Everyone has seen these posts on Facebook. They usually tell the tale of a dog or injured dog, found on the side of the road. Either they need the owner to come get it, or meet at the vet because they are injured. However, there are telltale signs of a fakery. The person has 2 first names (Lisa Johns, Kyle Arnold, Betty Lori etc.), they are a new member to the group or to Facebook, they turn off commenting on the post (I mean HEY, how the heck are you going to find a dogs owner if people cannot comment about the dog?) and a reverse image look-up (from Google) will show this photo has been posted ALL over the nation.

What people do is create these fake posts and get many, perhaps THOUSANDS of people to share them. Then, at some point in time they go back and EDIT the post with something they can make money with or scam you with and the "poor doggie" post everyone shared is now a "Hey you should try Click-Coin, cause everyone is doing it" and voila, a SCAM post is now on thousands of peoples timelines. That is why EVERYTIME you see one of these in a group you belong to, report it so it is removed and cannot be edited at a later time.

At the very least, ignore it and DO NOT share the post or even comment on it. An additional step would to report that post to Facebook AND Group Admins. If you can get a post removed, there is zero opportunity for the perpetrator to go back and edit in a nefarious message later.

Now that you have defined the program goals for social media, the next step is to evaluate the different platforms and take inventory of the program’s previous social media engagement, if applicable. Having a successful social media presence does not mean that the program needs to be on every platform available. It is actually better to focus your time and energy on 1-2 platforms that suit your program’s needs. Each platform has its own strengths and weaknesses, however the platform you choose can help curate your content to better support your goals.

To this day, Facebook is still the largest social media platform with over 2 billion active users (¼ of the Earth’s population!). You can utilize Facebook to create an online community to market and inform the community about your business.

Creating a business page is a great way to market your program, and can be helpful in cross-posting information from your website. Like most other social media platforms, Facebook gets the most engagement when information is paired with a striking visual (photo or video).

Instagram is a primarily visual platform. Its users skew younger, as 65% of Instagram’s user base is under 34. Successful Instagram accounts (many of which are “brands” or “influencers” promoting their business) that have lots of user engagement post frequently and authentically. Users respond best to a “human” approach to this platform — they should feel like they are checking up on a friend.

This platform works well for promotion and is a great way to highlight the food your business with photos and videos, or provide insights and showcase the personalities of your team.

Twitter is a quippy, information-driven platform that, like other platforms, allows for direct engagement with the communities your business serves. Twitter is a useful resource for gathering feedback from the community and sharing out school food resources. Photo and video sharing is available on Twitter as well. Engaging with other organizations on Twitter is key, as Twitter is used to share and interact with news and events in real time, and doesn’t always work well as a promotional platform.

As social media platforms go, TikTok is the new kid on the block. The platform skews younger (Millennials and Gen z), and provides an opportunity to directly connect with the communities your business serves. TikTok is visually-based and allows users to generate 1 minute videos and host live streams.

TikTok users love learning new things, which creates a great opportunity to “pull back the curtain” and showcase the process of making your product or service, touring your business, as well as highlighting the personalities of your staff. 

Can PDFs have viruses?

Yes, they can. Because PDFs are one of the most universally used file types, hackers and bad actors can find ways to use these normally harmless files — just like dot-com files, JPGs, Gmail, and Bitcoin — to create security threats via malicious code.

Understanding how PDFs can contain viruses.

Security threats come in a few main varieties. Viruses are programs that might do nothing or change or delete data. Trojans usually gather data on a user or their computer. Malware is usually designed to harm a machine.

Viruses, Trojans, and malware have many ways of hiding inside a PDF and often show up in email downloads or attachments like eBooks and other documents. They usually come from unknown or unfamiliar senders.

PDFs and viruses.

You can defend yourself against viruses and other attacks through best practices, good judgment, and constant vigilance. Protect yourself by learning about the most common issues, including:

JavaScript

JavaScript is a programming language that supports functionality on the web. Most websites and web browsers have some kind of JavaScript element that’s used to execute code. PDFs, like other file formats, can have hidden JavaScript code that might exploit vulnerabilities in a PDF.

System commands

Opening a malicious PDF can launch malware that will start up whatever process the hacker has in mind. That is, by clicking on and opening a PDF or other file, a user also unknowingly starts up a predator program. Such attacks are technically possible today, but less common.

Hidden objects

Hackers try to circumvent antivirus and anti-malware software. Files and email attachments can have embedded or encrypted objects which prevent detection by cybersecurity measures or users. Usually, these hidden objects are executed when the file that hides them is opened.

How to defend against PDF viruses.

There are many proactive ways to protect against hacking. Effective ways to defend yourself include:

1. Recognizing phishing attempts.

If you get a suspicious email that says it comes from a trustworthy-seeming organization like a financial institution, don’t engage with it. Reach out to that financial institution directly and ask if that email is real. That way, you can stay protected by never engaging with the email in the first place.

It can also be useful to use authentication methods for trusted collaborators and only engage with files that come from trusted sources. Adobe Acrobat Sign includes a feature for identity authentication.

2. Using a trusted PDF reader.

One of the best defenses against PDF viruses is to use trusted software and keep it up to date. There are many PDF viewers, but not all of them are constantly updating to combat bad actors and help protect users. Adobe Acrobat Reader features regular security updates and is the industry standard for viewing and using PDFs.

3. Running regular virus scans.

Most operating systems like Windows and MacOS have built-in antivirus software. Third-party cybersecurity programs are usually redundant, but it’s still a good idea to regularly check your OS antivirus scanner.

Zoom allows you to implement many of the same teaching methods that you use in a F2F classroom. Before you jump into learning the in’s and out’s of the Zoom tool, consider what teaching methods you are already using, and then see if Zoom can help facilitate those same methods or similar ones in an online (synchronous) space. Just like a F2F classroom, Zoom allows you to switch back and forth between different types of teaching methods (e.g., lecture, small group discussion, etc.) as many times as you need during a class session.

Do you typically lecture using PowerPoint slides?

• Use Zoom’s screen sharing functionality to present your slides to students while you narrate them. Additionally, if you are using a tablet, you can annotate your slides on the screen for students to see.
• An important part of lecturing in any format is taking breaks to ensure that your students are following along (“conceptual checkpoints”) and/or to provide opportunities for active learning.
• We encourage instructors to take intentional pauses during their lectures and consider asking students to do one of the following: 
  • Polling: After covering a particular concept, provide students with an opportunity for practice and feedback using the Zoom polling feature. Ask a multiple-choice question about the concept to check for student comprehension. Use student response data to inform the remainder of your lecture session.
  • Speed Up/Slow Down: Encourage students to make use of the “speed up” or “slow down” to indicate whether they are following along with lecture. Either yourself or your TA can monitor these responses and adjust accordingly.
  • Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down: Sometimes a simple “if you’re with me, select the thumbs up button” can be a good way to ensure that students are following along.

Do you typically use the whiteboard, chalkboard or document camera when facilitating full group discussion?

• Consider creating a Google Drawing or Google Slides presentation at the start of your session for recording notes on the class discussion. 
• In order to facilitate discussion with groups larger than 8-10 students, consider using Zoom's “raise hand” or Chat functionality. This will help to ensure that students don’t talk over each other and that everyone has equal chance to participate. 

Do you typically use small group or paired discussion?

• Use Zoom’s breakout room feature to facilitate this type of discussion. Instructors can randomly assign students to breakout rooms or they can selectively group students together (e.g., assigned teams). Faculty members (i.e., the Zoom host) can circulate among the breakout rooms to check-in with students, and students are also able to “request help” from their instructor when needed.
• An important part of making group work or small group discussion effective is providing students with a specific task or deliverable. There are multiple ways to do this in Zoom. 
  • In their breakout rooms, students can use the whiteboard feature to record ideas. Additionally, an instructor could provide a Google Doc (perhaps linked in the group chat box) for all groups to record ideas in. If students are attending a Zoom session via their phone, it will likely be difficult for them to contribute to a Google Doc or white board. Finally, so as to keep students on-task, the instructor can push messages to all breakout rooms at the same time (e.g., “you have 5 mins left to work on this task”). 
  • NOTE: If you are recording your Zoom class session, be aware that if you utilize the breakout room feature, these smaller group discussions may not be recorded.

• If you have a TA, consider how you might leverage them to assist with a Zoom session. For example, if you have some students in a classroom and some students participating via Zoom, perhaps you could have the TA monitor the chat box or “raise hands” feature to notify you of questions as they arise. Your TA could take attendance for you or circulate among the breakout rooms, if need be. 
• Consider whether it’s necessary for all students to meet at the same time (synchronous) or whether students could still accomplish the stated learning objectives through some other means. Eberly colleagues are available to help you think through this instructional design challenge. Let us know how we can help!

• If your video quality is poor, turn off your video and rely on your computer audio. You may also use your cell phone (without video) to participate in a Zoom session.
• Ask students to “mute” themselves as a default setting to avoid distracting background noises. Have students “unmute” themselves when they want to talk.
• Ask students to “rename” themselves using their preferred name so that everyone in the Zoom session knows how to refer to them. 
• Use headphones (instructors and students) for all Zoom sessions.
  • If you are having trouble hearing people or being heard, conduct a “test” of your speakers and microphone by clicking on the arrow beside the “mute” button and selecting “Test Microphone and Speakers.” 
• If you plan to use your video, ensure that the room you are in has decent lighting. 
• Build in pauses to allow students time to ask questions, whether by raising their hand or recording their questions in the chat box. 
• Adjust the volume in the classroom so that your students can hear you but you do not hear yourself reverberating backwards.
• If you want to record your Zoom session, please be sure that you click the “record” option at the start of your session.