In February, conservative undercover-video activist James O’Keefe left the nonprofit he founded, Project Veritas, amid a dispute with his board over his spending and treatment of employees.
VCS-257 tricks - Administration of Veritas InfoScale Storage 7.1 for UNIX/Linux
VCS-257 Administration of Veritas InfoScale Storage 7.1 for UNIX/Linux
Exam Title : Veritas Certified Specialist (VCS) - InfoScale Storage
Exam ID : VCS-257
Exam Duration : 120 mins
Questions in exam : 80-90
Passing Score : 69%
Exam Center : Pearson VUE
Real Questions : Veritas InfoScale Storage Administration Real Questions
VCE practice questions : Veritas VCS-257 Certification VCE Practice Test
Overview and Architecture
- Define the types, purpose, and benefits of storage virtualization.
- Define the benefits and components of Veritas InfoScale Storage for UNIX/Linux including Storage Foundation and Storage Foundation Cluster File System with Volume Manager, File System, Dynamic Multi-Pathing, Dynamic Multi-Pathing for VMware, Veritas InfoScale Operations Manager, Storage Foundation for databases, Veritas File Replicator, and Veritas Volume Replicator.
- Identify InfoScale Storage physical and virtual objects.
- Demonstrate an understanding of advanced InfoScale Storage architectures including Flexible Storage Sharing and replicating solutions.
Installation and Configuration
- Demonstrate the ability to install, license, and configure InfoScale Storage for UNIX/Linux using the common product installer (CPI).
- Demonstrate understanding of the InfoScale Storage Command Line Interface (CLI) and Veritas InfoScale Operations Manager (VIOM).
- Describe how to configure and manage private and shared disk groups.
- Describe how to create and delete concatenated, striped, mirrored, RAID-5, and layered volumes.
- Describe how to create and configure local and clustered Veritas File Systems.
- Describe how to configure volumes by adding mirrors and logs.
Managing and Reporting
- Describe how to perform file system administration.
- Describe how InfoScale Storage supports thin provisioning, including thin reclamation.
- Describe how to perform basic troubleshooting and recovery to address InfoScale Storage failures.
- Describe how to use Veritas InfoScale Operations Manager (VIOM) to manage and monitor an InfoScale Storage environment.
- Identify the InfoScale Storage tools used to monitor and analyze performance.
- Describe how to perform online administrative tasks for Veritas Volume Manager.
- Describe how the kernel components manage the InfoScale Storage architecture.
- Describe how to administer Dynamic Multi-Pathing for storage management and reporting.
- Describe how to manage InfoScale Storage snapshots and storage checkpoints, including checkpoint visibility and checkpoint auto-mounting.
- Identify the file systems that would benefit from File System data compression and deduplication features and describe how to use them.
- Describe how to configure the Site Awareness feature of InfoScale Storage.
- Define the InfoScale Storage capabilities for Storage Tiering using SmartTier.
- Describe how to configure and manage SmartIO.
Veritas Administration tricks
Other Veritas exams
VCS-257 Administration of Veritas InfoScale Storage 7.1 for UNIX/LinuxVCS-413 Administration of Veritas eDiscovery Platform 8.2 for Administrators
VCS-260 Administration of Veritas InfoScale Availability 7.3 for UNIX/Linux
VCS-261 Administration of Veritas InfoScale Storage 7.3 for UNIX/Linux
VCS-278 Administration of Veritas NetBackup 8.1.2
VCS-325 Administration of Veritas Backup Exec 20.1
Project Veritas, a conservative group known for using covert recordings to embarrass its political opponents, has agreed to settle two federal lawsuits that accused it of underpaying employees and having a “highly sexualized” work atmosphere.
The settlement of the labor suit, which accused Project Veritas of failing to pay overtime, was approved on Monday by a judge in White Plains, N.Y., near where the group is based. According to court papers, Project Veritas agreed to pay $270,000 to resolve the claim, with $15,000 to be paid by a human resources and payroll company that worked with the organization. Just over $213,000 will be divided among six former employees and the remainder will go to legal fees.
A sexual harassment suit filed at the same time as the labor suit, on behalf of a former Project Veritas employee, Antonietta Zappier, was “voluntarily dismissed,” according to a court document dated Tuesday. Her lawyer, Arthur Z. Schwartz, said the parties had reached an “amicable settlement” but that its terms were confidential.
When publicizing its secret recordings, Project Veritas has typically presented itself as bringing to light information that influential figures and institutions would prefer to keep hidden. The two lawsuits, filed last summer, could be seen as turning the tables, offering an insider’s view of an organization that has had powerful political allies and donors.
The Zappier suit said that drug use was “rampant” within the group and that supervisors were sexually involved with subordinates. It also said a corporate apartment the organization kept was used like a “frat house” for drinking, sex and parties.
Both suits were filed by Mr. Schwartz, a former general counsel for Acorn, a community organizing group that dissolved in 2010 after a sting operation carried out in part by James O’Keefe, Project Veritas’s founder. Mr. O’Keefe left the group earlier this year during an uproar among employees that included complaints about his management and spending.
In a letter to the judge overseeing the labor case, Mr. Schwartz described Project Veritas as being in turmoil, saying that Mr. O’Keefe had been its principal fund-raiser and that it had lost tens of thousands of social media followers after his departure.
“Project Veritas thrived for years by exploiting young videographers and film editors,” Mr. Schwartz wrote in an emailed statement, adding that the group’s leaders knew that was unlawful.
Justin T. Kelton, a lawyer for Project Veritas, said in a statement that with regard to the labor case, his clients had acted legally and appropriately and continued to deny the allegations.
“Ultimately, our clients’ strong defenses to these claims led to this quick resolution,” he wrote. “They are happy to be moving forward.”
Mr. Kelton declined to comment on the sexual harassment case brought by Ms. Zappier. Christopher Clarke and Gerard Misk, lawyers who represented Michael Spadone, described in Ms. Zappier’s suit as a Project Veritas “field director,” also declined to comment. So did Mr. Schwartz. Mr. O’Keefe did not comment on the settlements when asked about them.
Ms. Zappier’s lawsuit came two months after Project Veritas filed a lawsuit against her and her husband, Vincent Zappier. The group accused her of breaching the terms of a separation agreement, and her husband of harassing its employees. Mr. Schwartz said that lawsuit had been withdrawn. A lawyer for Project Veritas declined to comment.
Other legal issues remain for Project Veritas. Its defamation suit against The New York Times is continuing. And the Justice Department is investigating how Project Veritas acquired a diary kept by Ashley Biden, President Biden’s daughter, before the 2020 election. Mr. O’Keefe’s home was searched by F.B.I. agents in 2021 as part of that inquiry.
Although Project Veritas describes its employees as journalists, its operations often diverge from standard journalistic practice, with operatives masking their identities or creating bogus ones. Since its founding more than a decade ago, Project Veritas has appeared to cultivate a leading role in the nation’s culture wars and to relish rattling its targets.
The lawsuit by Ms. Zappier, who worked as an administrative assistant from September 2019 to March 2022, contained details that could have similarly riled her onetime employer.
The central claim was that Ms. Zappier had been harassed and assaulted by Mr. Spadone, whom she accused of groping and kissing her in December 2021. But it also included the names of employees and the identities of operatives, information that the group has taken care to shield.
Ms. Zappier’s suit said she had dealt with Mr. O’Keefe’s parking tickets and laundry and signed his name on thousands of books for donors who had contributed a minimum of $200 for autographed copies.
The suit also said that Mr. O’Keefe wanted young female operatives he referred to as “pretty young things” to go on undercover dates, and that he mandated that operatives review copies of the book and movie “Red Sparrow,” about a Russian intelligence agent trained in “sexpionage.”
© Provided by HuffPost
At a accurate Board of Education meeting in the town of Jericho, New York, an agitated mother took the mic to address the administrators and trustees seated at the dais. “Are children in the middle school and high school asked what their pronouns are?” Julianna Feigenbaum inquired. “He? She? They? It? Unicorn?”
Everyone in the room knew why she was asking: the Project Veritas video.
Over the last few years, the humble school board meeting has gone from a space to discuss sundry budgetary issues and school superlatives to the front line of this country’s culture war. A sustained conservative crusade over the supposed inclusion of “critical race theory” in elementary, middle and high school curricula has set the stage for attacks on other subjects pertaining to diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI — namely, sexuality and gender identity.
And thanks to at least three undercover videos released by the right-wing organization Project Veritas, all of which show, without any context, Long Island public school staff members discussing gender and sexuality, multiple administrators and teachers are facing professional consequences — and finding that many parents have decided they can no longer be trusted to work with their children.
Perhaps you haven’t heard of Project Veritas by name, but you might be familiar with its work. Remember the 2009 takedown of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), a collection of advocacy groups for low-income families connected to President Barack Obama? Project Veritas was behind that, with founder James O’Keefe posing as a pimp. Or how about the videos promoted by Donald Trump’s campaign and its surrogates in 2020 that erroneously accused Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) of ballot harvesting? Yup, that was Project Veritas, too.
The Project Veritas attacks go beyond these stunts, causing real-life suffering to their subjects. ACORN was stripped of its federal funding after the sting. Omar, who had already been threatened as one of two Muslim women in Congress, became even more of a conservative target thanks to what a spokesperson at the time called “a coordinated right wing effort to delegitimize a free and fair election.”
In February, Project Veritas’ board ousted O’Keefe from the organization over alleged financial malfeasance, leaving some to wonder if the group would be able to make it without its highly visible and theatrical leader. “Without him, I don’t think they exist,” Ryan Girdusky, a former Project Veritas employee and founder of a PAC focused on electing conservatives to school boards, told the conservative blog RedState shortly after O’Keefe’s departure. “It would be like having a White Stripes concert without Jack White.”
But just a month later, the organization was stirring up controversies in New York — having set its sights on DEI efforts at Jericho, East Williston, Manhasset and East Meadow public schools. Troubled GOP Rep. George Santos, who represents three of the four towns in Congress, added fuel to the fire.
The videos were an escalation of the group’s prior attacks on two private schools: In September, Trinity School in Manhattan put an administrator on leave after an undercover clip of her discussing her liberal “agenda” was published; the school later announced she was “no longer employed.” And in December, a dean at a private school in Chicago found himself in the eye of a right-wing media firestorm when a Project Veritas operative released an undercover video of him talking about LGBTQ-inclusive sex education. After the video’s release, the K-12 school had to be evacuated due to a bomb threat.
There is a nationwide conservative effort to keep kids from learning about different genders, sexualities, races and religions — anything that threatens the white Christian status quo — and the involvement of Project Veritas, a group with a long record of producing misleading videos, in this fight signals conservatives’ willingness to do whatever it takes to win the culture war.
The Videos
It’s evident from watching the videos that the Long Island educators were likely filmed without their knowledge. The shots are poorly framed and filmed from below, indicating that whoever was filming was attempting to hide their recording device. They catch the subjects during meals and conference sessions where they make off-the-cuff comments about their evolving views on how to approach gender and sexuality in schools when they know they’re under a microscope from parents and media.
The first such video Project Veritas released features Dave Casamento, the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction at East Meadow School District, apparently answering a question about hiring for the district.
“I think I said this before, but people don’t give up power, you have to take it from them. … You stop hiring those types of people,” Casamento says, apparently referring to conservatives. “We created a whole rubric for hiring in light of DEI.”
“It’s all secret,” he continues. “So, I would rank them [conservatives] so low [in their interview process] that their score couldn’t possibly raise them up to the level of moving on.” He also shared that, as an out gay man, “My sexual identity was always a part of my work because I believe in making connections with kids.”
Casamento did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment about the video.
I particularly love working with families and helping them ... through their children’s journey of sexuality and gender.Elisa Waters, a middle school teacher, in a Project Veritas video
Two of the videos appear to have been filmed during an event hosted by LGBTeach, an organization that provides teachers with resources to better connect with their LGBTQ+ students.
One was about six and a half minutes long and featured several teachers, including Mike Smith, an American Sign Language teacher at East Meadow. In the video, he discusses gender-affirming care for trans teens, including the potential benefits of hormone blockers.
Smith did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment. A district spokesperson for East Meadow declined to comment on Smith’s employment status; it is not clear if he has been punished.
Santos tweeted the video on March 9 and wrote: “They always say it’s not a ‘coordinated effort’ then what is this? #ProtectOurChildren.” The lawmaker’s office did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
Four days later, Project Veritas released another video from the LGBTeach event. In it, LGBTeach founder Elisa Waters, a middle school Spanish teacher in Jericho, talks about supporting LGBTQ+ kids.
“I particularly love working with families and helping them, you know, practicing, you know, affirmation through their children’s journey of sexuality and gender,” she says in the recording.
Waters also seems to acknowledge that it can be risky for new teachers, who don’t have the job security of tenure, to openly express their views. “I always tell untenured teachers, ‘You’re going to have more longevity making change if you maybe play it a little safer for a little longer’… Lean on your tenured colleagues to do some of this [DEI] work because we need you,” she says. Waters declined to speak to HuffPost while the investigation is underway.
In a post about the video on the group’s website, Project Veritas characterized Waters’ comments as “grooming,” a derogatory term conservatives often use to ostracize LGBTQ+ people and their allies.
© Provided by HuffPost Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) has tweeted out Project Veritas videos of teachers in his congressional district.
Donald Gately, the assistant superintendent of Manhasset schools, and Joseph Wiener, principal of the East Williston school district’s high school, were briefly featured conversing elsewhere in the same video. (Gately is married to Danielle Gately, the superintendent of the East Williston school district.)
“If you’re a teacher now, you’ve got kids with parents, some of whom are extremely conservative and right-wing,” Donald Gately says in the video. “Now you’re gonna make people make — they’re gonna connect politics to DEI work. And the purity that you feel about DEI work now gets complicated and fraught, and pushed back on. … I have to calibrate my approach to diversity, equity and inclusion through that lens.”
Wiener defends bringing in speakers to his school to speak about anti-racism.
“There’s no in-between,” he says. “If you’re not doing anti-racist work, then you are contributing to racial divide.”
Santos tweeted out that video as well, writing: “This is in #NY03 seems like a good reason to get back out there and remind teachers that their job is to EDUCATE not Indoctrinate.”
The Fallout
Many of the people featured in the videos have faced significant backlash, with board meetings growing tense and some parents calling for repercussions — and succeeding.
The Manhasset school district’s Board of Education meeting on March 16 erupted into a debate about Donald Gately’s appearance in the video. Project Veritas operatives even seemed to be in attendance, as one parent addressed the group directly and the organization later released a video of an interaction at the meeting.
One mother who said “We don’t want DEI in our schools” claimed that students weren’t learning core subjects like English and math because of a disproportionate emphasis on social justice, gender and sexuality. “Where is the color representation of heterosexuals on the Pride flag?” she asked the board.
Manhasset alumna Nicole Kipperlove spoke out against what she characterized as “the blatant, shameless, brutal indoctrination of kids in different school districts.”Kipperlove also happens to be chief of staff to Republican New York City Councilmember Vickie Paladino and has a leadership position with the New York Young Republicans Club, a group that has embraced and hosted events featuring conspiracy theorists and white nationalists.
“I actually want to thank Project Veritas for exposing this corruption of our kids throughout different school districts and encouraging parents to speak up in order to protect their kids,” Kipperlove said, raising her voice. “There is nothing wrong with that!”
A group identifying themselves only as “Manhasset Parents” went on to email administrators on March 29, indicating they were eager for Donald Gately to suffer consequences.
“We request that the Board of Trustees promptly place Dr. Gately on leave until the investigation is complete,” the parents wrote. “As you know, the board has a legal and fiduciary obligation to investigate this matter and we therefore respectfully request your immediate attention.”
Donald Gately did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
When reached for comment, an external spokesperson for the Manhasset school district — the same used by the East Meadow and East Williston districts — referred HuffPost to an email Manhasset Superintendent Gaurav Passi had previously sent to the community.
“The videos are concerning because they suggest that Districts on Long Island conspire in their hiring practices to root out candidates based on their political beliefs and that Districts are covertly pushing a particular agenda into both hiring practices and curriculum,” Passi wrote. “If this were true about Manhasset, it would certainly be cause for concern. Let me assure you, it is not.”
Please don’t get confused by a Project Veritas report if all you have to do is Google 'Project Veritas' and take a look at all the different ways they’ve been sued for misinformation.Mike Harnett, high school teacher
In Jericho, an outside attorney is investigating Waters’ conduct — which Superintendent Henry Grishman confirmed at the March 30 Board of Education meeting where some community members butted heads with educators. Grishman said attendees wouldn’t be allowed to discuss Waters by name.
“I have four children in this district and I don’t feel comfortable sending them to class because I don’t think, in the spirit of transparency, you guys know what the teachers are teaching,” said Feigenbaum, the parent who asked about pronouns.
Grishman’s reply to that remark is one many administrators nationwide could use to defend their staff.
“For 18 months, we were teaching our kids in your living rooms,” he said, referring to the remote learning that took place during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. “You heard every statement and every lesson that our teachers shared with our students. Kindergarten through 12th grade. You had an opportunity … to watch the quality of instruction that our teachers deliver to our kids.”
There were no complaints about how discussions of gender or sexuality were incorporated into class time, he said.
Mike Harnett, a teacher at Jericho High School for more than 30 years, echoed Grishman.
“Parents have never been shy about complaining in the school district,” he said. “I will hear about everything. I have not heard about this. Please don’t get confused by a Project Veritas report if all you have to do is Google ‘Project Veritas’ and take a look at all the different ways they’ve been sued for misinformation.” (The organization has faced myriadlegal troubles. Just this past September, it lost a lawsuit brought by a Democratic consulting firm that said Project Veritas had used deceptive recording practices that harmed its business.)
Casamento, the assistant superintendent in East Meadow, has been “administratively reassigned” and will not be present in any school buildings while an investigation is conducted, according to a letter the Board of Education president, Alisa Baroukh, sent to the community on March 10.
Asked about the status of Casamento’s employment and whether the district has any plans to protect staff and students from possible future Project Veritas confrontations, East Meadow Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Card replied through an external spokesperson: “The district does not discuss ongoing personnel matters. The safety procedures in place are consistent with our district safety plan and building emergency response plans.”
Danielle Gately, the superintendent of the East Williston school district who is married to Donald Gately, was the only administrator to explicitly and publicly condemn Project Veritas’ tactics. In a March 14 letter to the community, she addressed East Williston principal Wiener’s appearance in the video.
“He was filmed without his knowledge or permission while answering questions about experiences with a diversity, equity, and inclusion situation at his former district,” she wrote. “The organization edited the video and altered the context of the conversation.”
East Williston has not announced an investigation into Wiener and has resisted calls to investigate Casamento, who previously worked for the district.
Some parents have demanded a retroactive investigation into Casamento’s hiring practices and have continued to push culture wars further.
On March 15, two days after the Project Veritas video featuring Wiener was released, the school district’s Board of Education announced that the book “Gender Queer” by Maia Kobabe would be “temporarily removed from circulation to allow for further clarification with respect to the appropriate audience for the book.” The memoir about exploring sexuality and gender identity is one of the most banned books in the country.
© Provided by HuffPost
A group of East Williston parents has also created a petition calling for “parental transparency,” a copy of which was shared with HuffPost. In the document, they demand that students not be “exposed to curricula or content related to gender ideology, sex acts (outside of approved sex-ed), sex orientation, racial superiority/privilege, skin color comparisons, restorative justice & active social/political issues without an explicit opt-in from a parent or guardian,” and that “school personnel shall limit expressions (ex: verbal, clothing) regarding the above categories while on duty, on school premises or on social media accounts associated or identifying with” the schools.
The loud opposition isn’t, however, representative of all parents in the district.
In a WhatsApp group, some East Williston parents are pushing back on those who are celebrating the removal of “Gender Queer” from the school library.
“You are just doing what you seem to be best at, which is jump to conclusions, spread your version of what you think is going on and brow beat anyone who questions your opinion or thoughts,” one wrote in response to a message arguing that the book “provides validity and normality to something that is not normal.”
And at school board meetings, some parents have supported the educators in the videos.
Paula Geslani, the parent of a Jericho High School student, told HuffPost she sees Waters’ comments as an effort to bring “humanity” to students who are struggling. And she takes issue with the way this one video has, for some people, completely wiped out core truths about Jericho’s schools.
“What concerned me was the parents that were getting up and saying that the quality of our teachers is no longer there,” Geslani said after the meeting. “The people that live in Jericho, I would say 80% of them have moved to this district for the school and the teachers, and it is the same quality of teachers it’s always been. They have the same commitment they always have.”
In Manhasset, parent Vasu Krishnamurthy stood to address Project Veritas directly.
“Their laughable brand of fakery and cynical fanning of division is not welcome in Manhasset,” he said. “Please pack your circus and get out, and stay out.”
All this came as a surprise to the Project Veritas board, according to a lawsuit it filed Wednesday against O’Keefe. Project Veritas insists that its founder remained an employee until barely two weeks ago — even as he set up a rival organization.
Now Project Veritas is alleging that O’Keefe broke a nondisparagement clause and other parts of his employment contract during his messy exit from the organization. The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of New York, includes claims that O’Keefe spent large sums of donors’ money on himself, allegedly including a $150,000 bill on luxury black-car service and $10,000 on a helicopter flight to Maine.
“Being known as the founder of an organization does not entitle that person to run amok and put his own interests ahead of that organization,” the complaint reads.
O’Keefe did not respond to requests for comment. In a statement to The Washington Post, Project Veritas said it is “facing many challenges that are familiar to young organizations.”
“We are making major changes internally due to the nature of our past interpersonal and managerial issues,” the statement reads. “We are more committed than ever to producing great journalism that exposes the stubborn false narratives plaguing our society.”
The lawsuit marks a new escalation in the battle between O’Keefe and the nonprofit he turned into a conservative powerhouse.
O’Keefe rose to prominence on the right in 2009, when he targeted left-wing organizing group ACORN with a sting that featured him dressed as a pimp. ACORN declared bankruptcy in the ensuing controversy, and O’Keefe and his videos aimed at perceived enemies of the right became fixtures on conservative media outlets such as Fox News.
But O’Keefe’s rising celebrity masked dissatisfaction from some employees at Project Veritas, which he had founded as a nonprofit in 2010 to fund his stings. In February, unhappy employees presented the board with a list of allegations against O’Keefe, claiming he subjected staffers to what one described as a “public crucifixion” when he was displeased.
The board investigated allegations that O’Keefe screamed at his subordinates during meetings and used employees for personal errands, such as cleaning his boat, among other claims.
Employees also raised questions about O’Keefe’s use of donor money, which the lawsuit alleges occasionally went to his first-class travel and luxury hotel stays. The board grew panic that O’Keefe’s spending could put its nonprofit status in jeopardy with the Internal Revenue Service, according to a memo reported by The Post.
On Feb. 6, the board put O’Keefe on leave, prompting an outcry from allies in conservative media and the Republican Party. “Not sure what PV does without James,” Donald Trump Jr. tweeted.
Even after O’Keefe was put on leave, Project Veritas claims in the lawsuit, O’Keefe used one of the organization’s credit cards to spend about $19,000 on his personal expenses.
After leaving Project Veritas, O’Keefe quickly launched a rival undercover-camera operation called the O’Keefe Media Group, or “OMG.” Project Veritas’s lawsuit alleges that O’Keefe violated other provisions of his contract by attempting to recruit donors and employees from Project Veritas.
Project Veritas is also suing two former Project Veritas communications staffers, R.C. Maxwell and Anthony Iatropoulos. The lawsuit alleges the two men, like O’Keefe, used Project Veritas’s resources to launch the competing group, and refused to return Project Veritas laptops they allegedly used to set up O’Keefe’s new organization.
I read the comments below on each of my CyberGuy reports including great feedback on our story "Tips to help you tell if an online store is real or a scam."
I'm grateful when you share your own experiences such as what Randy F. had to say below:
"I would suggest that people not use PayPal. I have had two incidents using fraudulent sites. One was on eBay and the other was directly to the Vendor, which was not the genuine site of the appropriate business. The first incident I was referred to was eBay owned by PayPal. You have to try and resolve the issue with the Vendor. In this case, the vendor offered a refund if I shipped the bogus item back to them. Shipping, with tracking, was more than the amount I paid. The second ended up out of China, the jewelry was a knockoff. PayPal wouldn’t do anything else."
PayPal is a very common way for people to pay for things and typically has great security features. However, this does not exclude the platform from its fair share of scammers, as we can see from Randy's story.
Let's go over some key things to remember when using PayPal and how you can protect yourself.
WATCH OUT FOR THIS ZELLE IMPOSTER SCAM ON FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE
PayPal is a very common way for people to pay for things and typically has great security features. However, this does not exclude the platform from its fair share of scammers, as we can see from Randy's story. (Kurt Knutsson)
What are some common PayPal scams?
Email scams
Certain scams happen on PayPal that are more common than other ones. Perhaps one of the most common is email scams. Scammers love using email as their main form of communication and typically, one will reach out to a victim and say that their PayPal account information has been compromised, and they must act immediately by clicking a bogus link. This is a common phishing tactic and can easily be avoided.
Reward Scams
Another common scam used will offer a victim some kind of reward. Once again, the scammer will send an email saying that the victim has received a promotional offer and will ask them to log into their PayPal account. However, the link attached will lead to a fake website that looks like PayPal, and once you hand over your login information, the scammer will then have access to all the financial information stored on your account.
PAYPAL HACKER ATTACK EXPOSES CUSTOMER NAMES AND SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS
Shipping scams
Sellers are just as vulnerable to PayPal scams as buyers are, and shipping scams are especially common. If you're using PayPal as a payment method when selling an item on a site like eBay, for example, a scammer might ask you to use a different courier once they purchase the items and will then reroute the package to a different address. This allows the scammer to go back to the seller and claim that they never received the package, leaving the seller no choice but to refund the package, leaving them with no item and no money.
Another big scam is the prepaid shipping label scam. This is when a scammer will ask the seller to ship an item to them using their prepaid label to cover the shipping charges. ( )
Prepaid shipping label scam
Another big scam is the prepaid shipping label scam. This is when a scammer will ask the seller to ship an item to them using their prepaid label to cover the shipping charges. This gives the scammer full control over where the package ends up, and the label could have a completely fake address on the label. If this is the case, PayPal cannot help the seller who got scammed because there can't be a record of where the package went.
TO GET MORE OF MY SECURITY ALERTS, SUBSCRIBE TO MY FREE CYBERGUY REPORT NEWSLETTER AT CYBERGUY.COM/NEWSLETTER
What can I do to protect myself from a PayPal scam?
There are a few things you can do to avoid these scams from happening to you. Here are some of my top tips.
Do not click any suspicious links
As we mentioned before, phishing emails are some of the most common ways that a scammer will try to get you. If you receive an email from an unknown sender, and it urges you to click a link or open an attachment, don't fall for it. Also, if the sender is claiming to be from PayPal, make sure you look up the email address and see if it's legit.
Never wire money
Wiring money to someone you've never met is a big red flag that you're being scammed. When you are paying for something online, see if you can at least pay with a credit, that way, your payment can be easily traced, and your bank or credit card company can always help you get a refund.
Wiring money to someone you've never met is a big red flag that you are being scammed. ( )
Always ship to the Transaction Details address
PayPal has a Transaction Details page whenever a purchase is made. If you are a seller, and you have to ship an item to a buyer, make sure you're only sending it to the address that's listed on the Transaction Details page. This way, you're more in control of where the package will end up, and PayPal will be able to assist you if the buyer is claiming never to have received it.
CONFESSIONS FROM A VICTIM SCAMMED BY CYBER CREEPS
Do not accept shipping labels
If a buyer is offering you a prepaid shipping label, or if they're paying more for the item than it was listed "as a thank you for great service," don't fall for it. It is likely a scammer trying to reroute the package and then demand a refund.
Use antivirus software
Having good antivirus software running on your devices will only benefit you, as these PayPal scams can try to get you to click a link or open a suspicious attachment. Antivirus software on your devices will ensure you are stopped from clicking on any potential malicious links from PayPal scam artists.
See my expert review of the best antivirus protection for your Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices by visiting CyberGuy.com/LockUpYourTech.
FREE ANTIVIRUS: SHOULD YOU USE IT?
Have you been involved in a PayPal scam recently? Let us know by writing us at CyberGuy.com/Contact ( )
Have you been involved in a PayPal scam recently? Let us know by writing us at CyberGuy.com/Contact.
For more of my tips, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to CyberGuy.com/Newsletter.
Copyright 2023 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
A Project Veritas video claimed that it featured someone named “Jordon Trishton Walker, Pfizer ... [+]
Getty ImagesTucker Carlson has claimed on his FOX News show Tucker Carlson Tonight that there’s been “a near-total media blackout of this story.” But since there doesn’t seem to be any type of memo circulating to journalists telling them to not cover “this story,” let’s cover it now and see how much veritas it really has.
What’s “this story” that’s supposedly the subject of a media blackout according to Carlson? Well, Carlson has also tweeted the following about it: “Project Veritas just released an undercover video of a Pfizer executive bragging about how his company conducts Frankenstein science, manipulating COVID viruses for profit, and does it in secret, possibly in violation of federal law.”
Wow, a Pfizer exec bragging about “Frankenstein science?” That sounds like a monstrous revelation, doesn’t it? But before Carlson’s claim makes you sit bolt upright in your chair, keep in mind that this was Carlson who had said this. Yes, this was the Tucker Carlson whom John Oliver has called a “superspreader” of Covid-19 vaccine fears and doubts and a “scrunch-faced fear baboon,” as I covered on May 3, 2021, for Forbes. Now, to be fair, Carlson is not necessarily always “scrunch-faced.” He has also sported the “I’m concerned”, the “Whatcha talkin bout, Willis”, and the “I really have to go to the bathroom” facial expressions. But is there any truth to what Carlson has been claiming about this Project Veritas video or is it actually a hot air baboon situation?
Tucker Carlson of Fox News has claimed that “Project Veritas just released an undercover video of a ... [+]
Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesThe video appeared to be an undercover video because the footage was rather grainy and filmed at a rather awkward angle. It looked like the type of video taken to prove that someone’s significant other is doing more with the office manager than offic’ing and managing. This video featured someone described by Project Veritas as “Jordon Trishton Walker, Pfizer Director of Research and Development - Strategic Operations and mRNA Scientific Planning,” answering questions from an unidentified interviewer. So you could either take Project Veritas’s or Carlson’s words for it or search for this name on Google, Bing, or Duck Duck Go yourself. After all, someone with that kind of title should be fairly easy to find on the Internet, right?
Well, a Google search didn’t really reveal any legitimate source that could verify the person’s name and title. Similarly, a search on LinkedIn doesn’t reveal any such verifiable profiles either, just some accounts trying to spread his name. Some of these accounts are spelling the name slightly differently such as “Jordon Triston Walker” or “Jordan Triston Walker.” Of note, a search for “Triston” without the “h” did return an Urban Dictionary entry that described “Triston” as “a very hot and cute boy who always wants to disagree. Who has the softest hair in the entire world.” So if you are looking for someone hot, disagreeable, and really soft-haired, there is that.
OK, let’s suspend disbelief for a second and assume that the video featured an genuine Pfizer exec. Did the video then really show what Carlson claimed? Hmm, rather than one continuous piece of footage where you could see the real flow of the conversation, the video seemed more like a compilation of clips stitched together. That makes it difficult to tell whether a statement was taken out of context. For example, in the video, this so-called Walker guy explained, “We're exploring, like, you know how the virus keeps mutating? Well, one of the things we're exploring is like, why don't we just mutate it ourselves, so we could focus on, create, preemptively develop new vaccines, right?” That’s a little vague. You can’t tell for sure who “we” really is and whether he was talking about real plans or hypothetical ones.
At another point in the video, the interviewer asked, “Okay. So, Pfizer ultimately is thinking about mutating Covid?” To this the alleged Walker person responded, “Well that is not what we say to the public, no. That's why it was, it was a thought that came up in a meeting and we were like: 'Why do we not?'” And elsewhere in the video, the interviewer queried, “So, I mean, when is Pfizer going to implement the mutation of all these viruses?” This prompted the following reply from the this-is-supposed-to-be-Walker person: "I don't know, it depends on how the experiments work out because this is just like, something we're trying, right?"
On his show, Carlson subsequently used such statements in the video to conclude, “Well, it sounds a lot like the gain-of-function research you read about, the research that was occurring at the Wuhan lab just before Covid broke out of the lab and overturned the world and wrecked the U.S. economy.”
Umm, first of all, there is currently not enough evidence to say that “Covid broke out of the lab” after “gain-of-function research” as Carlson did. The preponderance of scientific evidence so far has strongly suggested that the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) had a natural origin instead, jumping from other animals to humans. So Carlson was really jumping from no real evidence to conclusions pretty quickly.
Secondly, thinking and talking about a possibility is not the same as saying that something is actually being done. For example, you can think about and talk about everything that you are going to do with Jason Mamoa, Emily Ratajkowski, or Triston and his soft, soft hair. But the chances of meeting any of them through Tinder may be pretty darn low. They have to actually be on Tinder. They have to swipe right and so do you. You have to chit chat a little bit. You have to say things like, “Aside from being sexy, what do you do for a living” and “Do you like raisins? How do you feel about a date?” You know, there are a lot of steps between conceptual discussions and reality. Similarly, without seeing the whole original unedited continuous footage of the Project Veritas video, you can’t really tell whether there was any genuine concrete discussion of Pfizer’s plans or whether everything was more of a theoretical discussion.
Can you say for sure that this Project Veritas video is fake or staged and that “Jordon Trishton Walker” is actually a crisis actor and that Triston doesn’t really have the softest hair in the world? No, not 100% at this moment. Walker may really be that person’s name and that stated Pfizer title may or may not be his real title. But one has to wonder why it’s so difficult to find and confirm his identity with verifiable sources. In this case, the emphasis is on the word “verifiable” versus some screen shot or photo that could have been easily made up or doctored.
Moreover, the way that this video has been pushed has been highly questionable. Claiming that this was video showed “a Pfizer executive bragging about how his company conducts Frankenstein science, manipulating COVID viruses for profit, and does it in secret, possibly in violation of federal law” seems to be quite a leap. There’s certainly no evidence of a “a near-total media blackout of this story,” unless by “a near-total blackout” you mean “no real blackout.” Journalists don’t tend to take anything that rings of censorship lightly. Look at how quickly journalists responded when Elon Musk suspended the Twitter accounts of several journalists after they reported on the @ElonJet account that followed the travels of Musk’s airplane or perhaps airplanes, as Bobby Allyn reported for NPR. What then is the likelihood that a “near total media blackout” could somehow be implemented without many journalists loudly crying foul?
Real journalists are obviously quite busy because a lot bleep is happening in the world. They tend to report on something only after there are enough facts to verify the story. Plus, just because you don’t see the articles yet, doesn’t mean that journalists aren’t researching it and looking further into what’s going on before deciding whether it deserves coverage. A marriage doesn’t happen overnight. Well, most marriages don’t, at least. Similarly, legitimate news articles don’t appear without the groundwork being done first.
Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe speaks during the Conservative Political Action Conference ... [+]
Getty ImagesIn this case, you’ve got to look at the source of this video, Project Veritas, as well. PBS News Hour has described Project Veritas as “a conservative group infamous for recording undercover videos” and “promoting voter fraud accusations on social media.” In the past, they’ve already been accused of putting together and disseminating “heavily edited” videos in efforts to target Democratic consultants, as described by Jonathan Stempel in an article for Reuters. Then there was the November 29, 2017, article for The Guardian with the headline, “Project Veritas: how fake news prize went to rightwing group beloved by Trump” and the subheading, “James O’Keefe’s organisation specialising in media stings received donations from Trump’s foundation but was caught red-handed peddling a false story.” In the article, Ed Pilkington described Project Veritas as “a discredited rightwing attack organization run by James O’Keefe that specializes in sting operations against liberal groups and the established media.” Does that sound like a credible news source?
That doesn’t mean that every single thing uttered by Carlson on his show was not credible. Carlson did say some things that do deserve more attention. He did express concerns about the power and influence of big pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. He exclaimed, “In this country, Big Pharma can advertise its drugs directly to consumers and that's a little strange if you think about it, since consumers don't prescribe drugs, doctors do. So, why are the drugs being advertised directly to consumers?” He also stated that “drug companies spend more on lobbying the Congress than any other industry, a lot more than any other industry and they don't do it by accident. They do it because it pays off. In a deal like this, a pretty remarkable deal, the drug companies have worked out with politicians. So, the government uses your tax dollars to buy billions worth of their products and then in some cases forces you to use those products.” While it’s not clear where pharmaceutical companies rank in terms of lobbying money versus other interests and industries such as coal and oil, you can’t deny that a lot lobbying has been happening.
So, yes, there should be more scrutiny over what big pharmaceutical companies do. Sure, one has to question the merits of allowing so much direct-to-consumer advertising where pharmaceutical companies can convince you that you have all these different ailments and start asking your genitals, “Are you all that you can be?” Sure, the public deserves more transparency from big pharmaceutical companies since they’ve benefited from billions upon billions of taxpayer money. Sure, pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer have needed to be more forthcoming about the Covid-19 vaccine research that they’ve conducted and are currently conducting. For example, during the Covid-19 pandemic, they’ve issued Covid-19 vaccine results via press releases before sharing the data with the broader scientific community to allow the community to assess the validity of the results first. That sets a dangerous precedent of pharmaceutical companies looking like they are unduly influencing health policy.
But Carlson’s claim that journalists haven’t been reporting on negative big pharma news because the media “take huge amounts of advertising dollars from Pfizer,” doesn’t match reality. You can find plenty of news articles from legitimate media outlets criticizing big pharmaceutical companies and their practices. Heck, just a couple weeks ago, many reported on concerns raised about Pfizer and Moderna hiking up prices of their Covid-19 vaccines four-fold, as I reported for Forbes. This was around the same time that legitimate media outlets had quickly reported on a possible “safety signal” for the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 bivalent booster vaccine as soon as verifiable sources had identified this possibility, which I also covered for Forbes.
So, in the end, this Project Veritas video really hasn’t proven or even provided strong evidence of anything. Sure, journalists are open to hearing more about this Walker person, if that indeed is his name, and whatever Pfizer may be doing as long as that info is supported by verifiable sources. Again, the emphasis here is on the word “verifiable.” But currently there’s a lot in the Project Veritas video that needs much further verification before you can make very strong statements about anything. Just because “veritas” may be in the title of something doesn’t mean that it is in the genuine material.
Duration: 01:35
James O'Keefe has been removed as Project Veritas CEO. O'Keefe, who founded the right-wing organization in 2010, was reportedly put on leave by the board in February 2023 following complaints about his treatment of staff. The board in a statement accused O’Keefe of “financial malfeasance” saying he spent an “excessive” amount of donor’s funds.
In a Windows operating system, an Administrator account is an account that allows a user to make changes that require administrative permissions. An Administrator has more rights on a Windows OS as compared to the users with a local account. For example, the users with a local or standard account can access files and folders on their own user space, make system changes that do not require administrative permissions, install and uninstall programs, etc. On the other hand, an Administrator can change security settings, install and uninstall software, add and remove users, make changes to other user accounts, etc. In short, to perform the tasks that require administrative permissions, you should be logged in as an Administrator. In this tutorial, we will see how to log in as an Administrator in Windows 11/10.
Every Windows computer has a Local Administrator account that is created at the time of Windows installation. As described above, the Administrator has full access to the Windows device as compared to other standard users. The Administrator can also create new and delete the existing users and change the user account permissions. You can log in as an Administrator in Windows 11/10 by:
- Using the existing Administrator Account
- Enabling the built-in Administrator account
- Creating a new Local Administrator account
- Changing the local or standard into an Administrator account
Let’s see all these methods in detail.
1] Using the existing Administrator Account
If you are starting your PC then locate the Administrator account and use the password to login.
If you are currently not logged in as an administrator and want to change to an admin, open Start, click on the user icon, select Sign out and then log into the Admin account by using its password.
2] Enabling the built-in Administrator account
The Windows OS has a built-in Administrator account. In Windows 11/10 and Windows Server 2016, the built-in Administrator account is disabled at the time of Windows installation and another local account is created which is the member of the Administrators group.
The built-in Administrator account is also called the Super Administrator account. If we compare the built-in Administrator account with the Local Administrator account, the built-in Administrator account has elevated privileges. This means when you perform the administrative tasks, you will not get the UAC prompt. Apart from that, if you want to do some serious troubleshooting on your Windows machine or if you want to recover your main account or another user account, you can use the built-in Administrator account.
Because the built-in Administrator account does not show the UAC prompt, any application can have full control over your system. Therefore, running this account on a regular basis can be risky. You should enable the built-in Administrator account only if you have to do some troubleshooting or recover other user accounts. After performing your task, you should disable it.
As explained above, every Windows OS has a Local Administrator account which is created at the time of Windows installation. Hence, you have to sign in to that Local Administrator account in order to enable the built-in Administrator account. After enabling the built-in Administrator account, you can login as an Administrator in Windows 11/10.
3] Creating a new Local Administrator account
Every Windows 11/10 computer has a default Local Administrator account which is created at the time of Windows installation. Using that account, you can create another Local Administrator account for another user. To do so, open the Accounts page in your Windows 11/10 Settings and then click on the Family & other users option. Now, you have two options:
- You can create a Local Administrator account for your family member.
- You can create a Local Administrator account for a person who is not your family member.
Let’s see how to create a Local Administrator account for a family member and other users.
Create a Local Administrator account for your family member
You can use this option if you have another Microsoft account and you want to add that account as an Administrator to your Windows computer.
- On the Family & other users page in Windows 11/10 Settings, click on the Add account button next to the Add a family member option.
- Enter the email address of the family member and click Next.
- Select the role (organizer or member) and click Invite. After that, an invite will be sent to the email address.
- Open the email address and accept the invitation. After accepting the invitation, that account will be added automatically to your Windows device.
- Now, open the Family & other users page in WIndows 11/10 Accounts settings and select the newly added account.
- Click Change account type and select Administrator in the drop-down and click OK.
Now, you can login as an Administrator in Windows 11/10 using that account.
Create a Local Administrator account for a person who is not your family member
If you do not have another Microsoft account, you can still create a Local Administrator account. This time, you have to add an account in the Other users section on the Family & other users page. The steps are as follows:
- Open the Family & other users page in Windows 11/10 Accounts settings.
- Click on the Add account button next to Add other user.
- You will be prompted to enter your email address. Click on the I don’t have this person’s sign-in information link.
- Now, click Add a user without a Microsoft account.
- Enter your username and password. After that, select the security questions and type your answers.
- Click Next.
- Now, select the newly created account and click Change account type.
- Select Administrator in the drop-down and click OK.
Now, you can use this account to login as an Administrator in Windows 11/10.
Read: How to rename built-in Administrator Account in Windows.
4] Changing the local or standard account into an Administrator account
If you already have created a local account on your Windows machine, you can change its type and use that account to login as an Administrator. The steps to change the local account to an Administrator account are as follows:
- Open the Family & other users page in Windows 11/10 Accounts settings.
- Select the local user account under the Other users section.
- Click on the Change account type button and select Administrator in the drop-down.
- Now, click OK.
How do I log onto my computer as an Administrator?
At the time of Windows installation, a Local Administrator account is created automatically. You can use that account to log onto your computer as an Administrator. Apart from that, you can also enable the hidden or built-in Administrator account or create an additional Local Administrator account.
We have explained all these methods above in this article.
How do I run Windows as an Administrator?
To run Windows as an Administrator, you should have an Administrator account. There are different methods by which you can create an Administrator account. In addition to this, you can also enable the built-in Administrator account. But it is not recommended to use the built-in Administrator account on a regular basis due to security issues.
This is all about how to log in as an Administrator in Windows 11/10.
Read next: How to fix the disabled Administrator account on Windows 11/10.
Right-wing action group Project Veritas filed a lawsuit Wednesday against its founder, James O’Keefe, alleging he bullied staff, and violated his employment agreement by establishing a rival organization while still on Project Veritas’ payroll.
“Being known as the founder of an organization does not entitle that person to run amok and put his own interests ahead of that organization,” the filing, obtained by Rolling Stone, reads. “Defendant James O’Keefe (“O’Keefe”) failed in his duties to Plaintiff, Project Veritas, causing it serious and significant damage.”
According to the lawsuit, the Project Veritas board of directors placed O’Keefe on paid leave on Feb. 6, following accusations that the founder “behaved unprofessionally during team meetings, including by screaming at coworkers and belittling them and their contributions to Project Veritas.” In February, the nonprofit’s board received a memo outlining his alleged pattern of unprofessional workplace conduct, signed by 16 employees, or about a third of the Project Veritas staff.
Wednesday’s lawsuit also states that the board required him to “surrender his company credit card” and restricted his “access to proprietary information, including donor lists,” while still indicating that he remained a CEO and board member. Despite the restrictions, the suit alleges that O’Keefe continued to use the company card for personal expenses in the amount of approximately $19,000.
Less than two weeks after he was suspended, O’Keefe announced the launch of a new, Project Veritas-like group called O’Keefe Media Group (OMG). The lawsuit accused O’Keefe of continuing “to solicit Project Veritas’s donors, employees and contractors, in direct violation of his Employment Agreement, for and on behalf of OMG.”
The suit further alleges that during this period of time, O’Keefe was still on the company payroll, and that he remained on the board until April 24. He was ousted from Project Veritas entirely on May 15.
“The only way O’Keefe and OMG had those donors’ contact information was because it was part of a confidential list kept by Project Veritas,” the company claimed.
The premier source of breaking business news for the government contracting industry, GovCon Wire provides informative, to-the-point stories of the most significant contract awards, top-level executive moves, M&A activities and financial results of the sector’s most notable players.
GovCon Wire is always on top of the most accurate contracting sector activity and is updated in real time as the news breaks.
Important URLs:
About usGovernment Contracting FAQGuest Contributions2022 Events
May 11, 2023 | For Building Deputies
The Space Administration department is providing various tips and tricks for the FM:S system, the university’s space management software.
Another tip the department would like to share is how to export multiple floors for multiple buildings to a PDF in the FM:S system. For step-by-step instructions, please review this document.
Questions regarding the FM:S system may be directed to Wil Degen-Stout, senior occupancy planner, at wdegenst@purdue.edu or Sandy Schaffer, space administration analyst, at seharvey@purdue.edu.
VCS-257 history | VCS-257 test | VCS-257 study | VCS-257 techniques | VCS-257 information source | VCS-257 outline | VCS-257 information hunger | VCS-257 information source | VCS-257 action | VCS-257 course outline |
Killexams exam Simulator
Killexams Questions and Answers
Killexams Exams List
Search Exams
Training Exams List
