Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/500052
Itookalittleheatthe day my son walked in and noticed the tiniest piece of Gorilla Tape I'd strategically stuck over the built- in cam- era on my MacBook Pro. "Para- noid much, Mom?" Ever since I'd read a news story about how identity thieves are hack- ing into webcams and computers to do their dirty work, that tiny dot- sized camera had become a giant eye staring at me, and it was giving me the creeps. I figured some do-it- yourself pre-emptive ac- tion on my part couldn't hurt, if only to give me some peace of mind. It worked. I didn't think about it again until I watched my friend and cybercrime ex- pert, Bob Sullivan, on TO- DAY discussing Samsung's Smart TV. It seems that this TV is super smart with its interactive fea- ture that allows its owner to talk to it instead of fid- dling with a remote con- trol. Samsung's Smart TV is listening all the time, too. It not only collects what you say in your living room — Samsung uploads and stores everything that TV hears without encrypt- ing it. "That means anyone who can insert them- selves between your TV and Samsung's collection of devices and its part- ners can hear what you say on your couch. Not a sur- prise," said Bob. "New gadgets always ar- rive with features first, se- curity second. Watch this pattern play out again and again as The Internet of Creepy Things invades our home." I have recently learned that if you use Verizon for your mobile service provider, it is tracking everything you ever do on a phone — ev- ery email, every page you visit, everything you click — to build a data-rich dossier and then sell it to marketers. How's that for creepy? You are probably aware that this kind of thing happens on your home computer because of some- thing called "cookies" that record your movements in cyberspace. The difference is that you have the option to turn off cookie track- ing with a single click. Not so with Verizon wireless. It attaches "supercookies" to your device, without your permission or a one-click way to opt out. Apparently AT&T exper- imented with its own su- percookie project, but sup- posedly abandoned it in late 2014. But that doesn't mean that AT&T is not ex- perimenting with an even bigger collection-like pro- gram. My paranoia returned with a vengeance when I heard about mobile de- vice supercookies because I, your humble columnist, am a Verizon wireless cus- tomer. I immediately dialed "611" from my mobile phone to speak with cus- tomer service. After a me- dium-sized runaround, I was put in touch with a technical specialist. I explained the rea- son for my call and that I wished to opt-out. Of course, this woman had never heard of any- thing I was talking about. After about 10 minutes of getting no- where, she informed me that I should stop listening to the media — that surely this was some kind of rumor cir- cling the Internet and that there absolutely was no such thing as data collection of any kind going on with Ver- izon wireless. I did not give up. My source for this information was solid. Clark Howard is absolutely correct; the tech expert at Verizon was dead wrong. Verizon, as of this writ- ing, continues to stub- bornly impose its super- cookies on all of its wire- less customers. And in response to consumer out- rage, is now offering a way for its wireless customers to opt out. Call Verizon, toll-free, at 866 211-0874. This is a completely automated call that will walk you through simple steps that will allow you to opt-out for your mobile device only, or a blanket opt-out for every phone on your plan. I made the call, and it was a simple process to opt out. I recommend that you do likewise if you are a Verizon wireless cus- tomer. By the way, Clark How- ard recommends that Ve- rizon customers go to the other guys. "T-Mobile will pay your early termination fees, AT&T is cheaper than they were, and Sprint will cut your bill in half." MaryHuntisthefounder of www.DebtProofLiving. com, a personal finance member website. You can email her at mary@ everydaycheapskate. com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, 12340 Seal Beach Blvd., Ste. B-416, Seal Beach, CA 90740. EVERYDAYCHEAPSKATE YourTVmaybe watching you Mary Hunt CORNING 4-H members from Tehama County hosted the North Sec- tion 4-H Presentation Day March 21. This event is open to 4-H members in six sur- rounding counties of Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Shasta, Sut- ter-Yuba and Tehama. Presenters qualify by earning Blue or Gold awards at their respec- tive county presenta- tion days. Out of 69 pre- senters 30 received Gold Awards, which qualify the presenters to attend State 4-H Presentation Day on May 30 as part of State 4-H Field Day. Tehama County 4-H Members who took home Gold Awards were Ashley Lyons, Audra Brown, Aus- tin Flood, Hannah Stringer, Karlee Smith, Mackenzie Speers, Masie Skelton, and Phoebe Heino. Gold Awards were pre- sented to Butte County 4-H Members Brynn Dun- can, Connor Duncan, Hai- ley Korff, Hunter Has- lem, Julia Hohberg, Kayli Corron, Maren Dun- can, Trenten Dewell, and Tristan Toews; Colusa County 4-H Members Hudson Bair, Kyle How- ell, Nathan Vanlaning- ham and Sarah Marsh; Glenn County 4-H Mem- bers Carson Karle, Gra- cie Flowerdew, Hannah Wetz, and Sydney Del- pape; Sutter-Yuba County 4-H Members Abigail Da- vis, Jade Davis, Katy San- nar, Malena Childers, and Melissa Thompson. As a perk for all of their hard work, 4-H alumni do- nors Matthew Fardig and Caryl Hester,funded 140 hot dog lunches for all who attended. The meals were well received and all par- ticipants were very thank- ful. A big thank you goes to Masie Skelton, Lassen Colony 4-H Club Member, for showing the entire au- dience what a Gold Medal presentation looks like. Her presentation, titled Basic Lamb Care, taught everyone what you need to raise a lamb for mar- ket. Skelton was presented with a goodie basket full of donated items that sym- bolize 4-H and the Corn- ing area where North Sec- tion 4-H Presentation Day was held. The Tehama County 4-H Program would like to thank all of the volunteers for making the day a suc- cess. If you are interested in supporting 4-H or looking for more information, call 527-3101 or visit http://cete- hama.ucanr.edu. 4-H Te ha ma C ou nt y ho st s se ct io n ev en t COURTESYPHOTO Masie Skelton, Lassen Colony 4-H Club Member, receives a gi basket a er demonstrating a Gold Medal presentation for a crowd of about 150. This month millions of people around the world will recognize April as Parkinson's Awareness Month. Parkinson's is a move- ment disorder that is chronic and progressive. It is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the United States. Nearly 1 million Amer- icans are living with Par- kinson's and it is esti- mated that the number will double by the year 2040. Some 60,000 Americans are diagnosed with Parkin- son's disease each year, and this number does not re- flect the thousands of cases that go undetected. Although incidence of Parkinson's increases with age, an estimated four per- cent of people with Parkin- son's are diagnosed before the age of 50. But statistics don't con- vey the real impact that Parkinson's has on the lives of everyday people. Living with Parkinson's disease affects the whole family. The effects of Par- kinson's have a devas- tating effect on the fam- ily dynamic. Everything changes and life becomes unpredictable. The ability of the Par- kinson's patient to func- tion fluctuates drastically, not only from day to day but sometimes from hour to hour. The family never knows what's ahead. Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for or definitive cause of Parkin- son's disease. That's why there is a need to raise awareness for this debilitating disease. There is promising re- search being conducted and hope for a cure in- creases with each passing day, but more research, education and commu- nity support services are needed to find more ef- fective treatments and to provide access to quality care. If you have Parkinson's disease or know some- one who does, you are not alone. Corning Healthcare District and Northern Val- ley Catholic Social Service Elder Services host a Par- kinson's Advocacy Group that meets at 2 p.m. on the last Tuesday of every month. Call Elaine at 528-7949 or Shirley at 824-5451 for details. HEALTH April is Parkinson's Awareness Month The Friends of Whiskey- town and the National Park Service invite the public to attend a free open house at 6 tonight at Redding's City Hall. The meeting will be held in the Community Room next to City Council Cham- bers. Light refreshments will be provided. The purpose of the meeting is to recruit in- dividuals interested in serving on the Friends of Whiskeytown Board of Directors or as volunteers with the non-profit orga- nization. Park Superintendent Jim Milestone will give an over- view presentation of the Friends of Whiskeytown's accomplishments and ac- tivities over the past 12 years. Board of Director offi- cers will be in attendance to answer questions and explain how the Friends of Whiskeytown operates. Applications will be available at the meeting for individuals interested in becoming a board member. A brief resume is also re- quested with board mem- ber applications. The Friends of Whiskey- town raises money to sup- port several special proj- ects at Whiskeytown. Its primary contribution to the park has been hiring college interns to work on the park's trail crew to ex- pand the trail system. The Friends of Whis- keytown has assisted the National Park Service in funding new trail ex- pansion to Whiskeytown Falls, Papoose Pass and fi- nanced part of the cost for new footbridges across the park's mountain streams. The Friends group also purchased kayaks used in the park's free Ranger- Led Kayak Programs that are held twice daily throughout the summer season. Finally, the Friends of Whiskeytown has raised funds to support visiting artists from across the United States to paint at Whiskeytown, creating a sizable collection of paint- ings specific to Whiskey- town National Recreation Area. For more information, call Tommie Scherf at 242- 3410. FRIENDS OF WHISKEYTOWN Open house set for tonight in Redding SterilizationTech/FT Red Bluff: Maintainesdentalinstruments in strict accordance with sterilization & disinfection protocols. X-ray certification preferred. A complete application is required. Apply at nvih.org email: jobs@nvih.org fax 530-342-7507 or mail resume to: Northern Valley Indian Health Attn: HR, 845 W. East Ave Chico, CA 95926 Closing Date: May 8, 2015 40ChestnutAvenue Red Bluff 530-330-1096 BRING BALANCE TO YOUR BODY Bring balance to your LIFE Tabata Bootcamp startinginMay 6:30am, 7:00am, 5:30pm $100 8weeks. 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