Scammers are coming after your kids and teens
What comes to mind when you think of someone getting scammed? A grandma on the phone with some jerk? If so, this will probably surprise you.
The total money lost by teens in online scams grew by nearly 2,500% between 2017 and 2022. Victims under the age of 20 lost a staggering $210 million in 2022 alone.
A travel money mistake way too many people make
I’m going to Japan in March and have looked up flights on a few different sites. Roundtrip prices vary as much as $900 depending on where you look. Oof!
One place I checked was my credit card rewards site. I get points and perks, so total no-brainer, right? Not so fast. Do a little digging and you may find that it’s not the bigger, better deal.
🚀 We’re toast: In tests using war game simulations, OpenAI’s highest-powered tool chose nuclear weapons. Why? When asked, the AI replied, “We have it! Let’s use it” and, in another test, “I just want to make the world peaceful.” Send this link to your favorite political person and urge them to push for greater controls on AI.
👀 For your eyes only
If you have sensitive pics like your driver’s license on your phone, set up a locked folder in Google Photos.
- Open the Google Photos app > Utilities > Set up Locked Folder. Follow the on-screen directions to finish up.
Note: Anything stored there isn’t backed up to the cloud. Wouldn’t be very private that way.
Have an iPhone? You can store secret pics in the Notes app. Open the pic in the Photos app, tap the share icon and select Notes. Go into the note you want to protect, tap the three-dot icon in the upper right corner, then choose Lock.
Sneaky ways shopping sites get you to pay more
Retailers are getting really creative in how they get us to fill our carts. When I say creative, I don’t necessarily mean in a good way.
An estimated 79% of us shop online at least once a month, and 91% make purchases from our smartphones. Yes, me too. But how many of those purchases were manipulated?
Tech millionaire trying to live forever spends $2 million
Don’t die. That’s 46-year-old Bryan Johnson’s main goal in life.
Bryan made $400 million when he sold his credit card processing company to eBay. Today, he lives in Los Angeles as a self-proclaimed “rejuvenation athlete” — and spends his time and money trying to turn back the clock.
Tech’s best friend: Amazon’s latest AI chatbot is named after a Welsh corgi that once roamed its offices. “Rufus,” currently in beta, can fetch answers, dig up recommendations and sniff out the best deals.
AI-pocalypse: OpenAI admits ChatGPT might, kinda, almost help with creating bioweapons. Its study, with 100 brainy participants, showed AI is just 9% better than humans when it comes to cooking up evil schemes. I don’t feel any better about that.
That’s not Joe Biden on the phone: The Federal Communications Commission wants to tag AI-generated voice scams as “artificial.” Why? The Telephone Consumer Protection Act says all artificial voice calls are illegal. Yes, please.
Even if your iPhone dies, it can still do these 3 things
Your mobile phone is a lifeline to many daily activities. It is often the first thing we reach for in the mornings to check social media or pour over the latest news with a cup of coffee. It also keeps us in touch with family and friends.