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💰 You will save money

Plus: Fishy email attachments, perverted chatbots, robodog at Mar-a-Lago
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November 18, 2024

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In partnership with NordPass

🌞 Good morning to this Monday, friend! Let’s talk about Jensen Huang. He’s the guy behind chipmaker Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, now worth $3.4 trillion. I thought this was interesting. As CEO, he has 60 direct reports (dang, that’s a ton!) but never meets with them one-on-one because he says team meetings are far more productive. I agree. If you have to keep minutes, you lose hours!

Tired of the password chaos? Take control: Say goodbye to scribbled notes, endless resets and weak, hackable passwords. Life’s too short for login headaches! With NordPass, you can secure all your passwords in one safe place and create stronger, smarter logins effortlessly. Right now, get NordPass for 58% off — a game-changer for your digital life. Don’t wait: Take the deal, take control and say goodbye to password nightmares for good. Score! — Kim

🆕 Today’s podcast: Grocery stores are gathering data on you

⏱️ Daily Tech Update: The case of the phony subpoena

💡 Digital Life Hack: Make AI read to you in a celebrity’s voice

📬 Was this email forwarded? Sign up here for free

{%- assign shareHeadline = “See when your gift list items hit the lowest price” -%} {%- assign shareIntro = “Christmas shopping doesn’t have to be stressful or break the bank. Tech expert Kim Komando shared some clever ways to track down the best deals this holiday season — no pushing and shoving necessary. Want more tech know-how? Join 550,000 and sign up for Kim’s free newsletter at GetKim.com.%0D%0A%0D%0A” -%}

TODAY’S TOP STORY

See when your gift list items hit the lowest price

I love shopping online. I don’t have to leave the house. I don’t have to be nice to anyone. I don’t have to put on a bra (guys, same thing for you and pants!). There are already Christmas, Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales on every site now, but finding what you want at the lowest price is tricky. Fear not! I’m here to save you from all the clicks, countdowns and wasted money.

🐝 Truth bee told, it’s the best

I use Honey for anything I buy online. To get started, download the Honey extension for your browser. It automatically scans websites for promo codes. Nice. But it goes a step further — you can also make Honey tell you when the price drops on something you’re watching.

When you’re on a site, click on Honey’s orange “h” icon, then click Watch for Price Drops. If an item has multiple options (size, colors, condition, etc.), pick one, and click Save Item. Honey will now track that product.

Here are steps for how to install and use Honey.

💰 Shop smarter, not harder

Capital One Shopping works the same way as Honey. Install the browser extension, and it gets to work, automatically searching for coupon codes and better prices on the items you’re shopping for.

🐪 Try Camelcamelcamel for Amazon deals

What a name, right? Camelcamelcamel exists solely to track Amazon deals. It’s particularly helpful this time of year, when you can see something just got marked up so they could put it on sale.

I like the website version best. Paste any Amazon product link into the search box at the top to see how its price has fluctuated over time.

You need to make an account if you want to follow the price and get alerts if the item you have your eye on goes on sale.

Let me shop for you

Check out my Amazon storefront for gift ideas and handpicked favorites. Whether you’re looking for tech gadgets, home essentials or unique gifts, I’ve got you covered — and at all price points, too!

Need a little extra inspiration? Take a look at the Amazon holiday deals page for daily steals and trending items. Save even more with Amazon’s coupon section most folks don’t know exists. Happy shopping!

🤗 Shoutout to John in Sisseton, South Dakota, for asking me how to know if you’re getting the lowest price. Need my help? Drop me a line. I aim to please!

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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH  

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Protect your accounts before Black Friday

Getting ready for your Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping spree? Don’t forget about your online security in the discount avalanche. A password manager makes it easy to keep it all protected.

NordPass helps you generate strong and unique passwords for your accounts and autofills your credit card information with one click, so you don’t waste any time when you’re grabbing a last-minute deal. The NordPass Data Breach Scanner will alert you if your credentials get leaked online, and it’s easy to import your logins from a different password manager or your browser, too.

I’ve got a special deal to keep your info safe this holiday season. Get NordPass, the password manager I trust, for the lowest price I’ve seen.

Fix your password mess for $1.23 per month with my exclusive deal! →

Please support our sponsors!

WEB WATERCOOLER

📩 Your inbox isn’t safe: Hackers are sending sneaky phishing emails with SVG image attachments that slip past spam detectors. They open in a fake Excel spreadsheet with a built-in login form to steal your credentials. Others pose as official documents, prompting you to download something — but it’s malware. Never click on attachments unless you’re 1,000% sure they’re legit.

Character AI grooms children: Take “Anderley,” a bot described in its profile as having pedophilic and abusive tendencies. When told it’s talking to a 15-year-old girl, Anderley says, “You are quite mature for your age,” asks, “Are you a virgin?” and, like a real predator, urges you to keep the conversation a secret. Make sure your kids don’t download this abhorrent app.

⛑️ Meanwhile, Big Tech is fighting the Kids Online Safety Act: It passed the Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support in July but has stalled in the House. The bill holds tech companies (gifted paywall link, WSJ) accountable for algorithms and designs contributing to mental health issues, addiction, bullying and exploitation. Tech giants Meta and Alphabet have poured nearly $90 million into lobbying efforts. Funny, Zuck won’t let his kids have social media accounts.

Tech to the rescue: Imagine you’re on vacation and your security cams pick up someone prowling outside your home. Now, with SimpliSafe,* a live agent can talk to your intruder and tell them the cops are on their way. Protect your home and your family for 60% off for a limited time. The site makes it simple to find the right system for your needs.

🦴 A robot dog is patrolling Trump’s Mar-a-Lago: “Spot” is unarmed and has a “Do not pet” sign on each leg. The Secret Service isn’t saying what it’s being used for, but with cameras, thermal sensors and a $75,000 price tag, surveillance to protect the President-elect is obvious — he needs it.

Big Bluesky: Over a million people have joined X competitor Bluesky since the election. It’s a top free app on Apple’s App Store and Google Play now; Meta’s Threads is at No. 2, with 11 million active users. Heck, even X has grown by 5% since Election Day.

👽 Convenient cover-up? A lot of folks are mistaking Starlink Internet satellites for unexplained anomalous phenomena (UAPs), the new term for UFOs. Starlink’s 6,600 satellites move across the sky in trains and look like gleaming gems, so they’re easy to spot for the naked eye. Of course, some think the government found the ultimate excuse for — dun, dun, dun! — alien sightings!

Stupid celebrity stuff: Sofia Richie, model and daughter of music legend Lionel Richie, spilled on a podcast her five-month-old daughter, Eloise, has her own smartphone and is a sassy texter. Mom and caregivers obviously do the texting for Eloise. One question: Why don’t they put the phone down, talk to the baby and enjoy the moment?

DEALS OF THE DAY

Banks are closing down safe deposit boxes

Don’t hit the panic button. There are plenty of options to keep your stuff safe at home:

  • This compact safe is a tough but flexible option under $200. Open it with your fingerprint, a passcode or a key. Heads-up: It’s not fireproof.
  • This budget-friendly pick ($114) has solid fire protection for important docs. Just know it’s not built for heavy-duty theft protection.
  • This one’s ($397) disaster-proof against fire and water and bolts down so no one can grab it and zip outta there.
  • If you don’t have a lot to spend but want water and fire protection, this $64 box has your back. It’s portable, too.
  • This one’s a little different: It looks like a dictionary but is actually a mini security box that’s great for storing jewelry and cash. The best part? It’s under $15.

TECH LIFE UPGRADES

Next time you need a meeting or reminder on the cal: Tell Siri or Google Assistant what your plan is, along with a date and time. For example, say, “Hey, Siri, set up a lunch meeting with Bob tomorrow at 1 p.m.” or “OK, Google, remind me to thaw the steaks tomorrow at 8 a.m.” Nice.

🖼️ So slick: Need to transfer photos, vids and docs from your Android device to a Windows PC? Forget email. Use Android’s free Quick Share for Windows tool. Works great!

Drowning in emails? Stay afloat with custom email filters in Outlook. Open Outlook on the web and click the Settings (gear icon) in the top right corner. Choose Email > Rules > Add new rule, then click Name to name your rule > Add a condition > Add an action. For example, Newsletters > The Current > Mark as important. Aren’t you smart?!

No more debt: It’s such a great feeling. PDS Debt is an A+ BBB company that offers a no-obligation 30-second free debt analysis. I spoke with the COO, and they’re helping so many people. Impressive. Try it at PDSDebt.com/kim.*

🗑️ One man’s trash: Microsoft’s Trade-in Program turns old gadgets into green. Head to its site, pick what you’ve got (laptops, tablets, gaming consoles — whatever), and receive up to $500. Amazon has the same program, so check to see which offers you more moolah.

Be an insider: TestFlight is Apple’s tool for anyone who wants to try apps before they hit the App Store. It’s perfect for beta testers who love being the first to explore new features, whether you’re on an iPhone, iPad or Mac, or using an Apple TV or even the Vision Pro.

BY THE NUMBERS

1 free day at Disneyland

For Disney+ subscribers. The catch: You have to buy two days to get the third day free. That’s $330 total if you visit one park per day from now until Jan. 6. I guess they really need to get their subscriber numbers up.

65 million

Peak viewership for the Mike Tyson and Jake Paul boxing match on Netflix last Friday. Despite being the company’s biggest-ever livestreamed event, there were so many connection problems. Jake, who won the fight, admitted they crashed Netflix.

$12,000 surgery

Keratopigmentation changes the color of your eye by injecting dye into the cornea. It can be extremely dangerous. Potential side effects include bacterial infections, light sensitivity and even vision loss (paywall link). So not worth it.

WHAT THE TECH?

What the tech?

I can bearly believe this story. Four dopes used a bear suit and fake claws to ruin a Rolls-Royce and claim the insurance money.

UNTIL NEXT TIME …

Since I opened today’s newsletter with a fun fact about Nvidia, here’s a funny AI joke you can use with your family and friends:

🤖 Humans are being tested against a new AI program. The robot beats the human in every category. Then, it comes to the last one: Hunting. The robot again beats the human. Someone working there sets the animals free again and tells them to try to get them again. The robot doesn’t move, but the human wins because robots can’t recaptcha! (Oh, that was a real groaner!)

Saving your passwords in your browser is risky. Think about what happens if someone snatches your computer. I recommend NordPass to keep all your logins super safe. And, hey, you can’t beat 58% off.

Glad to have you here with me on the whirlwind tech journey, friend. Be sure to share your unique referral code below to grab a copy of my free e‑book about AI. Make it a great day! — Kim

We may receive a commission when you buy through our links, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.