I can hardly believe this year is almost over! I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving, and wish you the best for the upcoming holiday season.

As many of us are in full buying mode, the SOTM for December is a round-up of potential shopping scams to look out for. Next, my personal tech spec recommendations. And finally, the last Facebook Roundup of 2022.

Happy holidays to all, and best wishes for the new year!


Regards,

Julie Marto

508-359-8176
508-333-8176 (cell)

P.S. ComputerMom services make a great holiday present! Call me if you'd like to purchase a gift certificate.
SOTM: Holiday Shopping Scams
I see so many scam and hack attempts that I have added a feature to my newsletter called Scam of the Month. In these articles, I hope to explain common scams, how to avoid them, and what to do if you fall for one.

With holiday shopping in full swing, I thought it would be a good idea to go over some common shopping related scams, and how to avoid them.
Fake Receipts - Scammer bombard consumers with emailed or texted receipts for purchases that have never been made, generally with a very prominent phone number or link to use to "contest" the charge. If you call them, they start their scam. Here are some ways to avoid being defrauded if you receive a questionable receipt:

  • Legitimate companies are very careful about the quality of their customer communications - ignore receipts with obvious spelling mistakes or poor grammar

  • Legitimate stores make it difficult to call them for order support so a prominent phone number to contest a charge is almost always a red flag

  • If you are concerned the charge might have actually occurred, call the number on the back of your credit or debit card to reach your bank and ask them to check pending charges

  • NEVER, EVER call the number in an email or text, or click on any links. ALWAYS either use the number on the back of your credit/debit card, or go directly to your bank's log in page

  • You can always contest charges that come on your credit card bill, and your limit of liability (usually not enforced) is $50.00. That is a lot less than the scammers will try to get from you, so you are better off contesting fraudulent charges after you have actually received your credit card bill.

Fake emails/texts that your account is closed or disabled - These are almost always phishing attempts - the scammers want you to click on their link to take action. Generally, clicking on their link will take you to a fake log-in page for the site they are pretending to be. If you then enter your log-in credentials, the scammers have what they need to access your account.

  • Check the email address that sent you the alert - if it is from some random email address you can be 100% sure this is a scam and just ignore it

  • NEVER, EVER click on the links in this type of email or text. Always go to the site directly and log into your account. If you can log in, your account is not closed or disabled

  • If the message claims to be from your bank, call the number on the back of your credit or debit card and speak to customer service

  • If you inadvertently click on their link and enter your credentials, IMMEDIATELY use a web browser to log into your account and change the password.

Scam sellers - One last scam to look out for this holiday season are scammy sellers. From fake websites, to Instagram influencers with pop-up stores, there are plenty of opportunities to lose money looking for bargains on the web. Buying from legitimate sites is safe and convenient, but you should keep your eyes open and consider the following guidelines:

  • If the price seems too good to be true, it probably is. Check and see what other vendors are selling the product for - if you find a site that selling a product you want for less than 60% or so of the going price, suspect it's a scam.

  • Always use a credit card, or a reputable e-pay service like PayPal, to purchase items online. Most credit cards offer some level of purchase protection, and even if yours doesn't, you are not liable for more than $50.00 in fraudulent purchases. Debit cards don't offer the same kind of fraud protection, and anybody who requires a wire transfer, money order, or gift card to make a purchase is a scammer.

  • Be very cautious with in-person sellers. If you are buying a big ticket item in person through Craig's List or Facebook Marketplace, arrange to meet in a well lighted shopping center, or even at your local police department.

  • Do a Google search on any unknown vender, using their name and the search term "scam" or "fraud", to see if there are any warnings about them.

  • Don't give out more information than a seller needs. Legitimate venders need your name, address, and billing information. Nobody needs your social security number to sell you something.
Recommended Tech Specs
I often post a holiday shopping guide in my December newsletter. I'm also often asked to help pick out computers or other tech for holiday gifts. Between "doorbusters" and "one time deals", the plethora of choices in the stores can be confusing. So this year, I'm offering up the general technical specifications and brands I suggest people shop for.
Windows based computers - Look for Intel i3, i5 and i7 processors, at least a 256 GB solid state drive (better 512), and at least 8 GB of RAM. I prefer Dell and HP computers, as they are US based companies with decent tech support.

Upgrades to look for in laptops are backlit keyboards, touch screens, and higher resolution displays. For desktop computers, if you see one with a smaller SSD and a larger spinning drive, that is not a bad way to go, but make sure the SSD is at least 256GB, and have me set it up for you properly. All-in-ones are a good way to go for people who have limited space but want a big screen, specifically adults who just want to surf the web and check emails. However, if you are shopping for someone who is into computer gaming, you are almost always better off with a standard desktop that has expansion capability, so you can add a graphics card at a later date.

Most desktops allow you to add RAM or upgrade the internal storage, but many laptops, especially the slim and light ones, are trending towards the Apple model and are no longer upgradable. So check the specs and err on the side of more powerful, especially if you are purchasing a small laptop.

Apple computers - Unless you are very budget conscious, stay away from any older clearance models that have Intel processors - the newer M1 and M2 based systems are much faster and will be supported much longer. That said, Apple's M1 and M2 based systems cannot be upgraded after purchase, so make sure you buy systems with enough storage and RAM to future proof them. Although the base models are sufficient for people who just surf the web and pick up email, you probably want to upgrade to a 512GB solid state drive and 16GB of RAM.

If you are one of my many clients with an older 24 inch iMac with a spinning drive, the M1 24 inch iMac is a great upgrade. However, if you currently use a 27 inch iMac, they have been discontinued, and there is very little in the current product line for you that comes in at a reasonable price. Unless money is no object, I would hold off on replacing any 27 inch iMacs for as long as possible, to see if Apple puts out a new model.

Tablets and phones - Storage is your most important spec here. No Apple devices have expandable storage, and very few Android devices still come with an SD card slot to add storage capacity. So, I would check the storage usage on the device you are replacing, and purchase one with at least 50% more capacity. At a bare minimum, purchase a device with 128GB of internal storage.

Some of my personal recommendations in various categories:

WiFi Mesh Network - I prefer eero, specifically the models that have two Ethernet ports on each unit

Streaming device - I am a Roku fan, as I like its user interface best. The Roku Streaming Stick is a good price/performance option

External hard drive - for a PC, always go with Western Digital, as they have an agreement with Acronis for excellent free backup software. For a Mac, it really doesn't matter what brand you purchase

Webcams, mice, and keyboards - Logitech has this market sewed up for a reason - their products are uniformly excellent.

As always, if you need any help choosing a system, feel free to email me. And, of course, I am happy to do a system set-up or migration for you after the holidays!
Facebook Roundup
Every month I post several articles of interest on my Facebook page. For those of you who don't follow me on Facebook, here are some of the stories I've featured in the past this few months


Samsung has created a maintenance mode for their cell phones, a temporary user account that allows technicians to work on a phone without access to any of its private data. It would be nice if Apple and Google followed their lead!

Microsoft loves reusing the same product names - you may still be confused after reading this, but here's a detailed description of everything Microsoft calls Outlook.