29 JAN 2015 :: Poverty, crime, and the Internet

It is always a pain to be a poor person... you don't have the ability to protect yourself as easily, or as much, as those with more money.  Usually the poor are considered the criminal population, rarely are they seen as victims...except, maybe, in low-income housing complexes.  This blog is about something else... it's about the increasing vulnerability of computer crimes.

When I checked my emails today, there was one asking me to verify a Facebook account application.  I am not the most literate computer person, so I had no idea how or why someone with a foreign-sounding name would try to start a Facebook account with my email information.  It was a scary thought that all kinds of accounts can be created using our personal information.

At first, I wasn't sure how to stop it, so I tried to reply to the email.  That didn't work.  Finally, I discovered the bottom of the email and clicked the link that said it would PREVENT an account being made.  It also made me wonder if I will ever be able to use the account in question to get a different Facebook page.  It felt like that email has been permanently banned from Facebook status.  What if the email I got was one of the fake emails that do all kinds of terrible things to us?  I hope not.


I spent most of my time on the computer today trying to catch up with my Etsy duties. It was a long day of exploring shops to find items I thought were more exceptional for some reason.  These items are marked as a favorite of some kind, with what I call a "like" or with the highest value (in my view) of a "heart."  This seems to be the main networking process at Etsy, along with creating threads in forums, adding comments to threads in forums, blogs, and teams, and linking to outside pages like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and other sites.

I was trying to network with different kinds of teams and shops previously. Now I am trying to change my focus to mostly Christian sellers, and the only way to find Christian sellers on Etsy is through the teams.  As I go through the team shops, I am find the people I might want to network with in the future.  I am also learning what they have to teach me if they've been a seller on Etsy for a longer time.

When you join a team, you can sign up to receive an email with updates of the team activity.  These are called "digests," and include new listings links and other information about team members.  Today I tried linking with shops I found on the Etsy team digests instead of going through the team pages.  It is a LOT of work, it takes a long time, but seems to be necessary.  In other businesses, someone is hired just to do social media and networking activities.  I look forward to that day myself.  :-)

Over time, I hope to find those who are committed to Christ, to the things of GOD, and to helping each other as the End Times (needs) increase. I would like to support other Christians and be supported by them... just as other groups network with each other.

I hope that my efforts won't be violated by people who misuse my personal information for their own criminal activities... and that I will one day be able to afford more protections against those who do choose that kind of life.