Check your Facebook settings: The sinister mobile app has quietly turned on two settings that let Meta scan your phone’s entire camera roll. Nice. That means Facebook can look at your photos, even the ones you haven’t uploaded. Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Camera roll sharing suggestions > and Toggle off Custom sharing suggestions from your camera roll and Get camera roll suggestions when you’re browsing Facebook. PSA: Your steps may vary but these work for most.
Your phone’s more intimate than your diary
ChatGPT
Our phones hold everything: photos, texts, money apps, health info, even our bad selfies. Handing over access to your partner? That’s not just convenient. That’s trust on a whole new level.
Some people think it’s the 2025 version of giving someone a house key. Others worry it’s a recipe for drama, or even the prequel to a Netflix true crime doc.
But done the right way, sharing your device can make life smoother and safer, and bring you closer. Let’s talk about a few smart ways to do it. Note: I’ve checked all these steps below, but depending on your device, operating system, make, model and whether Mercury is in retrograde, your steps may look a little different.
🧬 Share biometrics
Letting your partner unlock your phone with their Face ID or a fingerprint means no fumbling for passcodes. Great in emergencies or when one of you is driving.
- iPhone: Go to Settings > Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode). Enter your passcode, tap Set Up an Alternate Appearance (Face ID) or Add a Fingerprint (Touch ID), and scan your partner.
- Android: Settings vary, but generally go to Settings > Security & privacy > Device lock or Biometrics > Face recognition or Fingerprints. Add a new face or fingerprint and follow the prompts.
🛟 Set up emergency contacts
This makes sure your partner’s number shows up for first responders even if your phone is locked.
- iPhone: Open the Health app > Profile icon (upper-right corner) > Medical ID > Edit. Scroll to Emergency Contacts > Edit > Add Emergency Contact, select your partner, and save.
- Android: Open the Contacts app, pick your partner, and mark as Emergency Contact. Some phones (like Pixel or Samsung) also have Settings > Safety and emergency > Emergency contacts for more options.
📍 Share locations
Skip the “where are you?” texts. Location sharing keeps you connected, whether for safety or convenience.
- iPhone: Open Find My > People tab > Start Sharing Location. Choose your partner’s contact, then set it to share Indefinitely.
- Android: Open Google Maps > Profile icon (upper-right corner) > Location sharing > Share location. Pick your partner, set the time period (or Until you turn this off), and hit Share.
⚠️ Don’t trust every Play Store app: Harmful ones sometimes sneak past Google’s checks, and one wrong download can infect your phone. Protect yourself: Open the Play Store app, tap your Profile, go to Play Protect > Settings > General, and toggle on Scan apps with Play Protect. It’ll inspect your apps and warn you about risks.
🛠️ Troubleshooting on Windows 11: Running into issues like no sound, no internet or a printer that won’t connect? Go to Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters. You’ll see options like Audio, Network & Internet, Printer and more. Click Run next to the one giving you problems, then follow the prompts to diagnose and fix it.
🍏 Turn off iPhone analytics: Apple collects usage data and location info from your device to “improve services.” They say it’s anonymous, but why risk your privacy? Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Analytics & Improvements and toggle everything off. Bonus: You’ll get a tiny battery boost since your phone won’t be uploading data in the background.
Use a Bluetooth mouse on iPad: Put your mouse in pairing mode, then on your iPad, go to Settings > Bluetooth and look under Other Devices. Tap to pair, and once it connects, a cursor will appear. FYI: You’ll need iPadOS 13.4 or later and a compatible mouse (here’s one on sale).
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📚 Schedule warm light on Kindle: You can ease eyestrain at night by setting your Kindle’s warm light to turn on automatically. Go to All Settings > Screen and brightness > Brightness and warmth > Warmth schedule. Choose Automatic (sunset to sunrise) or Manual (pick your own times). Use the (+/–) slider to adjust the intensity.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Some TVs let you watch two shows at once. Go to Settings > Display (or Picture) and look for Multi-View or Picture-in-Picture.
⌨️ Add a touch keyboard in Windows 11: Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > System tray icons and set Touch keyboard to Always. A keyboard icon will appear on your Taskbar. Click it to type with your mouse, or hit the settings icon inside the pop-up to switch to Handwriting with your finger or stylus.
🎮 Protect your kids on Discord: You can filter out NSFW images sent from strangers, friends and server channels. Go to User Settings > Content & Social > Content and Block everything under Mature Sexual Media and Graphic Media. While you’re there, scroll to Direct Message spam, and toggle Filter all.
Share your phone’s internet: Turn your mobile data into Wi-Fi for other devices. On iPhone, go to Settings > Personal Hotspot and toggle Allow Others to Join. On Android, go to Settings > Connections > Mobile Hotspot and Tethering. Then, on your laptop or tablet, open Wi-Fi settings and connect to your phone’s hotspot name.
🔍 Hide your Facebook from Google: Stop search engines from linking to your profile when someone looks up your name. Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Audience and visibility > How people find and contact you. Then toggle off Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile?
I cut the cord, and you should, too: If you’ve linked ChatGPT to Gmail, Google Drive or anything personal, listen up. Researchers found that one poisoned document can trick the AI into spilling sensitive info. No clicks, no alerts. We’re talking leaked emails, stolen files, even access to your accounts. I cut all GPT connections in my settings. You should, too.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: On Windows, you can hide your desktop icons for privacy. Just right-click the desktop, go to View and uncheck Show desktop icons. On Mac, click Finder > Settings > General, and uncheck what you don’t want on the desktop. Wish I could clean my closet this fast.
📧 Take back that Gmail oops: Sent the wrong message? Click the Gear icon in the top-right > See all settings > under General, find Undo Send and set the Send cancellation period to 30 seconds. Next time you slip up, just hit Undo in the bottom-left.
🍏 Lock iPad to one app: Want to stop yourself (or the kids) from exiting an app by mistake? Turn on Guided Access. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access and toggle on. Open an app, triple-click the Home button, tap Start and Set a Passcode. Now you can’t leave the app. To exit, triple-click again, enter the Passcode and tap End.
🌐 Check website permissions: Some sites may have access to your webcam or microphone without you knowing. In Chrome, click the View site information icon left of the address bar, then go to Site settings to review permissions. On Safari, open the Safari menu > Settings for This Website > Permissions to do the same.
Turn off Windows 11 notifications: Some app alerts get annoying fast. Go to Settings > System > Notifications > Notifications from apps and other senders, and toggle off the ones you don’t want. To silence them all, go back to Settings > System > Notifications, and turn it off completely.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Set a sleep timer on your TV, so it powers off if you nod off. Look under Settings > Timers or General. I keep mine at 120 minutes.
Set up Gmail vacation auto-replies: Go to Settings > See all settings > General and scroll down to Vacation responder. Turn it on, pick your First day and Last day from the calendars, add a Subject line, and write your Message (include your return date). Now click Save Changes at the bottom.