🙂 Don’t worry, be happy: Or just move to Hawaii, Maryland or Nebraska. Those are apparently the three happiest states, where the biggest stress is whether your corn’s tall enough, your crab’s spicy enough or your mai tai’s strong enough. WalletHub crunched 30 metrics (depression, income, job security) and crowned the trio champs of health, wealth and vibes.
Identity thieves are coming for your insurance
Midjourney
I was shocked by this stat the other day. The National Insurance Crime Bureau says identity theft–driven insurance fraud is projected to spike 49% by the end of 2025.
Really, insurance fraud?
You see, identity theft isn’t just about someone opening a store credit card or taking a car loan out in your name anymore. Criminals are using stolen info to pull off insurance fraud to quietly file bogus claims that will jack up your premiums and deny you future coverage.
🪪 They’re not amateurs
These scammers are building synthetic identities. Think people made from a mix of real info (like your Social Security number) and fake details. Then they use those ghost identities to buy policies and file false claims to collect the money.
Let me break it down:
- In Iowa, an insurance adjuster allegedly forged clients’ signatures to reroute settlement checks to himself.
- In Texas, a man used his ex-wife’s identity to open an auto policy and pocket all the payouts.
- And NICB warns that synthetic IDs are now being used to file fake life insurance and medical claims that can sit undetected for years. Wow.
🚨 So what if it’s not ‘you’?
Here’s the part no one tells you: Even if the fraud isn’t in your name, it can still come back to bite you.
If someone builds a synthetic ID with your SSN or address, insurance companies may flag you as high risk, especially if there are multiple claims tied to your data. That means higher premiums, denied coverage or even getting dropped altogether.
Trying to untangle that mess? It can take months of fighting with insurers, credit bureaus and law enforcement. In the meantime, you’re stuck with the consequences. This kind of fraud is quiet, invisible and devastating if you don’t catch it early.
That’s why I use NordProtect, a sponsor of my radio show. It monitors your personal info (Social Security number, email, phone number, address, etc.) and watches for signs it’s being used to open insurance policies, take out loans or commit fraud. If something shady pops up, you’re alerted immediately, and Nord guides you through shutting it down fast.
VPNs that spy on you
Bing Image Creator
Using a VPN? Better make sure it’s not on this list.
VPNs are supposed to keep you safe. They encrypt your internet traffic and hide your location from hackers, ISPs and creepy ad trackers.
20,000 corporate employees
Were tested to see if cybersecurity training helps them avoid phishing scams. The result? Their failure rate was only 1.7% lower than people with no training at all. Blame the materials or the teaching, but the real fix is auto-detecting software (paywall link). Send this stat to your boss before they book another mandatory workshop.
🏁 Drive‑by hacking? It’s a thing: Researchers discovered serious security flaws in Apple’s CarPlay systems that allow attackers to remotely take control of a car. Once inside, they can play music, hijack in‑car displays, eavesdrop on conversations and track a vehicle’s location. No patch from Apple yet.
⚠️ Keep your email private: Big email providers like Gmail and Yahoo track what you do. I use StartMail because it keeps my inbox secure, stops spam with unlimited aliases, and it keeps my personal info private. You can try it free for 7 days, and when you sign up, you’ll get my 60% off deal for the first year! It’s a terrific service.
Apple ups privacy: Websites can still track you by stitching together your IP, device info and time zone into a “fingerprint.” No opt-out. iOS 26 (out Sept. 16) will auto-block that in Safari. Add in spam call screening and link-tracking protection, and Apple’s getting a privacy facelift.
Calendar con job: Here’s a fun new nightmare. Hackers are sliding scams straight into Apple Calendar invites. They toss fake “big purchases” into event notes, slap on a shady customer service number and wait for you to panic-call. Do that, and congrats, you’ve just invited malware into your phone. Even your 8 a.m. dentist reminder isn’t safe anymore. Be scam aware.
My pick for antivirus protection: TotalAV delivers strong, real-time protection that blocks malware, cleans junk and keeps your devices running fast. Start your first year of protection for $19 today!
🚨 Microsoft Patch Tuesday: The latest update fixes 86 security flaws across Windows, Office, SharePoint and more. The scariest? A remote code execution bug in Microsoft’s High Performance Compute pack. Go to Settings > Windows Update > Check for updates.
🛸 Missile vs. UFO: Congress just dropped a wild video of a U.S. drone firing a Hellfire missile at a glowing orb off Yemen. The missile bounced off. I’m no military expert, but that’s not business as usual. Veterans testified they’ve seen triangles, cubes and Tic Tacs in the sky, claiming the government buried reports and retaliated against whistleblowers.
🚀 Golden Dome race: Varda Space nailed a capsule reentry (paywall link) in Australia, on target at hypersonic speed. Sounds nerdy, but here’s the point: The U.S. is funding a “missile shield” against future threats, and tech startups are competing to build it. Translation: Silicon Valley is shifting from dating apps to defense contracts.
⚡ Crypto malware scare: In the biggest supply chain hack in history, hackers hijacked 18 huge npm packages (chalk, debug and others), slipping in code that swapped crypto wallet addresses mid-transaction. Those poisoned packages? Downloaded over a billion times. Developers yanked the infected versions and purged caches in record time. Mischief managed, but it shows how fragile the web’s plumbing really is.
👀 Romance scam face-off: A Florida grandma thought she was chatting up a retired Army general. Nope, just scammers milking her for $60K. Deputies say one guy pocketed $30K and bought a Hyundai Kona. She got to confront him face-to-face. He swears he was “scamming the scammer.” The vehicle of choice for world-class con artists: midrange compact SUV.
Grok and ye shall find (malicious links!): Scammers have figured out how to trick X’s Grok AI into sharing dangerous links by hiding them in places the system overlooks, making those links look “trusted” when they’re anything but. Some posts have racked up millions of views, which means bad actors get a megaphone straight to your feed. PSA: Never click blindly, even if Grok hands you the link on a silver platter.
🎭 Deepfake stole her home: A 66-year-old California woman lost her life savings and home after scammers used AI deepfakes to impersonate soap star Steve Burton. You know the drill, Steve said he was in love and they would be together forever. But he needed money. She sent him $81K, then he pushed her into selling her $350K condo for quick cash. By the time her daughter intervened, the house was long gone.
$425 million
That’s how much Google owes for ignoring your “do not track” setting. Apparently, when you said “no thanks” to being tracked, Google heard “just a little bit.” The fine’s big, but considering the plaintiffs asked for $31 billion, it’s more of a slap than a shutdown.
Channeling bad vibes: Get a call about a 50% discount on your Comcast bill? It’s also a scam. They’ll ask you to call back the number on your caller ID. Don’t. That’s a burner phone set up to grab your bank or credit card info. If it sounds too good to be true and comes from Comcast? You know the drill. PSA: Look for other cable companies to be used the same way to steal your money.
🤝 Free Perplexity, kinda: If you use PayPal or Venmo, they’re handing you a free year of Perplexity Pro (normally $200) and early access to its AI browser. Just tap a button in the app. Only catch? You’re paying with your data, obviously. And yes, it auto-renews at the $200 price, because of course it does.
🔞 Ad clicked, life ruined: Watch out! Fake TradingView ads on Facebook hand you an app that asks for your PIN while pretending to “update.” It’s called Brokewell, which feels a little too on the nose. Because, well, you end up broke. Once in, it watches your screen, steals your money and sends your texts to its weird little hacker god.