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Welcome to your Saturday, friend. Scammers are getting some serious software upgrades. |
In 2024, a gang of cybercriminals pulled off one of the craziest heists of the AI era, using deepfakes to impersonate an entire video meeting. Imagine hopping on Zoom and thinking you're talking to your CFO. Instead, it's a bunch of digital doppelgängers. |
💸 Can you guess how much they stole? A) $2.5M, B) $10M, C) $25M or D) $100M? Keep reading. The answer unmutes itself at the end. |
🛡️ Free antivirus is a gamble: It only catches about 60% of threats. That means nearly half of today's malware gets right through. Not good odds. Webroot blocks 99% of threats. That's why I use and recommend it. Get the antivirus I trust for 75% off. |
February's $7,000 giveaway rolls on, and today's $250 could have your name on it. A red button at the top means you're the winner. Not there? There's always tomorrow. Let's do this! — Kim |
📬 Someone forwarded this to you? Smart friend. Want it in your own inbox instead of waiting on them? Sign up here. It's free, and I promise not to spam you. |
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TODAY'S DEEP DIVE |
Skip this side gig |
 | Image: RentAHuman.ai |
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⚡ TL;DR (THE SHORT VERSION) |
A new website lets AI bots hire humans to do physical tasks. 80,000 people have signed up, but the tasks are strange and payment is in crypto. The site was built using AI-generated code that nobody fully checked.
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📖 Read time: 2.5 minutes |
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Remember when we worried AI would take our jobs? Plot twist: Now AI wants to hire us. |
This is a wild story all over the internet and social media. I want you to know what's going on, so you're not tech behind the times. |
A new site called RentAHuman.ai lets AI bots post tasks for humans to complete in the physical world. Hold a sign. Pick up a package. Eat pasta. I wish I was making this up. So far, 80,000 people have signed up. Payment is in crypto. |
The tagline? Robots need your body. The marketing calls it the meatspace layer for AI. Someone typed those words and hit Publish. |
🤖 The gigs are weird |
Here's how it works. A person programs an AI Agent to complete a task. Let's call him Tom. When the AI Agent hits a roadblock and needs a human, it is told to go to this site to hire a person. We'll call him Jerry, who does the task. Tom sends crypto Jerry for the work he did. |
The most popular task right now? Hold a sign promoting a company, snap a photo and submit it. Maybe you get picked as one of three winners who actually get paid. Everyone else? Free advertising. |
One guy says he got paid to check programming code. Another task asked someone to eat pasta at a restaurant. The future of work is getting strange. |
The whole thing was built by a cryptocurrency programmer who openly admits he let AI write most of the code without really checking it. When people reported bugs, he said, "Claude is trying to fix it right now." Claude is an AI chatbot, not a guy. |
So we've got AI building websites so other AI can hire humans. My head hurts. |
🚩 Why you should skip this one |
Look, I'm all for making money on the side. But this one has red flags everywhere. |
The security is sketchy at best. The payment is in crypto, which you'd have to convert to spend. And there's something deeply weird about applying for gig work from a chatbot. |
My advice? Hard pass. Your time is worth more than holding a sign for an AI startup that may or may not pay you. If you want a legit side hustle, let me help you find the best ones. At least those pay in dollars you can actually spend. |
🏈 Going to a big game party? Share this. It's guaranteed you won't be invited next year. Ready? I'm not having much luck with jobs lately. I wasn't suited to be a tailor. The muffler factory was so exhausting. I couldn't cut it as a barber. I didn't have the patience to be a doctor. I wasn't a good fit in the shoe factory even though I put my soul into it. The paper shop folded. Pool maintenance was too draining. I got fired from the cannon factory. And I just couldn't see any future as a historian. (That was so bad, it was so good!) |
Know someone who's always looking for side hustles? Or a friend who falls for money schemes that are too good to be true? Send them this before they sign up to work for a robot. Seriously. |
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| | | Is your computer really safe? | I constantly evaluate my recommendations for you. I test, compare, I even switch when something better comes along. In 2026? Webroot is the best. It's what I use. | I like free, but free antivirus programs (Microsoft Defender, built-in Mac protection and the others) only catch 60-80% of the threats out there. That means 20-40% of malware waltzes right past it. Paid antivirus with real-time cloud protection? That stops 95-99%. I like those odds better! | Here's my other beef. Most antivirus programs are resource hogs. Norton, Bitdefender, Trend Micro, McAfee, etc. gobble up 2-4 GB of RAM. Webroot? Uses 1/6th the memory. Scans 6x faster. Stops modern threats on PCs and Macs with real-time protection. | I've arranged for you to get 75% off Webroot Essentials. You're not going to find a better price anywhere else. I made sure of that. | For a limited time, get my exclusive 75% off deal! → | Please support our sponsors! Thank you! |
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WEB WATERCOOLER |
🔍 Digital detective work: Even without video of Nancy Guthrie's abduction, investigators are still following digital breadcrumbs as they search for the 84-year-old mother of Today's Savannah Guthrie. They're looking at in-car video shared by the Uber driver who drove Nancy to dinner the night before she disappeared. (The driver's not a suspect.) The FBI sent cell-tower data experts, analysts to scour the crime scene and negotiators keeping up with reported ransom notes. A law-enforcement expert says credit card records could point to recent deliveries, too. Let's hope one of these leads brings Nancy home. |
🚨 Bugged inbox: Just 48 hours after Microsoft patched a nasty Office bug, Russian state hackers used it to launch an espionage blitz. The malware was so sneaky it lived in memory and could forward emails without leaving a trace. Update Office. Yesterday. Open Word or Excel > click File > Account > hit Update Options > select Update Now. |
Feds locked out: Looks like Apple's digital Fort Knox is working as advertised. FBI agents investigating a Pentagon contractor accused of leaking classified info seized a Washington Post reporter's phone but can't crack it because it's in Lockdown Mode. Her work laptop didn't put up the same fight. A fingerprint was all it took for agents to get in. |
Smarter snow: I'm excited to watch this year's Winter Games, and you should be, too. They're adding first-person drones chasing athletes down luge tracks, AI-enhanced replays that freeze skiers mid-jump and VR-ready highlights. Even curling gets the Iron Man treatment. Also, the torch is now transparent and runs on food waste. I'll pass on the slo-mo close-up of that.
📘 AI isn't optional anymore: Your competitors are using it. If you're not, you're already behind. The problem? Figuring out where to start. NetSuite's free "Demystifying AI" guide gives you a practical road map. If your business revenue is in the seven figures, download the guide for free today.* |
🧬 DNA breach payday: You might have an apology and moola waiting if you've ever mailed your spit to 23andMe. Check your email. A judge signed off on a settlement after a 2023 breach exposed customer data tied to about 6.4 million Americans. If you used it between May 1 and Oct. 1, 2023, and got a notice, file by Feb. 17 for a basic payout up to $165 or up to $10,000 with proven out-of-pocket losses. |
VR therapy: A nursing home doing shark dives and outer space tours sounds like a retirement scam. But this is real. Well, virtual reality. The Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook uses Meta VR headsets to help vets with PTSD get to a calmer place by seeing the northern lights or Vietnam as it looks now. If VR can unlock memories this well, keep it far away from my middle-school perm era. |
| | DEALS OF THE DAY | 💘 Valentine's Day is a week away | And yes, you can still crush it. |
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|  | Image: Snailax |
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🖼️ Love, on a loop: Load this digital photo frame (29% off, $50) with your favorite memories. Perfect for long-distance loved ones. Works with Alexa, too. | Snuggle mode: Cozy up with a heated throw blanket (24% off, $34) made of thick sherpa. You get 10 heat settings, plus it's machine washable. | 🌹 Budding romance: These preserved roses (31% off, $38) keep their look for years, not just days. No watering required. Comes in a heart-shaped box. | Steam away stress: Drop in a shower steamer (38% off, $10, eight-pack) for instant aromatherapy. No need for a tub. Breathe and relax. | 🎁 Gifts that woo: Head to Amazon's Valentine's Day Shop for more smart ideas. | Prices and deals were accurate at the time of publication. |
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DEVICE ADVICE |
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: You don't need a Fitbit to track your steps. Your phone does it for free. On iPhone, open Apple Health > Summary > Steps. On Android, Health app > Home > Steps. |
📧 Your inbox is spying on you: Gmail and Yahoo don't charge you because you're not the customer. You're the product. They scan every email to build your profile and sell targeted ads. I use StartMail to stop that nonsense. It blocks trackers and gives me unlimited email aliases, so my real address never hits spam lists. Get 60% off plus a 7-day free trial.* |
Smartwatch battery saver: The raise-to-wake feature often lights up by mistake. On Apple Watch, go to Settings > Display & Brightness and toggle off Wake on Wrist Raise. On Galaxy Watch, open Settings > Display and turn off Raise wrist to wake. Tap the side button when you need it.
Prioritize car apps: It's easier to keep your eyes on the road when all your favorite apps are on the first screen of your infotainment system. For Apple CarPlay, open your iPhone Settings > General > CarPlay > Customize, and drag apps into the order you want. For Android Auto, open your phone Settings > Android Auto > Customize launcher and do the same. I'm great company for a long drive, and my podcasts could be a tap away. Just sayin'. |
Play tourist in your own city: Running out of ideas for weekend plans? Ask a chatbot for help. Prompt it with something like: I'm a tourist in (city), we have kids ages (X) and a budget of ($). Give me three plans with a mix of indoor and outdoor activities. Make sure they're lesser-known gems, not the main attractions. Staycation, unlocked. |
Fix movie quality: No, not the plot. If you want them to look good, turn your TV's sharpness down. That fake edge enhancement doesn't add real detail. It creates harsh outlines around objects. Go to Settings > Picture > Sharpness and drop it to 0-10%. Also set Picture Mode to Movie or Cinema. It makes colors more accurate for films. |
🔒 Stop guessing your own passwords: How many times have you tried three different logins to get locked out? Total waste of time. I use NordPass to create strong passwords and autofill them instantly. I remember one master password. It handles the rest. Get 52% off a 2-year plan plus an extra month for only $1.43 a month.*
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🎙️ CLICK. LISTEN. WATCH. 🎬 |
👂 Listen up! Tune into my award-winning radio show, airing this weekend on 510+ stations. Find yours via our awesome station finder. You can also listen commercial-free on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart or wherever you get your podcasts. Search for Komando. |
Love the show? Tell your local station! Hit their Contact Us page or send a social media shout-out. Your 30 seconds keeps the tech talk coming to your city. Thank you! |
⛔ Trapped in a scam factory: WIRED senior correspondent Andy Greenberg got a late-night email from inside a Southeast Asian compound. The message: "I am a computer engineer being forced to work here. I want to help shut this down." What happened next will blow your mind. Hear my convo with him. |
Don't just listen! Check out the show on my YouTube channel. So cool. |
👇 Use the links below to listen on your schedule. |
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WHAT THE TECH? |
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 | Image: China Insider |
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🦋 Till drones do us part |
Kids drop rings. Dogs eat them. Best men? Don't even get me started. |
Weddings in China are outsourcing ring duty to glowing butterfly drones. They're lightweight, remote-controlled and flap like the real thing, carrying rings along a preprogrammed flight path before landing dramatically at the altar. |
Prices float around $280 online, plus shipping. These butterflies aren't built for long-range flight. When these drones are at weddings, it's so beautiful even the cake's are in tiers. 💍 |
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LOGGING OUT … |
🔜 Tomorrow: Your SSN is for sale right now. So is your Netflix login, your credit cards, your medical records and more on dark web. I'll show you exactly what criminals are paying for your data and what that money funds in the real world. Plus, how to protect yourself before you're next. Check your inbox. |
🖥️ The answer: C) $25 million. That's how much the employee at British engineering firm Arup was duped into sending. He was wary of the emailed request but went through with it after being convinced by the deepfake video call. The kicker? The whole thing was made with free software in about 45 minutes. |
It takes as little as three seconds of your voice to clone it, so maybe skip that next karaoke livestream. Oh did you know most karaoke machines come from Singapore? |
🚀 Your antivirus shouldn't slow you down: Norton and McAfee are resource hogs. They eat up gigabytes of RAM and make your computer crawl. Webroot uses 1/6th the memory and scans six times faster. You get solid protection without the lag. Grab 75% off with my exclusive deal. Don't wait.*
⏳ The best time to start is now. Not Monday. Not tomorrow. Now. — Kim |
Kim Komando • Komando.com • 510+ radio stations • Trusted by millions daily |
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HOW'D WE DO?What did you think of today's issue? |
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Photo credit(s): RentAHuman.ai, Snailax, China Insider |
Companies and products denoted by an asterisk (*) within this publication are paid sponsors or advertisements. As an Amazon Associate, the publisher earns from qualifying purchases. Statements regarding products denoted by a double asterisk (**) have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration; such products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This newsletter is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, medical, or professional advice of any kind. Readers should consult with a qualified professional before making any decisions based on this content. The publisher disclaims all liability for any loss, damage, or injury resulting from the use of or reliance on the information contained herein. |
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