It’s a marvelous Monday, friend. I know you’re so very excited to hear today’s the first day you can file your 2024 taxes! Friendly reminder: You can file for free directly through the IRS if you made $84,000 or less. No more paying TurboTax or anyone else for the privilege. I'd tell you some tax jokes, but I doubt you'd depreciate it!

👏 Be like Bob: There’s a reason I ask you to reply to my emails. It shows Big Tech’s algorithms you want to hear from me. “I started replying daily when I got an email saying I wasn't going to receive your newsletter anymore. So far, it worked.” Yay, Bob! Now, reply to this email right now to do your part, too! Oh, we have a lot to cover. Be sure not to miss the news about AI below. It’s a huge story! — Kim

The chances of your Instagram, X, Facebook, Amazon, Threads, Rumble, Twitch or other accounts getting taken over by spammy bots and data-stealing thieves have never been higher. So, don’t sit there all smug, thinking, “Oh, Kim, that could never happen to me!”

A lot of the advice you find online about hacked social media sites and profiles is just plain wrong or, worse, leads to a scammer who promises to get your account back but really just steals your money. Not on my watch!

Here I am to save the day with moves you should make when your social media accounts are hacked. You might want to use the share buttons below to email this article to yourself. This way, you have it handy when you need it.

Step 1: Sign out on every device

It’s alarming to think about someone else’s hands all over your social media account, posting crap on your page. Fully sign out of your account on every device you’re logged in.

Pro tip: Under the Settings section in every social app, you’ll see a list of all (or the most recent) devices signed in. On Facebook, for instance, just click your profile picture > Settings & privacy > Activity log > Where you’re logged in.

This step will often boot more casual hackers piggybacking on automatic sign-ins. They’ll get asked for passwords they don’t have and won’t be able to log in again, so they can’t spam your peeps. But don’t stop here!

Step 2: Change your password

Log into your account on one device and change your password. The account or settings page will have that option, like here on Instagram. If hackers did get your password (maybe from a massive data breach), this will lock them out.

You know the drill: Replace your old password with a strong one. Make it at least 12 characters with a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Better yet, have your password manager* come up with a great one for you.

Step 3: Report the hack

Now, hackers should be mostly locked out of your socials. Before you take a deep breath, though, report the hack. This way, your social media platform can help you roll back your hacked messages and freeze your account until you’re sure everything is safe.

Account hacking is so bad, some social media sites have dedicated pages to report the problem. Here’s Facebook’s hacked page, and, no surprise, there’s also an Instagram hacked page and X’s questionnaire.

Step 4: Check for surprise changes

No one likes cleaning the house, but it has to be done. Jump over to your account settings and check for any funny business, like:

Step 5: One last thing

Phew, you’re almost done. Be sure to enable two-factor authentication (2FA) for your account. You can get a code via text, but it’s more secure to use an authenticator app. Steps here if you’re new to the 2FA game.

FYI, you can only get 2FA on X if you pay for its $8 monthly Premium service. Annoying.

If you run into any trouble with these steps …

… Or if a hacker got your account suspended, call the social media platform. Keep in mind these companies don’t care about you, so they really don’t want to help you. You’ll have to be persistent. Here’s a list of popular tech numbers. Do not search on Google for these phone numbers.

I wish I could wave my magic wand to make all your hacked accounts good again, but, sadly, I cannot.

Speaking of … Cybersecurity experts have found an easy way to spot North Korean hackers. They never use the Shift key because they hate capitalism.

💋 It happens to all of us in the winter: Crusty lips are a no-go. I like Aquaphor’s repair balm with no smell or shine.

🤯 Shocking AI news: DeepSeek, a Chinese company loaded with young, ambitious talent, is causing massive panic in Silicon Valley by releasing multiple AI models 50 times more efficient than the best American ones. DeepSeek’s models outperformed Meta’s Llama 3.1, OpenAI’s GPT‑4o and Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 3.5 in everything from complex problem-solving to math and coding accuracy. Here’s the kicker: They built DeepSeek with $5.6 million; OpenAI spent $5.4 billion per year.

The clock is TikTokking: President Trump is cooking up a plan to buy TikTok. The U.S. sovereign wealth fund would involve private equity players and taxpayer money. Communist China’s government refuses to include the algorithm with the sale, which is what makes TikTok so valuable. But U.S. tech titans say they can come up with their own.

👎 IG snitch: Instagram now shows your friends all the videos you've liked. When scrolling through the Reels tab, you’ll notice small bubbles with your friends’ profile pictures and a little heart overlay in the bottom left corner. I’ll keep you posted if they add an option to turn it off.

Bill Gates swayed back and forth when I interviewed him: That was years ago. Now, the Microsoft co-founder believes he might’ve been diagnosed with autism if he’d been a kid in today’s world. In a recent interview, he explained autism once had a narrow definition but now includes a broader spectrum of conditions. Gates also mentioned his biggest regret: His divorce.

Smart homes are getting smarter: Look into the future. New millimeter-wave (mmWave) tech detects movements so subtle, the sensors know when you’re breathing. You’ll be able to program them to dim the moment you plop down on the sofa for movie night. (Yeah, I thought that, too.) I wonder if you stop breathing, will your lights call 911?

He made a dumb mistake: A 26-year-old man with thinning hair found a drug called Finasteride in an online pharmacy and bought some without visiting his doctor first. Now, he’s dealing with sexual dysfunction and massive depression symptoms, even after quitting the meds. Get all prescription meds from your doctor.

A grave situation: People are turning to grief apps like Untangle to cope with the loss of loved ones. These apps let you connect with other mourners, share stories and get advice from AI chatbots. But what about data collection? Many of the apps’ developers sell your info to third parties, who could exploit your mental state.

🚊 All aboard: The rail system in Japan is amazing. Now, passengers can use facial recognition to pay for tickets. Here’s how it works: Book a seat online and register an image of your face. When you get to the gate, a tablet scans your face and prints out a seat number — no waiting. Don’t be surprised if this tech makes its way to the U.S. for airline tickets.

AI is changing the game, and small to large businesses are transforming at lightning speed. But here's the good news: It's not too late to get in on the action and take your business to the next level. That’s where Oracle comes in.

You know AI is the future — now’s your chance to cut your cloud bill in half with Oracle. You have nothing to lose and so much to gain.

📊 Make your data pop: Biz owners, AI can turn a dry presentation into something more fun. Just share your data with your AI chatbot. Let it know what stats you wanna show off. Then ask, “Can you turn this data into [an infographic, an interactive quiz, a poll, etc.]?” Your clients will remember it.

Locked up tight: In Gmail, click the little padlock icon at the bottom of a new email for Confidential mode. Set an expiration date and a passcode for your recipient to open the email. You’ll both feel like James Bond.

While you’re at it: Lock down your device security. If you’re still browsing, shopping and working online without antivirus software, you’re making a mistake. My trusted pick is $19 for the first year.*

Try this, Samsung pals: Samsung DeX lets you connect your Galaxy phone or tablet to a monitor or TV. Just plug a USB‑C to HDMI adapter into your phone and voila: A mini computer! You can connect a mouse and keyboard via Bluetooth, too.

50% off alert: My home security pick, SimpliSafe, is having a massive sale.* Get all the gear to lock down your home. You’ll sleep better at night.

🔦 Light it up: On your iPhone, hold down the flashlight button and drag the slider up or down to control its brightness. One more: Say, “Siri, turn on the flashlight” when you need it, then tell her to turn it off, too.

Get more cred: Don’t let your LinkedIn posts get lost in the digital abyss. The best time to post is a weekday during business hours, especially lunchtime between noon and 1 p.m. Bonus points for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Stuffed Kim! Cute, huh? I made it with Google Whisk. Sign in with your Google account, then choose the “plushie” option and add a pic of yourself (or your pet for extreme cuteness).

A tech tidbit to leave you with: Plugging in a USB cable the right way feels like a no-brainer. Why do we get it wrong on the first try so often?

Here’s the secret: Grab any USB cable sitting around your house. See that symbol on one side? It’s not just branding or decoration. That symbol will point up if you’re plugging in horizontally; if you’re plugging a cable vertically, the USB symbol will face you.

😂 I wanted to make a joke about USBs … but you wouldn’t get it the first time.

Let’s be friends. Don’t miss out on the security alerts, tips and fun I post on social media. If you’re not following me already, hit these links for Instagram, X, YouTube and Facebook, and say, “I go Komando!” 🙈 See you tomorrow with another issue of the best tech newsletter in the USA! — Kim