Are we being left behind with technology?

I guess there are always horror stories - but chances of everything being emptied from my accounts like that seems pretty small t o me
 

Many of those populating this forum were likely deeply involved in the birth of our computer era. I got my start by being the only one in a group of fellow employees who knew how to insert a floppy in a floppy drive, and went on to build file servers, set up server rooms, and install networks. On the other hand my Sister in Law made her husband give a laptop back to his daughters who had just given it to him as a very welcome present. That same Sister in Law was later the recipient of a cellphone which she never used because it was “broken”. (-8
 
Living in 1950, with five billion less people in the World, was much more fun. The technology was exciting, cutting edge, reliable and fun to use. We are not living in an elbow room, exciting, reliable and fun world today.
 
Back around 1991 or so my dad won some money in the state lottery. It was not much but it was enough for him to buy a desktop computer. They were not cheap at that time. He had never been around a computer but wanted to learn because he typed a lot of things on his IBM Selectric and wanted to move over to a computer. He was in his early sixties. I was a programmer and offered to help him but he wanted to learn all the software on his own. As a matter of fact he taught me how to use WordStar because I wasn't too proficient with it. I was so proud of him.

I got him on Prodigy and he never looked back. As soon as broadband became available he jumped on that and when Netflix started offering streaming he bought a Roku and learned how to use that. I had go over to his home and help him at times with hardware issues but when it came to software issues he always wanted to learn it on his own and solve whatever issues came up.

He wasn't too proficient with the cell phone but he knew how to use it well enough to make calls and send texts. That was good enough. All the recipes that he had collected or typed up and stored on his hard drive are now on one of my hard drives and a USB drive. Those are the most important things that I have stored on my computer.

On the flip side, my mom thought he was crazy. She showed no interest in getting on the PC. To be honest, I think she enjoyed all the time he spent on his PC so she could have some "alone" time :D. She died in 1999 so didn't live to see the true online explosion but I doubt that she would have ever had any interest in it. And she would have been just as happy not being online as my dad was spending his time online searching for recopies or writing stories.

And now I'm just a little older than my dad was when he bought his first PC and it is hard for me to fathom that I have been around computers for about 2/3rds of my life. It all has gone by so fast.
 
I was working at an exhibition in 1958 where one of the first, if not the first, video games debuted. It was called Tennis for Two. My group's display was right next to it and high school students were gathering around. I was 21. Who knew where that would lead?
 
Am another person that has refused to install any banking apps despite constant pressure from banking. One less thing to worry about concerning my assets. I keep my single checking account and single credit card balances low so even if such were hacked, consequences would be trivial.

There were a couple decades where I was on top of technology and science but such has long become so vast and complex only some AI super computer with massive cloud memory storage can ever hope to do so. At best, those in this age can only become experts in narrow areas of science and technology.
 
Trish said:
I think we are more cautious about security plus our generation does not like to feel forced to do anything :)

A recent victim of an iPhone snatching incident said this "I always thought I was safe with Apple Pay because of passwords, Face ID and all security these devices have in place but it's not enough. They also had access to Paypal credit etc". Her unlocked phone was snatched out of her hand in the street. The thieves were able to access all of her info on ApplePay and change her Apple ID so she could not access it from other devices or track her phone. In the time it took to contact her bank to cancel cards and ApplePay, it was too late, all her accounts had been completely emptied and her credit cards maxed.

I used to have two phones - one was a personal phone and the other was a cheap phone which I used if I had to give a contact number when buying things etc. My family laughed at my two phones but, that is what I shall revert to when/if it becomes necessary to have banking apps etc. :)
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This is something the police were warning people about walking and talking on your phone. This is the reason thieves snatch phones from people who are walking and talking because it means the phone is unlocked and they can get into the banking etc within minutes before the victim has a chance to block their accounts from another phone.

Stealing a phone from someone's pocket or bag, means it's far more difficult for the thieves to gain access to the banking and credit cards because it's not unlocked ... so the biggest warning for everyone is to not walk and talk... Keep your phone off and out of sight and if you absolutely have to use it, duck into a doorway or a store or somewhere safer...and make a quick call...do not walk along holding a conversation. .
 
I spent my working career maintaining the latest computer and data processing equipment. Now, 20+ years later, the skills I had are totally obsolete. What cracks me up is that virtually every commercial that appears on TV, asks the viewer to "scan the QR code" so that another "AP" can be installed on their cell phone. We have a cell phone that we just carry with us when we leave the house....in case we have car trouble or one of the kids needs to call. I Sure as H@#$ can't imagine spending my day playing with a cell phone.
 
hollydolly said:
This is something the police were warning people about walking and talking on your phone. This is the reason thieves snatch phones from people who are walking and talking because it means the phone is unlocked and they can get into the banking etc within minutes before the victim has a chance to block their accounts from another phone.

Stealing a phone from someone's pocket or bag, means it's far more difficult for the thieves to gain access to the banking and credit cards because it's not unlocked ... so the biggest warning for everyone is to not walk and talk... Keep your phone off and out of sight and if you absolutely have to use it, duck into a doorway or a store or somewhere safer...and make a quick call...do not walk along holding a conversation. .
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They cant do that though - if my phone is unlocked and I am talking on it - anyone cant just get into any app. The banking app has its own PIN, the phone being unlocked doesn't open every app.
 

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