3D video calls are coming this year

Found after 7 years: Watch “Unsolved Mysteries” on Netflix? You might remember Abdul Aziz Khan. He went missing from Atlanta after his mom, who didn’t have custody, allegedly kidnapped him. Police found her and her husband, who isn’t Abdul’s dad, in an empty house in Colorado and charged them. Now Abdul is 14 and finally coming home.

Stolen from victims of a grandparent scam ring. Good news: Police caught the bad guys. Scammers called, pretending to be a teenager or adult grandkid who was in a car crash, arrested and needed money for bail.

Got an old Apple Watch? You might get paid. If you had an original Apple Watch or a Series 1, 2 or 3, you could be entitled to a cut of the $20 million Apple Watch settlement. Act fast: Payouts range from $20 to $50, and the deadline is April 10. File your claim here.

🔍 Google’s testing AI-only search results: The new AI Mode ditches the usual 10 blue links and instead lets Gemini 2.0 take over with web summaries, graphs and shopping data. Think of it as a bigger version of AI Overview, and yes, we all know how spot-on that is. It’s opt-in only for now through Google’s Search Labs, so you can ignore it … for now.

Hate YouTube ads? There’s a cheaper fix. YouTube is rolling out Premium Lite for $7.99/month, cutting down on “most” ads. News, fashion and gaming videos will be ad-free, but if you want music without ads, you’ll still need the $13.99/month standard Premium plan. That one also includes offline downloads.

📬 Ransomware by snail mail? It’s happening. Cybercriminals are now sending ransom demands through postal mail. The letters warn folks that their networks have been compromised and sensitive info stolen. The price to keep it private? $250,000 to $350,000 in bitcoin, due in 10 days. And because they’re oh-so-considerate, they include a QR code so you can send the crypto right to their wallet.

Before your plane takes off, arrive at the airport. I bet that just stressed you out. This “airport theory” has almost 400 million views on TikTok. Some folks breezed through security and made it on time. Others weren’t so lucky. Don’t chance it.

1 million+ infected with malware: You know those cheap Android-based streaming boxes, tablets or used car infotainment systems? Bad news. They’re being used as a botnet by the Badbox 2.0 hacking group. The top targets are TV boxes with the generic names “TV98” and “X96.” Don’t risk it to save a few bucks.

Are taking on this year’s Iditarod dogsled race in Alaska because the usual route didn’t get enough snow. There are normally 50 to 75 mushers. The new course is farther north and now stretches a record 1,128 miles, forcing racers through endless wilderness and brutal blizzards (paywall link). You know, life is like a dogsled team. If you’re not the lead dog, the view is always the same.

🐓 Egg prices got you scrambling? Rent a chicken. Seriously. Rent The Chicken lets you “borrow” hens for fresh eggs at home. For about $140 a month, you’ll get two hens, a portable coop, feed and instructions to keep them happy. Expect one to two dozen eggs per week. I had a hen who could count her own eggs. She was a mathemachicken. That was bad. I agree. Watch the video here.