ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Competition thread.
- Thread starter Sara_H
- Start date
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
vickster
Legendary Member
Lots of info requested to enter, why do they need DoB For example?
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
- Location
- London
i assume it's to data match.
I rarely give my real date of birth on forms which aren't official - strikes me as a security risk.
vickster
Legendary Member
Data match what?
- Location
- London
you've surely heard of big data.
they just like collecting info on folks, stitching it together from all over the place (same way intelligence worked way back in WW2) then using it for various commercial purposes. every little bit (of data) counts.
I'm assuming a false DoB wouldn't invalidate a win.
There was no DofB when I entered
vickster
Legendary Member
That’s odd, I had to complete a questionnaire to enter. With a not entirely accurate DoB used
- Location
- London
the devilish big data saw your avatar and assumed that field didn't apply.
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Speaking of security risks...
I have had a succession of emails from someone who claims to be a hacker who has compromised my computer so cleverly that no antivirus software will ever find it. (Ooh, VERY clever!
)
They apparently have the ability to turn on the webcam without me knowing it and have recorded me, er, expressing great delight at the entertaining content that I am supposed to have been enjoying...
They have a list of all of my contacts and will send the videos to my wife (I don't have one), my boss (I don't have one), and everyone else on the list. But, underneath it all they are very nice people and will not do it if I send them a bitcoin payment. If I did that, then they would destroy the videos, delete the malware, and never trouble me again. Yeah, and my DoB is 12th May, 2020!
Yes, all very silly. But then I spotted a line towards the end of the email telling me that to show that they HAD hacked my computer, my password is [Colin's password]. Oh, that does actually look like a password that I might have used... worrying! I looked through my secret list of passwords and eventually found that it is one that I used to sign up to a site in 2008!
So, it looks like either the people running that site were dodgy, or (more likely) they stored email addresses and passwords insecurely and a hacker compromised them!
It's a reminder not to reuse the same password on multiple sites. Be careful what information you hand out. Consider using throwaway email addresses such as colinj_bike_comp_64@mydomain123.com. That way you could in the future see if the address were abused and if so, take appropriate action - disconnect the address, and never deal with the abusing company/site again.
BTW - using false information MIGHT disqualify you from claiming the prize. I have won prizes of £2,000 and £1,000 in the past few years and in both cases I had to send copies of valid photo-id to claim the prizes, in my case, my passport. I'm not saying that they WOULD check the DoB, but they COULD.
I have had a succession of emails from someone who claims to be a hacker who has compromised my computer so cleverly that no antivirus software will ever find it. (Ooh, VERY clever!
)They apparently have the ability to turn on the webcam without me knowing it and have recorded me, er, expressing great delight at the entertaining content that I am supposed to have been enjoying...
They have a list of all of my contacts and will send the videos to my wife (I don't have one), my boss (I don't have one), and everyone else on the list. But, underneath it all they are very nice people and will not do it if I send them a bitcoin payment. If I did that, then they would destroy the videos, delete the malware, and never trouble me again. Yeah, and my DoB is 12th May, 2020!
Yes, all very silly. But then I spotted a line towards the end of the email telling me that to show that they HAD hacked my computer, my password is [Colin's password]. Oh, that does actually look like a password that I might have used... worrying! I looked through my secret list of passwords and eventually found that it is one that I used to sign up to a site in 2008!
So, it looks like either the people running that site were dodgy, or (more likely) they stored email addresses and passwords insecurely and a hacker compromised them!
It's a reminder not to reuse the same password on multiple sites. Be careful what information you hand out. Consider using throwaway email addresses such as colinj_bike_comp_64@mydomain123.com. That way you could in the future see if the address were abused and if so, take appropriate action - disconnect the address, and never deal with the abusing company/site again.
BTW - using false information MIGHT disqualify you from claiming the prize. I have won prizes of £2,000 and £1,000 in the past few years and in both cases I had to send copies of valid photo-id to claim the prizes, in my case, my passport. I'm not saying that they WOULD check the DoB, but they COULD.
vickster
Legendary Member
Then they should give a clear reason why they ask for itSpeaking of security risks...
I have had a succession of emails from someone who claims to be a hacker who has compromised my computer so cleverly that no antivirus software will ever find it. (Ooh, VERY clever!
They apparently have the ability to turn on the webcam without me knowing it and have recorded me, er, expressing great delight at the entertaining content that I am supposed to have been enjoying...
They have a list of all of my contacts and will send the videos to my wife (I don't have one), my boss (I don't have one), and everyone else on the list. But, underneath it all they are very nice people and will not do it if I send them a bitcoin payment. If I did that, then they would destroy the videos, delete the malware, and never trouble me again. Yeah, and my DoB is 12th May, 2020!
Yes, all very silly. But then I spotted a line towards the end of the email telling me that to show that they HAD hacked my computer, my password is [Colin's password]. Oh, that does actually look like a password that I might have used... worrying! I looked through my secret list of passwords and eventually found that it is one that I used to sign up to a site in 2008!
So, it looks like either the people running that site were dodgy, or (more likely) they stored email addresses and passwords insecurely and a hacker compromised them!
It's a reminder not to reuse the same password on multiple sites. Be careful what information you hand out. Consider using throwaway email addresses such as colinj_bike_comp_64@mydomain123.com. That way you could in the future see if the address were abused and if so, take appropriate action - disconnect the address, and never deal with the abusing company/site again.
BTW - using false information MIGHT disqualify you from claiming the prize. I have won prizes of £2,000 and £1,000 in the past few years and in both cases I had to send copies of valid photo-id to claim the prizes, in my case, my passport. I'm not saying that they WOULD check the DoB, but they COULD.
- Location
- London
Thanks for the caution colin - maybe i'll revise my rule to only for HM Gov and competitions (but not general marketing stuff/signing up to mailings whatever)
