📺 It’s a big TV Tuesday, friend! If all goes as planned, I’ll be on Martha MacCallum’s show on Fox News today at 3 p.m. Eastern. We’ll be talking about China and AI. Hope you can tune in! And if you enjoy the conversation, let Fox News know you’d love to see more of me on their channel. That would be amazing!

Also, 21 years ago today, Mark Zuckerberg and four of his Harvard classmates launched TheFacebook⁠.⁠com. A year later, Zuck dropped out, and they dropped “the” from the name and shelled out $200,000 for the current Facebook domain. You could say it all worked out. Facebook has 3.1 billion monthly active users, and parent company Meta raked in $164.5 billion last year. 😳 At the end of the newsletter, I’ll tell you how to hide all your old, embarrassing Facebook posts.

👋 Ready to ditch your Big Tech email? My privacy-first pick is StartMail. Switch over your contacts and emails with just a couple of clicks. More below. — Kim

The latest stats say 80% of stalking victims are tracked using tech. One of the most popular ways to do it? GPS trackers, like an AirTag. They’re small enough to slip into a bag, pocket or your car undetected.

“Kim, this doesn’t impact me.” I wish that was true. Maybe you have an ex or friend who won’t buzz off, or maybe you met a stranger at a bar or store who was acting creepy. You’re at risk. Did you drive across the U.S. border? Yep, crooks are targeting tourists, too.

The good news is your phone can alert you when an unknown tracker is with you. If all else fails, good old-fashioned sleuthing works, too. I’ll show you how.

⏰ The clock is ticking

An AirTag will start beeping only after 24 hours away from its owner. That gives the stalker plenty of time to reach you, especially if they’re local. If a carjacker tags your ride, they could learn your routine and follow you home before you even know what’s going on.

The rumor mill says Apple’s AirTags 2, coming later this year, will have antistalking tech. With the most current AirTags, tech-savvy stalkers can rip out the built-in speaker so you won’t get alert, but the new ones should make it harder. For now, you need to do everything you can to stay safe.

On your iPhone, make sure a few settings are enabled:

• Go to Settings > Notifications > Tracking Notifications and toggle on Allow Notifications.
• Now, open your Find My app and tap Items at the bottom of the screen. Tap on Identify Found Item.

On Android, the process is similar as long as your phone is running Android 6.0 or newer. If it’s not, you really need a new phone!

• To make sure alerts are enabled, go to Settings > Safety & Emergency > Find Unknown Tracker Alerts. Toggle on Allow Alerts.

✅ You need to make sure your location and Bluetooth settings are enabled, too. Get steps here that’ll walk you through it all.

The alerts aren’t foolproof

It’s not just ripping out the speakers. Older tracking devices might not set off an alert, and savvy creeps can reconfigure new trackers to follow you undetected for months. That’s why it’s important to check your car now and then, even if you don’t hear that telltale beep.

👉 What you’ll need: A flashlight and a mirror.

Start outside your car. Check spots where the tracker could be magnetically attached, like the wheel wells; grill; underside; bumpers; around the exhaust pipe, roof or hood; and the engine and battery terminals.

Inside your car, check the seat crevices and pockets, dashboard, steering wheel, glove compartment, and trunk. Look under the spare tire and dashboard on the driver’s side, too, inside the onboard diagnostics port.

If you don’t find anything but still feel uneasy, try a bug detector. This well-rated option ($37) works for cars, homes, bags or whatever.

‘I found a tracker. What now?’

Don’t smash it or disable it. You want to give the police all the info they need to catch who planted it. Hit my site for the smart steps to take.

⚠️ I’ve heard too many stories from stalking victims. I don’t want you or a loved one to be another. Share this with folks in your life using the handy icons below.

🔈 A good soundbar enhances dialogue clarity so you don’t miss a word. Here are three solid choices.

• Budget-friendly: The super-compact 40-watt Saiyin soundbar delivers big sound for smaller spaces, and it's under $30 (22% off).
• Powerfully simple: This easy-to-set-up Sony S100F 2.0ch soundbar (25% off, $98) gives you rich, room-filling sound in a slim, mountable package.
• Best overall: For ultra-clear voices and robust audio, this Bose TV speaker/soundbar (22% off) is a smart pick. Plus, it comes with just one cord to connect to your TV.

🚣 Amazon Resale: That’s what they call used and open-box items. If you don’t mind that it’s not brand-new, you can save a boatload. Pro tip: Check the condition so you know what to expect.

📦 Don’t scan it: Watch your porch or mailbox for a fake UPS delivery notice or InfoNotice. Yep, they’re the ones that say "Sorry we missed you," but the fakes have a shady QR code. Scan that code and you’ll land on a phishing site. Someone on Reddit got one claiming they owed $81.45, and it came with a handwritten note from the “driver” asking them to "please pay online." If you have delivery issues, go straight to ups.com/track.

🚗 Wow, 300,000 recalled: Some Honda and Acura models have software issues that can cause you to stall out while driving. Select Subaru, Toyota and Lexus models have major faults, too. Don’t wait for a letter in the mail. Run your VIN through the NHTSA database. It takes just a sec to make sure your ride is safe.

Hey, overachievers: OpenAI’s new “deep research” ChatGPT agent is like a super-smart assistant that does all the work for you. It digs through multiple sources and creates a full report about whatever you want. It’s included in the $20 Pro tier for now and takes up to 30 minutes per search. Want to try it? Select Deep research in the composer.

One curse word breaks AI: Sick of the crappy AI Overviews in your Google Search results? There’s an easy workaround: Add a swear word. Seriously, type “How do I factory reset my iPhone?” and you’ll get a generic blurb. Change it to “How do I f***ing factory reset my iPhone?” (without the asterisks) and you’ll get normal, clickable results. For an equally effective but less fun option, add ‑ai to the end of your search.

🪦 Microsoft is killing off its free VPN: Not enough people use it, and they want to "invest in new areas." Funny how they can’t do both after hiking their subscription prices. Need a new VPN? Never go looking for free options — too risky. Try my pick.*

“Sorry to bother you, but do you order on Amazon?” Move along if you see this line or a slight variation in your inbox. If you respond, some jerk will try to convince you they have Amazon gift cards they'll trade you for cash. The scammers never sleep.

🛍️ It’s not a dad bod; it’s a father figure: When using Facebook Marketplace, switch to a woman’s account. Allison Thomison says her husband was trying to rescue a dog from a dangerous situation, and he only convinced its owner once he switched to his wifey’s account. Now, with her permission, he uses her account to score deals, like a $250 Peloton bike. He flirts and uses emojis in his negotiations. Imagine how disappointed guys are when he shows up instead of his cute wife.

A pill to fight cancer: I hate cancer, so I love this news. A new drug called AOH1996 targets breast, prostate, brain, ovarian and other types of cancers. It goes after a protein mutation once called “undruggable” that fuels cancerous cell growth. AOH1996 kills off the bad cells and leaves healthy ones alone. They’re gearing up now for the first phase of human trials. Be sure to tell anyone who has cancer this major development in making this horrible disease a history lesson.

“Hello, I took your recommendation for StartMail two years ago. Best decision I have made for a while. Great service!”

I got that note from reader Monty B. Monty gets it — your email should be your business, not Big Tech’s. StartMail is built for privacy and is packed with features to help keep your inbox that way.

🔒 True email encryption: Your messages stay private, for your eyes only.

🚫 No tracking, no targeting: StartMail doesn’t snoop on you, so there are no pesky ads.

📩 Unlimited disposable addresses: Keep your primary email safe from spam and junk.

StartMail makes it easy to transfer your contacts and mail, has advanced spam protection built in and works with email clients like Apple Mail, Outlook and Thunderbird.

20 questions, one prompt: You can play games with your favorite AI bot. Try this: “Let’s play a game of 20 questions. You think of a person, place or thing, and I’ll guess what it is. Keep track of the number of questions, and tell me how many I’ve got left after each one. Pick a category and let’s go.” Ready, set, guess!

🔊 Sound asleep: You don’t need an app or separate device for white noise. On your iPhone, go to Settings > Accessibility > Audio & Visual. Toggle on Background Sounds and choose a sound. Cozy! On Android, open the Clock app > Bedtime or Settings (name varies) > Set bedtime and wake-up time > Next. Scroll to Sleep Sounds and tap Choose another sound. When you’re ready to sleep, go back to Bedtime and hit Play. Good night!

🔍 Where’s the remote? If it’s for a Roku, here’s a trick to find it. Just open the Roku app, tap the microphone, and say, “Hey, Roku, find my remote.” Follow the beeping to track it down. Once you find it, press any button to stop the sound.

Neat and tidy: Drag a window to the left or right edge to snap it in place on Windows. Shake a window to minimize all others you have open. On a Mac, hold the Option key, hover over the green expand button at the top of a window, and snap it to one side.

“What was that link?” I only work with brands I trust to keep you secure. Hit this page to see the five must-have tools I recommend to keep your cybersecurity locked up tight.

Two smart troubleshooting shortcuts:

✅ On Windows: Holding down the Windows key + Ctrl + Shift + B forces a GPU reset without restarting your computer. This is useful if your screen freezes or you have graphics glitches.

✅ On a Mac: Pressing Cmd (⌘) + Option + Esc lets you force-quit any frozen application instantly. This shortcut bypasses needing to go through the Apple menu.

Is yours on this list of the most common (and most hacked) PINs? If so, change it ASAP!

Ever scroll through your old Facebook posts? Take a trip down memory lane. On your profile, click Filters under the posts section. Go to Date to scroll back to specific years. Instead of removing things one by one, go to Settings. Under “Audience and visibility,” press Posts > Limit Past Posts to make your old posts private with one click. Poof, all gone … but never forgotten by Big Tech.

😂 What's the difference between Mark Zuckerberg and Jean-Luc Picard? Picard didn't sell Data. (I have to throw one in for the Trekkies now and then!)

🛑 Stop letting Big Tech track your email: StartMail makes it easy to encrypt your mail, doesn’t scan your inbox to target you with ads and doesn’t block what you see. I call that a win. Save 60% now with my special link. I’ll see you back here tomorrow with the best newsletter in the USA. Until then, keep being your amazing self! — Kim