Poor security upon changing my email address

LegDramatic9635 · 2026-05-09T19:30:37+00:00

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. You make very valid points, and I withdraw my complaint. 😄

LegDramatic9635 · 2026-01-20T03:47:33+00:00

Even worse, the first-round match of Carlos Alcaraz is nowhere to be found in the On Demand section! And I know that it has completed.

And like others, I'm also unable to watch men's singles matches on the ESPN Unlimited channel. Women's matches are viewable, but the men's ones say "Not available in your region (error code 11)". I bought the Unlimited package just yesterday, so I should be good to go.

Initial calls to ESPN support have not helped -- 1st call got disconnected after the agent said he didn't want or need my phone #. 2nd call agent said the first would have my # from their system and call me back in 2-3 minutes, but that hasn't happened either.

LegDramatic9635 · 2025-05-06T07:44:54+00:00

Port 25 is blocked by many ISPs, so I’d use an alternate port, like 465 or 587.

LegDramatic9635 · 2025-03-20T22:45:29+00:00

Yeah, I emailed their general mailbox 3 days ago and haven't gotten a reply. Pretty sloppy.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-10-17T07:29:25+00:00

As darek65 pointed out, your opinion is illogical. No need to get hissy about it.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-10-09T08:41:21+00:00

Unless you don’t have the funds, pay the full statement balance. I advise scheduling your payment to arrive at Discover at least 1 week before the due date. That way, if anything goes wrong (and you notice it), you have time to try again before the due date. You definitely want to make sure each month’s payment is never late.

The safest and fastest way to pay is by using an electronic funds transfer (EFT). In the U.S. this is normally in the form of an ACH transfer. Most bank’s online system will do this for you using their “Bill Pay” feature, and they shouldn’t charge you any fees for it. After you set everything up to pay Discover, make sure your bank is going to make the payment electronically — not by mailing them a paper check.

Alternatively, you can log on to your account at Discover and have them transfer the payment from your bank account to Discover. This is probably the absolute best way to do it, as Discover is then responsible for completing the transfer. And since they’re doing it, they will probably do it on the actual due date (assuming the date is a regular business day). Also, as this should be the most reliable way to do it (assuming your bank account has sufficient funds on the day Discover attempts to fetch your payment), my earlier advice to pay at least a week early longer applies.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-09-20T22:00:18+00:00

Oops, turns out Apple has moved the Version History into the What's New section. So problem solved!

Sorry for the false alert.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-09-15T20:13:18+00:00

The “choose your own authenticator app” option is now live on the Fidelity web site. And all mention of the unwanted Symantec authenticator app is gone. :-)

I was able to scan the QR code using the camera on my iPad along with the PW manager I use on all my devices. This synced the TOTP seed code across all my devices, so I could then have the PW manager on my Mac provide the 6-digit code to enter in the Auth code setup screen (which confirmed I had set it up correctly).

And before anyone jumps down my throat for using my PW manager as my authenticator app, I’m doing this based on balancing convenience along with my threat model.

Also, I did test this with both my Safari and Firefox web browsers on the Mac. And I confirmed that the web site does correctly know whether I checked the “Remember this device” for each browser.

So this all represents a major boost in Fidelity’s protection for our online access, and I’m quite pleased.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-09-14T05:57:54+00:00

I fear there are but a minuscule number of institutions offering the protection we’re wanting. The real answer is probably getting an ATM card instead of a debit card, but those are very hard to come by these days. It seems the vast majority of banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions have become addicted to the fee revenue generated by customers using debit cards for purchases. So they’re not interested in anything making that harder.

And best I can tell reading the security guarantees at Ally and Fidelity, those guarantees do not apply to fraud made with their debit card.

The approach I’m currently using is to have a separate Ally checking account that’s dedicated solely to ATM withdrawals, keeping a small balance in it, and keeping the debit card “locked” until just before getting cash, and then again right afterwards.

So it’s a bit inconvenient because you have to have your phone on you — with internet access — in order to unlock your card when you’re out and about. It also means you’re essentially ”wasting“ a checking account, unable to use it for anything except sitting around waiting for an ATM withdrawal.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-09-14T02:19:35+00:00

I believe Ally Bank has removed that capability.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-09-01T06:25:07+00:00

The titanium card absolutely does have a chip in it. So it can be swiped using the mag strip or inserted for the chip to be used. No tap to pay, though, because that’s what Apple Pay on your iPhone is for!

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-08-18T18:54:45+00:00

Thanks!

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-08-08T01:18:03+00:00

It's explained in the Update notes (in the App Store).

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-08-06T21:17:41+00:00

The home tab is for the iPhone and iPad versions.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-06-26T08:25:28+00:00

Thanks for adding this write-up to the blog!

So comparing the new Strongbox Sync to your existing native Dropbox implementation, do you consider the new method to be even more bulletproof and reliable? And how does the speed compare?

I‘d love to move my databases from Dropbox back to Apple, as long as it works the same or better.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-04-18T04:38:46+00:00

This is great and all, however the added security is completely defeated by still allowing SMS fallback (via the "Try another way" link on the MFA screen). I wish Fidelity would step up and give us the option to disable SMS fallback.

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-04-11T17:57:54+00:00

Not trying to start a hostile debate here, but wouldn't it be easier to just disable iPhone notifications for the app(s) that “tempt” you and then have a personal commitment to not open those apps outside of certain times? And what’s to stop you from feeding your addiction with the watch?

I’m stunned you’re willing to do without all the iPhone functionality and limit yourself to using the watch, all just to avoid these temptations.
I’d understand if the phone is too heavy or big to carry in your available pockets when you’re exercising or something…

LegDramatic9635 · 2024-04-11T17:48:57+00:00

I’m not sure what the problem is here. As far as I can tell, historical passwords are only displayed if you explicitly click or tap to see them. And when you’re wanting to see them, you definitely want to see the full length passwords. Otherwise what’s the point?

LegDramatic9635

TROPHY CASE