Dee | Ruatapu, West Coast
“I would say my regret is time wasted bumping my head on situations and people that should have been let go of a long time ago. My theme for this month, or for this year really, but particularly these months at the moment is liberation from things that no longer serve me.
Which I think would be for a lot of people from what I can tell. I have learned a lot out of the situations that I’ve been in but you realise that you don’t need to keep learning the same thing again. If the movie script stays the same, then it’s time to change the narrative. In terms of regrets I would say just wasted time on the wrong people and wrong situations. I just see it for what it is and move on swiftly.
It’s been a very weird time, and there’s been some very weird things going on and so I decided to investigate it for my own peace of mind only to find out that someone that I trusted and that was close to me was, was actually using modern technology for surveillance purposes, and once I had confirmed that, that was the tipping point for me. That is the straw that broke the camel’s back, it’s time to go. So that was a specific tipping point.
I’ve learned a hell of a lot about the technology around us and how it can be used, and it can be manipulated and hidden and it could take maybe an intermediate to advanced level of understanding to actually be able to track it and confirm ah, that it’s not paranoia, which some people think that it is, but if you know about the things a bit more technically, then you understand that you’re actually more exposed to breaches of privacy and security than you could have imagined. So I’ve learned a lot about cyber security.
If you’ve noticed some strange things are happening, and you’ve just dismissed them and you’ve reached a point where if you’re the sort of person that likes to find the truth and likes to find answers, I would say you should upskill yourself on 3G, 4G and 5G technology and on the difference between Bluetooth devices and BLE devices. BLE devices are basically something that can be activated in any electronic equipment. So, if you’re looking for a physical device, you won’t actually find it. They could be using your computer as an aerial. Any Bluetooth device, any TV could be linked into your GPS system, and it will show up as a BLE device, but it won’t show up on a Bluetooth physical device. So, unless you actually identify the trace roots through the network, you won’t actually find anything physical. Same as when you’re looking at your computer operating system. If you look there are trace roots and bridges, and parent devices in the details of the configuration of your operating system, you’d be able to trace it back to parent IDs, and also back to the service where it’s been spooled to. That applies to your phone, too.
I grew up in, in South Africa. I was born in Krugersdorp, which is not from Johannesburg. I was in the resources industry for about 20 years. I first came to New Zealand in 2007. Since then, I’ve spent seven years in Namibia putting a copper project together and then I came back to New Zealand for a year-and-a-half before Covid hit. I was basically doing country management, country manager, a sort of founder and shareholder of a couple of resource projects, but that’s a thing of the past, now. So, I’m onto new steps, and into a career path which I think will probably involve cyber security and helping people who may be not as interested as I am in detail and technicalities. To put their minds at rest or help them get rid of it, and refer them to the right people or give them advice, and that sort of thing. I think the opportunities in cyber security are endless and it’s the most in demand positions on the planet right now, which means that it’s accessible in terms of finding contract work in any country, and you can work anywhere because it’s all online. So, if you’re technically-minded, or if you’re analytically-minded, I would highly recommend that you upskill in your cyber security area, and that will give you an online career to look forward to in the future, too and then you don’t need to worry about looking for physical jobs anymore.
We tend to complicate things, but it’s really quite simple. I mean if people are negative and they’re addicted to misery it shows itself pretty quickly. You can discern that very quickly. So, I would just say that in terms of how I would treat things differently as I’m going forward, is not to be as accepting, as accommodating or as forgiving as I might have been for little things that I just brushed off that turned out to be not little things. To identify that earlier on and not even give the benefit of the doubt. Just walk away and keep people around you that bring you up and not that drag you down. If they start to drag you down then move. Keep them out of your life and then life’s a happier place.
When you’re isolated and when you’re in a bad place with all of this stuff that’s going on in the world, and all the uncertainty which has been this year, I just want to say that another thing that I’ve learned, is that New Zealand has the most incredible people. It also has the most amazing free resources available to you, and people in vocations that are there specifically for the purpose that they actually want to help people. I want to say a huge shoutout to Women’s Refuge. They have been absolutely mind-blowingly amazing, and especially here in Greymouth, the team has been life-changing for me, and don’t be afraid to reach out. When you feel like no-one believes you or there’s no-one that can help you get where you need to be, then I would say, find yourself a Women’s Refuge, and that mindset will change.”
For more information about Women’s Refuge, or for support, contact: https://womensrefuge.org.nz/get-help/ or 0800 733 843
