The Chinese military wants to get inside the Times and your devices. Never mind the NY Times [1] – for your own good, don’t open that PDF [2]. A wide variety of hackers want access to our individual computers, tablets, and phones – even Apple and Facebook are not immune [3]. We walk into an office products or computer store and our enthusiasm for the latest gadget is limitless -- they must be fast enough to view video or to surf bloated websites. So we watch a demo and walk out of the store hundreds of dollars lighter. If the sales rep doesn’t tell us what to buy (extra set-up, patches and updates, virus protection software) and we don’t know any better, we arrive home with our virus-ready, hacker-friendly technology, all set to make us look like idiots to our contacts and colleagues as we send fake emails and phony porn links.

Tech SKUs [4] are unfinished on the shelf, worse than knock-down furniture. The basic utilities that are packaged with commercial and consumer devices are subject to broad-based attacks: the browsers and document content tools invite malware from across the globe. Email [5] with or without attachments is a threat. Even up-to-minute OS releases and updates don’t assure smooth operation [6]. Not all updates address security: many also repair functional issues. So tech geeks spend hours and effort to update and it still isn’t enough. But if you don’t update, your risks are magnified -- and our negligence is noticeable [7].

Device multiplication exacerbates the need for vigilance. Smart phones, the latest tablets [8], laptops, desktops (even automobiles) contain complex software components that are never complete, never 100% stable and increasingly challenging to master by the end-user [9] – only 60% of adults agree to update when prompted by the software, and that's assuming it has been installed with a setting to prompt. Well-meaning organizations that want to help seniors connect – like libraries, volunteers in senior centers, and senior housing organizations that seeks a competitive edge – can be overwhelmed by tech that offers nothing more than a mediocre start at a safe-to-use solution.

Special care solutions are not enough -- manufacturers must change. The Geek squad strategy [10] – asking the consumer to pay extra to fix problems after the fact -- is akin to closing the gate when the chickens are in the next state, and the computer or device is not, shall we say, the most state-of-the-art. Hardware vendors – it doesn’t matter which – need pressure from large enterprises that are struggling with BYOD employees (Bring Your Own Device [11]). Let’s hope that the firms like Apple and Facebook get their own security houses in order and then set an example for others. Companies must do a better job of locking down their networks and devices -- and when they get it right, the rest of us in consumer-land can follow their lead. Until then, no need to use your imagination – nefarious nightmares await.