Fall COVID Spike Might Be Replica of 1918 Influenza "W" Curve

The 1918 Influenza pandemic contained interesting properties which, to this day, still somewhat baffle the medical community. Most influenzas have a "U" shaped curve for mortality rates. However, the 1918 second wave in September contained a rather unusual "W" shape. In addition to affecting the very young and very old, the second wave of the 1918 flu pandemic also severely affected people between 25 and 35 years of age. One interesting theory for this phenomenon is that people over 35 years of age at the time had been exposed to a similar flu virus prior to 1889, granting them better immunity to the 1918 flu. Read more of this interesting analysis in the NIH article from 2006: 1918 Influenza: the Mother of All Pandemics

Disclaimer: This is an analysis of current COVID data from a data perspective only. I am not a doctor. This is not medical or legal advice. Consult your physician for concerns regarding COVID.

Getting Gamers Interested in Cyber Security

Today I started a new mission - increase interest in cyber security through gaming.

It's a bold move - a lot of the cyber security related games aren't commonly streamed. But then maybe that's a niche that needs to be further explored.

For starters, I'm going to stream "Thief Simulator", which focuses on physical security, as well as "Uplink", which is a very unique game that simulates hacking computers.

As a Cyber Security professional who has worked my entire career from a defensive perspective, these games will give me and others a new look at security concepts and practices.

I invite you to come give it a like over on Facebook and see what neat adventures unfold!

Ken Buckler is a Cyber Security professional and lifelong resident of Washington County, MD. The opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not reflect those of his employer or clients.

Bitcoin Review Bomb Ransom - A New Take on an Old Scam

If your restaurant receives an email threatening to "bomb" your reviews with negative reviews unless you pay a ransom, whatever you do, do not pay it.

I was very saddened to learn that a local restaurant is being attacked by "review bombs" because they failed to pay a ransom in bitcoin. What's absolutely heartbreaking is that while small businesses and restaurants across the country are already struggling, scammers are doing this nationwide.

The scam has mostly been making its rounds through spam emails claiming to have compromising photos and videos of the recipient, typically with an old password from a data breach. More recently, the scammers have also started targeting businesses by threatening to send spam email spoofing their business domain with the intention of destroying their credibility.

Now, scammers are review-bombing businesses if they fail to comply with their demands for payment.