Hi there, friend, it’s Wednesday! Oh, happy day! Carmakers have found a new revenue stream. Imagine stopping at a red light and a fullscreen ad for an extended warranty service takes over the infotainment system. It’s happening to some very annoyed Jeep owners. Even worse, there’s no way to turn the ads off. Talk is Jeep.

Your info is for sale everywhere. Between data brokers, advertisers, stalkers and scammers, everything from your address to your Social Security number is floating around the web for anyone willing to pay. I used Incogni to remove it all for me. More on that below. — Kim

The term “forever chemicals” is floating around more than ever. If you’re wondering why folks are so worried about them, the clue's in the name.

These substances stick around for a long, long time, and it's not clear how safe they are. They're also everywhere, from your phone and smartwatch tech to carpets to nail polish.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS for short, are synthetic chemicals, so they’re not found in nature. And now, both Apple and Samsung are being sued for wearables that release high levels of PFAS.

So, what's the deal and how worried should you be? I’ve got the intel.

Why PFAS get used so much

In gadgets, they waterproof circuits, keep down the heat levels and add durability. They make your cooking pans nonstick, strengthen cardboard and keep mascara from running. In factories, they keep equipment running smoothly and corrosion-free, and in firefighting foam, they suppress and cool flames.

We're talking about thousands of chemicals here, made on demand to do specific (and valuable) jobs. No wonder it took so long for us to start asking about the health and safety trade-offs of using PFAS. (Ahem, anyone else thinking about asbestos?)

The health risks of PFAS

There’s no direct link between PFAS and disease, but there are a lot of warning signs. I did some digging, and scientific studies associate these forever chemicals with cancer risks, kidney disease and fertility problems. Something's not right.

Scientists are still figuring out how PFAS damage the body and what level of exposure is dangerous. Until then, what are you supposed to do?

Take it into your own hands

Know the big offenders: Smartwatches, fitness trackers and water-resistant phones use PFAS for durability and waterproofing. Letting a PFAS-loaded band sit on your wrist all day probably isn’t the best idea. A recent study showed cheaper bands contained fewer “forever chemicals” than the expensive name-brand bands. All the under-$15 bands were cleared. Here are safe options for Apple Watch and Fitbit.

Shopping? Add “PFAS” to your search: Some manufacturers are moving away from PFAS, and they want you to know about it. When you shop online, add that term to your search or look for certifications like “PFAS-free” on cookware, water-resistant clothing and cosmetics. Look: PFAS-free bandages and dental floss!

Don’t forget what you put in your mouth: Stain-resistant fabrics, nonstick cookware and grease-resistant packaging may have the highest concentrations of “forever chemicals.” I store food in glass containers. Carbon steel and cast iron are good alternatives to nonstick gunk.

Look for natural materials: For furniture, clothing or bedding — anything meant to touch your skin — untreated wool, cotton, linen or leather are best. Synthetic and water- or stain-resistant options are the most chemical‑laden.

Listen, I’m not here to freak you out. Really, we aren’t entirely sure of the impact PFAS have on our health. If a couple of simple updates could keep you healthier over the long term, that seems worth it to me.

"I signed up with Incogni 3 days ago, and my junk email is already significantly reduced!" That’s a note I got from a reader named Gail. Heck yeah. The same happened for me, Gail. And it just gets better! I don’t get spam texts anymore, either.

How, you ask? Incogni stops spammers and scammers at the source. This smart privacy service automatically scrubs your personal data from shady data-broker lists and people-search sites, stopping the flood of:

🚫 Annoying junk emails
📵 Endless spam texts
📲 Frustrating robocalls

How it works: Create an account and Incogni contacts data brokers and people-search sites on your behalf with requests to remove your info. I’ve tried this on my own over the years, and it’s such a pain. With Incogni, I put in about three minutes and they did all the rest.

⚡ These gadgets keep you going all day.

• Sweet, a mouse pad ($22) that doubles as a wireless phone charger. Click the coupon box!
• Snag a docking station (22% off) to charge the family’s phones, tablets and smartwatches all in one spot.
• Everyone needs a portable charger. I found cordless options for Lightning ($19) and USB‑C ports (37% off).
• I love this Bluetooth speaker ($15) that’s small enough to take anywhere.
• Make your showers more relaxing with a waterproof speaker (43% off) that can come with you to the pool once it gets hot.

🥶 Feeling chilly? It’s warm in Phoenix and cold everywhere else! Grab hand warmers (32% off) that heat up in seconds if you’re over winter.

🎈 American tech spying on Americans: It turns out the 200-foot-tall Chinese spy balloon shot down two years ago was packed with U.S. tech from at least five American companies, including Iridium Communications, Texas Instruments, Omega Engineering, Amphenol All Sensors and Onsemi. China claims it was a weather research airship that accidentally strayed into U.S. territory. Yeah, right.

Not backing down: Plastic surgeon Elisabeth Potter went public about UnitedHealthcare calling her mid-surgery to deny a breast cancer patient's hospital stay. After her post went viral, she got a letter from UnitedHealthcare’s big-time lawyers demanding a retraction and an apology. In a post on X, Potter said, “I will continue to speak up for my patients because they deserve better.” Good for her.

I 🫶 this: Apple’s new $250 Powerbeats Pro 2 earbuds have built-in heart rate monitoring that kicks in when you start working out. Whoa, no more clicking buttons on a watch to track a run? Its battery life is good, too, at 45 hours with the charging case and 10 more hours if you turn off noise cancellation.

👔 From hoodies to high-end: Remember when tech CEOs’ unofficial uniforms were T‑shirts and dorky sneakers? Now, Mark Zuckerberg rocks a $895,000 watch and Jeff Bezos is at fashion shows in leather and sunglasses. It’s not just that they grew up; tech drives our economy, and the billionaires in charge aren't hiding their wealth anymore. In 1999, when Bezos was already a billionaire, he was driving a 1997 Honda Accord. Those days are long gone!

Assume any photo you post can be traced: This tech is something else. GeoSpy analyzes every single pixel, background object, shadow and landmark in your photos to identify the exact spot it was taken. Within seconds, they can pass that along to the government, police or anyone else willing to pay. The old way of tracking using the photo’s metadata is over.

Update your PC: Like, now! This month’s Patch Tuesday update fixes four zero-day vulnerabilities and 55 other issues. Go to Start > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update and hit Check for updates. By the way, you can update your iPhone to 18.3. It’s all good.

📸 “Time to take a selfie”: That’s probably not a wise thought after stealing $300,000 in blinged-out jewelry. But that's exactly what the guys who broke into Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow’s house did. The three Chilean men are linked to other athlete break-ins. Around this time last year, Chilean gangs targeted my house.

Gotta close my rings: Fitness influencers are all over a new “hack” for more accurate step tracking: Strapping a smartwatch to your ankle instead of your wrist. One woman tried it with a 10-minute jaunt around Target. On her wrist, the watch recorded 91 steps; on her ankle, 835 steps. If you try it, know you’re losing out on features like heart rate and CO2 tracking. Another downside is you look like a prisoner with an ankle monitor.

💰 The price is right: Want to sell something on eBay, Facebook Marketplace or OfferUp? Use your favorite AI bot to find out how much it's worth. In ChatGPT, for example, type your item's description with a prompt like this: “Find the most recent sold prices for [your product]. What price should I list it on [website or app]?”

Free pics: Not all of us are good at whipping up custom images with AI yet (raising my hand). Hit up Unsplash or Pexels. Both have tons of high-quality, royalty-free images you can use for your website or a project. Be a good person and follow their rules for crediting the photographers.

🧑‍🎨 Neat trick for iPhone photos: If it’s a Live Photo, you can turn it into a cool long-exposure shot, like an artsy view of a river flowing by or a busy city street that seems to be moving. Open your Photos app and look for a picture with a Live label in the top left corner. Tap on it and choose Long Exposure from the menu. Let your iPhone work its magic.

Beep-beep! The free Upside app gives you cash back on gas, groceries and dining out. Download Upside* and use promo code Kim to get an extra 25 cents back for every gallon on your first tank of gas.

Your email signature isn’t just for your name: It’s a free marketing tool for your biz or side hustle! In Gmail, go to Settings (the gear icon) > See all settings > Signature. Add a short, compelling CTA, like “Get my free newsletter here!” Highlight the text, click the link icon to attach a URL and save. Easy‑peasy.

Stop guessing and start saving: This savings goal calculator from Clark.com takes the guesswork out of saving money. Enter your desired amount, current savings and how often you plan to contribute, and the calculator will show you exactly how much you need to save each month to reach your goal. Subscribe to Clark’s free newsletter* for more must-have money tips every day.

Hey, good-lookin’: You deserve to feel your best. Collagen has been a staple in my routine for years. Grab NativePath Collagen here with my link to save 45%.* Add two scoops of your favorite flavor. I love chocolate!

No more Gulf of Mexico in Google Maps. If you’re in the U.S., Google uses your location to decide which name to display. Apple Maps hasn’t made any changes yet.

Not up to making dinner? If you pay for Amazon Prime, you get a year of Grubhub+ for free. Yay, no food delivery fees! Go to amazon.com/grubhub, hit Activate Grubhub+, and sign in or make an account. After your first year, it’s $10 a month, so set a calendar reminder to cancel.

😂 The other day, I saw a sausage delivery truck crash. It took a turn for the wurst.

Big thanks to Incogni for making all this tech goodness free to you. If you’re ready to scrub your info off those sketchy data-broker and people-search sites, use my link to save 60%. Trust me, it’s a game-changer. I’ll see you back here tomorrow with another issue of the best tech newsletter in the USA. Until then, stay your awesome self! — Kim