📼 Own it? Not really: A new lawsuit says Amazon’s “Buy” button on video downloads is misleading, because what you’re really buying is a long-term rental they can take back anytime. A new California law backs the claim. So if your “purchased” movie vanishes next week, well, that’s legal. Somewhere, your dusty DVD collection is cackling.
The great digital purge is upon us
Midjourney
When was the last time you logged into that old Gmail account or your photo storage app? If it’s been a while, don’t be shocked if all your stuff is gone for good.
Most tech companies have policies that let them totally wipe out your account and everything in it if you haven’t signed in for a while. This could mean losing years of family photos, important emails and priceless memories. Yeah, that’s bad.
It happened to Andrew, my podcast cohost. He stored thousands and thousands of family photos on Shutterfly. One day, he went to log in and all those photos were nowhere to be found. No warning, no “are you sure?” Just deleted.
⏳ How long before your stuff disappears?
For starters, these deadly time-outs mostly apply to free accounts. Paid plans usually buy you more time, but not always. Sometimes you’ll get an email telling you to log in or else, but don’t count on it.
I put together this list for you so you know the dates your account could go into the intergalactic bit bucket.
- Google (Gmail, Drive, Photos): Two years of no activity = delete. Poof!
- Google Voice: Three months of silence and your number could be reassigned.
- Shutterfly: If you don’t make a purchase in 18 months, they can delete your photos.
- Dropbox (free accounts): Around 12 months of no activity and your files could disappear.
- Yahoo Mail: Account may be deleted after 12 months of no login.
- Outlook / Hotmail (Microsoft): You’ve got 24 months before your account is shut down.
- AOL Mail: Log in at least once every six months to keep your account alive.
- iCloud / Apple ID: Apple’s vague about it, but if your account is inactive for a “prolonged period” (think: years), they can disable or delete it.
- LinkedIn: No set timeline, but if you vanish for two or more years, your profile might disappear.
- X: Says it releases usernames after 30 days but is sketchy on full deletions.
- Snapchat: If you deactivate and don’t come back in 30 days, your account is gone for good.
- Instagram: They may delete accounts that go 90+ days without login or engagement, but timelines are vague (think months to years).
- Facebook and TikTok: Good news, if you ghost your account, they don’t delete it automatically. Your profile stays alive unless you remove it or break the rules, and then you won’t see the likes of anyone again.
Take one minute, log into that dusty old account and hit send on an email to yourself. Yes, even that backup inbox from 2009 where your only messages are spam and a Chili’s coupon.
👋 Know someone who hasn’t logged into that old Yahoo or Gmail account in a while? Forward this to them. It might save years of photos, emails and digital memories from disappearing into the void. Because if you don’t, poof, your digital memories could vanish faster than a Zoom invite on a Friday afternoon.
$60,000
The median annual pay for HVAC techs, no bachelor’s required. That’s about the same as a liberal arts grad, minus the $43,000 student debt. Hot take: Installing AC might actually be the cooler job. Blame “AI-xiety,” but better a wrench in hand than a résumé lost in the algorithm.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Alexa has a Whisper Mode that replies quietly when you whisper to it. Just say, “Alexa, turn on Whisper Mode.” Great for late-night requests without waking the house.
👨🏻⚖️ Tesla said, “No data here” … Oopsie: Tesla told a jury there was absolutely no data showing what happened in a 2019 Autopilot crash that killed 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon and left her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, seriously injured. Then a hacker in a Starbucks found the so-called “missing” evidence, and it was game over. The jury hit Tesla with a $243 million verdict.
The quiet speaks: Get this, researchers built an AI tool (SeeMe) that can spot teeny-tiny facial movements in coma patients days before doctors even notice. Wild part? These little flickers, like an eye twitch or a mouth move, mean some patients we thought were unreachable might actually be conscious, and even able to answer yes-or-no questions. Amazing.
📩 He was supposed to help: A U.S. postal fraud inspector, the very person meant to protect elderly scam victims, allegedly stole over $330,000 from them instead. He rerouted packages meant for evidence and used the cash for cruises, escorts and home renovations. Investigators say he even tried to cover his tracks by laundering the money through family members. There’s a special place for people like this; hopefully, it’s a prison cell with some great roommates.
😲 Google gets a slap not a split: Google just dodged a breakup in its big monopoly trial but don’t break out the champagne in Mountain View just yet. A judge says Google can’t keep cutting those sweetheart “default search” deals and has to open up some of its secret search data to rivals. Chrome stays safe, and Google keeps its crown, but this ruling cracks the door for competitors, especially with AI nipping at Google’s heels.
17 inches
That’s the neck size where men’s health risks spike. For the ladies, it’s 14 inches. A thicker neck isn’t just a linebacker flex, it’s a red flag for heart disease, diabetes and sleep apnea. Turns out your shirt collar might be better at predicting your future hospital visits than your bathroom scale.
🕵️ AirTagged and bagged: Guy loses his AirTag-equipped suitcase at LAX, chases the signal, finds his clothes being modeled by squatters in a condemned building not far from the airport. The bag was trashed, but he still got most of his wardrobe back, just … pre-worn. Imagine sprinting after your underwear on Find My iPhone.
Check your Facebook settings: The sinister mobile app has quietly turned on two settings that let Meta scan your phone’s entire camera roll. Nice. That means Facebook can look at your photos, even the ones you haven’t uploaded. Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Camera roll sharing suggestions > and Toggle off Custom sharing suggestions from your camera roll and Get camera roll suggestions when you’re browsing Facebook. PSA: Your steps may vary but these work for most.
$46.7 billion
Nvidia’s Q2 revenue hit a record high, and nearly half of it came from six companies. The AI gold rush is paying off big-time, but that kind of customer concentration is the corporate equivalent of putting all your GPUs in one basket. Two customers are nearly 40%! Let’s just hope “Customer A” doesn’t speak Chinese.
🚨 Runway crash alarms: Ever wonder how pilots know if another plane’s about to cut them off on the runway? Spoiler: They don’t. Honeywell’s testing a new system that yells, “Traffic on runway” 30 and 15 seconds before disaster. Considering we had 1,664 runway oopsies last year, I’d say it’s about time planes got their own version of Waze.
🎸 Thunderstruck the cattle patrol: To keep wolves from eating livestock, scientists are flying $20K drones that scream preloaded clips like AC/DC, gunshots and Marriage Story arguments at them. So far? It’s actually working. Wolves run. Cows live. Somewhere, a Five Finger Death Punch fan is trying to follow the drones on tour and asking where to buy merch.
10%
That’s the fraction of dogs who responded to a breakthrough cancer immunotherapy. Lola, a now cancer-free golden retriever, was one of them. She was given two months to live. Two years later, she’s doing victory laps. The treatment? Inhaled IL-15 immunotherapy with no side effects, just being a very good girl.
‼️ WhatsApp just got hit with a stealthy spyware attack: No clicks, no links, just boom, you’re infected. If you’re on iPhone or Mac and haven’t updated WhatsApp in the last day, do it now. This one’s next-level sneaky and initially targeted journalists, so don’t wait to find out if you’re next.
📞 Nice try, scam daddy: Heads up, if your phone rings and it says “Google Support” (+1-650-253-0000), don’t pick up. Hackers are spoofing Google’s real number, pretending to be tech support, and tricking people into resetting their Gmail password. Do that, and you’re locked out of your own inbox. Google swears they’ll never call you, so just hang up and check your account yourself.
230
That’s the suspected IQ of Terence Tao, the reigning brainiac of Earth with the highest recorded IQ. The UCLA math prodigy was doing calculus while the rest of us were apparently eating glue in third grade. Now he’s published 300+ papers, 18 books and advises the U.S. president. My math teacher told me my IQ was pretty average. I thought, “That’s just mean.”
🌕 Sign me up, Scotty: You could help track Artemis II, the first crewed moon mission in 50 years. The 10-day flight (set for April 2026) will loop astronauts around the moon. If you’ve got the gear to spot Orion, NASA wants your help. Basically, if you’re into backyard stargazing and unpaid work, this is right up your alley.
⛳️ Talk birdie to me: Forget 18-hole snoozefests. YouTube quietly turned golf into a content gold mine. During the pandemic, channels like Good Good exploded; now 75% of their revenue comes from merch, not swings. Paige Spiranac parlayed 4M Instagram followers into golf stardom, and even Bryson DeChambeau used YouTube to fix his image with 2.3M subs.