I'm not a huge user of social media, but I maintain both a Facebook and an Instagram account, and I play a lot of Words With Friends. Recently I've noticed a marked increase in the number of "men" who either want to become my Facebook friend, follow me on Instagram, or initiate a chat with me on Words With Friends.

I always turn down these requests, or refuse to chat, and usually mark them as spam or abuse. It occurred to me that is a good topic for my newsletter, as the reason for these seemingly random contacts is almost 100% to scam you.

So what is happening here? Basically, the people who are attempting to friend me are not who they seem to be. They are very likely not from the United States, but are working in an international boiler room with a team of other scammers. They create fake, attractive online personas, using stolen pictures and names, and troll US social media sites hoping to lure vulnerable, lonely people into an online relationship. They are playing a long con - after building a relationship they will create some sort of emergency and find a reason to ask for money.

You can read more about this type of con game here, and here, and here. These people are very good at what they do - the FBI estimates that these types of con artists scam Americans citizens out of almost 3 BILLION dollars every year! To protect yourself, do as I do. If you get any friend or chat requests from an attractive seeming stranger, just ignore it. And please, spread the word to your family and friends!

Summer is in full swing, with beach, barbecues, boating, vacation rentals - it's nice to get away from it all. But of course, you also want to stay in touch and use your gadgets on the road. Here are some points to keep your electronics safe.

Don't -  leave electronics in a hot car. Overheating delicate electronics can cause permanent damage. Keep your phone off the dashboard, and if you find you have left your tablet or laptop in a hot car, allow it to cool down for an hour or so before attempting to use it.

Don't - use public WiFi to access financial or email accounts.  Public WiFi networks are intrinsically insecure, and you never know if someone else on the network is trying to hack your log in information. Use your phone's data plan  to check email and bank accounts, and save the public WiFi for surfing gossip blogs! 

Don't - leave your phone out in public and allow yourself to be distracted. I cannot tell you how many stories I have heard about phones being stolen, especially internationally, from restaurant tables and bars. Professional thieves know how to divert your attention, and then make their move in the flash of an eye!

Do - invest in  protective cases for any device you might want to take to the beach or on a boat, like your smartphone, tablet or Kindle. Water and sand damage can be devastating - a waterproof pouch can be a great option, but even a zip-lock bag can make a big difference in a pinch!

Do - consider the  ramifications if your phone, tablet, or laptop gets lost or stolen. Back-up your important information, put a strong password on each device (even if you don't use one when at home) and i mplement remote wipe and device tracking software when possible.  If you can, leave your "real" laptop at home and travel with a system that has minimal personal information on it.    

I spend more than my share of time on the internet, and have collected a lot of bookmarks to favorite sites. Here are some greats ones for travel, information, cooking, and shopping.

SkyScanner - There are hundreds of travel sites on the internet, but SkyScanner really stands out as the best place to research airfares, especially if you are a flexible traveler. You can search for specific dates and times, or just ask SkyScanner to give you the range of fares to any location by month. It's the perfect site to visit when you have a travel date and budget but no destination in mind!

Wirecutter - There are plenty of questionable reviews on the internet, so it's difficult to know who to trust. Owned by the New York Times organization, Wirecutter has become my go-to free review site for practically every purchase. Well written, in-depth reviews point you to multiple good options in electronics, home and garden, travel, and many other categories.

The Food Lab/Serious Eats - I love to cook, and this site has a lot to offer. Along with providing great recipes, The Food Lab takes a deep dive into more obscure and interesting cooking techniques. I can literally spend hours there!

Slickdeals - Doesn't everybody love a bargain?   Slickdeals makest finding a good value easy. A crowd sourced site, members post great deals that they find online, and the moderators promote the best of them to the front page. I set deal alerts for items I frequently buy, like household paper products or dishwasher detergent, so I know when to stock up!