Mobile phone plans — beyond the big 4

MacWorld’s article “How to save on mobile plans: Your guide to 17 no-contract carriers” is one of the best summaries of cellular phone plans that I’ve ever read. Forget everything you thought you knew about buying a mobile phone. In just the past year, we’ve seen more changes to the industry than there are numbers… Continue reading Mobile phone plans — beyond the big 4

Smartphones and privacy — tuning app permissions

When you install or update apps on your smartphone, do you get prompts for permissions? Access to your camera, contacts, photos, network, etc. Clear or confusing? Is there a choice — all or none or just some? CNET’s article “Your Android phone is too damn nosy” discussed this issue. On Android phones, people have faced… Continue reading Smartphones and privacy — tuning app permissions

Trading away personal info — twilight of privacy?

Imagine you’re visiting a mall and occasionally someone stops you and asks for some personal information: Your favorite places to shop? Things you like to purchase? Brands you like? … You’re told that as a reward for providing that information you’ll get a gift certificate. What if that happens to you on the street, just… Continue reading Trading away personal info — twilight of privacy?

Trust, ad-blocking, and do-not-track reality check

So, you’ve been using an ad-blocker and set your Web browsers to not accept cookies and enabled their option / preference to not track you. How’s that working? Well, Re/code’s article “Understanding ‘Do Not Track’: Truth and Consequences” discusses the reality. Make no mistake, this challenge started with publishers. Although many people in the ad… Continue reading Trust, ad-blocking, and do-not-track reality check