Hi there on this tech-wondrous Wednesday, friend. Let's start with a fun fact for those with electric bikes. If you won't be using your e‑bike for a while, how much charge should you leave on the battery? Is it 25%, 50%, 75% or 100%? Think wheelie hard, and you’ll find the answer at the end.

Don't let your email provider decide what you see. Hit Reply on this email now, and leave me a comment, too. It tells the algorithms you want my content, keeping Big Tech from shoving me in your promotions or junk folders. Make your inbox your choice! Thank you so much. — Kim

“Official notice from USPS. Your delivery is on hold.” I wonder why …

“Hi, how are you?” Who could this be?

“You won!” Lucky me!

These scammy texts have one goal: To get you to respond so they can trick you into giving them your money, sharing your login credentials or letting them install malware. Scammers are getting sneakier, and they’re succeeding.

Americans lost a whopping $2.7 billion to imposter scams in 2023. This includes any scam where someone pretends to be someone they’re not — a friend, a business or even a government agency. Text messages have become the go-to tool for these cons, because fewer people are answering unknown calls — but everyone reads their texts.

Don’t let yourself become a statistic. I have a list of sure spam signs to watch for and my secret weapon for stopping spam in the first place.

How to spot scam texts

Why are scam texts so common? The FTC says the average open rate for texts is an astounding 98% compared to just 20% for email. No wonder scammers love using them. Here’s how to spot them:

• Urgent language: Scam texts often use alarming or urgent language, like “Your account is suspended!” or “You must act now!” They try to create a sense of panic, hoping you'll click a link without thinking.
• Unfamiliar senders: Scammers often use random numbers to impersonate companies or services.
• Links or attachments: If the message contains a link or attachment you weren’t expecting, don’t tap it. Scammers use these to steal your information or fool you into installing malware on your device.
• Personal information requests: Legitimate companies won’t ask for your sensitive information, like passwords, Social Security numbers or credit card details, via text.
• Too-good-to-be-true offers: Texts promising cash prizes, free gifts or rewards for little or no effort are almost always scams.
• Spoofed company names: Some scammers use company names or slight misspellings (e.g., "Amaz0n" instead of "Amazon") to trick you into thinking the message or sender is legit.

‘We need your help to win this election!’

Political texts can be just as annoying as spam. To reduce these (and the spam), you can:

• Reply “STOP” or “UNSUBSCRIBE” if the message is from a legitimate company or political campaign. Otherwise, don’t reply. Responding confirms your number works, and you’ll receive even more spam. Btw, political campaigns are required by law to honor these opt-out requests.
• Register your number with the National Do Not Call Registry. I know, this doesn’t do much, but it only takes a sec to do it.
• Block specific numbers. Most smartphones let you block numbers that send spam. The problem? Spammers always find a new number to use, so blocking only one is a waste of time, really.
• Report unwanted texts. Forward the message to 7726 (SPAM) to report it to your carrier. Hopefully, if they get enough, they'll take action to make it stop — no promises, though.

My secret weapon against spam texts

Spam messages and phone calls have completely stopped coming to my phone after I signed up for Incogni. Really! I don’t get any.

This service finds all the sketchy people-search and data-broker sites where your personal information is listed and submits requests to remove it. Yup, these sites also include your political prefs and contact info.

I signed up Barry on my account, and now his phone is free from spam calls and texts, too. (They now offer a friends-and-family plan. You can also enter up to three phone numbers, email addresses and physical addresses!)

Since setting up my account, Incogni has removed my info from 386 different data broker and people-search sites. I love getting regular progress updates and knowing my information stays off these sites for the long haul. If you go the DIY route, be prepared to fight the same battle repeatedly.

👉 Stop spam texts and calls right now. I negotiated a 60% discount on Incogni just for you. Take back your privacy today. If you don’t like the results, it comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

😔 So very sad: A father found his 18-year-old daughter, who was murdered in 2006, had been turned into a chatbot. Her name and yearbook photo appeared on Character AI, a site where people can interact with AI personalities or create their own. Even worse, her profile, labeled as a "video game journalist," had been chatted with close to 70 times. It’s been removed, but seriously — this stuff needs regulation.

⚠️ I’ve warned you about this so many times: When you sign up for Venmo, your payment details and friends list are automatically set to public. Even Tucker Carlson, John Hamm, President Biden and Travis Kelce have had their account info exposed. This gives fraudsters the perfect setup for spear phishing attacks. I have the steps for how to protect your Venmo and make your profile private right here.

Juul payout: Folks who bought Juul vaping products are getting huge payouts from the $300 million class-action settlement — someone even received over $9,000. The company was sued after its customers claimed they were misled about how addictive Juul’s products were. If you put in a claim, check your Venmo.

Sea ya later: Royal Caribbean is facing a class-action lawsuit after nearly 1,000 passengers were filmed secretly in a bathroom. It happened this past February on the Symphony of the Seas. This sicko uploaded images to the Dark Web and was sentenced to 30 years in prison. I hope he drops the soap.

🚨 Heads-up, small businesses: Hackers are breaking into WordPress-based websites and installing fake plugins packed with harmful code. When visitors come to your site, they might see a pop-up telling them to update their browser … but it’s actually info-stealing malware. They’re getting in with stolen credentials, so change yours now.

Spot a fake review online? You can now report it to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. This includes sham testimonials, AI-generated comments and marketers using bots to inflate their follower counts. The penalty? Up to $51,744 per violation!

👑 A royal first: Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, just became the first British royal family member to join TikTok. The 65-year-old, who was diagnosed with breast cancer last year, plans to share an intimate look at her journey. It’s strange to me she only has a little over 2,000 followers.

😟 Anything for clout: YouTuber “Norme” is livestreaming himself in solitary confinement for a month to see if he goes insane. He’s locked in a pitch-black storage container with just a mattress, and after 150 hours, he’s already rambling about aliens and making weird noises. He’s making money doing challenges, like $5 for a handstand or $50 to tape his mouth shut for an hour.

⭐️ With these kinds of discounts, there’s no reason to keep putting off your to-do list.

• Cover the annoying gap between your stove and counter with these easy-to-clean silicone covers (48% off a 2-pack, $8.48).
• Repair broken window and door screens in a jiffy with this waterproof mesh tape (45% off, $8.29). So smart!
• Cover up chips and scratches on your wood furniture, baseboards and more with these markers (13 assorted colors; 53% off, $7.49).
• Restore the grout in your bathroom, kitchen or wherever with these paint and sealant markers (25% off, $8.99).
• Pumice stone to get rid of those nasty toilet stains (7% off, $13.99).
• This Sleek Socket cord kit will help you hide the ugly cords hanging down from your lamps or TV (27% off, $24.95).

Windows, quit showing me ads: Microsoft places ads in the Start menu. Go to the Start menu > Settings. Choose Personalization > Start and toggle off Show recommendations for tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more. Magic? Nope — tech smarts!

🔔 Put a ring(tone) on it: It’s easier than ever to create your own custom ringtones. For Android, you’ll need to trim your audio file to 30 seconds or less, then export it as an MP3 and transfer it to your phone. Once it’s there, head to Settings > Sound and Vibration > Phone ringtone > My Sounds > + (plus sign) to select your clip. Full steps for iPhone here.

🛣️ Hitting the road? Download a map of where you’re going in case you hit a no-service zone. Make sure you’re connected to the internet and not in Incognito mode. Then, open the Google Maps app and search for your destination or city. Tap the name or address > the three dots > select Download offline map > Download.

Dino-mite: That little dino game Google displays in Chrome when your internet is out is surprisingly fun. You can play it even if your connection is good. Type chrome://dino into the Chrome browser address bar and hit Enter. Use the spacebar to hop over obstacles.

Surveillance capitalism at work: Yep, right in your “free” Big Tech inbox. All your details are packaged up, used to target you with ads and sold to whoever wants to buy it. Check out StartMail and get 60% off* for secure, private email.

Look how some livestreamers in China who sell clothes do their work.

🚲 The answer: 50%. It's best to keep your e-bike's battery in a cool, dry place, not fully charged and not totally empty, so anywhere between 40% and 60% is best. You know, I studied the buying trends of e‑bikes; it’s so e‑cyclical.

Let's play "Pass the Tech!" Forward this newsletter to your pals. They get free, fun tech insights and you get more buddies to talk with about tech stuff. Win-win, right? Thanks a ton. You're the best! 👏 — Kim