Friday the 13th has a lot of people, especially in Western cultures, feeling anxious, but do not be scared ideas of luck and superstition vary among cultures around the world.
Below some fun and interesting facts about Friday 13th.
• The ancient Chinese regarded the number 13 as lucky. The ancient Egyptians also thought 13 brought good luck.
• Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day in Western superstition.
• It occurs when the 13th day of the month in the Gregorian calendar falls on a Friday,
• A Friday the 13th occurs during any month that begins on a Sunday.
• According to Vyse and Bailey. There are no mentions of Friday the 13th before the 19th century.
• Fear of Friday the 13th — one of the most popular myths in science — is called paraskavedekatriaphobia as well as friggatriskaidekaphobia. Triskaidekaphobia is fear of the number 13.
• President Franklin D. Roosevelt would not travel on the 13th day of any month and would never host 13 guests at a meal. Napoleon and President Herbert Hoover were also triskaidekaphobic, with an abnormal fear of the number 13. (source: livescience.com)
• The number 13 suffers from its position after 12, according to numerologists who consider the latter to be a complete number — 12 months in a year, 12 signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, 12 apostles of Jesus, 12 days of Christmas and 12 eggs in a dozen. However, mathematicians dismiss numerology, saying it lacks any scientific merit. (source: livescience.com)
• 13 is Taylor Swift’s lucky number. “I was born on the 13th. I turned 13 on Friday the 13th. My first album went gold in 13 weeks. My first #1 song had a 13-second intro,” the singer told MTV in an interview.
• The band Black Sabbath released its debut album on Friday, February 13, 1970.
• On Friday April 13, 2029, a large #asteroid will fly close enough to the Earth to be visible without a telescope in Africa, Europe and Asia, according to #NASA.
• In Ontario, Canada, motorcyclists gather every Friday the 13th for rallies that draw thousands of participants.
• German study published in the World Journal of Surgery explored whether there is a link between Friday the 13th and an increase of blood loss and the frequency of emergency room visits on those days. Researchers reviewed 3,281 days at a hospital facility that included 15 Friday the 13ths. “Our data indicate that such beliefs are myths far beyond reality,” the study concludes.
• Many hospitals have no room 13, while some tall buildings skip the 13th floor and some airline terminals omit Gate 13.
• 80% of high rises lack a 13th floor.
• One of the first Friday the 13th stories was written by Thomas Lewson in 1907. The story was about a Wall Street broker who chose the day to enact his rage and destroy the stock market.
• Since people tend to avoid certain activities for fear of bad luck, it’s impossible to statistically prove the day is actually unlucky.
• The ill-fated Apollo 13 mission is often cited as “proof” of the number’s unluckiness. The capsule was launched at 13:13 on April 11, 1970.The explosion that ultimately destroyed the craft took place on April 13
• In Florence, Italy, the houses between 12 and 14 on a street are called “12 and a half.”
• Lucky Friday colors: White, off white, snow-white, bright white, Silver white and blue dress. Opal, Aquamarine, Diamond, Zircon jewellery.
Just a little about Cybersecurity and Data Breaches.
While it’s been about 13 years since one of the first major data breaches reverberated on the nation’s radar, there is still no slowing down despite major security advancements in the amount of incidents and consumers impacted every year.
The Infamous Friday The 13th Virus.
How Did Friday The 13th Virus Get Its Name?
Whether you believe in the superstitions surrounding the day or not, we thought it would be fun to celebrate by telling you about a computer virus that was famous for executing its dirty work on the unluckiest day of the year, every year.
The Friday the 13th virus is actually called The virus Jerusalem, and was first created in 1987 with one objective in mind. The virus contained one destructive payload that was set to activate on Friday the 13th on all years except 1987.
How The Friday the 13th Virus Worked
Activated on Friday the 13th based on the computer clock.
Silently infected .EXE and .COM files under MS-DOS.
Caused computer systems to slow due to increased memory usage.
How Did Users Avoid The Friday 13th Virus?
13 biggest Data Breaches in history (Wikipedia).
Company. Year. Records compromised.
1. Yahoo – 2013 3,000,000,000
2. First American Corporation – 2019 885,000,000
3. Facebook – 2019 540,000,000
4. Marriott International – 2018 500,000,000
5. Yahoo – 2014 500,000,000
6. Friend Finder Networks – 2016 412,214,295
7. Truecaller – 2019 299,055,819
8. Massive American business hack including 7-Eleven and Nasdaq – 2012 160,000,000
9. Adobe Systems – 2013 152,000,000
10. Under Armour – 2018 150,000,000
11. eBay – 2014 145,000,000
12. Equifax – 2017 143,000,000
13. Canva – 2019 140,000,000
How to Protect Yourself This Friday the 13th and all year around.
• Do not Click on Links and attachments in emails
• Do not Repeat Passwords for Sites
• Lock your devices before leaving them unattended, even if you leave for two minutes
• Never share personal details with anyone, whether in person or on social media
• Use a password that is at least 12 characters long with lowercase/uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols
• Implement two-factor authentication within your company
• Ensure all your software/hardware is up to date
• Install an anti-malware software
• Be aware of what you plug into your devices
• Do not connect to unsecure Wi-Fi networks
• Continuously up back up your data
Credits:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_data_breaches
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_the_13th
experian.com/assets/data-breach/white-papers/2019-experian-data-breach-industry-forecast.pdf
livescience.com/3383-5-facts-friday-13th.html
americleaninc.com/friday-the-13th-fun-facts/
futurepointindia.com/predictions/colour
blackpointcyber.com/blog/friday-the-13th-virus/
dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/2836/friday-the-13th-superstitions-and-luck/
