Are we too trusting of IT?

Following on from a discussion on another thread (and worried we may be derailing it ) I thought I would start a topic on it.

@shiney mentioned about being cautious with contactless payment cards (which I wholeheartedly agree with) but it brought to mind a former colleague of mine who thinks they are the best invention for speed and convenience.

I'm always quite wary of modern technology but my boys don't bat an eyelid.

So that made me wonder: do you think the IT generation are just that much more trusting? And, if they are, should we be making them more risk aware?
Or, maybe, because I'm older, I'm just more cautious about things naturally?

 

It ok till it goes wrong
when we got one of them wifi cards we just had to ring up about it and tell them what we thought about them, it wasn't good

 

After waving my contact-less card a few times in front to the scanner, the person behind the till usually grabs it from me, waves it around as I was, and then says stick it in and use your pin.

Aint found anywere where it works yet?

As to being faster, no, actually I've found it to be slower.

 

I think you may have to activate it (not sure) wave it over the scanner and then use your pin (Dont' put the card in) to activate the first time, then it should be contact-less from there on in But not sure

 

Yep. but I thought activating it was by using it in the normal way the first time.
After that, I was lead to believe, you could use it contact less.

You can wave it around as much as you like and you dont get any reaction from the card reader.

 

My new card has to be used in a cashpoint machine before the contactless feature is activated

 

You can buy aluminium lined wallets to stop the card being activated, I have one for my passport and cards, but as the guardian point out its probably our heads we should be worrying about!
http://www.theguardian.com/money/shortcuts/2013/may/20/contactless-payments-consumer-affairs

 

When I shop online I always try to use paypal, the rest of the time I draw cash at the cash machine, much easier to keep a record of how much you are spending.

 

Would i be classed as part of the IT generation?

I naturally weigh up pros and cons against things and im fairly sensible

I personally don't like contactless tech if someone steals your card they can go make lots of small purchases really easily and still spend a fair amount before the card is cancelled (it happened to my bro) so im not a fan tbh

Then i would also never pay for anything online with a debit card, only credit card so that there is some level of cover over dodgy sellers or if something goes wrong

I do think a lot of people my age and younger are a bit too open online and for example have their facebooks set to public so everyone can see every post and picture. Unless u need to for work or a business or something i think its best to keep everything private and not post your address or lots of stuff that shows where you live and stop using the location check in thing so that random strangers can see where you are at all times and know when your home is empty to rob it as they can see all the contents of your home on your social media accounts so know you have stuff that would be worth robbing

But then i have always been far too sensible and not the same as my generation. Im a tap water or two drinks max on a night out kind of girl as i want to make sure im sober and in control of myself to be able to get home safely. Not that i go on nights out anymore lol

 

Evening all. Here's my view. IT is powerful and like anything powerful, it is dangerous in the wrong hands. I'm talking IT in general. I've always thought we should need a license to use any network enabled device. To get a license you should have to pass a test covering basic IT security principles. That might sound harsh, but the risk is not merely to the user. An unprotected pc on the internet for example can quickly become part of a bot net used to hack others, host illegal and immoral data etc. An unencrypted WiFi signal makes it easy for people to study the structure of network transmissions, making it easier for them to learn to breach a protected one. Equally, too much faith in technology can be socially damaging. How many here have had a problem with their bank and the initial response when you speak to them is polite words to the effect of 'the computer says it so it must be right'? Technology is good, but we are supposed to be its masters, not the other way round. And as an I T professional I'll let you into a secret. US developers sometimes make mistakes and oversights, the network guys sometimes make mistakes too. We do our best, but it should be up to the end consumers to do their bit too.

Think about driving a modern car. The manufacturer will have done a lot to keep you and those around you safe, but you still expected to prove a degree of competence before you're allowed to take control of one.