We have published today two articles concerning security and malware. All, of course, involving the Internet.

Add to that the story we published over the weekend, “Scamming Emails from Fake Cayman Islands Government Email Address”. This one warns: “The RCIPS wishes to alert the public of a fake phishing email scam circulating in the Cayman Islands. The scam is being orchestrated by a criminal enterprise with the intention of defrauding (scamming) monies from innocent parties.”

The first of the articles published today is from OfReg (the Utility Regulation and Competition Office) that is the independent regulator for the electricity, information and communications technology, water, wastewater and fuels sectors in the Cayman Islands.

They ask the question ARE YOUR TEXTS SECURE?

“Two-step SMS verification has become the norm for securing accounts,” said Alee Fa’amoe, OfReg deputy CEO and executive director ICT. “However this system is susceptible to phishing attempts by cybercriminals.”

Mr Fa’amoe continued: “Any service provider who uses SMS text messages as part of an authentication process for their customers’ online accounts could be at risk to a vulnerability that comes, not from their own systems, but from the telecommunications networks. We urge everyone to stay informed and be aware of the risks associated with SMS and its related technologies.”

“It is imperative that cyber security continues to evolve,” Mr Fa’amoe continues. “With the ever-changing nature of technology, the world is faced with an ongoing struggle to combat cybercrime. Unfortunately there is no easy fix for these kinds of vulnerabilities.”

The second story concerns “Trojan horses”.

This story says:

“Journalists covering this week’s summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore were given a fun gift bag containing a water bottle, a trial to the Straits Times newspaper, and a tourism guide to the island where the leaders’ meeting took place.

“It also included a tiny fan that plugs into a mini-USB port or iPhone Lightning port for power, according to tweets from the historic summit.

“It could be a nice gesture from the hosts. As the Dutch journalist Harald Doornbos wrote in a tweet about the fan, “it is pretty hot here in Singapore,” according to a translation from the BBC.

“But security experts around the web warned that the fan may not just be a way to stay cool. It could be a Trojan horse designed to steal data from any journalist who plugged the fan into his or her device.

“Anything that plugs into a USB port could allow an attacker to get malicious software onto your computer. It’s how the notorious Stuxnet worm infected its targets, and many big companies worried about information security forbid their employees from plugging anything into a USB port.”

Even before this, no one was a fan of Trojan horses!

The US Securities and Exchange Commission have levied a fine of $35 million on Yahoo — or rather, the shell company holding on to its remnants — for failing to disclose a 2014 data breach in which hackers stole info on over 500 million accounts.

Data is collected by Google and they even tell you they do when you agree to their terms and conditions before opening an email account with them.

Google also knows a lot about people that use its services. It knows what we search for online, what we buy from Amazon (and other places that use Google Analytics or send emails about purchases), where we have been and places we’ve investigated and even how we got to the places we’ve visited.

And your mobile devices are just as vulnerable to online threats as our computers. In fact, mobile devices face new risks, such as risky apps and dangerous links sent by text message.

Online threats are evolving all the time, so make sure you know what to look out for. Currently, “ransomware” is on the rise. This is when a hacker threatens to lock you out of all of your files unless you agree to pay a ransom.

The Internet offers plenty of safety tips that are difficult to execute the older you get.

The only safe place of communicating is by pigeon post. Write a letter, get an envelope, write an address on it, put a stamp on it, put the letter in the envelope and seal it. Take it down to the post office postal box and wait. Local about three days for the person at the address you sent it to to receive it. Long distance – 1 week to 4 weeks (by air). By sea – 3 months!

Of course, if you have a corrupt mail man it may never be delivered.

However, you can rest assured it is the safest way. It just takes time and time is a commodity we don’t have much of, today.

In the ancient days of old the Trojan Horse hid soldiers took a long time to build and execute. Today, the Trojan Horse hides malware and it takes no time at all to carry out its attack. Just a click.

The only answer then is to find a friend who, like you, has homing pigeons.

But they, too can be attacked and shot down.

What about the over the hard land line telephone?

That is the safest way to communicate but telephone companies want to drop them. High maintenance costs.

So instead of relying on email or a cell phone, verify strange requests with your landline—the old way. Or use those chirping pigeons.