Could you imagine being one of these athletes and still needing a side hustle to pay the bills?
Tech steps to take before you die
© Wrightstudio | Dreamstime.com
It’s a grim topic, but we have to think about what happens to all our online accounts, data, notes, photos, videos, websites, playlists, blogs and subscriptions once we’re gone. Do your loved ones a favor and get this sorted out beforehand.
Your Apple account
Apple’s Legacy Contact is a safe, secure way to give trusted people 13 or older access to the data stored in your Apple account after you die. Here’s how to set it up on your iPhone:
- Open Settings and tap your name.
- Go to Sign‑In & Security > Legacy Contact > Add Legacy Contact.
- Select the person from your Contacts, then tap Continue.
- You’ll be asked how you want to share your access key. Select Print Access Key or Send Access Key.
- If you choose to send your key digitally, Apple will create a message letting your contact know you’ve added them as your legacy contact. Tap Send.
Your Google account (including Gmail)
Google offers a similar setup as Apple’s Legacy Contact called Inactive Account Manager. With it, you choose when your account is considered inactive and what happens to your data.
- Hit this link, choose Start, then select a timeframe for Google to consider your account inactive — from three months to 18 months. You’ll get multiple alerts via text and email before anything happens, so make sure your phone number and recovery email are both up to date. When you’re ready, click Next.
- Add up to 10 people Google should notify if your account is inactive, then choose anything you want them to have access to, like your contacts, calendar or entire Google account. They’ll have three months of access time. After you’ve selected your legacy recipients, hit Next.
- If you don’t want to share your data with anyone else and would prefer Google delete your account instead, toggle on that option.
- Hit Review Plan to finish up, then click Confirm Plan.
Do the same for Facebook
On Facebook, you can assign a legacy contact to write posts, update your profile photo and get a copy of everything you did on Facebook after you pass. It’s easiest to do this from a computer.
- Sign into your Facebook account, then tap your profile in the upper-right corner.
- Select Settings & Privacy > Settings > See more in Accounts Center > Personal details > Account ownership and control.
- Choose Memorialization, select your Facebook account and pick a legacy contact.
If you’d rather have your Facebook account deleted, go to the Memorialization settings page. Right above the Close button at the bottom, select Request that your account be deleted after you pass away.
What about all your passwords?
8 ways your phone is tracking you - That you can stop now
© Wrightstudio | Dreamstime.com
You understand that your phone knows where you’re located. This is how GPS works, how Find My sees your location and why you get local ads on Facebook and Google. Like other data on your phone, that location data is a hot commodity for internet marketers.
Her entire life is being faked online — April 19th, Hour 4
Oscar from Texas says a man is obsessed with his daughter. Now, he’s impersonating her online. Fake accounts, false messages, even rumors she’s pregnant. Plus, 3 things you can do with a dead iPhone, and the dark side of influencer culture.
Keep an eye on your Social Security payouts: Hackers are breaking into retirement accounts and changing the payment info to cash in for themselves. It’s shady and happening more than you’d think. Take a sec today, log in to your SS account and make sure everything looks right. Better safe than suddenly broke.
Up in the clouds: Before you pay for storage, know that the free versions might be all you need. Google Drive gives you 15GB, Dropbox Basic offers 2GB and OneDrive throws in 5GB. No one says you can’t make a couple accounts …
Fired for his OnlyFans
Joe Gow and his wife Carmen are facing backlash after Joe’s employer, a university, found the couples’ OnlyFans account. His tenure is at risk, but he’s not giving up just yet.
👔 Verify your LinkedIn profile: LinkedIn has verified over 55 million accounts. The platform says verified profiles are seeing 60% more views, 30% more connection requests and a 50% boost in post engagement. Bonus: If you’re hiring, use the hashtag #Hiring on your profile photo, and here’s my special link for a free job posting. Nice.
4 text scams sweeping the country
Scammers are flooding phones with fake alerts about tolls, accounts, and deliveries. Here’s how to spot the tricks before you get caught.
Social media accounts and your privacy
The U.S. government might soon require social media credentials from green card, citizenship, asylum, and refugee applicants. Here’s what to know.
Tell Instagram to stop tracking you: Go to your profile and click the three-line icon > Accounts Center. Choose Ad Preferences > Manage info > Activity information from ad partners. Tap Review Settings, then No, don’t make my ads more relevant. Press Confirm. Voila.
Amazon switcheroo: Starting Feb. 26, you can’t download Kindle books onto anything other than an Amazon device. So, right now, sign in to Amazon, click Accounts & Lists > Content Library > Books. On the one you want, hit More actions > Download & transfer via USB.
💸 Who’s in your wallet? The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says Capital One conned customers out of $2 billion in interest payments. They promised super-high rates for 360 Performance Savings accounts, then froze them at 0.30%. If this happened to you, file a complaint.
The case of the phony subpoena
The FBI warns about scam emails faking arrest warrants, subpoenas, court orders, and IRS notices of seized accounts.
October 26th, 2024
They have feelings, too: Being polite to a chatbot can get you better results. Plus, Apple Intelligence is coming next week, celebrity Venmo accounts and the FTC bans fake online reviews. Also, I talk to a woman whose daughter, a medical professional, is dealing with false, nasty reviews online.
Stalking celebrity Venmo accounts
If you use a peer-to-peer payment app to pay rent or split bills, be careful with your privacy settings — you could be sharing more than you think. Even stars like Travis Kelce and Jon Hamm aren’t immune.
Google’s deleting inactive Gmail accounts
Don’t let your digital life vanish! Many tech companies are deleting profiles, and you could lose everything. Here’s why.
How to download your entire Facebook
What if you suddenly lost access to your Facebook — years of photos, posts, and memories gone? I’ll tell you how to back up your account so you don’t lose it all if something goes wrong.
When the bank asks for a voice sample, say no
Banks are pushing for voice biometrics as a way to protect your accounts, but there’s a catch.