Can your trash make you rich? Two high schoolers flipped junk from the dump into over $1 million on Facebook Marketplace. Plus, OpenAI drops $10 million on a domain, window-washing robots are here, and stores are using weather data to time their discounts.
🚨 Android alert: Watch out for a fake bank text asking you to call about a suspicious transaction. That’s when they’ll get you to share your card info and install a so-called Reader app. Next, you’re told to tap your bank card to your phone, and just like that, the app steals the card’s chip data with full access to your bank account.
28 seconds
How much longer a day on Uranus just got. Scientists studied a decade of data from the Hubble Space Telescope to more accurately measure the planet’s rotation. Turns out it now takes 17 hours, 14 minutes and 52 seconds for one full spin. Hey, why don’t scientists trust Uranus? Because it’s always up to something cheeky. Come on, that was funny.
🔒 Privacy checkup: Let’s see how apps use your data. On your iPhone, head to Settings > Privacy & Security > App Privacy Report and toggle it on. For Android, go to Settings > Privacy > Privacy dashboard. Tap an app to change permissions if something doesn’t look right.
🤖 OpenAI is building a social network: It’ll be its own version of X. The prototype apparently has a social feed focused on image generation using ChatGPT. No word yet if it’ll be a new app or built into the current one. Why do this? Real-time user data = more fuel to train their models.
🚨 Life insurance data breach alert: Landmark Admin, which works with life insurance and annuities, got hacked last year with an estimated 800,000 people hit. Yeah, we’re just hearing about it now. Surprise, it was actually over 1.6 million. If you’re one of them, you’ll get a letter. Watch out for sketchy calls, texts or emails to be safe. At this point, getting hacked is just America’s newest rite of passage.
🚘 Hertz data breach alert: Hackers probably have your driver’s license, credit cards and Social Security number after breaching one of Hertz’s vendors late last year. No word on how many people are affected. Watch your bank and credit card statements for little charges, say under $10. That’s how hackers test to see what numbers really work.
🚨 Bank of America lost your data … literally: Nope, it wasn’t a cyberattack. This time, savings bond documents went missing in transit, and they had everything. Names, addresses, account numbers, SSNs and more — the full “steal my identity” starter pack. No word yet on how many people are affected, but the bank says it’ll notify you. PSA: Freeze your credit.
✍️ President Trump threw crypto a bone: He signed off on killing an IRS rule that would’ve forced decentralized finance platforms to act like brokers. Yep, meaning they’d have to track and report your activity for taxes. Critics said it was a privacy nightmare and would’ve overloaded the IRS with too much data. One small win for crypto, one giant headache coming for stablecoins.
🛜 Cord-cutting: Not what you think. Since 2023, at least 11 undersea cables have gone dark from suspected Russian sabotage (paywall link). China’s linked to incidents near Taiwan, too. Both say “not me.” Over 95% of the world’s data travels via 500+ of these lines. Without them? We’d be back to the dial-up era. We’re one cable cut away from faxing memes to your friends.
📱 Does your kid have a burner phone? We’ve reached the era of middle schoolers running black market tech ops. A dad posted to Reddit after he found out his 12-year-old son was hiding one in a pillow to access apps he wasn’t supposed to be on. Signs to watch for: They’re ignoring the phone you know about, there are sudden dips in data usage, or you notice new devices using the Wi-Fi.
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Why does the “IRS” want your personal data?
Spoiler: it doesn’t. IRS scams are making the rounds again. Here’s how to spot them
TikTok sale won't stop the spies
The deadline for TikTok’s new buyer is tomorrow, but Chinese-made drones, vacuums, and cameras quietly continue collecting data.
Freeze frame: In Excel, it helps to keep your column and row headings stuck in place while you scroll around big spreadsheets. Select the cell where the actual data starts, and then click the View menu > Freeze Panes.
2.87 billion
X profiles exposed. The 400 GB leak seems to be an inside job. Looks like an ex-employee stole the data. Change your X password.
🇨🇳 Say it’s not Tso: Obviously, we just don’t care about giving China even more of our data. China’s DeepSeek just passed ChatGPT in new monthly website visits with 524.7 million, compared to ChatGPT’s 500 million. DeepSeek holds 12.12% of the chatbot market, second to ChatGPT. Think about what you hand over to this communist chatbot.
Apple’s revamping the Health app: They’re adding an AI virtual doctor (paywall link). It’ll analyze health data from your devices and give you personalized tips to stay healthy, eat better and improve sleep. ETA: Sometime next year. I see me doing tips on how to remove your data, too.
Your DNA is up for sale
23andMe went bankrupt, and your genetic data is now part of its assets.
⚠️ Sam’s Club data breach: We don’t know a lot, yet. The Clop ransomware gang listed Sam’s Club on its leak site. All Sam’s Club says is that they’re investigating the matter. Better to be proactive. Watch your credit card statements for fraud.