Tech/Gear

You send your child to school expecting teachers to protect their education. You probably don't think much about what happens to their personal information after they take a standardized test. But a massive data breach in California is raising some uncomfortable questions about who has access to student records and how safely that information is stored.Hackers accessed and copied sensitive records belonging to millions of current and former California public […]

Apple's first foldable iPhone has barely reached customers, and some owners are already dealing with cracked screens. The iPhone Duo launched on Oct. 23 with a starting price of $1,999. Within hours, complaints began appearing online from people who said their new phones developed cracks along the folding display.Even more concerning, several reports describe damage appearing in nearly the same location. Some owners say their phones made unusual noises before […]

If you're anything like me, you've probably spent years collecting airline miles, dreaming about the trip you'll eventually take. Maybe it's a business class seat to Europe or that vacation you've been putting off. You keep earning points and watching the balance grow. But what happens when you finally check your account and discover someone else has already spent them?That's exactly what happened to Katy Nastro, a travel expert with […]

You pull out your phone to look something up on Google. Maybe you're researching a purchase or trying to find a restaurant. You expect a list of websites. Instead, Google serves up a lengthy artificial intelligence-generated answer before you even get to the search results. Sound familiar? I like AI when it helps me get something done. But sometimes I just want to search the internet without an AI summary […]

You're scrolling online when you spot a campaign T-shirt supporting your favorite candidate. The website looks professional, the merchandise looks legitimate and the address includes the candidate's name. You might even see the word "official" at the top of the page. So, you assume your purchase supports the campaign. But what if the candidate has nothing to do with that store?With the Nov. 3 midterm elections approaching, new research shared […]

Would you feel comfortable watching a movie while your car cruises down the highway at 70 mph? General Motors is betting that someday you will. The automaker plans to introduce technology in 2028 that could let drivers take their hands off the steering wheel and their eyes off the road. That means you could potentially answer emails, watch a show or attend a virtual meeting while your vehicle handles the […]

They know where you live. They may know your phone number, your relatives' names and roughly what your house is worth. By now, most people have at least a vague sense that data brokers collect personal information. What many don't realize is what happens next.Data brokers also analyze that information. They use algorithms, compare records from different sources and sort people into categories that predict their interests, circumstances and behavior. […]

You probably don't expect Elon Musk to show up in your child's investment portfolio. But that's exactly what could happen next year. The billionaire behind SpaceX has made a remarkable promise. He says he'll give one share of his space company to every kid in America.We're talking about a potential giveaway worth more than $10 billion. Free SpaceX stock for kids sounds appealing, especially when you're thinking about your child's […]

Space is getting crowded, and I'm not talking about astronauts. Thousands of pieces of junk are circling Earth at incredible speeds. Some are dead satellites. Others are leftover rocket parts or fragments from past collisions. Any one of them could cause serious trouble if it hits a working spacecraft.Now Britain has a pretty wild solution. It's developing a robotic spacecraft with giant claws that can grab dead satellites and move […]