A new console generation is usually something you can see. It’s measured in pixels and polygons. When we moved from the NES to the Super Nintendo, it wasn’t hard to spot the difference between 8- and 16-bit Super Mario games. It was just as clear when games evolved to support 3D worlds and, later, HD graphics. Your eyes told you this was something new. It was obvious. With the PlayStation 5, things aren’t so simple.
Yes, games look better, particularly if you have a high-end television to take advantage of features like 4K, HDR, and 120fps. But it’s not the dramatic shift that we’ve seen with past generations. Instead, the biggest changes come from how the experience feels. Games run smoother, load faster, and are accompanied by a new controller that further immerses you by using adaptive triggers and more subtle vibrations. On their own, each of these elements is a nice upgrade over the PS4. But when you put them together, you have an experience that qualifies as next-gen.
The problem is you can’t see this generation. You have to feel it.
A big console and an intriguing controller
When it comes to the design of the console itself, the most obvious thing is its scale. It’s not just big, it’s historically big, one of the largest video game consoles ever built. It measures in at 390mm (15.4 inches) tall, 260mm (10.24 inches) deep, and 104mm (4.09 inches) wide. It’s big enough that it’ll probably require some careful planning to fit it into your existing entertainment setup. (Right now, I have mine all by its lonesome on a side table beside my TV stand, for lack of better options.)
It’s not just the size, though. Whereas many gadgets are now designed to fit seamlessly into our homes, the PS5 goes in the opposite direction. It is not shy. Sony doesn’t want you to tuck this away in an entertainment cabinet where no one can see it. The PS5 has what I think of as a robotic clam look, with two huge white panels surrounding a shiny black interior. One panel features a nice etched PlayStation logo, and the console comes in two varieties with slightly different designs: the $499.99 base model features a disc drive that juts out of the right side, giving it an asymmetrical look, and the $399.99 digital edition has no drive and is more uniform as a result. Either way, the PS5 is an intimidating machine and certainly an acquired taste.
The console can be displayed either vertically or horizontally by using an included circular stand. While the stand itself feels a bit like cheap plastic, it’s very sturdy when you connect it to the console. I should also note that the shiny plastic strip that runs down the center of the machine is an absolute dust and fingerprint magnet. I live in a house with two cats and one dog, and I’ve had to clean it off almost daily. In a nice touch, the panels are removable, so you can at least clean the insides of dust and hair relatively easily. Removing the panels gives you access to a storage expansion slot, though we haven’t been able to test this out yet, as Sony says SSD expansion isn’t available. The storage situation for the console is a bit of a question mark, though you do have the ability to load PS4 games from USB storage. (In terms of usable space, the PS5 comes with 667.2GB, with the rest of the internal hard drive reserved for system data.)
One of the most surprising things about the PS5 hardware has been how quiet it is. I haven’t heard a sound while playing with it over the past 10 days, and it doesn’t give off much heat either. It’s a big change from my PS4, which sounds like a jet engine every time I hop into a match of Fortnite. Of course, the PS5 is virtually brand-new, and it’s entirely possible it will get noisier over time. In terms of ports, the PS5 features three USB-A ports (two on the back, one in front), a USB-C port on the front, an Ethernet port, and an HDMI 2.1 port on the back.
As wild as it looks, the most interesting thing about the PS5 hardware isn’t the console itself; it’s the new DualSense controller. It’s the first major redesign of the PlayStation controller since Sony introduced twin-sticks, and it’s a deceptively subtle change. In your hands, the DualSense is slightly larger and heavier than a DualShock, but it’s still comfortable and familiar. It has a dual-tone design that matches the PS5, and the button layout is virtually unchanged from the PS4, though the touch panel and rear triggers are slightly larger.
Meanwhile, the home button — previously, a simple circle that rests in between the sticks — is now an etched PlayStation logo. It looks cool, but I found it harder to find when I wasn’t looking at the controller. You charge it via USB-C, and I was able to get around 6–7 hours of playtime on a charge, which is comparable to the DualShock 4. This means, like the DualShock 4, you’ll probably need to charge it regularly. But you do get a more advanced gamepad for roughly the same battery life.
The big changes are inside, however. The DualSense controller is outfitted with new adaptive triggers with variable tension, offering physical resistance depending on what you’re doing. At the same time, the controller features haptic feedback in the form of more subtle vibrations that give you a better sense of what’s happening in a game. It may sound like a gimmick, and reminiscent of similar, failed technologies like HD rumble on the Nintendo Switch. But thankfully, the PS5 comes with just the right game to show what the DualSense can do.
Games you can feel
Each PlayStation 5 comes bundled with a game called Astro’s Playroom. It’s a seemingly simple third-person platforming game starring cute robots, the kind of game you’d expect to come out of Nintendo. It’s also an experience explicitly designed to showcase the DualSense controller’s myriad features.
The haptics are obvious from the moment you start playing. As you move the lead character, Astro, around, you can feel subtle footsteps in your hands, and they alternate left to right to mimic those steps. That’s cool, but things get even more interesting when you walk on different surfaces. It’s hard to put into words, but there’s a graininess when you’re walking on sand, and a surprisingly accurate flat “slap” feeling when Astro dives into a pool of water. In one sequence, you can feel the pitter-patter of rain in your palms, and when it changes to freezing rain, the sensation shifts to be sharper and heavier.
These elements don’t fundamentally change the way Astro’s Playroom plays, but they add another layer of feedback that further immerses you in the experience. This is especially true when most of the haptic sensations are accompanied by sounds from the DualSense’s built-in speaker. You could close your eyes and still know it’s rainy or windy or that a flying car just zipped past you.
The same goes for the adaptive triggers. Most of the time, the DualSense triggers act just like the triggers on a classic PlayStation controller: they’re basic buttons. But during certain sequences, they change. An obvious example is when Astro picks up a bow-and-arrow, and you can feel the tension in the trigger as you pull back on the string, while later in the game you turn into a spring-powered mech, and the tension builds up as you gather momentum.
Another good example is a capsule toy machine in the game, in which you operate two robotic arms to pull a lever with one hand and then crush them with the other. Each action requires force: you have to push just a bit harder to make the lever go down, and then do it again to crush the plastic toy container. It may sound like a small addition, but it makes these otherwise standard actions into something incredibly satisfying.
In the case of Astro’s Playroom, the controller elevates what might otherwise be a typical platforming game. I found myself exploring new areas and techniques just to see if I could find new sensations. Of course, one great game doesn’t prove the controller isn’t a gimmick. After all, Wii Sports was amazing, but it didn’t exactly usher in an era of motion-controlled games. But there are some good reasons to believe that the DualSense will catch on.
For one thing, it’s additive; designers don’t have to fundamentally change their games to work with the controller the way they would with something like a Wii remote or Kinect. And even at launch, there are already good examples of third-party developers making use of the DualSense.
One is Bugsnax, which will be available for free to PlayStation Plus subscribers when the PS5 launches. It’s sort of like a cross between Pokémon and Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. You explore a colorful island in search of little bugs that are actually food and then scan them with a camera. When you do so, the right trigger replicates the classic “thunk” of an old-school camera’s shutter. You can also feel the environment through the haptic feedback: the subtle rumble of thunder in the distance or the splash of jumping into a pond. PS5 launch title Pathless similarly uses subtle haptic vibrations to help you sense nearby monsters stalking you.
Neither game is as impressive as Astro, but they show what’s possible with just a little bit of support. And plenty of other developers have already promised to utilize the controller, including big-name games like Fortnite and NBA 2K.
Outside of what the controller adds, the PS5 benefits from being a more powerful machine compared to its predecessor. This manifests in a few ways. The first is visual. If you have the right TV, the PS5 supports up to 120fps, 4K HDR, and variable refresh rates. Certain titles even utilize ray tracing for more realistic lighting. A great example of this is Spider-Man: Miles Morales, which launches alongside the PS5. The game takes place in New York City during the midst of a snowstorm, and you can really see the difference in the way the sun reflects off the icy roads and glass skyscrapers and more realistic reflections from lights, windows, and puddles.
Games can also run at a higher frame rate, and in some cases, you’re given a choice of what you want to focus on. In Miles Morales, for instance, there are two visual options: “performance,” which prioritizes running at a solid 60fps, and “fidelity,” which utilizes features like ray tracing but drops the frame rate down to 30fps. For a fast-paced action game like Spider-Man, you can really feel the difference: as nice as ray tracing is, it’s hard to go back after swinging around New York at 60fps. Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition has a similar option: you can switch on ray tracing, but you’ll be warned that frame rate might be impacted. Sony also says some games will support 120fps, but I wasn’t able to test this.
Besides performance, the other big change with the PS5 is load times. The console has what Sony describes as an “ultra-high speed SSD,” and the result is games that boot up much faster compared to the PS4. With Spider-Man: Miles Morales, which is a cross-gen game, I was able to start playing in 17 seconds on the PS5, compared to one minute and 27 seconds on the PS4. The differences in load times varied across games, but universally, games booted up faster on the PS5. Here are a few examples. (Note: these examples compare the PS5 to a base model PS4.)
PS5 load times
Game
PS5
PS4
Game
PS5
PS4
Spider-Man: Miles Morales
17 seconds
1 minute, 27 seconds
No Man’s Sky
1 minute, 34 seconds
2 minutes, 52 seconds
Final Fantasy VII Remake
35 seconds
1 minute, 29 seconds
Genshin Impact
59 seconds
2 minutes, 57 seconds
Ghost of Tsushima
1 minute, 4 seconds
1 minute, 10 seconds
Days Gone
1 minute, 18 seconds
2 minutes, 54 seconds
Death Stranding
54 seconds
1 minute, 50 seconds
These speeds have another benefit. The PS5 introduces a new feature called “activities,” which lets you boot up a game from a specific point directly from the console’s main menu. In an open-world game like Miles Morales, for instance, you can see all of the missions you currently have open from the main PS5 menu and choose to start from one of those specific points. Astro’s Playroom will similarly let you boot up a game from a specific part of a level. And while I haven’t been able to test it just yet, Fortnite developer Epic says this feature will be used so you can pick which mode you want to play and boot into it straight away.
When you put all of this together, you end up simply spending more time playing games and less time messing around in menus or staring at loading screens. This won’t always be a big deal, but it’s amazing when you have just a brief window to play; if I just want to knock out a quick Spider-Man side mission while I have some free time, I can get straight to it in seconds.
Right now, it’s a great feature that makes me more likely to boot up a game than waste 30 minutes in Netflix. But Sony also believes that these near-instantaneous load times could change the way certain games are designed, like with PS5 exclusive Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, which has players zipping back and forth between different dimensions. But without being able to play those games, the impact of the change remains largely theoretical for now. (That said, jumping straight into a level in Astro’s Playroom is incredibly fast.)
I should also note that playing PS4 games on the PS5 is an extremely easy process, particularly when it comes to digital releases. As long as you’re signed in to your PSN account, it’s all just there: the games you own digitally on your PS4 will show up in your library, marked with a small “PS4” badge. I have close to 200 games in my library, and the only titles that were incompatible were the VR spinoff of The Last Guardian and Dragon Quest Heroes II. (Fortnite wasn’t playable either, but Epic has already detailed its plans for launch day support for both next-gen consoles.)
A streamlined interface
Unlike Microsoft, which opted to keep the same interface across all of its Xbox hardware, Sony has redesigned its UI for the PS5. It’s not a huge change, but it’s nicely streamlined. Over the years, my PS4 became cluttered with all kinds of things I didn’t actually use, whereas the PS5 is divided into two obvious categories: games and media. (Note: we’re not able to talk about either the PS5’s new store or the media capabilities until closer to launch.) At first, it seems rather bare-bones. Your most recently played games appear in chronological order, from left to right, with your full library available at the end of the list. You can’t even organize things into folders like with the PS4.
Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it — contracts that no one actually reads. It’s impossible for us to read and analyze every single one of these agreements. But we started counting exactly how many times you have to hit “agree” to use devices when we review them, since these are agreements most people don’t read and definitely can’t negotiate.
To start using a PlayStation 5:
You must agree to a PS5 software license agreement
You must have a PlayStation Network account to access the store and many online features
You can also say yes or no to:
Optional usage data sent to Sony
That’s two mandatory agreements and one optional one to use a PS5.
But when you select a particular game, you’re given a lot more information about it. It’s from here that you can choose from the available activities, the feature previously mentioned, as well as your Trophy progress, recent news on the game, or scan through live Twitch and YouTube streams of that particular game. Most of the time, you’ll probably just hit the big “play” button, but there are some useful features here, particularly for bigger games. There’s also a guide feature tied to activities. When you select a particular activity, it might have a help icon attached, which means you can bring up a quick tutorial video to help get you through tough spots. You can even have the video play while you’re inside of the game, picture-in-picture style. It was helpful for playing Astro’s Playroom, but other games promise to offer more extensive tutorials; launch title Demon’s Souls will reportedly include 180 such videos, for instance.
There’s also a redesigned home button menu. Now, when you press the PS logo on the controller, a small overlay appears at the bottom of the screen giving quick access to some more common features. You can check your notifications, adjust the volume, check the battery status of your controller or headphones, or even choose to broadcast directly from a streaming platform. There’s also an app switcher, though, unfortunately, it doesn’t suspend games for easy access like the Xbox’s new “quick resume” feature. Instead, it’s just a list of the last few games or apps you used. You’ll still need to boot them back up when you jump in.
As with the PS4, the DualSense controller has a built-in share button, but the sharing tools have been revamped slightly. You can still immediately take a screenshot by holding the button for a few seconds. But a quick press will bring up a new menu that gives you a few options. You can grab a screenshot, record the last few minutes of gameplay, start recording right then, or kick off a live broadcast. You can also edit and post screenshots and video without actually leaving the game. It makes the whole process quite a bit faster, which is important when you need to capture a match-winning Fortnite play.
Everything else is stuffed away in the settings menu, but there are some extremely helpful features there if you do some digging. In the game / app settings menu, for instance, you can choose from several default presets. You can make it so all games are set to easy by default, for instance, or choose whether you want games to play in “performance” or “resolution” modes. You can even choose whether you want first- or third-person games to default to a normal or inverted camera. It sounds small, but it saves you from having to fiddle with these settings within each individual game; you do it once from the main PS5 menu, and you’re set. As someone who absolutely has to have subtitles on while playing, I’m glad I don’t have to remember to turn them on for each individual game.
A great first impression
Reviewing a video game console before it’s even out is always a tricky thing. There are just so many unknowns. Will developers really make use of the DualSense’s unique features? Will games like Ratchet and Clank utilize the PS5’s fast loading times to change the way game worlds are designed? And just how long will the UI remain uncluttered as more features and services are added? My experience playing the PS5 today will be very different compared to playing it in a year or two.
Physically, the PS5 is a brash, intimidating piece of hardware, one that is clearly meant to signal a major shift. But underneath, its changes are much more subtle — at least right now. This isn’t the move from SD to HD, or watching Mario explore a 3D space for the very first time. Instead, it’s a series of smaller — though still important — shifts, like faster speeds and a more immersive controller, which all add up to a markedly better experience compared to the PS4 by every conceivable metric (aside from the space it takes up). I can’t tell you what the future holds, but right now, the PS5 is a great piece of hardware.
It might not be clear what makes the PS5 interesting just from watching trailers or live streams. But once it’s in your hands, the next generation is a lot more obvious.
Although no one likes a know-it-all, they dominate the Internet.
The Internet began as a vast repository of information. It quickly became a breeding ground for self-proclaimed experts seeking what most people desire: recognition and money.
Today, anyone with an Internet connection and some typing skills can position themselves, regardless of their education or experience, as a subject matter expert (SME). From relationship advice, career coaching, and health and nutrition tips to citizen journalists practicing pseudo-journalism, the Internet is awash with individuals—Internet talking heads—sharing their “insights,” which are, in large part, essentially educated guesses without the education or experience.
The Internet has become a 24/7/365 sitcom where armchair experts think they’re the star.
Not long ago, years, sometimes decades, of dedicated work and acquiring education in one’s field was once required to be recognized as an expert. The knowledge and opinions of doctors, scientists, historians, et al. were respected due to their education and experience. Today, a social media account and a knack for hyperbole are all it takes to present oneself as an “expert” to achieve Internet fame that can be monetized.
On the Internet, nearly every piece of content is self-serving in some way.
The line between actual expertise and self-professed knowledge has become blurry as an out-of-focus selfie. Inadvertently, social media platforms have created an informal degree program where likes and shares are equivalent to degrees. After reading selective articles, they’ve found via and watching some TikTok videos, a person can post a video claiming they’re an herbal medicine expert. Their new “knowledge,” which their followers will absorb, claims that Panda dung tea—one of the most expensive teas in the world and isn’t what its name implies—cures everything from hypertension to existential crisis. Meanwhile, registered dietitians are shaking their heads, wondering how to compete against all the misinformation their clients are exposed to.
More disturbing are individuals obsessed with evangelizing their beliefs or conspiracy theories. These people write in-depth blog posts, such as Elvis Is Alive and the Moon Landings Were Staged, with links to obscure YouTube videos, websites, social media accounts, and blogs. Regardless of your beliefs, someone or a group on the Internet shares them, thus confirming your beliefs.
Misinformation is the Internet’s currency used to get likes, shares, and engagement; thus, it often spreads like a cosmic joke. Consider the prevalence of clickbait headlines:
You Won’t Believe What Taylor Swift Says About Climate Change!
This Bedtime Drink Melts Belly Fat While You Sleep!
In One Week, I Turned $10 Into $1 Million!
Titles that make outrageous claims are how the content creator gets reads and views, which generates revenue via affiliate marketing, product placement, and pay-per-click (PPC) ads. Clickbait headlines are how you end up watching a TikTok video by a purported nutrition expert adamantly asserting you can lose belly fat while you sleep by drinking, for 14 consecutive days, a concoction of raw eggs, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar 15 minutes before going to bed.
Our constant search for answers that’ll explain our convoluted world and our desire for shortcuts to success is how Internet talking heads achieve influencer status. Because we tend to seek low-hanging fruits, we listen to those with little experience or knowledge of the topics they discuss yet are astute enough to know what most people want to hear.
There’s a trend, more disturbing than spreading misinformation, that needs to be called out: individuals who’ve never achieved significant wealth or traded stocks giving how-to-make-easy-money advice, the appeal of which is undeniable. Several people I know have lost substantial money by following the “advice” of Internet talking heads.
Anyone on social media claiming to have a foolproof money-making strategy is lying. They wouldn’t be peddling their money-making strategy if they could make easy money.
Successful people tend to be secretive.
Social media companies design their respective algorithms to serve their advertisers—their source of revenue—interest; hence, content from Internet talking heads appears most prominent in your feeds. When a video of a self-professed expert goes viral, likely because it pressed an emotional button, the more people see it, the more engagement it receives, such as likes, shares and comments, creating a cycle akin to a tornado.
Imagine scrolling through your TikTok feed and stumbling upon a “scientist” who claims they can predict the weather using only aluminum foil, copper wire, sea salt and baking soda. You chuckle, but you notice his video got over 7,000 likes, has been shared over 600 times and received over 400 comments. You think to yourself, “Maybe this guy is onto something.” What started as a quest to achieve Internet fame evolved into an Internet-wide belief that weather forecasting can be as easy as DIY crafts.
Since anyone can call themselves “an expert,” you must cultivate critical thinking skills to distinguish genuine expertise from self-professed experts’ self-promoting nonsense. While the absurdity of the Internet can be entertaining, misinformation has serious consequences. The next time you read a headline that sounds too good to be true, it’s probably an Internet talking head making an educated guess; without the education seeking Internet fame, they can monetize.
TORONTO – A new survey says a majority of software engineers and developers feel tight project deadlines can put safety at risk.
Seventy-five per cent of the 1,000 global workers who responded to the survey released Tuesday say pressure to deliver projects on time and on budget could be compromising critical aspects like safety.
The concern is even higher among engineers and developers in North America, with 77 per cent of those surveyed on the continent reporting the urgency of projects could be straining safety.
The study was conducted between July and September by research agency Coleman Parkes and commissioned by BlackBerry Ltd.’s QNX division, which builds connected-car technology.
The results reflect a timeless tug of war engineers and developers grapple with as they balance the need to meet project deadlines with regulations and safety checks that can slow down the process.
Finding that balance is an issue that developers of even the simplest appliances face because of advancements in technology, said John Wall, a senior vice-president at BlackBerry and head of QNX.
“The software is getting more complicated and there is more software whether it’s in a vehicle, robotics, a toaster, you name it… so being able to patch vulnerabilities, to prevent bad actors from doing malicious acts is becoming more and more important,” he said.
The medical, industrial and automotive industries have standardized safety measures and anything they produce undergoes rigorous testing, but that work doesn’t happen overnight. It has to be carried out from the start and then at every step of the development process.
“What makes safety and security difficult is it’s an ongoing thing,” Wall said. “It’s not something where you’ve done it, and you are finished.”
The Waterloo, Ont.-based business found 90 per cent of its survey respondents reported that organizations are prioritizing safety.
However, when asked about why safety may not be a priority for their organization, 46 per cent of those surveyed answered cost pressures and 35 per cent said a lack of resources.
That doesn’t surprise Wall. Delays have become rampant in the development of tech, and in some cases, stand to push back the launch of vehicle lines by two years, he said.
“We have to make sure that people don’t compromise on safety and security to be able to get products out quicker,” he said.
“What we don’t want to see is people cutting corners and creating unsafe situations.”
The survey also took a peek at security breaches, which have hit major companies like London Drugs, Indigo Books & Music, Giant Tiger and Ticketmaster in recent years.
About 40 per cent of the survey’s respondents said they have encountered a security breach in their employer’s operating system. Those breaches resulted in major impacts for 27 per cent of respondents, moderate impacts for 42 per cent and minor impacts for 27 per cent.
“There are vulnerabilities all the time and this is what makes the job very difficult because when you ship the software, presumably the software has no security vulnerabilities, but things get discovered after the fact,” Wall said.
Security issues, he added, have really come to the forefront of the problems developers face, so “really without security, you have no safety.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
As online shoppers hunt for bargains offered by Amazon during its annual fall sale this week, cybersecurity researchers are warning Canadians to beware of an influx of scammers posing as the tech giant.
In the 30 days leading up to Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days, taking place Tuesday and Wednesday, there were more than 1,000 newly registered Amazon-related web domains, according to Check Point Software Technologies, a company that offers cybersecurity solutions.
The company said it deemed 88 per cent of those domains malicious or suspicious, suggesting they could have been set up by scammers to prey on vulnerable consumers. One in every 54 newly created Amazon-related domain included the phrase “Amazon Prime.”
“They’re almost indiscernible from the real Amazon domain,” said Robert Falzon, head of engineering at Check Point in Canada.
“With all these domains registered that look so similar, it’s tricking a lot of people. And that’s the whole intent here.”
Falzon said Check Point Research sees an uptick in attempted scams around big online shopping days throughout the year, including Prime Days.
Scams often come in the form of phishing emails, which are deceptive messages that appear to be from a reputable source in attempt to steal sensitive information.
In this case, he said scammers posing as Amazon commonly offer “outrageous” deals that appear to be associated with Prime Days, in order to trick recipients into clicking on a malicious link.
The cybersecurity firm said it has identified and blocked 100 unique Amazon Prime-themed scam emails targeting organizations and consumers over the past two weeks.
Scammers also target Prime members with unsolicited calls, claiming urgent account issues and requesting payment information.
“It’s like Christmas for them,” said Falzon.
“People expect there to be significant savings on Prime Day, so they’re not shocked that they see something of significant value. Usually, the old adage applies: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
Amazon’s website lists a number of red flags that it recommends customers watch for to identify a potential impersonation scam.
Those include false urgency, requests for personal information, or indications that the sender prefers to complete the purchase outside of the Amazon website or mobile app.
Scammers may also request that customers exclusively pay with gift cards, a claim code or PIN. Any notifications about an order or delivery for an unexpected item should also raise alarm bells, the company says.
“During busy shopping moments, we tend to see a rise in impersonation scams reported by customers,” said Amazon spokeswoman Octavia Roufogalis in a statement.
“We will continue to invest in protecting consumers and educating the public on scam avoidance. We encourage consumers to report suspected scams to us so that we can protect their accounts and refer bad actors to law enforcement to help keep consumers safe.”
Falzon added that these scams are more successful than people might think.
As of June 30, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre said there had been $284 million lost to fraud so far this year, affecting 15,941 victims.
But Falzon said many incidents go unreported, as some Canadians who are targeted do not know how or where to flag a scam, or may choose not to out of embarrassment.
Check Point recommends Amazon customers take precautions while shopping on Prime Days, including by checking URLs carefully, creating strong passwords on their accounts, and avoiding personal information being shared such as their birthday or social security number.
The cybersecurity company said consumers should also look for “https” at the beginning of a website URL, which indicates a secure connection, and use credit cards rather than debit cards for online shopping, which offer better protection and less liability if stolen.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
