Ransomware & Social Engineering: Protect Yourself Now

Cybercriminals use two main tactics to attack you:

1. Ransomware

• What it does: Locks your files until you pay (usually in Bitcoin)

• How it gets in: Fake software updates ("Adobe Flash Player") or unpatched systems

• Real impact: Frozen hospital MRI machines, bankrupt small businesses

• Stop it:

• Use tools like CryptoDrop to detect attacks early

• Follow the 3-2-1 backup rule (3 copies, 2 formats, 1 offline)

2. Social Engineering

• What it is: Psychological tricks to steal access

• Common scams:

• Fake CEO calls (AI voice clones)

• "Emergency" texts ("Mom, I need gift cards!")

• Why it works: We're wired to trust authority and help others

• Beat it:

• Always verify unusual requests

• Enable two-factor authentication (2FA)

3 Quick Protections

1. Turn on automatic updates

2. Backup important files offline weekly

3. Slow down - pause before clicking/responding

"Security is about being a harder target than the next person."

Sources: Alshaikh et al. (2020), Eleyan et al. (2021)

References:

Alshaikh, H., et al. (2020). Ransomware Prevention and Mitigation Techniques. International Journal of Computer Applications

Eleyan, D., et al. (2021). A Survey of Social Engineering Attacks. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology

Learning Programming Through Scratch: My Hungry Cat Game Journey

 

Introduction

When I first started learning programming, I wanted a way to understand core concepts visually. That’s when I discovered Scratch, a block-based programming language perfect for beginners. My project, the Hungry Cat Game, helped me grasp fundamental programming ideas in an interactive and engaging way.

Building the Hungry Cat Game

The goal was simple: control a cat that chases and eats mice to score points. Here’s how I implemented it:

Key Programming Concepts Used

• Motion Blocks: Made the mouse glide to random positions on the screen.

• Control Blocks: Used forever loops and if-then conditions to detect collisions.

• Looks & Sound Blocks: Switched costumes for animations and added sound effects like "meow" and "chomp."

• Variables: Tracked the score each time the cat caught the mouse.

Challenges & Debugging

At first, the mouse didn’t respawn after being eaten. I fixed this by adding hide and show blocks with a short wait time, ensuring the mouse reappeared correctly.

Insights Gained About Programming

1. Sequencing Matters

• The order of blocks affected gameplay. For example, playing the sound before hiding the mouse made the experience smoother.

2. Events Drive Logic

• The game relied on event triggers like:

• When green flag clicked (to start)

• When key pressed (for controls)

3. Debugging is Essential

• Testing small parts of the code first prevented frustration later.

Scratch vs. Other Programming Languages

While Scratch simplified learning, I compared it to other languages:

Aspect	Scratch	Python	SQL
Syntax	Drag-and-drop blocks (no syntax errors)	Requires typing code	Query-based (data manipulation)
Control	Limited for complex apps	More flexibility	Focused on databases
Best For	Beginners & visual learners	General-purpose programming	Data management

Easiest Language?

For now, Scratch wins because its visual blocks make programming feel intuitive.

Conclusion

Scratch is an excellent tool for learning computational thinking, loops, and conditionals. While it may not be suitable for complex applications, it’s a fantastic starting point for new programmers.

Check out my project here: Hungry Cat Game

References

• CompTIA. (2023). Programming languages. In Certmaster Learn Tech+ (Chap. 10).

• Wing, J. M. (2006). Computational thinking. Communications of the ACM, 49(3), 33-35. DOI:10.1145/1118178.1118215

AI Anti-Cheats in Gaming: The Double-Edged Sword

As a gamer, I've seen how vital computer literacy is for fighting cheats. Developers need it to build secure games, and players need it to spot and report exploits. AI is changing the game literally but not without some serious tradeoffs.

How AI is Revolutionizing Anti-Cheat

1. Real-Time Detection

• Systems like Activision’s Ricochet analyze gameplay instantly, flagging unnatural behavior (e.g., inhuman aim precision, movement snapping).

• Beats old signature-based systems that only detect known cheats.

2. Adaptive Learning

• Valorant’s Vanguard studies cheat patterns, blocking new hacks before they spread.

• Over 5 years, AI anti-cheats have:

• Reduced false bans by 40%

• Caught 90% more sophisticated cheats (like hardware spoofing)

The Future of AI Anti-Cheat

• Proactive AI: Predicting cheat trends and patching vulnerabilities before exploits go live.

• Cross-Platform Bans: A cheater banned in Warzone could get auto-banned in Fortnite.

• Ethical Debates Heating Up:

The Big Concerns

🔒 Kernel-Level Access

• AI anti-cheats often run at the deepest system level for maximum detection.

• Risk: Could be abused to monitor more than just cheating (e.g., background apps, personal data).

• Solution? Strict transparency on what’s being scanned and for how long.

👥 Community + AI = Stronger Enforcement

• Right now, player reports are often ignored or slow.

• Future Idea: AI could prioritize verified reports (e.g., frequent cheater tags from high-trust players).

⚠️ False Bans & Appeals

• Even with AI, wrongful bans happen (e.g., weird mouse settings flagged as cheating).

• Fix Needed: AI-assisted appeals automatically reviewing evidence faster than human admins.

Final Thoughts

AI is making cheating harder, but the tech walks a fine line between fair play and privacy overreach. The best systems will:

1. Detect cheats better (without spying on players).

2. Listen to the community (not just rely on algorithms).

3. Offer fair appeals (so legit players don’t get screwed).

What’s your take? Should anti-cheats have kernel access, or is that too invasive?

Hands-On Networking: What Ping and Traceroute Taught Me

Before this assignment, I only knew ping and traceroute as networking terms. Running them myself on steampowered.com and google.com revealed how data actually travels.

Ping Results
Steam:

• 0% packet loss
• 26ms average response (fast)

Google:

• 44ms average latency (slower than Steam)

At first I wondered: Why is Steam faster than Google? Traceroute explained it. 

Traceroute Findings
Steam's Route:

• 13 clean hops
• Path: My Spectrum ISP → Akamai servers (Houston)
• No timeouts

Google's Route:

• 10 timeout occurrences mid-route
• Learned from CertMaster: Google hides internal routers for security
• Those * * * timeouts? Normal for protected corporate networks

Key Takeaways

1. Physical distance ≠ faster speed
2. Big companies hide their network paths
3. New troubleshooting skills: 

• High ping? Check local network first
• Timeouts? Could be destination's firewall

Real-World Use

When my game lagged last week, I now know to:

1. Ping game servers to test connection
2. Traceroute if packets drop to find where they fail

Question:

Anyone else trace routes through CDNs like Akamai?

My SteelSeries GG Experience: The Good and The Frustrating

I've been using SteelSeries GG mainly for Sonar audio controls and Moments recording. It's useful, but some issues really hold it back. Here's my honest take.

What Works Well:

• Sonar's audio mixing is fantastic. Sliding game volume separately from Discord is perfect when friends talk over cutscenes.
• Moments recording saves the last few minutes with a hotkey. Better than constantly recording like OBS.

What Needs Fixing:

• Moments doesn't detect Arena Breakout Infinite. I always have to manually switch to Screen Capture.
• No push-to-mute in Sonar – just a toggle. Have to tap mute, then remember to unmute. Discord's hold-to-mute is way better.
• Corrupted clips: 2 of my last 21 recordings were completely unplayable. The app just crashes when trying to open them.

Simple Improvements Needed:

1. Fix game detection for Arena Breakout and others
2. Add push-to-mute (it's standard now)
3. Prevent clip corruption or add recovery options

Final Thoughts:
SteelSeries GG has great features but feels unfinished. The audio mixing and replay functions show potential, but these bugs keep it from being amazing.

HDD vs SSD: Which Improves Game Load Times?

 Solid-state drives (SSDs) are far superior to traditional hard disk drives (HDDs) when it comes to gaming performance. SSDs use flash memory, allowing them to load games and transfer data 3-4 times faster than HDDs, which rely on slower spinning disks. This means less waiting on loading screens and smoother gameplay transitions. For example, Linus Tech Tips demonstrates how SSDs drastically reduce load times compared to HDDs, explaining that the lack of moving parts in SSDs allows for near instant data access. Additionally, Loading Times in Games provides real world benchmarks across different games, showing that SSDs consistently load levels and textures seconds faster than HDDs sometimes cutting wait times in half. Whether you're booting up an open-world game or just launching your system, upgrading to an SSD is one of the easiest ways to improve your gaming experience.