How to Get an IRS Identity Protection PIN

An IP PIN is a six-digit number the IRS says prevents someone else from filing a tax return with your Social Security number. Three ways to get one, and what to know before you do.

Have I Been Pwned: Check Whether Your Email Turned Up in a Breach

Have I Been Pwned lets you search one email address at a time against breach data. Here is what it covers, what it misses, and what to do with a result.

Florida Reports Criminal Access to Its Financial Aid Site. About 4.9 Million People May Be Affected

Florida's Department of Education says Social Security numbers may have been exposed. It has not said how the intruder got in or whether any data has been misused. Here is what is confirmed and what to do now.

How to Freeze Your Credit at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion

A freeze is free to place and lift, and the FTC says it does not affect your credit score. Here is the walk-through, bureau by bureau.

Milliman IntelliScript: Ask for the Prescription Report Insurers Can Pull

If you applied for individual insurance and signed a HIPAA authorization, a company called Milliman IntelliScript may hold a report on you. You have the right to ask for it and to correct errors.

Quest Diagnostics Says Someone Accessed Patient Records

Quest learned of unauthorized access to a lab-ordering system on Oct. 21. It has not said how many patients or which records.

Lock Down a Talking Gadget You Already Own, in 10 Minutes

You don't have to toss the AI toy or speaker. Here's the pass that cuts what it sends to the cloud, on the device, the app, and your router.

The Free Reviews That Tell You Which Talking Toys Spy

Mozilla's privacy experts test connected gadgets and toys by hand, for free. Here's how to check an AI companion before it ever reaches your house.

A $140 AI Robot Kept 8 Million Private Chats on an Open Server

The Eilik companion bot sends every word to Beijing. A researcher found millions of conversations sitting in plain text, about 32,000 tied to kids.

Five Minutes to Cut What Your Phone Reveals About You

Your phone's location settings and wallet share more than most apps need. Three checks, five minutes, on iPhone or Android.

Your Phone Can Prove You're Over 21 Without Showing the Rest of Your ID

A growing number of US states let you add a mobile driver's license to your phone's wallet, and share just your age, not your name, address, or birthdate.

No ID, No Internet: The Part of Age-Verification Laws Nobody Mentions

Age checks are sold as a small privacy tradeoff to protect kids. But millions of adults can't pass them at all, and more than half of US states now require them.

How to Stop AI From Training on Your Data

Most chatbots and apps learn from what you type by default. Here are the opt-out toggles on the accounts you already use, this month's highest-impact privacy move.

Privacy Guides: The Free Site That Picks Your Big-Tech Replacements For You

A nonprofit, community-run directory of vetted private tools, browsers, email, messaging, VPNs, so you're not guessing when you leave a service.

Opt Out October: The EFF Just Handed You a Month-Long Privacy Plan

The Electronic Frontier Foundation's free guide walks through the settings to flip, the platforms to drop, and the better alternatives, one step at a time.

Lock Down Your Home Router in About Ten Minutes

Eight settings that decide how much your network gives away. Most are one toggle each, and you only do them once.

Quad9: The Free Resolver That Blocks Bad Sites Before You Connect

A nonprofit-run DNS service that stops phishing and malware domains and doesn't store your IP or sell your data. One number to change on your router.

Your Router Won't Say What It Collects. A New Study Ranked 25 of Them.

Cybernews scored the privacy policies of 25 router brands. None disclose whether they log your DNS, and ASUS came out clearest while D-Link was the vaguest.

How to Vet an App's Privacy Before You Install It

The Free Tool That Reads the Terms of Service So You Don't Have To

ToS;DR grades apps' and sites' privacy terms from A to E and flags the worst clauses, in seconds.

The FTC Just Weakened Privacy Rules for Your Health and Fitness Apps

The FTC rescinded a 2021 policy that made non-HIPAA period trackers, fitness apps, and wearables warn you when your health data leaked or was shared. Here's what it means.

How to Lock Down Your Messaging Apps

"End-to-end encrypted" doesn't mean untouchable. Police read Signal, WhatsApp, and Telegram this week without breaking the encryption. Here's how to close the gaps.

The Free Harvard Tool That Tracks How Apps' Privacy Policies Change

California Just Signed 13 Kids-and-Tech Laws. Some Protect Privacy, One Bans Teens From Social Media

Newsom's package limits how ed-tech sells student data and adds digital-literacy classes, but also functionally bans under-16s from social media.

How to Turn Off Windows' Built-In Data Collection

Windows quietly sends samples of what you type, your ad ID, and a profile of how you use your PC to Microsoft. Here's how to shut it down in 10 minutes.