Besides the Car Pro Show and our weekly newsletter, my other favorite radio show and newsletter is Kim Komando’s. We are on many of the same radio stations across America. She does for her listeners and newsletter subscribers exactly what I endeavor to do: Give you useful information to keep you up to date on the latest in cars, only she does it with technology and there is nobody who does it better. Not sure how she puts out a top-notch newsletter seven days a week, but she does.
With her permission, I comb her newsletters each week and curate a list of her tips and advice that I think you'll find relevant and interesting. Here's what I have for you this week!
Tech Tips & Interesting Finds From This Week’s Komando Newsletters:
Almost 15% of Americans have unclaimed money or property waiting for them, according to the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators. In one year alone, more than $4.49 billion was returned to its rightful owners. Here’s how to get yours: Go to MissingMoney.com and search your name. Then search your parents’, your kids’ and any old business names. It’s 100% free.
Your ballot bait: That voter-registration cancellation text you got this morning? It’s a trap dressed in government khaki. The FBI says thousands of Americans have reported emails and texts claiming they’re off the voter rolls. Click, and a fake state election page asks for your name, address, birthday and other identity-theft ingredients. Expect more with Election Day coming Nov. 3. If it feels urgent, it’s most likely a scam. Ignore the link in the text, and type vote.gov yourself. Panic is how these people get paid.
Blood work got breached: If you’ve ever had a blood test, you might get a creepy letter saying a stranger probably saw the results. Quest Diagnostics found unauthorized access (paywall link) to the system doctors use to order tests and view records. It shut that system down, but nobody knows how many patients were affected. Watch your mail and insurance statements for surprise charges. Medical identity theft can turn one routine lab visit into months of cleanup.
Social insecurity calls: A Social Security raise doesn’t need unlocking, but scammers would love to sell you the key. Starting in January, roughly 76 million Americans will get about $75 extra per month on average. Crooks are calling, texting and mailing fake activation offers and direct deposit updates. The increase happens automatically. Real SSA employees never charge a fee to deliver it. Pay nobody, share no banking details, verify the amount at ssa.gov/myaccount and report sketchy pitches at ssa.gov/scam.
If you can’t speak during an emergency, many areas let you text 911. Send your address first, say whether you need police, fire or medical help, then explain what’s happening. Check text911.info now to see if it’s supported where you live. It only takes a moment. Share this with the people you care about. Call if you can, text if you can’t.
Rocket meets Roadster: If you own Tesla stock, you may soon get a vote on a marriage between Tesla and SpaceX. Musk hinted at combining them during Tesla’s earnings call last week. An announcement could come before December. The estimated value is $3.6T. The real payload may be more control for Musk over Tesla, because apparently running cars, rockets, AI and social media separately was getting inconvenient.
Click wheel history: The iPod turned 25 on Friday, and Apple hid a working one on the web. Type a fake address like music.apple.com/anything into your browser and a first-generation iPod pops up. Spin the click wheel and play 90-second song previews. Talk about a blast from the pod-cast.
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Photo Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.