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📬 Did someone forward this to you? Sign up here. Tomorrow: Your phone might be snitching on your driving. Apps track how fast you go, how hard you brake and even whether you touch your phone at red lights. I’ll show you who may be buying that data and how to shut it down. |
I hope your Sunday is kicking off well, friend. Today’s episode of “Your Life is a Financial Escape Room” features money you forgot existed. |
Yep, paychecks from old jobs, your first apartment’s security deposit, that utility refund from a company that still thinks you live near that weird gas station. If it couldn’t find you, the state may be babysitting it. |
💰 How many Americans have unclaimed money or property waiting for them? A) 1 in 100, B) 1 in 50, C) 1 in 7 or D) Everyone except you, apparently? Keep going, the answer is lurking at the end like a $10 in your coat pocket. |
⏰ Last call, friend! My October merch drop disappears tonight at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. Grab the crewneck, tee, jumbo tote or beanie before they’re gone for good. Tees are $28, and prices start at $20. Shop the drop now → (Tomorrow, I’m turning it off and not back on again.) |
📺 Tired of scrolling for something worth watching? Head to my YouTube channel! It’s packed with smart tips, real laughs and tech talk that actually matters. Click now and enjoy screen time that’s finally worth it. — Kim |
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TODAY’S DEEP DIVE |
Nothing but net-work |
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Image: ChatGPT/Kim Komando |
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🤯 WOW! A sensor that weighs about as much as a paper clip is being tested inside an NBA basketball. It can tell who touched the ball last and whether a fingertip changed its spin. Hawk-Eye cameras already track every player in 3D. The robot ref is warming up on the bench. |
The Short Version: The NBA is testing tech that could make some calls on its own, and fans get flashy new replays and stats this season. Here’s what to try, plus what to check before linking your accounts. |
📖 Read time: 2 minutes |
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The NBA season tipped off Tuesday. This year, the refs, the replays and even the ball have new help. |
The league already tracks every player and the ball in 3D with Sony’s Hawk-Eye cameras, from the same company behind tennis line calls. The goal is to eventually make out-of-bounds and goaltending calls automatically. |
Wilson is testing a ball with a sensor that weighs about 1 gram. It can tell who touched the ball last before it went out, and whether a fingertip changed its spin. Players in tests reportedly didn’t notice a difference. |
It’s still a test, not making calls in real games. Commissioner Adam Silver has floated using it as soon as next season. |
The Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green is wary of AI creeping into basketball, though he admits it could cut human mistakes. Every fan who has screamed at a TV knows which side they’re on. |
🏀 What changes on your screen |
The camera flies. Amazon’s games on Prime Video add Prime 360. A ring of cameras captures every angle, and Amazon’s computers rebuild the play in 3D, so the replay swoops through the action like a video game camera. Prime opened its season Friday, Oct. 23, with Knicks-Celtics and Rockets-Spurs, both included with Prime. Ask the app anything. The NBA App has Ask NBA, a chatbot that answers questions about games, players and stats. “Who’s shooting best from three this month?” Done. A live game dashboard. Game Pulse in the NBA App shows a court map, shot charts, highlights and quick takes from legends like Gary Payton and Muggsy Bogues. New stats with funny names. A Handle Score grades how well a player dribbles. Your nephew will cite it at Thanksgiving.
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💰 Before you link your accounts |
Prime Video lets you link your Yahoo fantasy team and your FanDuel account, so your players and bets show up on screen. Fun, but you’re handing over more data about what you watch and what you wager. |
Only link what you’ll actually use. Check what’s connected in each app’s settings. Unlink when the season ends.
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The machines are getting better at watching the game. Your couch is still the best seat in the house. |
Why can’t basketball players go on vacation? They aren’t allowed to travel. |
🗣️ Text/post this stat: The NBA is testing a basketball with a 1-gram sensor inside that can tell who touched it last. The robot ref is warming up. GetKim.com |
📩 Send this to someone who yells at the ref through the TV. |
Share this now: |
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🚨 Final hours: My October shop shuts down at midnight |
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The store closes at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. |
Every tech support call in history starts with the same question: “Have you tried turning it off and on again?” Now you can wear the answer. |
My October merch drop goes dark tonight. No restock. No reboot. Once it’s off, it stays off. By tomorrow morning, all you’ll be able to say is, “Wait, can I still get one?” (Nope.) |
Here’s what’s still on the shelf: |
Tee: The classic. Perfect for your next family tech support shift. Crewneck: Cozy enough for chilly nights, nerdy enough for Thanksgiving dinner. Jumbo tote: Fits groceries, gym gear and that laptop you swore you’d back up. Beanie: Keeps your head warm and your tech cred hot.
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Prices start at $20. Grab one for you and one for the person who calls you every time the Wi-Fi drops. |
✅ Order before 11:59 p.m. Pacific → |
Tonight is your last chance. After that, this drop is history. |
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📺 YOUTUBE: THE KIM KOMANDO SHOW |
Which AI gives the best financial advice? |
Rob wants to know which AI tool is best for lowering his APR and consolidating debt and whether it can help lower what he owes the IRS before filing. We got the exact prompts to help him. |
Watch now before everyone else is talking about it. 👇 |
▶️ Watch on YouTube → |
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WEB WATERCOOLER |
💔 Hinge and pray: Apple’s $1,999 iPhone Duo has been out barely a day, and some screens are already cracking along the fold. One owner in Australia says his split after fewer than 20 opens, about six hours in, with no drops. Apple swapped his phone on the spot. Got one? You have 14 days to return it, plus a one-year warranty. Open it gently and photograph any weirdness. Talk about a phone with a split personality. |
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. |
🫖 My morning tea has a secret ingredient: A scoop of NativePath collagen. No taste, dissolves instantly and works from the inside out. Expensive creams only treat the surface. This rebuilds what time takes away. Get NativePath for a fraction of the retail price, plus free shipping and gifts.** |
Quarters meet reality: I nearly choked on my coffee when I read why a woman called police to her Fullerton, Calif., laundromat. Social media fakes sold her a shiny little passive-income machine (paywall link) spitting out quarters. Instead, she found drug dealers in the bathroom, plus vandalism, paperwork and the nitty-gritty influencers left off camera. Nothing says passive income like having police officers secure the fabric softener aisle. |
⚠️ Your inbox, their ads: Google’s AI feature Personal Intelligence lets Gemini and Search dig through your Gmail and Photos for smarter answers. Here’s the catch. Google updated its privacy policy. If you connect those apps, what you share could fuel targeted ads. (Your hotel booking, a sales pitch.) Shut it off: Google Account > Data & privacy > Personalization settings > Manage Personalized Recommendations in Search Services. Disconnect Google Workspace and Google Photos. FYI, data already saved may stick around. Turns out Personal Intelligence gets a little too personal. |
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Who has your email address? |
Your pharmacy. Your grocery store’s rewards program. That website you ordered from once. Every time you give out your email address, who knows where it ends up? Next thing you know, your inbox is overflowing with spam and scams. |
I use StartMail because it gives me more control over my primary email. It’s a private email service built to keep your personal information out of the wrong hands. |
Here’s what you’ll get with StartMail: |
Unlimited email aliases: Use a different address for every website. If spam starts coming, simply delete that alias. Built-in privacy: No ads, tracking or profiling, plus encrypted messages. Easy access: Use Apple Mail, Outlook, webmail or StartMail’s mobile apps.
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Worried about switching? StartMail helps transfer your emails and contacts. |
✅ Get 60% off + a 7-day free trial today → |
Thank you for supporting our sponsors, who keep this newsletter free. |
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DEVICE ADVICE |
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Windows shouldn’t need a coffee break before you can use it. Open Settings > Apps > Startup and switch off apps that don’t need to launch automatically. Start with Copilot, Teams and Xbox. Microsoft does love pushing those. Just leave security software running. Teams can wait until there’s actually a meeting. 😒 |
🛡️ Free antivirus is a massive gamble: People ask me all the time if built-in protection like Microsoft Defender is enough. Nope. Free software only catches 60% to 80% of online threats. That means a huge chunk of malware gets through. I use Webroot because it blocks up to 99% of threats in real time without slowing down my computer. Get 65% off my top antivirus pick for 2026. That’s only $17.49 a year.* |
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. |
🤔 Wait, what did the other one say? On your iPad, open two windows from the same app. Press and hold the Safari, Notes, Mail or Files icon, then choose New Window. Resize the windows and put them side by side to compare emails, notes or web pages. No more switching back, rereading the sentence and promptly forgetting it again. 😅 |
Paying for the kids’ Xbox Game Pass? That’s probably costing $10 to $20+ a month. Microsoft’s testing “cloud playtime” without a subscription: 10 hours for $3.99, 25 hours for $7.99 and so on. It rolls out in November. Ask how many hours they play on weekends. If it’s only a few, switching could leave a little more in your pocket. 🫰🏻 |
🧩 Where did my Chrome extensions go? Open an Incognito window, and your usual tools might be missing. Chrome turns extensions off there by default. Click the three dots at the top right > Extensions > Manage extensions. Find the one you want, click Details and turn on Allow in incognito. You opened a private window, not a whole different browser. |
🚶🏼♀️ Take me on a walk: Click to listen to my latest show on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. I also make chores go by faster! |
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KIM’S DAILY DEALS |
As an Amazon Associate, some links pay us a commission at no extra cost to you. Keeps this newsletter free. Thank you. |
🍂 Fall fixes for your yard |
Knock out those chores before winter rolls in. |
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🪚 Out on a limb: Mini chainsaw (10% off, $36)
4.5 ⭐ 17,000+ reviews |
Dead branches and winter storms don’t mix. Trim the small stuff before it crashes onto your roof or car. It arrives fully assembled with extra chains. A double safety lock helps prevent accidental starts. |
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Image: Seesii |
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💦 Pressure’s on: Plastics crack. This all-metal sprayer (10% off, $20) handles dirty jobs, from washing your car to rinsing your patio. |
Protect your screen time: Slip this waterproof cover (10% off, $16) on your outdoor TV after the game. The pocket stops the remote from wandering off. |
⚡ Find the live one: Before you touch that wire, check it with a dual-range voltage tester (20% off, $12). It beeps and flashes if it’s hot. |
Root it out: Want fewer weeds next spring? The angled head on this weeder tool (36% off, $9) pops them out with way less elbow grease. |
🏡 Your home called: It wants more from my Amazon storefront → |
Prices and deals were accurate at the time of publication. |
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WHAT THE TECH? |
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Image: Stevens County (Minn.) Sheriff’s Office |
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🌽 Children of the cornfield |
There’s something strange in Minnesota’s cornfields, and it’s not genetically modified. |
Sheriff’s deputies found an 11-foot metallic object believed to be part of a Chinese rocket that launched 10 satellites into orbit. Apparently, the Zhuque-2E decided Minnesota needed a souvenir. |
This isn’t even a first. In 2024, a chunk of NASA equipment crashed through a Florida home while the family slept. Earth’s becoming the universe’s lost-and-found bin. |
Check it out here. At this rate, farmers will need crop insurance and space junk insurance. |
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LOGGING OUT … |
🎓 What you learned today: The NBA is testing basketballs with built-in sensors, Prime Video can replay games from 3D camera angles, don’t let influencers sell you on the passive-income dream, disabling startup apps can speed up Windows, and space junk is turning up in Minnesota cornfields. Not bad for one email. That gas app in your pocket may be doing more than finding cheap fuel. Tomorrow, I’ll break down what’s being tracked, why it matters and the settings to change. |
💰 The answer: C) 1 in 7. Yep, 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. |
FYI, never pay a “finder” company to do this for you. And never trust a stranger who emails or texts claiming you’re owed money. |
My husband found the cash I hid in an old board game and told me to put it in the bank. Better safe than Sorry! |
⏰ Last call before lights out! My October merch drop closes tonight at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. Grab the crewneck, tee, jumbo tote or beanie while you still can. Prices start at $20. After midnight, this drop gets the one fix tech support can’t undo: unplugged for good. |
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💛 The ball has a brain, and the ref might be a camera. The best part of the game is still who’s on the couch next to you. Have a restful Sunday. — Kim |
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Kim Komando • Komando.com • 510+ radio stations • Trusted by millions daily |
🏆 THE KIM CHALLENGE: Forward this to ONE person who needs to hear it today. Pick the person who popped into your head while reading. You know who it is. |
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HOW’D WE DO?What did you think of today’s issue?
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Photo credit(s): ChatGPT/Kim Komando, Seesii, Stevens County (Minn.) Sheriff’s Office |
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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