Poor Mark Zuckerberg can’t catch a break: The man-child has spent $110M buying 11 homes in Palo Alto to build a personal fortress complete with a pickleball court, “bat cave” basement and private school. After eight years of nonstop construction, frustrated neighbors got a peace offering. He actually gave them noise-canceling headphones. Because nothing says “sorry for ruining your street” like a $300 pair of earbuds. Oh, also donuts.
Don’t just freeze, fight back
ChatGPT
Ashley in Washington asks:
“Kim, do I really need identity theft protection? I used to have LifeLock years ago and dumped it because they constantly were selling me other things. I heard you say on your radio show that you use NordProtect now. Why? How is any of this different than freezing your credit? Love your show and newsletter!”
You’re asking a smart question, Ashley, and you’re not alone in wondering. Let’s break it down.
🥶 Do the credit freeze
Freezing your credit is smart, and I recommend everyone do it. A credit freeze keeps criminals from opening new accounts in your name. And heck, it’s free!
Here’s how to do it at the four credit reporting agencies.
- Equifax: Visit Equifax.com or call 1‑888‑298‑0045.
- Experian: Visit the Experian freeze center or call 1‑888‑397‑3742.
- TransUnion: Visit TransUnion’s website or call 1‑888‑916‑8800. (Argh, they just got hacked, btw. Details below in the Web Watercooler section.)
- Innovis: Visit Innovis or call 1‑866‑712‑4546.
Once you’ve placed the freeze, you set a PIN or password to temporarily lift or remove it. Make sure you keep this info in a safe place.
But that’s just one layer of protection. It does nothing when thieves get into your existing bank accounts, credit cards, email, or if your Social Security number or medical records end up on the dark web.
🛡️ Full-scale identity protection
I used LifeLock years ago, too. They were the first big name in ID theft protection. But like you, I got tired of the upselling and prices increasing.
You sign up, then every alert or feature seems to require “upgrading” to yet another tier. It’s like joining a gym where they charge you monthly and then $10 per dumbbell. No thank you. And LifeLock isn’t cheap. Their top plans can run $30 or more per month per adult.
293.54 mph
Speeds hit by China’s BYD U9, claiming EV hypercar supremacy. So it turns out Yangwang’s engineering marvel U9 casually obliterated the speed charts. It didn’t just nudge the status quo; it demolished it. Anyone up for some electric NASCAR?
Set Netflix maturity ratings: On desktop, go to Manage Profiles > select their profile > Adjust Parental Controls and confirm your password. Pick a maturity rating (from All Ages to 18+) and hit Save. FYI: You can also block specific movies or series under Title Restrictions.
🏈 Free NFL on YouTube: This year, YouTube is streaming the first Friday game between the Chiefs and Chargers on Sept. 5 at 8 p.m. ET. You can watch on the YouTube home page or the official NFL channel. Bonus: month-to-month NFL Sunday Ticket plans. New fans: $85/month. Returning fans: $115/month with YouTube TV, or $145/month on YouTube. New is better, obviously.
📱 Check your Android apps: Google doesn’t care or else they would do something about this continuing problem. They just pulled 77 malicious apps with 19 million installs (!!!) from the Play Store. They were serving up an unholy trinity of spyware, malware and trojans that can steal your texts, passwords and drain your bank account. Most were disguised as “tools” or “photo apps” with names like “Document Reader – File Manager.” Check your phone, like, now.
21
The number of UFO cases the Pentagon flat-out couldn’t explain last year. One crowdsourced platform, Enigma, logged 8,000+ UFO sightings in the U.S since December 2022 alone. The Pentagon’s UFO office dismissed most sightings as explainable (birds, drones, balloons), but 21 cases remain unresolved. Cue X-Files theme song.
Samsung wants to blow up: Samsung’s begging you to watch at the crack of dawn on Sept. 4, 5:30 a.m. ET all the new gear that they’re rolling out, like the Tab S11 (MediaTek-powered snoozefest, but monster battery) and the S25 FE, which is basically last year’s phone with a slightly better selfie cam. Yawn.
Over 1 million reposts
That’s what Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s engagement announcement pulled in, breaking Instagram’s record. The post hit the milestone in just six hours and has already racked up more than 33 million likes. The couple had been dating for about two years before Kelce popped the question. Swifties, you can finally breathe.
🚨 TransUnion hacked: We all have a record here, whether we want it or not. More than 4.4 million customers had their personal data swiped from the credit bureau. The company says “no credit info was accessed” but hasn’t shared what was stolen, who’s behind it or if demands were made. You have to know they took important details like your name, DOB, SSN and other goodies. So take this news as a need for you to change your TransUnion PIN and password. Never stops.
YouTube vs. Fox: If you’re a YouTube TV subscriber, you might soon lose Fox News, Fox Sports and local Fox stations. The two are butting heads over money in their upcoming carriage renewal. No deal? The channels could get pulled. If that happens, YouTube TV says subscribers will get a $10 credit.
$5 million
That’s how much this grandparent scam raked in from America’s elderly. Move over, Nigerian prince, there’s a new scam in town. A mix of emotional manipulation, phony grandchildren posing in urgent predicaments, and unwitting Uber drivers to collect cash has landed 13 dirtbags in jail. Good riddance.
🚨 Built to be recalled: Have a Ford truck? They’re recalling over 355,000 after the dashboards started ghosting drivers. If you’ve got a model from 2025-26 (including F-150 and Super Duty lines), you might be missing key info like speed and warning lights. Fixes will be free and come via over-the-air updates or at a dealer. Just make sure yours gets it.
👾 Vibe-hacking in the wild: An anonymous hacker used Anthropic’s Claude chatbot to run a fully AI-powered extortion spree, hitting 17 companies. Claude picked targets, coded the malware, analyzed stolen files and even drafted ransom notes. The crazy part? This isn’t some shadowy hacker group, it’s just one person with one AI. The scams are just going to get worse. Please, keep your guard up always.
$50 billion
That’s how much Meta plans to spend on a massive new data center in Louisiana. President Trump made the announcement and showed off a picture of it, and it’s almost the size of Manhattan. The facility will apparently support Meta’s energy-hungry AI systems. So if your electric bill’s creeping up, blame Zuck’s robots.
77%
That’s the chance aliens had of overhearing us during an Earth-Mars alignment. When Earth and Mars line up, NASA’s Deep Space Network beams so many signals at the Red Planet that an alien telescope would’ve had a 3-in-4 shot of catching us. Basically, we butt-dialed deep space and may have started an accidental group chat.
🌀 Yeezy rug pull: Kanye launched the YZY crypto coin on X, watched it rocket to $3B, then collapse in three hours flat. Retail investors? Lost $20M. Eight “lucky” traders? Cashed out millions instantly. Ye once called coins a scam, and well, he’s not wrong. Delaware shell company? Check. Cult vibes? Check. History repeating? Absolutely.
YouTube turns up the hype: Its new “Hype” feature lets you boost up to three small-creator videos a week. Those picks land on a special leaderboard, giving underdog channels a real shot at the spotlight. Look for the shiny “hyped” badge in your feed, and hit it for me now and then.
🥊 Musk vs. Apple + AI: Let me break this down. Musk just sued Apple and OpenAI, accusing them of teaming up to bury his xAI startup. He says Apple’s ChatGPT deal hands OpenAI billions of iPhone prompts for free training, while rivals like Grok get shoved down the App Store. Now he’s demanding billions in damages and a ban.
20%
How much worse doctors get at spotting abnormalities on their own after using AI during colonoscopies. They’ve become over-reliant on the system’s little green box that flags suspicious areas, and when it’s gone, they start missing things. Think of it like GPS: Once you’ve had it, paper maps suddenly feel impossible.