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Follow up – Authentication frustration

Posted on July 16, 2021 by backuphill

Alright, for those of you who give a rat’s ass and want to know what’s going on over here at the blog, I have a follow up about the last post – Authentication frustration. I doubt that many of you really care whether you get an update but just in case you are interested or simply run into the issue yourself, here is the info you might need.

Two-factor authentication is a royal pain in the ass. It is unfortunate that it is even needed, but that is the state of society these days. There’s a whole bunch of really stupid, bad people out there.

While Instagram and Facebook have the ability to set up two factor authentication, I would recommend NOT using it and just having a really, really strong password. The unfortunate truth is that this social media giant has a process that is broken, meaning you may or may not be able to access your account if you ever need to use it. Based on scouring the internet, I would say there are a large number of people who have lost their accounts due to the fact that the text message for the two factor authenticator never gets generated or sent (not sure which, but either way nothing shows up in your messages). Thus, leaving people stuck and locked out of their accounts.

I’ll tell you what, it was a couple of frustrating and worrisome days trying to get back into my accounts.

Yes, you read that right. I WAS able to get back into both of my Instagram accounts. But it wasn’t without a lot of hassle and frustration.

The “help” documentation provided by Instagram is annoying, poorly written, and ultimately doesn’t really help. There is no clear way to contact customer support if none of their suggestions work. It is just a mind numbing maze of FAQs that don’t really point you in a clear direction if you ultimately still need assistance. It would have been especially helpful if along with the “How to set up two factor authentication” FAQ there was also a FAQ for “What do I do if two factor authentication isn’t working as it should?” A “click here” link to fill out a support ticket would have been just awesome.

As it turns out, I somehow stumbled upon a place to submit a “help ticket” in the app and eventually got a response via email. The place I filled out the form said I would receive an email from Instagram. Low and behold, I got a rather suspicious looking email from Facebook. This email was signed by “The Instagram Team” and outlined steps to begin the recovery process. Luckily, I had seen and read a blog post by someone else that outlined the process they went through to recover their account. The email they described sounded very similar to the one I received so I wasn’t as suspicious as I would normally be.

“Please reply to the message and attach a photo of yourself holding a hand-written copy of the code below: XXXXXXXXX”

Then followed other instructions about how to submit the photo. I followed the instructions and replied to the email. About 30 minutes later I got another response with more steps to take for account verification. I followed those steps and then another email arrived. Within two hours I was back into my account and turned off two factor authentication.

What a freaking hassle!

Anyway, after all is said and done, the world has been set right again. I know you might not be all that keen on dealing with social media and whatnot, but truth be told – those that use it have memories stored there and have distant family access there. In the case of one account, I have a huge number of hours in creation and curation of posts there. It’s an investment, whether we like to admit it or not. Losing access to a social media account can be stressful.

I seriously hope you never have to deal with this.

Authentication frustration

Posted on July 14, 2021 by backuphill

Frustration level has reached CRITICAL. I am having a hard time balancing the internal coolants and I just might blow a top, a gasket, a lid, a …

So, yesterday I upgraded my phone from an iPhone 8 Plus to an iPhone 12 Pro. That part isn’t the frustrating part.

The frustrating part is all the apps that have to be logged back into and set back up and all that jazz that goes with having a new device. BUT, there is one big issue that has been caused by doing this and it is creating a huge roadblock!

The issue – two factor authentication.

Good lord, what a nightmare!

I have two work apps that are used for two factor authentication. Both have to be set back up on the new device. The guy who does the usual setup is on vacation until next week, meaning I am going to have to wait to get help with the setup and I’ll have some limited access to things that are part of my job until it is done. Obviously, that’s an issue.

Also, I am now locked out of my Instagram account…because of two factor authentication. I have two factor authentication set up on my account to keep from being hacked, but what Instagram doesn’t tell you when you set it up is that it MAY or MAY NOT work as it should. What it is supposed to do is send a text message to the phone number used to set up the account. So, when you go to log in, it shows you the number it is sending to but the text message is never sent. I have tried over and over and I get all kinds of other two factor authentications via text, so why it isn’t working is beyond me. Included in that two factor authentication set up is the ability to get recovery codes for when the text message doesn’t work. Great, except the codes don’t work either. I have 5 unused codes from when set it up and none of them have managed to get me back into my account.

Even more frustrating, try finding a place to get “tech support” for these issues. That’s a freaking circus in and of itself! The website is of little help. There is no help in the “reset password” email (especially if it takes you right back to the two factor authentication screen).

I am telling you, two factor authentication is a pain in the ass.

I have finally managed to file a support ticket/report with Instagram/Facebook, but it was tough finding the place to do it. So far, it has produced no results as I go through the process.

Let me tell you, if I get back into my account, I am turning that two factor thing off ASAP. What a freaking nightmare…

Totally makes you rethink upgrading your devices now…

Ad-versary

Posted on February 2, 2021 by backuphill

Facebook, you are doing it to yourself. The revolt against you and your policies, oh and your very very underhanded and sneaky use of people’s data, are going to do you in. You still have an audience, but people are growing tired of being suspicious of everything you do in the background and they just want some safety and privacy from your all invasive practices.

No one wants to be bombarded by advertising. No one wants to be tracked everywhere they physically go and no one wants to be tracked where they go digitally either. So, this little deal you got going on here shouldn’t fool too many people…except that it likely will.

Perhaps Apple is actually trying to protect people and their data. Perhaps they are just making room for their own tracking and advertising. I haven’t a clue. But what I do know, is that I like the way Apple has shown that they are trying to protect people’s data. That goes a long way in trust, something Facebook doesn’t have and likely won’t have (for sure from me).

Facebook is scrambling to adjust over new alerts coming from Apple in the near future that will let people adjust how they get advertising from Facebook by opting out of tracking (or in, depending on how you view this approach). In essence, it will block tracking data so you don’t get “personalized” ads. I am all for that!

Actually, I don’t like ads at all. I’d rather not have my feed filled with ads that some company thinks I might be interested in. I could totally do without. I’d even consider paying a small fee to go ad free. But, at the same time, if I am going to pay a fee to not see ads I would also expect that I am not going to be censored for my views, thoughts, beliefs, etc.

Apple and Facebook have taken an adversarial approach to how they are going to work together and I like it. Big tech and other companies should have to fight over customers and the more people make them work for their dollars the better off we are as consumers. But we as consumers need to be smart about how we give our business to these companies in order to make them compete for it, otherwise we get all-encompassing monopolies who then dominate the marketplace and make up new rules and charge ridiculous fees because they have no one to oppose them.

I like what Apple is doing here. I hope they aren’t just trying to make space for their own scheme. But for now, I am glad to see Facebook about to take it in the nose for their privacy and data collection practices.

They actually deserve it.

Are you Sears-ious?

Posted on December 28, 2020 by backuphill

You’re gonna like this! No seriously, I am telling you to like it. But whatever you do, don’t expose yourself to free thinking. It’s bad for you. No seriously, it’s bad. Bad for some, that is.

If you haven’t encountered one of J.P. Sears’ videos, well, you just haven’t been on social media. They are everywhere! YouTube, Facebook, … you know, everywhere! No seriously, you will like these because they’re everywhere. I mean it.

Anyway, the man has been busy and is producing videos that just make you wanna sit back and think. No, seriously, think.

Is he serious, or is it comedy? Is it satire or is it truth? I’ll let you decide (provided you haven’t seen any of these already). These direct links to the videos are very specific, but if you click on that link up above, you’ll be taken to his channel where you can view all the stuff he has done. You can thank me later for this deep dive and lost afternoon of work, sleep, leisure, or whatever else you were planning on doing.

Socialist Media – The New Rules

How To Raise Weak Children During Lockdowns

My Apology to Facebook

A Communist Christmas

Instagram’s New Terms of Service – Not Sketchy at All!

Wanna be angry about something? Wanna be fearful and obedient? Wanna be controlled? Then don’t watch the videos, because they might enlighten you and no one wants that. That’s why Facebook has threatened him with de-platforming.

It takes brave people to standup and shout against the mainstream. I suggest you support this creator when you can.

Authenticity

Posted on October 15, 2020 by backuphill

Social media has a huge problem with authenticity and they actually keep making it worse.

Did you hear that one about Joe Biden and his son Hunter and perhaps some questionable behavior in the past when dealing with foreign governments?

No?

Weird. The article is from a major news outlet with huge readership and is well respected. Apparently a follow-up article is being censored too. Did you see that one?

Well, it is likely that the big tech companies (Twitter and Facebook and Google) are censoring information in order to protect a political candidate they favor. In their words, they justify such behavior out of a campaign to stop “misinformation” to have a chance to “fact check” the story. In doing so, they are actually meddling in the election and doing exactly the behavior they say they are trying to stop.

Double standard much?

There are lots of thoughts on this whole thing (here is a good article that lines it out well) but the thing that sticks out is that the policies these companies claim to use is used selectively. They use it for stories and information they don’t like, but don’t use it when it helps them or hurts someone they don’t like. Application is selective and that’s shady at best.

The best thing would let ALL INFORMATION flow and let the people figure it out for themselves. Censoring some and not others as it fits with your agenda is a bad look.

Neither of these stories showed up on the Google News Feed, except for stories that are commenting about the censorship of the original reporting. Strange? Nope. Google has as much at stake and has made MANY efforts to stem the flow of information on it’s multiple platforms and outlets.

“Houston, we have a problem.”

It will only get worse as their influence grows and they continue to control the flow of information? Remember when there was concern over that whole “net neutrality” and having ISPs and cable companies having control over the flow of traffic? Yeah, this is the same thing but at a different level. That issue involved throttling the actual data (all of it) and this is the throttling of content (all of it, or at least that which they don’t agree with).

Ever felt like your blog isn’t reaching everyone it should? I have often wondered if WordPress isn’t doing the same thing when it comes to posts that they don’t like or agree with. Could it be true? What do you think?

What do you think of the idea of censorship from tech?

Small dollar

Posted on October 16, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán on Pexels.com

Trying to sell your used stuff online is a challenge. I have talked about his before and the trials of unreliable people and people not following though, etc., etc., etc., …let’s just say I guess I like seeing the worst in humanity so I can complain about it. Glutton for punishment maybe?

Anyway, I have several items up for sale at the moment and they are only $5 items. Nothing big, nothing complicated and not looking to make bank.

Yesterday, I had someone contact me about one of those $5 items asking if I could meet him for a sale. If course, he wasn’t in my area and was a minimum of a 45 minute drive away.

Him: “Could you meet me in _________________?”

Me: “Sorry. That is at least 45 minutes away and I am not willing to travel for such a small dollar amount. If you are going to be in ____________________ in the next couple of days I would be happy to meet you.”

Him: “I can’t drive that far.”

Huh? Whatever. Seriously, dude? You’re gonna contact me over a $5 item and have me spend my time and money to bring it to you? Not happening.

These are rhetorical questions and I know the answers already, but “Are people really that stupid? Are people really so wrapped up in themselves that they don’t consider others and what they are asking?”

We are sunk. As a people, a human race, we are sunk.

Chain letter

Posted on September 17, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by BLAXTAR ESSENTIALS on Pexels.com

Irritating trend continues to the electronic age.

I am sure you are well aware of them. They seem to be everywhere. Honestly, I never thought I would see them in social media and yet there they are. I have done my best to ignore them and just scroll past them.

But then a close family member posts one…and I have a hard time biting my tongue. The one from the family member was worded slightly differently and talked about it being a “social experiment” so “don’t do it if you aren’t going to participate or you’ll break the experiment.” You have likely seen a version of this somewhere in your feed (provided you have Facebook):

The last few years have taught me that when it is our time to leave this world no one can stop it. We have one life to live. The material things we invest in are left behind only to be discarded. Memories are important to me. I’m going to start a “reunion of friends and family”. The idea is to see who reads a post without a picture. If no one reads my post, this will be a very short experiment. But if you are reading this message, make a comment using a single word about how we met. After that, copy this message on your wall and I will also leave you a word. Please, don’t leave a word and then not bother doing it. Grateful beyond measure!

I don’t like chain letters. While this isn’t exactly a chain letter, the idea is the same. Do something for me and I’ll do something for you and it will keep going (thankfully there is no threat of death like some chain letters have, LOL)

I also don’t like desperate attempts to get people to comment on something or “see if people are paying attention” or “cleaning out my friends list” type posts. I guess I am a bit of a rebel and refuse to play the game. I have had people tag me in posts where they have to do something and then “tag 5 more people” so they have to do it. I refuse to do it.

Call me obstinate. Call me difficult. Call me a jerk. Call me whatever.

Anyone else severely dislike these things? What other “chain letter like” things do you see on social media that irritates you to no end?

Enough already, PT 2!

Posted on January 30, 2019 by backuphill

This is an example of too much to read in less than 2 seconds. The photo is lovely, btw.

So, yesterday I had a little something to say about the “stories” feature on social media that seems to be taking the world by storm, but that some people aren’t telling stories but writing stupid novels with the overwhelming number of pics they post.

To follow up on that, can I just say that the other problem with “stories” is that people also want to put words on these photos. Not just a few words, like a caption for the picture, but like paragraphs…in small fonts…

Hey, if you want to write a paragraph on your photo, do it in the regular photo feed! I don’t know about most people, but I have a feeling I am not alone in that it is near darn impossible to READ a freaking small font paragraph in 1.32 seconds, let along all the links and other crap you include on the photo.

Again, for the love of your views and readers, keep the “stories” simple and short.

Enough already!

Posted on January 29, 2019 by backuphill

There is a disturbing trend going around social media these days and it bothers the heck outta me. I just don’t have all the time in the world for you, nor you me, so let’s keep it to one or two, not the whole story.

Social media has gotten this idea that people want to see a “story” about other people’s lives. Like I have none of my own, so I should see every aspect of someone else’s. So, Facebook and Instagram (yes, they are the same company) have instituted this “story” aspect where people can post multiple photos/videos that are chained together to tell a story. I hadn’t really payed much attention to these “stories” until just before the end of the year and then the end of the year came and I wish I hadn’t started in the first place.

You see, the stories have turned into a place for people to dump all their stupid photos. Instead of just spamming their account with endless photos that people wouldn’t normally see, now they post them all in stories and force everyone to look at them (or at the very least, tap through them). One person I follow posted (guess-timating) 70 photos to sum up their year. I don’t need that kind of crap. I don’t have that kind of time. I don’t have that much interest.

What’s worse, is businesses are using to sell their freaking products and I am just as stuck watching the commercial on this platform as I am on tv, only here I can at least “fast-forward” to some degree. Ugh, I don’t like it.

Social media was supposed to be a WINDOW into your life (no matter how fake it was), not your whole life! Oh, and commercial free too! Let’s get a grip here. If you are going to use “stories”, let’s keep it to one or two, three max. Don’t overwhelm people with your life.

I mean, really, we don’t care that much.

Fantasy football freaks

Posted on July 11, 2018 by backuphill

Photo by Skitterphoto on Pexels.com

Fantasy football can be enjoyable and I have participated in several leagues for many years. The leagues are free via Yahoo Fantasy Sports and relatively easy to use or participate in.

A couple years ago I got invited to a league via a friend (the friend no longer participates) and it was nice to play with some people that took it seriously enough to make it competitive, but not so serious that you didn’t feel overwhelmed with the fact that you weren’t doing hours of research each week as it related to the players on your team. I knew there were others out there spending hours upon hours preparing for the draft but I never felt the need to do so. Oh, and the league is free so there are no fees and there are no prizes.

However, over the last couple years it has gotten just a little out of hand as far as the demands of the league, both in time and attention. First it was a Facebook group. Then it was a debate about a slow draft. Then it was a test of a slow draft. Then it was a debate about moving platforms. Then it was a test of a slow draft via the Facebook group. Now it is downloading extra app to your phone so you can do the slow draft in another program and communicate with the group via another, additional, chat app.

So, I’ve had enough. I am opting out of the league. I was doing this for fun and want to keep it that way. I don’t want to have to log into multiple places for tracking or communicating about my team. Sorry, guys, I guess I am just not that into it…or your league.

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Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com