Redacted: If you ever send a password to a colleague, family member or friend in a chat or text, delete the message after they’ve copied it. There are more secure ways to share a password, but let’s be honest: Everyone shares them this way (even me!).
Block porn on X
The social network X (I still think of it as Twitter) has always had its seedier corners, but now Elon Musk has officially said porn is OK on the platform. And to keep your, uh, activity private, they’re now hiding likes, too. Coincidence? Yeah, I don’t think so.
Running into X-rated images is not going to be OK with millions of X users. If your kid is on X, you should walk them through these steps. If you don’t want to see … well, whatever people start posting, pop into your settings, too. It’s easiest to do on your computer.
To turn off the NSFW stuff on the web:
- Click More > Settings and privacy.
- Choose Privacy and safety > Content you see.
- Uncheck the Display media that may contain sensitive content box.
- Click Search settings and check Hide sensitive content.
You can get specific, too
On the Privacy and safety menu, there’s also a Mute and block option. Use this to hide certain words, hashtags and accounts you don’t want popping up on your timeline (or your kids’ timelines).
- Choose Muted words.
- Click the + (plus) button (top right) > Enter the word to block — like #nsfw.
- Make sure From anyone and Until you unmute the word are selected.
- Click Save.
Pro tip: NSFW means “not safe for work.” Yeah, use your imagination and you’ll know what kind of pics that means.
A word of warning
If you’re setting up these filters for your children rather than yourself, they can turn them right back off again. Don’t sneak in and do it — have a frank chat about why these settings should be adjusted. A good conversation can do wonders.
If all else fails, though, there are stricter options.
- On Apple phones and laptops, use the Screen Time feature to put limits on content and apps. Go to Settings > Screen Time on an iPhone or System Settings > Screen Time on a Mac.
- On Android, install Google Family Link, and on Windows try Microsoft Family Safety.
Another AI chatbot goes rogue
A social media star creates an AI clone of herself to chat with fans—for a fee. What went wrong? Find out more in this short podcast.
Be careful where you vent: Friendly reminder that Google Chat, Microsoft Teams, Slack and other work chats aren’t private. IT or your manager can pop in at any time. Edited messages and deleted convos are stored on servers, too, not truly deleted (paywall link).
No. 2 most-prescribed drug
For older adults is linked to bone loss. A whopping 23 million Americans take Levothyroxine. A Johns Hopkins Medicine study found it may lead to osteoporosis. Chat with your doc if you take this medication and ask what you can do.
Gemini Live is free to Android users: Google’s AI assistant chats in real time and you can interrupt it with new info or directions. To try it, open the Gemini app and tap the circular waveform with a sparkle icon in the bottom right. You’ll enter full-screen chat mode.
Forced advertising: Soon, you’ll see ads on Snapchat next to messages from your friends. Sponsored snaps will show as unread messages in the main chat tab, but they won’t trigger push notifications, at least. Snap’s stock price is hovering near an all-time low. This is def not a coincidence.
📧 Use Gmail on your Android? If you pay for the Google Workspace plan (or your work does), you can now chat with Google’s AI, Gemini, about your emails. The bot has access to your entire inbox, so it can summarize your emails (“What did Mary want?”) or find specific info for you (“When’s the app design deadline?”). To use it, tap the black star logo in the top-right corner of the app. Coming soon to iPhone, I hope!
Telegram’s founder says he has “nothing to hide”: French authorities arrested him for criminal activities on the anonymous chat app — like people videoing themselves killing cats with kitchen utensils and pedophiles sharing explicit images of kids. The CEO says the app shouldn’t be held responsible for the horrible content, citing freedom of speech. Ahem, that’s not free speech, jerkface.
Still using Facebook Messenger? Might as well have fun. Tap the + (plus sign) in the bottom left during a chat, then hit the icon that looks like a game controller. Hello-o-o, timewasters! Play classics like Snake, Pac-Man, Solitaire and Tomb Runner without any extra downloads.
🐷 Beware the pig butchers: I’ve been warning you about pig-butchering scams for years, and now they’re finally mainstream news. A random message leads to a friendly chat, and before you know it, you’re pouring your money into a get-rich-quick scheme. The scams play with your emotions, whether that’s love, fear or panic. Your critical thinking goes out the window. Remember this — and share this (paywall link).
Meta-morphosis: Meta’s AI Studio for Instagram lets you create an AI version of yourself. The AI “you” can chat with followers on Instagram, Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp. It’s free to use at ai.meta.com/ai-studio or in the IG app. I’ll hold off on creating an AI Kim.
🏎️ A Ferrari exec slammed the brakes: A Ferrari C-level exec got a text from his CEO, who wanted to chat on WhatsApp. They were texting about possible mergers when the CEO said, “Let’s talk.” And they did. The C-level exec said it was someone posing as the CEO (paywall link). He tested the caller, asking for the name of a book the actual CEO had recommended the exec read the week before. Surprise, the scammer hung up.
🏅 Putting the “pics” in Olympics: Olympians are turning to OnlyFans to make money while in Paris. Briton Jack Laugher says he only makes $36,000 a year as one of the top three divers in the world. Now, he charges $10 a month for fans to chat with him, ask questions and, of course, see some very spicy Speedo pics.
He was onto something: In a newly released clip from 1983, Steve Jobs dreamt of a machine that could generate responses based on a person’s “underlying spirit, or underlying set of principles, or any underlying way of looking at the world.” Yeah, that’s an AI chatbot. Btw, Jobs wanted to talk to Aristotle and Plato. I’d like to chat with my parents.
❤️ An MIT expert warns: Don’t fall in love with an AI chat companion. The bots aren’t capable of caring about you, and the fake intimacy is setting folks up for unrealistic expectations in the real world. An AI friend, sure, but end it there, folks.
America's drinking water is under attack
Water systems in Kansas, Texas and Pennsylvania have already been hit by hackers in China, Russia and Iran. Plus, clothes that block 5G waves, AI coming to Alexa, and Walmart’s new digital pricing. We also chat with Joseph Cox about his book “Dark Wire,” which is about Anom, the FBI’s secret app used by criminals.
Apple’s next big idea: Robot butlers
Picture an AI smarty-pants to wash the dishes, clean the house and video chat with you when you’re not home. Plus, fakes on Facebook, no more sharing Disney+ passwords, and Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology.
“Lovebots” are coming: Dating apps are set for a major overhaul. Instead of swiping left or right, bots will chat with hundreds of other bots in that awkward getting-to-know-you stage. You’ll only be asked to rate people when the bots agree there’s an initial match. This is wrong on so many levels.