Hi, Tuesday! Time to get tech-smarter. First, a little housekeeping. Do you get my free Tech News newsletter daily? I do all the hard work of rounding up the news, scams and breaches that matter to you. Sign up here now while you’re thinking about it. You’ll love it!

⌛ Quick shopping tip: Don’t fall for social media ads selling items you just searched for online at a much lower price. Order and you may never get it — or, if you do, it’s garbage. Plus, scammers could sell your credit card details on the dark web. A friend fell for a scammy Facebook ad and had his identity stolen. Yikes! — Kim

I recently owned a house that Google Maps showed with the wrong address. This meant delivery drivers would get lost and I had to call them every time. But there was an upside — my privacy.

People (OK, fans!) would stand in front of my neighbor's house, smile, call my name and take photos, thinking it was my place. My neighbor got so annoyed at a couple taking pictures for over an hour that he called me and said, "I swear I am going to put a blow-up doll of a blond woman with a nametag that says 'Kim' on my porch!" Fortunately, I was able to convince him otherwise with a nice cabernet.

Even if you don’t have this problem, reclaim some of your privacy. Follow the steps below, then pat yourself on the back for taking care of your digital self.

Hide your home on Google Maps and Apple Maps

Don’t want your house and address number visible to anyone online? You can request a privacy blur over pictures of your home and car. I did it and so should you.

• On Google Maps: Open Google Maps or the Street View gallery and look up your address.
• Tap the Street View photo you want blurred. It has to show your face, home, license plate or other identifying information.
• Click Report a problem in the bottom right or by clicking the three-dot menu on a photo. Complete the form, then click Submit.

Apple Maps makes it more of a pain. Get this — you actually have to email them. (At least it’s not a fax!) Email your request to MapsImageCollection@apple.com. Include your full address and any property details so they know which house is yours.

🗺️ I met the man who invented the part of a map that explains what each symbol means. What a legend. (I heard you groan!)

Who’s watching?

One more quick privacy tip to pass your way. Spyware is malicious software that works quietly in the background, tracking almost everything you do. Task Manager on a Windows PC and Activity Monitor on a Mac can give you an overview of everything happening on your machine.

• PC: Hit Ctrl + Shift + Esc. Click the Processes tab.
• Mac: Hit Cmd + spacebar to open Spotlight Search. Then, type Activity Monitor and press Enter.

✅ But wait, there’s more! I’ve got more smart steps for you. (Wish I could include them all in this email!) Check your computer for snoops and make sure it locks when you step away.

🚚 Prime changes: Amazon has raised the free shipping bar for some non-Prime customers from $25 to $35 per order. EcommerceBytes reports this shift is only a regional ZIP code test now. No, we don’t know the ZIP codes being tested. If you’re not a Prime member, pay close attention to that order screen.

Hidden in plain site: Hackers are tucking Word docs laced with malicious code into PDFs. Nesting one doc inside another can get it past your mail system’s defenses. That means you need to be smart. Don’t download a file you weren’t expecting. You can also run it through a program like this.

Something for nothing? Not on YouTube. If you use an ad blocker, expect to have videos blocked. You’ll get three strikes (aka video watches without ads), then you’re out. Disable your ad blocker to watch, or sign up for ad-free YouTube Premium for $13.99 a month.

✅ Routine is a good thing when it comes to your smart home. The Google Home app just added 18 new triggers to make your routines better. For example, if someone walks into a specific room, you can trigger the light to turn on (you know, for that spooky storage closet). Or you can set it to dock your robo vac at 5:30, when you get home.

Bored with Wordle? Connections is a puzzle game new to the NYT Games app for iPhone and iPad. The goal is to find the relationships between 16 words and group them accordingly. Btw, some daily games are free to play in the app, but you’ll need a subscription to access the crossword puzzle and archives.

PSA: Kids’ Tech Contract: Use my guide to talk to your kids about the do’s and don’ts of using devices. It’s totally free, and I encourage you to share it with your kids’ school, church, temple, soccer team — everyone. Let’s work together to keep our kiddos safe from shysters and weirdos.

Every morning, brush your teeth to my Daily Tech Update. You get fresh breath and fresh tech know-how in a minute.

Listen to my podcast, Daily Tech Update, here.

Hide-and-seek: You’re shopping for your honey’s birthday present and they stroll into the room. Quick! Hide your open windows. On a PC: Windows key + M. (Use Windows key + Shift + M to reopen.) On a Mac: Cmd + Option + H + M. Works for more than gift giving, just sayin’.

“Hey, Siri, what’s the tip?” This one’s for the times your brain is short-circuiting (or it’s good to pass to a pal who always struggles). All you have to do is give a check’s total amount and Siri will suggest a tip. The default is 18%, but you’ll also see 15% and 20%.

Easier read than done: Chrome will soon read to you. This way, you can listen to articles while doing other work (or scrolling Amazon). It’s still in testing, but here’s a sneak peek of the robotic voice.

😊 You’ll thank me: An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is good for more than just a desktop computer. Think of it as a power bank and surge protector in one. Plug your modem and router into one to get a little more internet time in case of a brownout or blackout. Our picks: A budget-friendly choice that gets 30 to 40 minutes of runtime and a higher-end option that gets 60 to 80 runtime minutes.

Road-trip lifesaver: It’s hot and your phone is not pleased with having to navigate you all the way to the next state. Keep it cool with a plain-old icepack. Wrap it in a towel or bag to make sure your phone stays dry. No more overheating!

Every week on my national radio show, I talk to interesting folks doing amazing things in tech, everyday people who could use a hand, and I share some of my best tips and tricks.

Missed it? All is not lost! Just tune in to my podcast, Kim Komando Today.

This week on the podcast, I spoke with director Alex Winter about his doc "The YouTube Effect" — and ways the platform has changed our lives. Also, dangerous baby products sold on Facebook, how people use dating apps for networking and back-to-school deals. All that and much more, plus your calls and questions.

❓ Have a question for me? Drop it right here, or leave me a voicemail at 602‑381‑8200 ext. 290.

Ghostpress is free anti-keylogging software that stops malicious software from capturing your keyboard presses. It also prevents hackers from taking screenshots of your computer. The program is pretty lightweight. It runs in the background while you type and blocks anyone who tries to record your keystrokes.

Get it for your computer. →

😂 The following texts went between two neighbors.

“Hi, Morris. This is Saul next door. I've been riddled with guilt for a few months and have been trying to work up the courage to tell you face-to-face. When you're not around, I've been sharing your wife day and night, probably much more than you. I haven't been getting it at home recently. I know that's no excuse. The temptation was just too great. I can't live with the guilt and hope you'll accept my sincere apology and forgive me. Please suggest a fee for usage, and I'll pay you. Saul.” 

Morris, feeling enraged and betrayed, grabbed his gun, went next door and shot Saul. He returned home, shot his wife, poured himself a stiff drink and sat down on the sofa. Morris then looked at his phone and discovered a second text message from Saul. 

“Hi, Morris. Saul here again. Sorry about the typo in my last text. I assume you figured it out and noticed the darned autocorrect had changed ‘Wi-Fi’ to ‘wife.’ Technology, huh? It'll be the death of us.”

I know you laughed and I bet you’ll share that one. Thanks for being here! Drop a rating below so we know how we’re doing. — Kim