See if your genius idea already exists: Google Patents has the full text of more than 120 million patents from around the world. Weird patent of the day: This one from Russia for fake cheese.

America's drinking water is under attack

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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.

Russian hackers at work: They exploited two security flaws in web browsers Firefox and Tor to plant malware. Mozilla and Microsoft patched the issues, so update ASAP. Restart your browser (or browsers), then, in Windows, go to Start > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update and hit Check for updates.

14 years ago 

Russia began transitioning from Microsoft Windows to a custom Linux operating system. They now use Astra Linux for their educational system, financial sector, and state and military operations. Nerd joke: Who has the highest rank in the Linux military? The kernel. (Oh, that was a good one!)

100 miles

How far a Chinese ship dragged its anchor, cutting two Baltic Sea internet cables. Investigators suspect they cut the critical data cables on purpose, in part because it’d be nearly impossible not to notice dragging an anchor that far. The carrier left a Russian port a couple of weeks ago, packed with fertilizer. Both countries say, “Nope, not us.”

5 million in Sweden

Got pamphlets to prep for nuclear war. The booklets have instructions for storing food and water and finding shelter in case there’s war with Russia. Norway did the same last week. ICYMI, check Ready.gov for the U.S. government’s disaster planning guides.

1 week’s worth

Amount of supplies Norway recommends its citizens have on hand in case of war with Russia. Imagine getting that in the mail. Norway isn’t alone; check Ready.gov for the U.S. government’s planning guides for everything from a flood to a snowstorm. Nothing sets my doomsday alarm ringing like 10 minutes without the internet.

Not now, Putin, I’m busy: North Korean soldiers deployed in Russia are taking full advantage of unrestricted internet access by … binge-watching p*rn. The internet isn’t available to most citizens in North Korea, so this is the first time the soldiers can see all the web has to offer.

Not exactly brag-worthy: The federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is tooting its own horn for no successful hacks during the U.S. election. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t interference. Russia ramped up its disinformation campaigns on social media, and several bogus bomb threats made at polling stations were traced back to them. And don’t forget China hacked phones belonging to President-elect Trump and JD Vance.

$20 decillion (34 zeros!)

How much a Russian court wants Google to cough up. The crime? Blocking their TV channels on YouTube. The amount is doubling every week. For the record, Google can’t pay it; their parent company is only worth $2 trillion (12 zeros).

🛰️ If you want peace, prepare for war: The U.S. and its allies are working to defend against growing space threats from China and Russia. Cyberattacks, GPS jamming and even space debris all pose serious risks. So far, NATO has added a space branch, the U.K. has launched its own spy satellite, and France is developing tech to prevent interference in low Earth orbit (paywall link). See you crater, space invader!

$1 million-plus invested

Into an old cruise ship purchased on Craigslist. A tech entrepreneur spent 15 years restoring the 293-foot vessel. It was built in Germany in 1955, inspired “The Love Boat” and was in the 1963 Bond movie “From Russia with Love.” After they decided to sell the slice of history, it mysteriously took on water and was decommissioned. Weird, right?

🚨 If that’s how it is, Soviet: Russia’s propaganda machine paid a Tennessee media company $10 million to post pro-Kremlin content. Tenet Media has a roster of popular right-wing influencers, including Dave Rubin, Tim Pool and Benny Johnson. The hosts say they had no clue Russia was paying them. FYI: Since November 2023, they’ve posted nearly 2,000 videos, racking up 16 million views on YouTube alone.

🪆 They need to be Putin place: A network of undersea fiber-optic internet cables could be Russia’s next target. If disabled, the West (the USA, Canada, Mexico and Australia, to name a few) could go dark — everything from Wi-Fi to calls to financial transactions. Russia’s also interfering with GPS systems, causing chaos for commercial airlines. Why? Retaliation against countries that support Ukraine.

America’s water systems are a cyber target: Systems in Kansas, Texas and Pennsylvania have already been hit by hackers in China, Russia and Iran. Blame outdated tech and poor cybersecurity. No joke, some water systems still use default passwords. This scares me and it’s why I keep extra water on hand.

Kaspersky’s kaput: The U.S. has officially banned Kaspersky antivirus software over its shady ties to Russia. Officials say it poses a national security risk due to the Russian government’s influence. If you don’t have an antivirus solution (or you need a new one), TotalAV is my pick.

🇷🇺 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.

It’s getting worse: In January, a water tank in Muleshow, Texas, overflowed, and now we know who was behind the cyberattack: A hacking group with ties to Russia. This will not be the last attack, and many of the 150,000 U.S. water systems are scrambling for funds and staff to beef up their defenses. Glad we store clean water at home.

Bonus episode: The Kim Komando Show, April 13

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A new tech ban is coming, this time it targets Russia. Trade your data for money? I tell you the real cost of cash-incentive offers (it’s not pretty). True crime lovers — here’s a side hustle you won’t want to miss. Plus, a gal wonders if her Roomba records her. Creepy! 

Security software tech ban: Russia-based Kaspersky Lab is getting the boot in the U.S. Think about the damage a Communist government download can do to a customer base of over 4,000,000 computers worldwide. Time to switch, like, now. My pick is TotalAV — it covers up to five of your (or your loved ones’) computers and devices.