A very happy Wednesday to you, friend! Spring has sprung, and I have a trivia question to make your outdoor time a heck of a lot better. Hate wasps? There’s one color scientists say you should wear to avoid them. Is it white, green, blue or red? Answer at the end!

A guy saved $40,000 on food since he started this side hustle. He’s my special guest today on my Kim Komando Today podcast. Watch live at 11:30 a.m. Pacific (2:30 p.m. Eastern) on YouTube, Rumble or Facebook, or catch the vid on demand. You don’t want to miss it. Now, on to massive tech know-how and smarts! — Kim

Powering my cellphone? A lithium-ion battery. E‑bike? Lithium-ion. Same goes for my iPad, MacBook, electric toothbrush and portable battery pack — I could go on and on.

Batteries power more than many of us may realize, including your tech. That’s why as it starts to warm up, we need to talk about safety; fires from our little gadgets can get out of control quickly.

Here’s the know-how to protect yourself from a major battery blow-up. And, yes, it’s the reason I’m very particular about where I keep my e‑bike. At the end of this article, use those share buttons to keep your loved ones safe.

The battery meltdown lowdown

Lithium-ion batteries squeeze a ton of battery life into a tiny package. But they're made with flammable materials, which makes them even more dangerous when they’re misused or stored improperly.

Larger tech, like e‑bikes and EVs, use much bigger batteries than a smartphone, so when a fire happens … You got it — it’s way more dangerous.

Flammable materials inside the batteries can experience "thermal runaway," a chain reaction that essentially puts a battery in an uncontrollable, self-heating state. That's when explosions happen.

Thermal runaway gets triggered by a number of things, like a battery being overheated or punctured. It can also be caused by an electrical fault, like a short circuit or manufacturing defects. That's why I always warn you to stay away from cheap tech!

Battery safety 101 for laptops:

• Don't leave your laptop in a hot car, by a sunny window or near a portable heater.
• If it feels hot, shut it down and give it a break. Pop out the battery if you can.
• Consider using an app to monitor your laptop's temperature in real time. CoreTemp and Real Temp for Windows are good options. Anything higher than 176 degrees Fahrenheit is bad news.
• Have an old phone or other device with a lithium-ion battery? Don’t just toss it in a drawer. It’s worth buying a fireproof bag to store it.

Battery safety 101 for e‑bikes:

• Before buying an e‑bike, make sure it’s UL 2271-certified. This means the battery has passed rigorous tests, from how it handles heat to its durability if dropped, ensuring it's less likely to short-circuit or overcharge. You’ll find the UL 2271 certification mark on the battery itself or in the product's manual.
• Use the charging cord that came with the e‑bike, and don’t buy an aftermarket charger — it’s too risky.
• Store your e‑bike somewhere cool, and keep the battery out of direct sunlight. Don’t charge your e‑bike in your garage or house.
• Don't leave your e‑bike plugged in overnight or when you're not home. And if the battery overheats, starts to smell or look funny, or begins making weird noises, stop using it ASAP.

🚗 Be safe, folks. If you have an EV, head to my site for tips just for you.

🐴 With high fuel costs and the price of electric cars, legislators voted today to reintroduce the horse and buggy. The vote failed: 1 yea, 35 neighs.

You don’t need to spend an arm and a leg to make your house (and your lighting) a little smarter. I found options for any budget. Seriously, one is under $5 …

High end: Wait, $29.97 for two lightbulbs? People do it gladly when it’s the Philips Hue. These top-of-the-line smart bulbs have a stellar glow. Control them with Alexa, Google Assistant or the Hue app.

Bargain: Give the smart bulb a whirl with a basic Alexa-compatible bulb from Sengled. At 61% off ($3.93), it’s a total steal.

Nightlight: The Echo Glow is a multicolor smart lamp that works with Alexa and makes a perfect nightlight. And right now, it's 33% off ($19.99).

🚨 Under siege: Change Healthcare, the hacked UnitedHealth Group company that processes insurance claims, already paid $22 million to a ransomware crime ring. It’s no surprise they’re a big target since they’re used by about 94% of hospitals, plus pharmacies and medical offices. Another group called RansomHub says they’ll sell the same data that was stolen during that massive February cyberattack unless they get paid in five days. We’re all screwed.

This doesn’t make cents: Jeff Drobman got a slew of urgent-sounding Bank of America text messages. The Los Angeles man tried to call the bank but had no signal. He’d been SIM swapped, and hackers stole $21,000 from his BofA account. PSA: Choose facial recognition over 2FA in your banking app, and contact your carrier immediately if your signal suddenly drops.

Good riddance: An evil 28-year-old woman from Delaware will hopefully spend a long time in prison for her role in a massive sextortion scheme. She and a group of accomplices pretended to be “young, attractive females” and lured young males (including many minors) into video chats. They then recorded the chats and threatened to leak the footage unless they were paid. Talk to your kids … and any other guy in your circle.

👨🏻‍💻 Stay secure: Over 92,000 D‑Link network-attached storage devices aren’t safe to use anymore. Models include the DNS‑340L, DNS‑320L, DNS‑327L and DNS‑325. They’ve all reached “end-of-life,” meaning they won't receive further software updates or security patches. If you’ve got a D‑Link NAS pushing a decade old, it’s time for an upgrade.

iSlump: Apple’s smartphone sales took a 10% dive last quarter. They’re blaming the sharp drop on iPhone sales in China, citing rising nationalism, a rough economy and stiff competition from hometown hero Huawei.

🎬 AI love story? TV manufacturer TCL is cooking up the "first-ever fully AI-generated rom-com" called “Next Stop Paris.” The trailer is, um, interesting. Despite the AI claim, they’re using human writers, actors and animators. Sounds like someone really wants investor money.

Tag, you’re it: A San Diego man named Eric is going viral after his AirTag got lost in an Alaska Airlines plane’s cargo hold. Nope, not a baggage fight — he’s been tracking the AirTag for nine months across 37 cities, from Tucson, Arizona, to Vancouver, Canada, with the little tracker averaging five flights daily. Eric hasn't contacted Alaska Airlines to retrieve it; he's having too much fun watching its journey.

😤 Dangerous oversight: A heartbreaking 15 folks have died after ingesting sodium nitrate, listed on Amazon as a food preservative. It’s safe at low concentrations, but it was sold at 99% purity. Now, the victims’ families are suing, saying Amazon ignored warnings, deleted bad reviews and nudged customers to buy. Amazon's defense? It says it’s not liable for how customers use its products.

Wipeout: Paste text without copying all the extra formatting like size, font and color. Hit Ctrl + Shift + V on Windows or Cmd + Shift + V on Mac. This tip alone was worth the cost of the subscription to this newsletter. Oh, right — it’s free.

Don’t just hold down the power button: There’s a better way to reboot your grumpy PC that shuts down all the background processes. Before you click to restart, hold down the Shift key. Keep holding until the machine powers up, then click Continue.

No-Wi‑Fi productivity hack: You’re on a flight, there’s no Wi‑Fi and an annoying person is using your armrest. Great time to organize your apps and delete the ones you don’t use. Another great use of time: Organize your photos. Here’s my simple method.

Score: A bunch of fast-food restaurants have apps that give you discounts and free stuff. Here’s a list. Just know you’re handing over data, so the freebies aren’t really free. Worth it for french fries? Your call.

Have a kiddo between the ages of 7 to 12 in the family? Share Google’s Be Internet Awesome, a crash course in internet safety and smarts. There are even slides for teachers or community or church leaders to share.

The only way to keep it your business do that is with a VPN. A virtual private network encrypts your data and hides your IP address, giving you an extra layer of protection from snoops, advertisers and Big Tech companies looking to profit off you.

Some VPNs slow your connection or, worse, track your internet activity and compromise your security. Not ExpressVPN. Plus, you can connect in just one click from a Windows PC, Mac, iPhone, Android, iPad, you name it.

🚨 Deal alert: Get an extra THREE months free since you subscribe to my newsletter.

Traveling is a real plane in the butt.

❌ The answer: Red! Most insects, including wasps, can’t see the color red. They’re drawn to bright shades like yellow and white. They aren’t really attracted to blue or black, so red is your best bet to stay “wasp incognito.”

I want to give you $1,000! Your support keeps hot and fresh tech news and tips coming straight to your inbox every day. One of the biggest ways you can help is by sharing this newsletter. Use your special link down below. And hey, get to 1,000 referrals, and I’ll give you $1,000. Really! See you right back here tomorrow with the most awesome-est newsletter ever. — Kim