArticleThe Value of an Unplugged Vacation
In keeping with tradition, each year my husband Bob and I gather some of our 14 nieces and nephews and do an annual diving trip. Generally we provide diving lessons to each of the children as they come...
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Routers are set to become the digital battleground of the future
By now, most of us are familiar with the term the “Internet of Things”. It has come to describe the always on, always connected world where day to day objects are online. It ranges from smart-watches...
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Introducing the new Facebook Security Checkup
Earlier in August, the world’s largest social networking site, Facebook, unveiled their new Security Checkup feature. The aim is to create a series of simple tools that help users control which devices...
View ArticleCamp Google: Inspiring Kids to go Outside
Do you remember your mother or grandmother saying, “It’s a beautiful summer day…what are you doing inside?” Well, online giant Google has heard that message, and wants young children to get offline...
View ArticleUnicorns: Perhaps Not As Rare As We Thought
So what’s a Unicorn? Here’s the study’s definition: “Many entrepreneurs, and the venture investors who back them, seek to build big, impactful companies valued at a billion dollars or more. We called...
View ArticleParents, have you signed a school digital policy?
When your child starts school in the next few weeks, they may be taking a laptop, tablet or phone to school so that they can access work and content to assist with their education. As parents, we...
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Creating Smart Homes for Today – and Tomorrow
Need some help imagining what a smart connected home could look like? American retail giant Target recently installed and opened it’s own version in downtown San Francisco’s Metreon center. Its 3,500...
View ArticleBack to school: Are you prepared?
Parents everywhere have been preparing for the back to school rush. It’s a ritual of making sure that the children are equipped with new backpacks, new binders, sports gear and uniforms and so on. For...
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Vote for Todd Simpson’s upcoming talk at SXSW
Vote for my proposed session at the SXSW (South by Southwest) 2016 Interactive Festival. If you care about privacy, here are sme important questions that I aim to answer: How are physical tracking...
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Physical safety is becoming digital security
Imagine rows of people hunched over soldering irons, carefully crafting systems designed to hack wireless devices and networks. Welcome to Defcon 23, a mash-up of talks, small vendor displays and...
View Article‘InstaPolicing’: Police departments are monitoring social media
The golden rule of social media is ‘think before you post.’ In the age of Instagram and living in the moment online, people sometimes forget how that one digital moment can now and forever be captured....
View ArticleThe future of work-life balance and tech
Many of us question the impact of technology on work-life balance, as our lives play out in the always on, always connected 24×7 workplace. Now, in the heat of the late summer, the topic has become a...
View ArticlePreparing Us and Our Kids for Digital Playgrounds
Recent research of parents in the United States, conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of AVG, shows the ubiquitous rise in the number of kids with mobile devices while exploring important issues in our...
View ArticleKids safety online depends on us being better role models
We lock our doors and activate security systems to keep intruders out. We place parental controls on TV channels to manage what our children watch. We keep our kids out of R-rated movies until we feel...
View ArticleCalifornia governor vetoes drone bill
In the wake of increasing drone incidents, including the most recent highly-publicized crashes at the U.S. Open tennis tournament and the opening game of a newly renovated college football stadium in...
View ArticleFrom Beacons to Dash – a glimpse at the future of retail and IoT
According to a new research by Juniper Research, retailers will invest $2.5 billion on IoT within the next five years — four times the investment being made in 2015. Some of the biggest retail IoT...
View ArticleSelf-driving cars – who is really in control?
Self-driving cars got a boost earlier this month from Toyota, which committed $50 million dollars to Stanford University and MIT for artificial intelligence and driverless car labs. Unlike others in...
View ArticleProtecting your wallet in the digital age
In days gone by, keeping your wallet safe while out and about just meant making sure it was still in your pocket. But with a variety of new payment technologies such as contactless payment or Chip and...
View ArticleIt’s Cyberattack Season: Did You Get Your Immunization Shot?
There’s a term in public health known as “herd immunity.” The idea is that when a critical number of people are immunized against a contagious disease, most members of that community become protected...
View ArticleTop Facebook scams you need to know about
Have you seen the “Most Used Words” quiz on Facebook? Chances are you probably have – because it shockingly accumulated close to 20 million shares in just a few days. It also gained access to the...
View ArticleYour money or your data!
The scene unfolds like a cyber thriller. You fire up your PC and a message appears saying your files have been encrypted. Your screen looks like it’s from the FBI. Sometimes it identifies itself as...
View Article“Sad new!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please Help”
The subject line is very irresistible. And the email came from a friend of mine, that only I hear from every 10 months or so whenever she is in town. So imagine my concern when I saw the following...
View ArticleCleaning Up Your Digital Life
Spring is here! The sun is shining, winter clothes are pushed to the back of the closet, and people are heading to the beaches and parks to embrace spring weather. Well, at least here in California....
View ArticleCleaning Up Your Online Identity
Spring is here! Out with the old and in with the new – a new opportunity to put winter clothes away .Why not clean up your digital life as well? In my previous blog, I talked about cleaning up your...
View ArticleWhat is ransomware?
Ransomware – it’s the online threat everyone’s talking about. Crypt0L0cker was one of the first on the scene in 2013; and since then, the costs of attacks continue to grow. As an individual or business...
View ArticleSPF 50 protection for your tech this summer
Make traveling this summer a cool breeze by preparing your tech gadgets for the trip. A few actions prior to leaving will ensure you can enjoy the hard earned vacation. If your carry-on luggage is like...
View ArticleShould all Facebook users follow your example, Mr. Zuckerberg?
Sticky tape – is it really secure by design? Mark Zuckerberg the founder of the high tech company Facebook uses everyday sticky tape to help protect his laptop and identity. Facebook founder and...
View ArticleA generation of connected kids
As many of our kids have returned, or are in the process of returning back to school, we should expect to see different behavior patterns in their usage of devices. Hopefully one of those changes...
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Stay Safe While Shopping Labor Day Sales Online
What’s your Labor Day weekend going to comprise of? If it involves hitting Labor Day sales and shopping online or reviewing finances, stay safe with some tips to stay safe. Labor Day is a US and...
View ArticleFinding too much in your Pokémon app?
Are you addicted to the augmented reality of Pokémon Go yet? If so, then you are not alone and if not, beware of playing the game because you might be. But be careful, whether you are an existing or...
View ArticleDating in the Digital World
In an increasingly interconnected community where more relationships are formed through online connections, people not only need a way to safeguard their information, but to protect themselves from...
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