The new “cold war

June 20, 2024

🇷🇺 The new “cold war:” Russia has a new avenue for disinformation: AI chatbots. A recent study found 10 leading chatbots spouted Russian propaganda 32% of the time. Where are they getting the info? An American fugitive in Moscow, who published over 160 fake news sites for the Kremlin. Don’t trust AI for your news — especially election news.

Tags: AI (artificial intelligence), chatbots, fake news, Russia, study

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Your smart speaker can detect smoke and carbon monoxide alarms – Here's how

Your Amazon, Google or Apple smart speaker has a lifesaving feature I bet you don’t know about: It can tell you if there’s smoke or carbon monoxide (CO) in your home.

The speaker can’t actually detect smoke or CO, but it can “listen” for devices that do. So, if your smoke or CO alarm goes off and you’re away from home, your smart speaker can ping your phone, saving your property, belongings and precious pets inside.

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Pig-butchering scams cost Americans $4B a year – Don’t be a victim

Looking for love online? Keep your head on a swivel for pig-butchering scams.

Cybercrooks play the long game in this one. They “fatten you up” with lovey-dovey texts over months, and then, once they have your trust, they send you to slaughter with a crypto scam.

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We are the No. 3 podcast!

OK, OK … No. 3 in Rwanda. But hey, that’s something, right?!

Stuck on hold: There’s a hidden redial button on your smartphone. Hit the call button without typing a number or choosing a contact to call the last person you talked to.

Billionaire Warren Buffett plays a certain game online for at least eight hours weekly. Is it … A.) Bridge, B.) Chess, C.) Dominoes or D.) Monopoly?

Find the answer here! →

$100,000 set aside

By Minnesota lawmakers to buy Dorothy’s stolen ruby slippers. They could go for 100 times that at auction. The shoes were stolen in 2005 while on loan from their owner to the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota (her hometown). After being recovered in 2018, they’ll be back up for sale at the end of the year.

🚨 Don't download these apps 🚨

Don’t download these apps — or any that look or sound like one of these examples.

$174,000 salary

To manage a fast-food restaurant in California. Monique Pizano, a 27-year-old Raising Cane’s manager, makes six figures (paywall link) after bonuses, depending on her location’s performance. That’s egg-cellent! (Get it? It’s a chicken fast-food joint. Tough crowd!)

50% of employees

“Quiet vacation” over the Fourth of July weekend. It’s not just you; no one’s getting work done the week of Independence Day. Instead, nearly half of workers are playing hooky without telling their managers, aka “quiet vacationing.”

183% increase

In phony Ozempic scams over the past four months. Look out for social media posts offering weight loss drugs at a steep discount or without a prescription. These aren’t real doctors (paywall link); they’re a phishing scam.