Royal Arcanum News and Events

 

Nov 16, 2021 Newsletter #31

Hi Member, November is more than half over already! Are you getting the chance to enjoy the autumn? We hope so and hope you'll enjoy these latest topics in this newsletter. Scholarship application reminder Cyber Security Caution Keeping in touch with our members Easing of COVID Travel Restrictions    Scholarship Deadline Reminder Applications are being accepted for the Royal Arcanum competitive scholarships and non-competitive grants. Don't delay, make sure members who are eligible apply now! To apply, call us today at 1-888-ARCANUM or visit our website to find the application forms. Applications are due by December 31, 2021. Please include a photograph of yourself in your application that we can use for advertising winners. After your application is received, you will hear back on the next steps required to be submitted. If you don't hear from them, follow up to make sure your application was received. All components of the application must be submitted and completed by March 31, 2022.    Cyber Security Caution There was a recent meme going around that was posted by a police department that read: Without giving away your pet's name, your mother's maiden name, or the name of your favorite high school teacher, Tell us your passwords. This is, of course, the reverse of what many scammers are doing - posting social media trivia questions asking personal information that can be used to break through security barriers and get at your passwords and accounts. There are always new ways these cyber thieves are using to try to get at your money. Here are a few tips to keep in mind and keep and stay safe.   Keep your software up to date. Software companies regularly update their software to close security holes that are found. Keep your software up to date to use the latest security fixes. Beware of suspicious emails and phone calls. You can't rely on caller ID to know who is calling. Emails can look official, but the email address they are coming from may be slightly different from an official address. Beware particularly if asked for an urgent reply, threatening costs for a delay, and asking for your login ID and password, banking or credit card information. When in doubt, contact your bank or credit card using already verified emails or phone numbers. Use a good password. Don't use the same password for every account - if one account is compromised, thieves could get into every other account using the same password. Experts recommend using a password manager. Most will not only keep your passwords, but will help generate unique passwords, check if you are reusing passwords, and even notify you if your password has been compromised. Be careful where you click. Don't go to unknown websites or click on links or attachments from unknown senders. And don't assume the email is from the displayed name on the email. Check the email address, especially if the email doesn't sound like the way that person normally communicates with you. Keep your personal data private. It is never safe to send information like your passwords, social security number, or account numbers in an unsecured email, and especially as a response to an unexpected request. Use antivirus or anti-malware software. Every Internet-connected device can be compromised, be sure to use protective software that will watch out for threats and protect you. Back up your data. Be sure to back up your important data regularly. Smartphones can be backed up to your computer or to the cloud. Computers can be backed up to external drives or the cloud. Your backup schedule should be based on how often your data may change - whenever you've made enough changes that you would be lost if you lost your data, it's time to back up. For most, it is either weekly or monthly. For more information, visit the US Government's Cybersecurity & Information Security Agency.    Keeping in Touch Your Supreme Council strives to keep our members up to date in many ways. Are you getting all the information you want? Here's a run-down of how you stay in the loop. The Royal Arcanum Website Our website, royalarcanum.com, contains a vast amount of information about our organization and its history, our products, our elected officers, downloadable forms for various purposes, digital versions of our Bulletins, and much more. Quarterly Bulletin Four times a year, we mail out a full-color magazine, our official Royal Arcanum Bulletin to our members. Each issue contains updates from some of the elected officers and articles and pictures from members. Information about upcoming events, such as the Session, will be included, as well as information about our products and any recent updates. One Bulletin is sent per household unless additional copies are specially requested. Weekly Newsletter This newsletter goes out to members whose email we have on file and contains timely topics we think will be of interest to our members. Reminders of actions, such as scholarship applications or the upcoming Session are provided in a short, easy read, alongside interesting general interest topics. Any members who don't receive the email newsletter can be added by simply making a request. Facebook Are you on Facebook? Are you following our Facebook page? Find us at https://www.facebook.com/RoyalArcanumBoston and "like" us to add our posts to your newsfeed.  Direct Emails Our Fraternal Department sends direct emails through email lists to our members on a regular basis. It's the best way to keep up with the fraternal activities and programs throughout the Royal Arcanum, and all other fraternal news shared by our Fraternal Director. Let us know if you're not getting these informative emails. Direct Mail Officers and Supreme Council Representatives receive direct mailings for important updates such as summaries of meetings of the Executive Committee, notices that council reports are due, and other important topics. Postcards are sent to applicable junior members to remind them about scholarship application deadlines. Our Junior department sends birthday cards and other friendly greetings to our junior members. Are we missing some way of communicating you'd like to see? Let us know!    Travel Restrictions Eased The US and Canada have both eased travel restrictions, allowing for non-essential travel across the borders.! While things are certainly not back to normal, we welcome the ability to again share our friendships with our members in the USA and in Canada in person again.