Introducing Bob Way of Linden, the ‘Computer Guy’

“Yahoo Alert”…true or fake?

Every other one of us were warned of our personal computers possibly being compromised – hacked – during the last week or so by a 300-word missive from Yahoo, our server, which appears itself to have been hacked almost three years ago. A little late in the telling, but better late than never was my first thought. My second thought was, “Is this message itself a fake?”

“No, it was for real,” advised Bob Way of Linden whose expertise in the computer field is close to impeccable. You only have to read his professional resume to prove my words. What to do, I asked?

Bob Way, the Computer Guy

“First, change your password,” he said.

I don’t believe I’m alone among my generation, and perhaps the generation before me, in admitting my inability to change my email password without help. I’m 83. Bob confirmed I’m not alone. We talked, he advised, we talked some more and he agreed that he’d become “The Computer Guy” for readers of The Royal Examiner, providing an occasional advice column, the first of which follows this introduction.

Bob Way is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and earned a BS in Information Systems. For a quarter century, he worked at Orbcomm, Motorola and Boeing supporting the Ground Network Systems for the large formation satellite constellations launched by Orbcomm and Iridium. (Are you still with me?). Bob retired two years ago and now is helping develop computer classes to teach at Samuels Public Library. More parenthetical  stuff here (as a US vet, Bob is invited to assist Robert MacDougall (USMC)  and me with next year’s Memorial Day ceremony May 29, 2017, at the Gazebo).

Bob says he needs stuff to do in retirement, hence our invitation for him to write a column or two for the Examiner!

He has lived in Linden for 25 years and, with wife Barbara, raised three sons there. He’s been a soccer coach, a Cub Scouts pack leader, and supported the Front Royal Women’s Resource Center as their IT guy for as long as his wife has been president.

She retires from the position December 31 while Bob dives into a new role as our computer guy.

Back to the Yahoo warning, is it genuine or a fake? “This is genuine,” said Bob.”I’ve seen fakes over the years and they are easy to figure out. A genuine email such as the Yahoo one will usually have the following characteristics:

*They will display a corporate logo.

*They will NOT ask that you click on any links or contain attachments.

*They do NOT request your personal information.

If an email you receive about security issues prompts you to click on any links, download an attachment, or ask you for information, the email was not sent by Yahoo and may be an attempt to steal your personal information. Avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from such suspicious emails.

How should you respond to the current situation! First, change your password. To do this, go to the main Yahoo site and click on “sign in” on the upper right of the screen. Enter your Yahoo email and you may be presented with a screen that steps you through changing your password. It’s easy when you know what you’re doing! If you log in but still aren’t sure you actually changed your password, then do the following:

1. After logging in, go to the upper right and look for the icon or picture with your user name beside it.

2. Move the mouse pointer over it and then, on the pop up menu, click on “Account info.” You will be sent to your account setting page  .

3. On the left of the page, click on the “Account Security Link.”

4. You will be taken to the “Account Security Page.”

5. Change your password by clicking on the “Change Password” link.

6. You will be stepped through the process.

It is advisable to change your password every once in awhile, Bob said, so copy the above directions!