Several companies are now making phones specifically designed for children that limit what kids can do—offering features like calling and texting without access to social media, games, or endless web browsing. Parents in this age group often worry about their grandchildren's screen time and online safety, so these simpler phones could be a practical middle ground between a basic device and a full smartphone. Worth knowing: if you're helping a young person in your life choose their first phone, asking about parental control options and looking at brands that focus on restricted features rather than unrestricted access might align better with your own values around technology use.
# Apple and Google Told to Remove "Nudify" Apps
San Francisco's attorney has ordered Apple and Google to remove apps that use artificial intelligence to create fake nude images of people without their permission. These apps are being used to harass and exploit people, particularly women, and both companies have been given orders to take them down from their stores. You can protect yourself by being cautious about what photos you share online, and it's worth reporting any suspicious app activity to your device's support team if you notice something concerning.
San Francisco's attorney general has ordered Apple and Google to remove apps that use artificial intelligence to create fake nude images of real people from ordinary photos. These "nudification" apps can be misused to harass, blackmail, or humiliate someone by making it look like they're in explicit situations they never were. Worth knowing: if you hear about someone's intimate images being shared online without consent, report it to the platform immediately and contact local law enforcement, as this is increasingly treated as a serious crime.
# Your Smart Kitchen Might Be Watching
Most modern smart appliances—from your fridge to your washing machine—quietly collect information about how you use them, sending that data back to the manufacturer or third parties. Companies gather this information to improve their products, sell you services, or share it with advertisers, which means your daily habits could be tracked without you realizing it. Worth knowing: check your appliance's manual or the manufacturer's website for privacy settings, and look for an app that shows you what data is being collected and turn off sharing features if the option exists.
Signal, a secure messaging app many people trust for private conversations, is working on a way to let you use it on a second Android device—like a tablet—without needing your phone every time. For people who switch between devices throughout the day, this means you won't lose access to your messages or have to wait for your phone to sync everything up. Worth knowing: this is still being tested, so it may take a while before it's available to everyone, and you might want to check Signal's official website in a few months to see when it rolls out to your version of the app.
Verizon's fastest home internet service is now five times speedier than what most people use today, jumping from 2 gigabits per second to 5 gigabits per second. If you stream videos, video call grandchildren, or have multiple people online at once in your home, this kind of speed means everything loads instantly with zero buffering or lag. Worth knowing: this ultra-fast service costs significantly more and may not be available in all areas, so check if it's offered where you live before getting excited about it.
# Activist Group Creates Fake Meta Glasses Ads at London Bus Stops
An activist group has replaced real adverts at London bus shelters with fake advertisements warning people about Meta's new smart glasses, using a spooky optical illusion design inspired by the film "They Live." The group is making a statement about privacy concerns—these glasses have cameras built in, which means Meta could be collecting information about what you see and do in public. Worth knowing: if you see strange or unofficial-looking ads at bus stops or in public spaces, they might be political statements rather than real marketing, so take a moment to read what they're actually saying before dismissing them.
X is using artificial intelligence to catch people who copy other creators' work and pass it off as their own, then giving the money from those stolen posts to whoever actually created the content first. For anyone who shares photos, videos, or writing online, this means your work has a better chance of earning you fair payment instead of letting copycat accounts profit from your effort. Worth knowing: if you post original content on X, keep doing so—the platform is now working to protect creators like you rather than rewarding those who steal.
A popular period tracker app called Stardust has been caught sharing women's sensitive health information with a data analytics company, while other similar apps keep user information private. This matters because period tracking apps often know very intimate details about your health, and if that data ends up with companies that sell it or use it for profit, it can feel like a real violation of trust. Worth knowing: if you use a period tracker, check its privacy policy before downloading—look for whether the app shares data with third parties, and consider using one of the apps Mozilla found to be safer.
# Why Android Auto Needs Both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi
Your phone uses Bluetooth to connect with your car's system and Wi-Fi to stream music, maps, and messages—they work together like a team rather than one doing all the work. This split responsibility means your connection stays reliable even in areas with spotty signals, and your battery doesn't drain as quickly as it would if one connection had to handle everything. Worth knowing: if your car's Wi-Fi connection keeps dropping, restarting your phone's Bluetooth usually fixes the problem faster than fiddling with Wi-Fi settings.
You can now let Claude, an AI assistant, help you with tasks like paying bills or managing accounts by connecting it to your 1Password vault—the app where you store all your passwords—without actually sharing your passwords with Claude. This matters because it lets you get help from AI with important financial or personal tasks while keeping your login information private and secure. Worth knowing: before you try this, make sure you understand what specific tasks you're asking Claude to do, since you're essentially giving it temporary permission to act on your behalf in those apps.
Around 4 in 10 Americans wear health-tracking devices like smartwatches and fitness rings, but most of these companies don't clearly explain how they protect your personal health information or whether they share it with others—including law enforcement. Your health data is valuable and sensitive, so it matters greatly whether the companies behind these gadgets can see it themselves, sell it to insurers, or hand it over to police without your knowledge. Worth knowing: before buying a wearable device, ask the manufacturer directly about their privacy practices, check if they offer end-to-end encryption (which means they can't access your data), and find out if they share information with third parties or law enforcement.
