Chorus says the copper network outage is expected to last until Wednesday morning. Read...

Baseball fans have more ways than ever to stream Major League Baseball games, but keeping track of where to watch can be a challenge. National broadcasts remain spread across multiple networks and streaming services, while local games are increasingly shifting away from traditional regional sports networks. Add in exclusive streaming deals and blackout restrictions, and figuring out how to watch your favorite team can feel feel as challenging as deciphering Tarik Skubal’s pitch arsenal. The 2025 MLB season is set to begin with the Tokyo Series on March 18 and 19, featuring the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs at the Tokyo Dome. Following this international opener, Opening Day for the remaining teams is scheduled for March 27. Major networks such as Fox, ESPN, TBS, and Apple TV+ will continue their coverage, with ESPN set to air a doubleheader on Opening Day and TBS maintaining its Tuesday-night broadcasts. The Roku Channel has taken over MLB Sunday Leadoff, and Apple TV+ continues to offer Friday Night Baseball. Meanwhile, MLB.tv remains the go-to service for out-of-market games, and local media rights are changing as MLB takes over broadcasts for teams including the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Cleveland Guardians. The postseason lineup remains largely the same, with ESPN networks airing the Wild Card Series, TBS handling the National League playoffs, and Fox carrying the American League playoffs and the World Series. And with the upcoming end of ESPN’s MLB contract after 2025, this season could mark a turning point for baseball’s media landscape. To help you navigate all the options, we’ve broken down the best ways to watch Major League Baseball in 2025. This story has been updated for the 2025 season. Sling TV includes ESPN in its channel lineup as well as NBC Sports regional content in select markets, allowing some fans to watch their hometown teams. Over the air a great amplified indoor Tv antenna Televes Bexia Read our review Since broadcast baseball has largely gone the way of the Sunday doubleheader, there are few options for watching any game without a subscription of one kind or another. The Fox network, however, can still be had for free with a good TV antenna. That will give you access to a bunch of nationally broadcast Saturday-afternoon games. If you’re purchasing an antenna for the first time, remember to first check to see which stations you can receive in your area and which type of antenna you’ll need to pull in your local Fox affiliate. You should also check our recommendations for the best TV antennas. Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV+ the only source for friday night baseball Apple TV+ Read our review Best Prices Today: $6.99 at Apple Apart from buying a TV antenna, your least-expensive option—and the only way to get Friday-night games—is to sign up for a subscription to Apple TV+. That costs $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, but it gets you a wide array of other streaming entertainment, including hit shows such as the Steven Spielberg/Tom Hanks-produced Masters of the Air, a series about WWII bomber pilots in Europe, and the mind-bending Severance. Apple TV+ is probably an option only for fans who need to see every single game, but at least it doesn’t cost a lot, and there’s lots of other entertainment to be had. T-Mobile customers on a Go5G Next plan, meanwhile, should take advantage of the opportunity to get both Apple TV+ (available now) and MLB.TV (starting March 25) for free. MLB Sunday Leadoff on The Roku Channel For fans looking for more free ways to watch some live baseball, The Roku Channel has taken over MLB Sunday Leadoff, offering one exclusive Sunday-afternoon game each week from May through August. Unlike other streaming-exclusive games, these matchups are available to watch without a subscription on The Roku Channel app, which is accessible on Roku devices, web browsers, smart TVs, and mobile devices. DirecTV Stream most sports channels of any service DirecTV Stream Read our review Best Prices Today: $101.98 at DirecTV Stream If you have Fox broadcast covered via an antenna, DirecTV’s MySports package is an excellent option for accessing the rest of the MLB action. Launched earlier this year, MySports offers a comprehensive selection of sports channels, including ESPN, FS1, TBS, MLB Network, and regional sports networks like Bally Sports and NBC Sports regional networks. Priced at $69.99 per month, this package ensures coverage of both national and local MLB games without the need for larger, more expensive TV bundles. Fubo a sports-centric streaming service Fubo Read our review Best Prices Today: $79.99 at Fubo The once soccer-centric streaming service offers a fair amount of baseball-broadcasting channels including ESPN, Fox, FS1, and the MLB Network. It also includes a selection of RSNs including the NBC Sports Bay Area and NBC Sports California networks and Marquee Sports Network. To get them all. you’ll need the Pro package for $84.99 a month (there’s a 7-day free trial for new customers) and the Sports Plus channel add-on for an additional $10.99 a month. Hulu + Live TV includes some regional sports networks Hulu + Live TV Read our review Best Prices Today: $82.99 at Hulu.com Hulu offers a single, flat-fee package that includes more than 90 live and on demand channels—including the ESPN, Fox, FS1, and TBS—plus regional sports networks in select areas. You get them all, in addition to Hulu’s original content and its streaming library, for $82.99 a month with ads or $95.99 a month without. Sling TV least-expensive streaming service Sling TV Read our review Best Prices Today: $40 at Sling TV Sling TV offers ESPN, ESPN2, TBS, Fox, and FS1, as well as NBC Sports for local-team broadcasts. If you want them all in one package, though, you’ll need to step up to the top-tier Sling Orange + Blue option (basically Sling’s two individual packages combined and offered at a discount) for $65.99 a month, with half off of your first month. Major League Baseball is making it a little easier for cord cutters to catch their favorite team’s games. YouTube TV our favorite tv streaming service YouTube TV Read our review Best Prices Today: $82.99 at YouTube TV Like Hulu, YouTube offers a flat-fee package of more than 100 channels for $82.99 per month ($69.99 per month for your first six months). The channel lineup includes Fox, FS1, ESPN, and TBS, but not the MLB network. MLB.TV the official source, but for out-of-market games only MLB.TV Best Prices Today: $29.99 at MLB.TV An MLB.tv subscription can get you a lot of baseball, but blackout rules still apply. The league’s official streaming service offers live streams of every regular season out-of-market game, with perks like multi-game viewing (up to four games at once), in-game highlights, and a free subscription to the At Bat Premium app. Note the phrase “out-of-market:” MLB.TV is not a true cord-cutting resource. It was really designed as way for transplants—a Red Sox fan living in Seattle, for example—to watch their former home teams. Local broadcasts remain subject to blackout rules, so you won’t be able to watch your hometown ball club live on TV this way. That said, MLB.TV remains a valuable option for dyed-in-the-wool seamheads to catch virtually every out-of-market game broadcast—home or away—throughout the regular season. And if you’re not particular about real-time viewing and can avoid social media and other potential spoiler sources, you can watch replays of your local team’s games on demand 90 minutes after the game’s conclusion. A full MLB.TV subscription, which gives you access to all 30 teams’ games—minus those of your local club’s—is $29.99 per month or $149.99 for the year. (We can show you how to score a $50 discount.) There’s also a single-team option that lets you follow a non-local squad of your choice for $129.99 per year. And once again, many T-Mobile subscribers can get MLB.TV for free. Play ball! Major League Baseball is finally stepping up the plate and giving cord-cutters more options to watch the Grand Old Game. We’d still like to see it offer more free streaming options of marquee matchups; until it does, you can take advantage of these cable alternatives, along with our guide to second-screen baseball apps, to make sure you catch all the action on the diamond. Read...

Laptops with ample storage can be pricey, especially because they don’t go on sale as often as smaller options do. I’ve seen it so many times — a base model laptop goes on sale for hundreds of dollars off, but the model with more storage remains full price. That’s why I’m telling you to buy the less-expensive laptop model and upgrade the storage yourself. Of course, it’s easier said than done. You have to make sure the laptop is easily upgradable, which isn’t always a given. Gaming laptops and business laptops are fairly easy to open, with plenty of helpful YouTube videos that’ll walk you through any given model. But ultra-thin, ultra-portable laptops often sacrifice upgradability to do what they do. Still, if you don’t mind shopping around, this is a great way to acquire a laptop with lots of storage at a cheaper price. I’ve personally done it with multiple laptops and I’ve saved hundreds each time. Here’s what you need to know to start doing this yourself. Upgrading the storage on your laptop could be easier than you think If your laptop has upgradable storage, the actual upgrade process will likely be easy — so easy that it may even surprise you. But it’s also possible that the manufacturer made the laptop nearly impossible to open, in which case upgrading will also be near impossible. For laptops that aren’t designed with ease of service in mind, it might not be worth the effort. Even if you could get it open, the storage slots might be hidden under other components, requiring that you disassemble things further to even get at it. If the storage is soldered to the motherboard, you can’t realistically replace it at all. (In that case, there are other ways to add laptop storage.) Checking your laptop’s upgradability To determine how easy it is to upgrade your laptop’s storage, I recommend performing a web search for the name of your laptop plus “upgrade SSD” or “replace SSD.” You should find YouTube videos that give you a sense of what it takes to open it up and get inside. You could also look up your laptop’s official service manual, too. What’s involved when replacing the storage on your laptop? If your laptop supports storage upgrades, then all you have to do is buy an NVMe SSD that fits your laptop. Most laptops fit standard M.2 2280 (80mm long) SSDs, but more compact models may need a smaller M.2 2230 (30mm long) or M.2 2242 (42mm long) drive. Be sure to get the right form factor for your laptop — you can find those details on the web or in your laptop’s service manual. Framework Laptops are known for their upgradability via modular design. This Framework Laptop 13 is one of our favorites for unmatched repairability.Chris Hoffman / Foundry Also, don’t just buy any old SSD. If you cheap out on a low-end SSD, you’ll get low-end speeds. Many modern laptops now support PCIe Gen4 SSDs, which are faster than older PCIe Gen3 SSDs, so be sure to get a drive that takes advantage of it if your laptop supports it. (Check out PCWorld’s recommended PCIe Gen4 SSDs.) Once you have the SSD, you’ll need to open your laptop. Depending on the laptop, it may just take a few screws… but there’s also a chance you’ll need a “spudger” to pry apart the laptop’s base from the plastic tabs that hold the laptop frame together. With many modern laptops, upgrading the SSD truly is as simple as plugging in and out of a slot. The only question is, how easily accessible is the storage slot in your laptop?Chris Hoffman / Foundry Once you’re in, you just have to access the storage. On many laptops, that means unfastening a screw, pulling the existing SSD out, sliding your new SSD into the slot, and re-fastening the screw. (On some gaming laptops, business laptops, and otherwise modular laptops, you may even spot an empty second SSD slot. If you do, you can just add your SSD without removing the current one and use both at the same time!) Lastly, with the new SSD in your laptop, make sure you take care of it. Avoid these mistakes that kill SSDs early! Is buying cheaper and upgrading the storage really worth the effort? Upgrading a laptop’s storage on your own is usually worth it, especially if you can find those lower-end models with less storage on sale. Many laptops have base models that are surprisingly inexpensive to snag budget-conscious shoppers, with notable price bumps for higher-end models that come pre-packaged with more storage and RAM. This strategy works best when you can scoop up a base model laptop at a bargain. I mean, if it costs $100 to jump up from the 512GB model to the 1TB model and it costs $90 to buy a comparable SSD, then it isn’t worth the time to save a measly $10. But if the 512GB model is on sale for $400 off while the 1TB model sits at full price, then you’re suddenly looking at a $500 difference — a huge opportunity to save some cash. Manufacturers often bundle laptop storage upgrades with more RAM and other niceties. That’s great, but it means you’re overpaying if you only want the extra storage capacity but don’t need the extra RAM. You’ll have to run the numbers yourself. What’s the price of the laptop you’re looking at, how much more for the higher-end model with extra storage, and how much would an SSD upgrade cost? Some gotchas to look out for Aside from the unfortunate reality that not every laptop is realistically upgradable, there’s one other big gotcha to watch out for — if you end up replacing the SSD in whatever laptop you get, that SSD is going to be empty (i.e., you’ll need to install an operating system on it). If you want to keep using the laptop as it was before, you’ll have to image the drive before you swap it out. That means creating a backup copy of the drive and all its files, then copying it all to the new SSD. Otherwise, you can swap the new-but-empty SSD into your laptop, then use something like a USB flash drive to install Windows or Linux. Be careful when opening up your laptop and fiddling around with the components. Any accidental damage is your responsibility.Gordon Mah Ung / Foundry It’s a little easier if you end up buying a laptop with multiple SSD slots. In that case, you can leave the main SSD (which has the operating system already installed on it) and simply install your new SSD into the other available SSD slot. This is the most ideal option. One more thing to keep in mind: your laptop’s warranty. Your laptop manufacturer may void the warranty if you open up your laptop for any reason. This clause is more common on thin-and-light ultrabooks that aren’t designed to be opened, less common on gaming and business laptops that are meant to be upgraded and/or serviced. That said, if you break something while opening the laptop, that’s still on you. Don’t “buy cheap and upgrade” if… Buying a less expensive laptop and upgrading the storage yourself is often worth it, but here’s when you shouldn’t do it: If the laptop isn’t easily serviceable, then it’s just not possible. If the cost of bumping up storage capacity at the time of purchase is reasonable, then you may not save any money. If you aren’t prepared to image the existing drive or reinstall Windows from scratch, then you may not want to do it. If you don’t want to waste time upgrading the drive on your own, then it may be worth paying the premium at checkout. In all other cases, if you’re comfortable opening up a laptop and if you’re willing to spend a few minutes doing the replacement yourself, then you can often save hundreds of dollars by buying the cheaper laptop model on sale and swapping out for (or plugging in) your own SSD. I highly encourage you to give it a try — assuming the stars line up to make it feasible and worth the effort! Further reading: Portable SSDs are great for more than just backups Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Thin, light, and luxurious design Haptic touchpad and enjoyable keyboard Excellent 14-inch OLED with refresh rate up to 120Hz Future-looking connectivity including Thunderbolt 4, Wi-Fi 7 Cons Missing TrackPoint will divide ThinkPad fans Not the best performance for your dollar Modest battery life Our Verdict The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 is a sleeker, more luxurious ThinkPad. However, its performance and battery life are mid-pack. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition Retailer Price Lenovo $1239 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition had PC World’s editors scratching their heads upon its reveal at CES 2025. It’s a ThinkPad, but it ditches many of the features that are typical of the ThinkPad brand. There’s no iconic red TrackPoint, no physical buttons on the touchpad, and the overall look and feel is more typical of Lenovo’s recent Yoga Pro laptops.  These changes will make the Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition controversial among long-time ThinkPad fans but also make it more approachable for the average laptop shopper. Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Specs and features The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition is built with a focus on portability over performance. I received a laptop with an eight-core Intel Core Ultra 5 226V processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB solid state drive.  CPU: Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Memory: 16GB LPDDR5x-8533 Graphics/GPU: Intel Arc Graphics 130V NPU: Intel AI Boost peak 40 TOPs Display: 14-inch 2880×1800 120Hz OLED with VRR and HDR Storage: 512GB M.2 PCIe 4.0 SSD Webcam: 1440p 30fps camera with IR 3D camera for Windows Hello, electronic privacy shutter Connectivity: 2x Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C (40Gbps data, DisplayPort, Power Delivery), 1x HDMI 2.1 (up to 4K 60Hz), 1x 3.5mm combo headphone/microphone jack Networking: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 Biometrics: Windows Hello facial recognition, fingerprint reader Battery capacity: 55 watt-hours Dimensions: 12.28 x 8.35 x 0.51 inches Weight: 2.74 pounds Operating System: Windows 11 Pro Price: $1,519 retail from Lenovo The ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition is all in on future-proof connectivity. It has two Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C ports, HDMI 2.1, Wi-Fi 7, and Bluetooth 5.4. However, it lacks USB-A ports and doesn’t have a physical Ethernet port. It does have a 3.5mm audio port, though. Lenovo lists the model I reviewed at $1,519. The entry-level model downgrades to 256GB of storage and a 1200p OLED display, which lowers the price to $1,239. Upgrades, meanwhile, include up to an Intel Core Ultra 7 268V processor, 32GB of RAM, and 2TB of storage. Checking all the boxes boosts the price up to $2,349.  The ThinkPad X9 14 also puts an emphasis on portability. It measures just .51 inches thick (excluding the rubber feet on the bottom of the laptop) and weighs a mere 2.74 pounds. Neither number is unusual in 2025, as many 14-inch competitors are similar in size and weight, but it still makes for a remarkably light laptop that’s easy to pick up, pack, and carry.  Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Design and build quality IDG / Ashley Biancuzzo The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition might be a ThinkPad, but it looks far more like Lenovo’s recent Yoga Pro and Slim Pro laptops. The chassis is built from a grayish-blue aluminum that feels solid and premium in-hand. It also has rounded corners, beveled edges, and a wavy texture across the bottom panel that makes the laptop easier to hold. All of this is heresy for ThinkPad super-fans, who often prefer the boxier, all-black designs of yore. But… I like it. A lot. This didn’t surprise me. PC World has favorably reviewed Lenovo’s premium consumer laptops such as the Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i, which we gave an Editor’s Choice award. Indeed, the Yoga Pro 9i is so good it often left me wondering why anyone would want to buy a ThinkPad instead. The Yoga Pro 9i is typically more attractive, slimmer, and provides a much larger touchpad. It’s less expensive than a competitively equipped ThinkPad as well. It seems Lenovo noticed this, too, because the ThinkPad X9 14 feels like a Yoga Pro with the ThinkPad name on it. And, as a result, the ThinkPad X9 14 provides something ThinkPads often fail to deliver: a sense of luxury.  The ThinkPad X9 14 also puts an emphasis on portability. It measures just .51 inches thick (excluding the rubber feet on the bottom of the laptop) and weighs a mere 2.74 pounds. Neither number is unusual in 2025, as many 14-inch competitors are similar in size and weight, but it still makes for a remarkably light laptop that’s easy to pick up, pack, and carry.  Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Keyboard, trackpad IDG / Matthew Smith While the Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition makes many changes to the ThinkPad formula, the removal of the classic TrackPoint—a red nub found in the middle of most ThinkPad keyboards—is probably the most jarring change. I’m a fan of the TrackPoint, as well, and I won’t sugarcoat it. If you want a TrackPoint, well, this ain’t it, chief. There’s nothing about the ThinkPad X9 14 that will convince TrackPoint loyalists to make the switch to a touchpad. However, as with the laptop’s design, I think offering a ThinkPad without the TrackPoint is a sensible move. I’ve owned a series of ThinkPads over the years and once greatly preferred the TrackPoint. Today, things are different. The responsiveness and size of modern touchpads have improved, and multi-touch gestures are more useful than they once were.  Speaking of which, the ThinkPad X9 14’s touchpad is solid. It measures about 5 inches wide and about 3 inches deep. That’s a good size for a 14-inch laptop and provides space for using Windows’ multi-touch gestures, but it’s not any larger than most competitors.  The touchpad uses haptic feedback to simulate the feel of a physical click when a left or right-click action is executed, and it works great. So much so that I prefer haptic feedback to a real, physical touch action on modern laptops.  What about the keyboard? It’s great. The keyboard provides good key travel and has a spacious layout. Most keys are close to full size and those that are shrunk, like the Backspace and Tab keys, are still large enough that I didn’t have to adjust my muscle memory. A keyboard backlight comes standard and is effective at making the keys readable in dim settings. Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Display, audio IDG / Matthew Smith The entry-level Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition is sold with a 14-inch 1920×1200 OLED non-touch screen, but the model I tested (and most configurations sold online) had a 14-inch 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen. The upgraded display also boosts the refresh rate from 60Hz to 120Hz. It’s a beautiful display. 2880×1800 resolution on a 14-inch panel works out to about 243 pixels per inch, which is excellent for a laptop display and provides a razor-sharp look. Color performance and contrast are excellent, too, and combine to deliver a deep, immersive image. While a handful of laptops, like the Dell XPS 14, offer an even sharper 3200×2000 OLED panel, the ThinkPad X9 14’s display is otherwise as good as it gets.  As mentioned, the 2880×1800 panel has a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. It also supports VRR and can handle variable refresh rates between 30 and 120Hz. That makes it possible to use Windows’ dynamic refresh rate feature, which can lower the refresh rate to improve battery life (though this was off by default on the machine I tested). The ThinkPad X9 14’s speakers are decent but not a highlight. They deliver good volume with some low-end in bass heavy content. However, the speakers can become boomy and harsh as the volume is increased past 50 percent of maximum. Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Webcam, microphone, biometrics Every Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition has a 1440p webcam (note: Lenovo advertises it as 1080p, but it can in fact record up to 1440p at 30 frames per second). The webcam delivers a sharp, crisp image and deals well with mixed lighting. The microphone array is also crisp and does a great job of reducing background noise. Most competitive laptops also do well here, but the ThinkPad X9 14 is a solid choice if you spend a lot of time on video calls.  Biometric login is supported through both Windows Hello facial recognition via the webcam and fingerprint recognition via a sensor on the power button, which is located on the keyboard. Both prove easy to use but, as is typical, I found facial recognition quicker and more reliable than the fingerprint sensor.  Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Connectivity IDG / Matthew Smith The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition makes many changes to the classic ThinkPad formula, and that includes connectivity. It makes no attempt to provide a wide range of ports and instead focuses on the latest, greatest standards. A pair of Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C ports, each with 40Gbps of data, DisplayPort and Power Delivery, provide the bulk of the physical connectivity. Two ports isn’t a lot, but the ports are extremely versatile and work well with a dock if more connectivity is needed.  Also, the Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C ports are placed on opposite sides of the laptop (one on the left, one on the right), so there’s always a port close at hand no matter where your other devices are located on your desk.  Additional video connectivity comes from the HDMI 2.1 port, which supports 4K at up to 60Hz. The HDMI port is handy for connecting to televisions or projectors. A 3.5mm combo audio jack on the laptop’s right flank rounds out the connectivity.  Wireless connectivity is also forward-looking. The laptop supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, which are the latest version of each respective standard. I expect the laptop’s wireless connectivity will remain relevant for over a decade, as the progress of wireless standards has slowed in recent years.  Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Performance The Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition I reviewed had an Intel Core Ultra 5 226V processor. This is the least capable chip available in this laptop (four alternative Intel chips are available as upgrades). It has just eight processor cores, only four of which are performance cores, and comes paired with Intel Arc 130V. The laptop I reviewed also had 16GB of RAM and 512GB of PCIe solid state storage.  IDG / Matthew Smith Our first benchmark, PCMark 10, takes a holistic approach and tests a laptop across multiple simulated real-world workloads, from web conferencing to image editing and much more. The ThinkPad X9 14 falls a bit behind in this test with a score of 6,272. That’s quite a bit less than laptops that have more powerful Intel Core processors or AMD’s Ryzen AI 9.  IDG / Matthew Smith Intel’s Core Ultra 5 226V becomes a bit of a boat anchor in Cinebench R23, a heavily multi-threaded and short-duration test. The CPU’s limited core count (four performance, four efficient cores, for a total of eight) is a disadvantage in this benchmark.  IDG / Matthew Smith Handbrake, a longer duration multi-threaded benchmark that encodes a movie from MP4 to MKV, doesn’t change the story. The ThinkPad X19 14 still lags the pack. However, the margin by which it lags is lower here than in Cinebench R23. IDG / Matthew Smith What about 3D performance? The ThinkPad X9 14 is again at a disadvantage, as the Intel Core Ultra 5 226 relies on Intel Arc 130V graphics. This version of Intel Arc integrated graphics has just seven Xe cores, down from eight with Intel Arc 140V, and the clock speed is lower as well. It’s perhaps no surprise, then, to see the ThinkPad X9 14 lag behind the pack. Overall, the ThinkPad X9 14’s performance doesn’t impress. Of course, some concession should be made for the fact Lenovo sent an entry-level configuration and I expect that upgraded models with more capable Intel Chips like the Intel Core Ultra 7 268V would perform better. Those upgrades aren’t free, however, and this is an area where the ThinkPad X9 14 feels uncompetitive. At any given price, Lenovo offers an alternative model of Yoga Pro that has a better processor, more storage, and more RAM. Asus’ Zenbook 14 and Samsung’s Galaxy Book5 Pro also provide a similar prosumer look-and-feel alongside better performance for the price. Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Battery life You might expect the thin-and-light Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition to provide good battery life but, as is often the case with thin laptops, battery capacity becomes an issue. The ThinkPad X9 14 has a 55-watt-hour battery, while most similar laptops have a 65 to 75-watt-hour battery. IDG / Matthew Smith Mediocre battery life is the result. The ThinkPad X9 14 lasted roughly 11 hours and 45 minutes in our standard battery test, which loops a 4K video file of the short film Tears of Steel. That’s not bad but as the graph shows, it’s possible to find better battery life in competitive laptops.  Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14: Conclusion The ThinkPad X9 14 provides a great keyboard and touchpad alongside a premium look and feel that’s more like Lenovo’s excellent Yoga Pro laptops. While the changes won’t tempt long-time ThinkPad fans, they make the laptop more competitive with prosumer laptops, which often deliver better design than laptops focused on productivity and business. Where the ThinkPad X9 14 lags, however, is bang-for-the-buck. Though it’s as attractive as prosumer peers, you’ll still find that your money doesn’t go as far when buying a ThinkPad as it would if you purchased a prosumer laptop.  Even so, the ThinkPad X9 14 is likely to find an audience among business and enterprise buyers who’d prefer a sleeker, more luxurious alternative to a typical 14-inch business thin-and-light. Read...

In August 2024, National Public Data (NPD), a background check company, experienced a massive data breach that impacted around 2.9 billion records with sensitive information. Millions of people’s full names, Social Security numbers, phone numbers, and addresses were all up for grabs on the dark web. Faced with the overwhelming financial strain from numerous lawsuits and the costs associated with the breach, NPD filed for bankruptcy just a few months later. This breach, one of the largest in recent history, highlighted the growing risks businesses face in protecting sensitive data. With cybercriminals constantly evolving their tactics, companies can no longer afford to rely on reactive security measures alone. The bittersweet truth is that a breach like that could have been avoided — or at least minimized — with the right security measures in place. Threat exposure management platforms like NordStellar help with data breach prevention by catching vulnerabilities before they can be exploited. Prevent breaches with NordStellar 716 million user contacts leaked on the dark web in 2024 According to research conducted by NordStellar, 716 million user contacts were leaked on the dark web in 2024. This included 554 million email addresses and 162 million phone numbers, leaving a vast number of people vulnerable to cyber threats. Most of the leaked data came from companies in the technology, media, financial services, commerce, and healthcare industries. Once data is stolen in a breach, it often appears on dark web marketplaces within days or weeks — sometimes selling for pocket change. A credit card might go for just $15, a full identity package with your Social Security number for $20. But it doesn’t just sit there — it gets put to use fast. Cybercriminals, from small-time scammers to organized crime groups, exploit sensitive personal data in many ways, including identity theft, phishing, financial fraud, and account takeovers. Cybercriminals use stolen data to scam, hack, and exploit victims, often combining breaches for more targeted attacks. Average data breach costs reached $4.88M in 2024 According to IBM’s 2024 report, the global average cost of a data breach reached an all-time high of about $4.88 million. These costs usually include a range of expenses such as incident investigation, regulatory fines, legal fees, customer notification, credit monitoring services, system recovery, and lost business due to reputational damage. However, the damaging consequences of a data breach don’t just end here. Beyond the immediate financial hit, businesses face long-term challenges that can be even more devastating. Reputational damage can erode customer trust, driving people to competitors and amplifying negative publicity. Once trust is broken, it takes years to rebuild, affecting customer retention, brand perception, and even future business opportunities. Operational disruptions also take a heavy toll. Recovering from a breach requires shutting down systems, investigating the incident, and implementing new security measures — all of which divert resources from growth and innovation. Then come the legal and compliance issues. Data protection laws like GDPR and CCPA impose strict penalties, with fines reaching 4% of annual revenue or millions of dollars in penalties. High-profile cases like Meta’s €1.2 billion fine and Marriott’s $23.8 million penalty highlight how failing to protect user data can have severe consequences. NordStellar: Proactive threat exposure management for businesses Reactive security measures aren’t enough to protect your business from the avalanche of consequences that follow a data breach. IBM highlights that it can take around six months to even become aware that a data breach has happened, preventing companies from acting before it’s too late. NordStellar, a threat exposure management platform created by the company behind NordVPN, detects threats early, minimizes damage, and ensures businesses can respond before a breach escalates. NordStellar Get a NordStellar demo Data breach monitoring NordStellar keeps an eye on data breaches, malware infections, and leaked credentials to spot compromised employee or client information. It sends real-time alerts so security teams can act fast and limit damage. By assessing risk levels and prioritizing incidents, it helps businesses handle breaches more efficiently. With data from both public and private sources, NordStellar makes sure teams stay informed and ready to respond. Account takeover prevention For instance, if hackers obtained the login details of a high-level employee like a CFO, they could approve fake wire transfers to drain company accounts. Or they could unlock payroll systems to redirect employee salaries. All of this could happen within hours of gaining access. The account takeover prevention scans the deep and dark web for leaked credentials and checks them against employee, customer, and partner accounts. It blocks stolen passwords from being used during login, registration, and password changes. Its password fuzzing feature analyzes breached passwords and generates variations based on common hacking techniques, preventing users from creating similar weak passwords that attackers could easily guess. Session hijacking prevention It monitors the dark web 24/7 for stolen session cookies and compromised credentials and alerts users when their data is found and detects malware-infected accounts. Session cookies are small bits of data that websites use to keep you logged in, like a digital key proving it’s really you. If hackers steal them, they can slip into your account without needing your password, bypassing two-factor authentication (2FA) entirely. If a session is stolen, NordStellar automatically invalidates it to block attackers from gaining access. This prevents hackers from using stolen cookies to log in, transfer money, or take other unauthorized actions. Other tips for avoiding data breaches Besides using a data breach monitoring system like NordStellar, businesses should take additional steps to protect their data and minimize security risks. Here are some key measures to strengthen your defenses: Use strong access controls. Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) and limit access to sensitive data based on user roles. Encrypt important data. Protect stored and transmitted data with end-to-end encryption and secure password hashing. Keep software updated. Install security updates regularly to fix weak spots hackers could exploit. Train employees on cybersecurity. Teach staff to spot phishing scams, weak passwords, and social engineering tricks. Enforce strong passwords. Require unique, complex passwords and encourage password managers. Use a business VPN. Secure remote connections and protect company data from cyber threats, especially when accessing sensitive systems from outside the office. Back up data regularly. Store secure backups and test recovery plans to avoid losing data in an attack. Conclusion: don’t wait for a data breach A data breach can have devastating consequences, from financial losses and legal troubles to reputational damage and business disruptions. Being proactive is the only way to stay ahead of cyber threats. Businesses must identify vulnerabilities, monitor for leaked data, and respond quickly to prevent stolen information from being exploited. NordStellar helps businesses do exactly that. Its threat exposure management solutions detect compromised credentials, block unauthorized access, and provide real-time alerts to stop cyberattacks before they escalate. Instead of waiting for a breach to happen, companies can take control of their security and protect their most valuable assets before it’s too late. Get a NordStellar Demo Read...

Identity theft can sound like something straight out of a Hollywood thriller. A mysterious hacker breaking into a bank account or a con artist slipping through airport security with nothing but a forged passport. But in reality, identity theft is far less dramatic and far more common than movies make it seem. Every year, millions of people worldwide find their personal information stolen or misused, often with devastating financial and emotional consequences. To put things into perspective, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission received over a million complaints about identity theft in 2023. These cases, along with other types of fraud, led to financial losses of more than $10 billion, with the median loss per victim being $500. Minimizing the risk of identity theft starts with awareness. Understanding the risks and using identity theft protection tools like NordProtect can save you from major headaches down the road. Prevent identity theft with NordProtect What is identity theft and how does it happen? Identity theft happens when somebody uses your personal information without permission to commit fraud or other crimes. This includes credit card details, your Social Security number, address, or even something as simple as your name. Common ways identity theft happens include: Phishing. Fake emails, calls, or text messages posing as trusted companies to trick you into giving up sensitive information. Sometimes it’s a link to a website that looks trustworthy, just waiting for you to type in your credentials. Data breaches. Hackers breaking into a company’s database and stealing multiple people’s personal information all at once. Social engineering. A manipulation technique where scammers pose as tech support or a friend in distress to steal your passwords or PINs. Card skimming. Criminals attach small devices to ATMs, gas pumps, or payment terminals to steal your credit or debit card information when you swipe. Dumpster diving. People often toss unshredded bills, receipts, or documents containing account numbers or birth dates. Thieves dig through the trash and collect the information. The list definitely doesn’t end here, and with new technologies constantly emerging (such as AI deepfakes), we’re bound to see even more sophisticated identity theft tactics. Consequences of identity theft Despite how simple some of these techniques may sound, the aftermath of identity theft is anything but easy. Here’s what you might face: Financial fallout. A straightforward one. Thieves can empty your bank accounts, max out your credit cards, or open new ones in your name, leaving you with debt you never agreed to. Legal trouble. If a thief uses your identity for crimes like tax fraud or trafficking, you could face a criminal record you didn’t earn. Clearing your name may require court battles and legal fees. Emotional toll. As you can probably imagine, it’s exhausting. Victims often feel violated, helpless, and paranoid, sometimes leading to long-term psychological effects like anxiety or PTSD. Ruined reputation. Identity theft can damage your reputation by linking your name to crimes you didn’t commit. Friends, coworkers, or employers may hear about “your” fraud before you can clear your name, leaving lasting doubt. How identity theft protection service NordProtect helps Taking proactive steps to avoid the devastating consequences of identity theft is key. NordProtect, an identity theft protection tool created by the company behind NordVPN, is designed to keep your personal information safe. NordProtect offers a range of features to help you stay ahead of identity theft and cyber threats. The goal is to keep an eye on your personal information and alert you before anything goes wrong. The quicker you catch it, the less time your personal data spends on the dark web, reducing the chances of it being misused. If hackers try to sell it, acting fast means the buyer won’t have a chance to do anything with it. However, if something does happen, NordProtect won’t leave you to deal with the aftermath alone — it’s got your back with identity theft insurance. Since many victims don’t know where to start, NordProtect also provides expert support to help you recover every step of the way. NordProtect Explore NordProtect 24/7 dark web monitoring NordProtect scans the dark web for any of your personal details — like your email, Social Security number, or other sensitive information. If it detects a leak, you’ll get an instant alert with steps to protect yourself. Credit activity monitoring It monitors your credit file and alerts you to major changes. If someone opens a new account in your name, your credit score fluctuates, or hard inquiries appear, you’ll get a heads-up. Real-time cybersecurity alerts NordProtect keeps you in the loop about data breaches, stolen credentials, and other security risks. With real-time alerts, you can jump into action and secure your accounts before cybercriminals get a chance to exploit your info. Cyber insurance benefits NordProtect offers up to $1 million in financial assistance to help cover identity theft recovery costs, including document replacement, legal fees, and lost wages. It also provides up to $100,000 for expenses related to cyber extortion threats. This also includes expert support, such as access to an identity restoration case manager who’ll guide you through every step of the process. NordProtect pricing Right now, you can get NordProtect for $15.49 per month or save big with the annual plan at just $7.49 per month (billed $89.88 per year). That’s a 50% discount compared to the monthly option, making it the smarter choice for long-term protection. NordProtect is available across the U.S., including U.S. territories and the District of Columbia — except for residents of New York and Washington (for now). Other tips on how to prevent identity theft Besides using an identity theft protection tool, there are other steps you should take to help keep your data safe from identity thieves. Strong online security. Use strong, unique passwords for each account (a password manager can help) and enable two-factor authentication. Monitor your accounts. Regularly review your bank statements and credit reports for any suspicious activity. Freeze or lock your credit if you’re not applying for new accounts. Safeguard your personal information. Shred sensitive documents before tossing them, and think twice before sharing personal details on social media. Secure your devices. Keep your software and antivirus up to date. Use biometric authentication (fingerprint or facial recognition) when you can. Only download apps or software from trusted sources. Stay safe online. Stick to secure Wi-Fi networks, avoid clicking on shady links, and be cautious of phishing scams that impersonate legitimate companies to steal your information. Use a VPN. It encrypts your internet connection, which makes it difficult for hackers to access sensitive data like passwords or credit card info. It also masks your IP address, preventing tracking of your online activity. Hackers will have less insight into the websites you visit, adding an extra layer of privacy. Final thoughts Identity theft is a very real and growing threat that affects millions of people every year. While stealing personal information can be easy for criminals, the consequences for victims can be long-lasting and devastating. Investing in identity theft protection tools like NordProtect can help you stay ahead of cyber threats and take action before criminals misuse your personal information. With features like 24/7 dark web and credit activity monitoring, security alerts, and cyber insurance benefits, NordProtect does the heavy lifting for you. It catches threats early so you focus on life instead of fraud. Get NordProtect Today Read...

Imagine being woken up late one Tuesday night by a phone call from your young relative. They’ve been in a car accident and urgently need money sent to their phone, not having their wallet on them. The connection is bad but it does sound like them. Still groggy and confused, you start making the transfer. Only it’s not them calling you, they’re asleep, safe and sound. You’re talking to a robocall, steered by a scammer and made from a spoofed number. The scammer has cloned your relative’s voice by using their TikTok videos to train a so-called AI model. They’re sitting at a keyboard, guiding the conversation, probably from a country halfway around the globe. Let’s take a closer look at what’s happening here. There are two threads that come together in these kinds of scams: the popularity of imposter calls (even as robocalls continue to decline) and the increasing availability of voice-cloning technology. Imposter calls holding steady According to an Incogni study, reports of unwanted calls in general, and robocalls in particular, had generally been on the decline from 2017 to 2023. Still, robocalls accounted for 55% of all reported unwanted calls in 2023, even though the ratio of robocalls to live calls was also in decline from 2021 (3.1 robocalls to every live call) to 2023 (1.6:1). Drilling down into the topics covered during unwanted calls, the same study found that “imposter calls” held steady as being the most common type of call from 2019 to 2023, making up around a third of all reported calls in 2022 and 2023. Imposter calls were defined as “all unwanted calls where the caller impersonated someone else, an agency, or a company.” To impersonate someone, a scammer would need not only their number and yours, but also some basic information like the person’s name, age and sex. To make a more elaborate imposter call convincing, they’d need a whole host of additional personal data, like ethnicity, hobbies, shopping habits, online activity, criminal and court records, even sexual preferences. This is exactly the kind of data a personal information removal service like Incogni removes from circulation, online and off. Protect yourself from imposter scams with Incogni There’s a significant proportion of unwanted calls that rely on impersonation. It’s reasonable to assume that a large number of these calls are scam calls, as it’s difficult to imagine a legitimate reason for a caller pretending to be someone else. What happens when new technologies make it easier for scammers to impersonate not only celebrities and politicians, but everyday people as well? Voice-cloning technology enters the mix Recent advances in “AI” technology have resulted in high-quality voice-generating and voice-cloning software being readily available, often for free. These technologies make the nightmare scenario of someone cloning the voice of a loved one and impersonating them on the phone possible. Combined with number spoofing (making Caller ID display a number different from the one they’re calling from) and the availability of vast amounts of personal information online—including, for many people, voice-samples—these technologies can make for some extremely convincing impersonations. Here’s how a criminal could execute such a scam: Step 1: Target selection If they’re going to go after you, it’s going to have to be worth their while. Scammers can: Buy a ready-made list of people vulnerable to scams directly from a data broker, Browse data broker records, looking for the perfect victim (like someone who’s older and has just sold a property, for example), Buy or download breached or leaked data sets on the dark web, Come across your social media profiles and decide to target you based on what you share there. Ultimately, anything that suggests to a scammer that you both have something worth stealing and are sufficiently gullible is enough to make you a target. Step 2: Background research A scammer is going to need to know at least a few key things about you if they’re going to target you with a convincing scenario. These are some of the more common data points used in impersonation scams: Full name, Contact details, like phone number, email and address, Employment history, Educational background, Financial situation, Criminal history, Relatives, Known associates. And, of course, they’ll need a similar set of data points on each of your relatives and associates, especially if they’re going to be impersonating one or more of them. Where can they find all this data, nicely packaged into detailed profiles? Data brokers are companies that specialize in collecting, organizing, and monetizing personal information just like this. With trial memberships available for as little as $1, basically anyone can end up with detailed profiles on you and your close ones with just a few clicks. Personal information removal services like Incogni take these profiles down and request that data brokers stop collecting your data. Remove yourself from the web with Incogni Step 3: Collecting voice samples (optional) If the scammer is planning on impersonating someone over the phone, they’ll need some recordings of that person speaking to give their “AI” software something to imitate. If you post videos of yourself on social media, have a YouTube channel or have appeared on a podcast, this won’t be a problem for them. Step 4: Number spoofing (also optional) Again, if the scammer is impersonating someone close to you, it’d be more convincing if the call appeared to be coming from that person’s number. There are several ways to achieve this at little-to-no cost to the scammer, although it might require some technical know-how. They can’t spoof a number they don’t know, though, so having this kind of personal data purged from the internet can stop even these very technical attacks dead in their tracks. Step 5: Execution By now, the scammer now knows a lot about you, about the person they’re going to impersonate, and your shared network of friends, colleagues and relatives. They just need to choose the right time (often when you’re likely to be tired, in a rush or distracted) and make the call. The relative simplicity of perpetrating a fraud like this goes some way to explaining why the FCC made the use of “AI-generated voices” in robocalls illegal in 2024. Of course, making something illegal only discourages law-abiding people from doing it—scammers are unlikely to take notice. You might be feeling pretty safe at this point: maybe your loved ones don’t have any voice-recordings out there for the scammer to sample, maybe your phone or carrier has anti-spoofing measures in place, maybe you’re confident that you’d pick up on the fake voice, even if the scammer lowers the audio quality and adds background noise. The fact is, if you’re an everyday person with not much of an online presence and not much in the way of money to lose, then it’s unlikely you’d be targeted with such an involved scam. The more likely nightmare scenario We started with a scenario in which a scammer clones the voice of someone close to you. But we also saw that the voice-cloning and number-spoofing steps are optional—how so? Well, if the scammer knows enough about you and your close one, they don’t need to impersonate them for the scam to work. It’s late Tuesday night, you’re asleep when your phone wakes you up. You don’t recognize the number. You pick up. It’s a police officer, he says your young relative has been in a car accident and they’re in custody. Your relative asked the police officer to call you, they want to keep the situation under wraps until they can talk to their parents. In the meantime, they need you to bail them out. Still groggy and confused, you start making the transfer. In this scenario, the scammer doesn’t need to sound like anyone in particular, just a random police officer. The need for voice cloning goes away, as does the need for number spoofing. The scammer might still need to synthesize a voice, to cover up poor English skills or a suspiciously strong accent, for example, but that’s easy enough to do. All they really need is to find your and your relative’s records on a data broker’s website. What you can do Staying off social media is always a good idea, but not always feasible. Also, not taking part in recorded interviews or presenting your ideas publicly just to avoid voice-cloning attacks seems like throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Scammers can’t or at least aren’t likely to target you if they can’t find your information on data brokers’ websites in the first place. They also can’t easily figure out who your friends and family are (especially if you’ve set your social media profiles to “private”). There’s a big difference between a “police officer” calling you to ask about your nephew Daniel Thomas Walsh, born on the 11th of March, 2006, who drives a blue Silverado and would have been on his way home from work at the pizza place, and the same “police officer” umming and ahhing as he can’t really give any details concerning Daniel other than his name. Take scammers’ best tool away from them by having your personal information removed from data-broker databases. An automated personal information removal service like Incogni can make this an easy, set-and-forget process. When choosing a data removal service, look for one that covers a wide range of data brokers, including marketing, recruitment, risk-mitigation, and people-search data brokers. Many services remove data only from people search sites, leaving users exposed. Incogni covers all four of these data broker types, removing personal information from over 220 brokers in total. It also offers a family plan, so you can keep your and your nephew’s information private. Get Incogni Read...

Identity theft is one of those boogeymen of the internet age. It’s the stuff of hacker movies from the ‘90s: one day your keycard, bankcard and phone just stop working, then it turns out someone has taken over your life and is living large on your dime. Far-fetched, sure, but not completely divorced from reality. How do you end up in an identity thief’s sights? Most don’t just select victims at random. Stealing someone’s identity and actually getting away with selling or using it takes a lot of planning, work, and time-consuming operational-security measures. With this kind of risk and time investment in play, it makes sense that identity thieves would want to choose potential victims carefully. Like law enforcement looking for a suspect, they use various profiling techniques to do this. But first: What exactly is identity theft? Identity theft is basically what it sounds like: someone stealing your personally identifiable information (PII) in order to use parts of your identity for their own ends. It doesn’t have to mean that you’ve been replaced by an imposter in your daily life, in fact it rarely if ever does. Somebody who uses your credit card details without permission, gains access to your email and uses it to message people or sign up for things, or logs into your crypto-exchange account is committing identity fraud, among other crimes. You probably wouldn’t know anything was up until the consequences of the identity thief’s actions caught up with you. Avoid becoming a target of identity thieves by understanding how they choose potential victims. Anatomy of identity theft There are many—too many—different types of identity theft cases out there. They all hit three common notes, though. To commit identity theft, the perpetrator has to: Choose a potential victim Gather information about their target Adopt their target’s identity, or parts thereof Exploit their target’s identity, usually for financial gain. The details will vary, and many schemes will include additional steps, sometimes becoming incredibly intricate and complex in the process, but this is the basic outline. The first stages are the profiling stages, and it’s there that you can best avoid being caught in identity thieves’ nets. Profiling: Target selection The first stage of any identity theft and the first of three profiling stages. There are many ways you can end up on an identity thieve’s radar. They fall into three categories: representing a big score, appearing like an easy target, and—worst of all—a combination of the two. What marks you as a lucrative target Anything that suggests you have a lot of money or, more specifically, liquid assets and cash on hand can paint a target on your back. One of the worst things you can do is to advertise the fact that you have a lot of money tied up in a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. Few things attract identity thieves more than finding out that all that stands between them and a small (or large) fortune is a single seed phrase. You need not be wealthy to attract the wrong kind of attention. Just sold a home or vehicle? Data brokers are on it, and identity thieves know to look for recent sales like these, knowing that the seller probably has a lump sum sitting around. Anything that suggests you’ve got money, assets or simply a good credit score is enough to attract identity thieves and other scammers. Don’t leave the boxes from your new, ultra high-end home-theater system out on the curb, don’t brag about your crypto prowess online, and don’t let data brokers spread the news of your recent retirement or inheritance far and wide. What marks you as an easy target The other major way you can end up being profiled by identity thieves is to appear like you’re an easy target. Because even if you only have a couple of hundred dollars on hand, if it looks like it’ll be quick, easy and safe to take that money from you, someone will come up to the plate and take a swing. There are two ways you can pop up as an easy mark on scammers’ radars: by having a ton of personal information available online and by having fallen for scams in the past. If you’ve engaged with scammers in text messages or over the phone—whether they managed to swindle you or not, but especially if they did—then you’re effectively if not literally on a list. This isn’t to say you’re at fault or gullible or anything like that, but engaging with scammers will generally lead to more scam attempts, including attempts to steal your identity. The one thing you can do here is be more vigilant going forward, hanging up on scam calls and ignoring scam messages (easier said than done). Profiling: OSINT The next thing most identity thieves will do is look around online (and sometimes offline) for any personal information they can find just sitting there, out in the open. This is called “open-source intelligence” or OSINT for short. They need this information for the next stages in their schemes. Just by using a regular web browser, they can find many of your online accounts, your photos, possibly your place of work, information about your educational and work history, and much more besides. They can use this information to get into your accounts, find people close to you, and generally “get to know you.” Something that’s made this stage faster and easier than ever before, especially in the US, is the rise of data brokers, including so-called people search sites (also known as people finder sites). Using these services, an identity thief can get a detailed, ready-made profile on you with just a few clicks, and for as little as a dollar. To protect yourself against this profiling stage, be careful about what information you post online, including on social media. Consider using a personal information removal service like Incogni to disrupt data brokers’ attempts to aggregate and disseminate your personal information through their networks. Incogni: Remove your profiling data with ease If you’re worried about who has access to your personal information, data removal services like Incogni do the tedious work of contacting data brokers on your behalf and removing your personal info from their databases—saving you countless hours of research, emails, and paperwork. Incogni limits your personal exposure on the web, monitors places where your personal information is held, and ensures that data brokers regularly keep that information off of their platforms. The benefits of using a data removal service include receiving fewer spam and marketing robocalls, lowering the risks of identity theft, and cleaning up your exposure after a data breach. Protect your personal data with Incogni Profiling: Data gathering Once an identity thief has a handle on all the personal information they can find in publicly available sources (including data brokers that operate out in the open), they can start to drill down into other sources to fill in any blanks. This can take many forms, from downloading or buying hacked account credentials (usernames, emails and passwords) to conducting phishing campaigns against you and those close to you. The identity thief, at this stage, is looking for the missing details they need to SIM-swap your phone or gain access to your online accounts, especially your email accounts. Hackers and identity thieves will generally zero-in on your email accounts and SIM card because they can use them to reset passwords to other accounts, like crypto-exchange and financial accounts, for example. There’s not much you can do about the member-only forums (including darknet forums) that identity thieves use to get your credentials, but you can limit how useful those credentials are to them. Make sure each of your accounts is secured by a strong, unique password—one that you don’t use anywhere else. Account takeover The profiling stages are over once the identity thief or thieves have all they need to start taking over your accounts. They’re not interested in taking over all your accounts, they probably only need one or two of them and the email accounts that they can use to reset the passwords. The most common method, and the one a bad actor will probably try first, is called “credential stuffing.” This involves using those hacked passwords from the data-gathering stage and trying them on your other accounts. If you re-use passwords between accounts, they’re in. Think two-factor authentication SMSs will stop that from happening? They won’t if the identity thief knows enough about you to call your mobile carrier pretending to be you and request that they transfer your number to the thief’s SIM card (this is what “SIM-swapping” is). At this point, your identity has been stolen. Now comes the worst part—exploitation. Exploitation This is the goal of identity theft: exploiting your personal information to commit further crimes. These crimes could be emptying out your crypto wallets, draining your bank accounts, or something a little more subtle. Identity thieves can use your information to take out loans or claim government benefits in your name, to redirect and steal your tax returns or even to seek otherwise legitimate employment (using your SSN, for example). They often also use stolen identities when committing unrelated crimes, leaving you on the hook with law enforcement. All you can do at this late stage is react and do damage control. The FTC has an identity theft portal that can guide you through the process of creating a recovery plan. Prevention isn’t only better than cure, it’s also cheaper, easier and less stressful. Use a personal information removal service to stop identity thieves at the earliest possible stages of their schemes: before they can even notice you, let alone digging deeper and building a file on you. Remove your personal data with Incogni Read...

So, your data was leaked by hackers. Well, you’re not the only one. We live in an era in which data breaches are a daily occurrence. And that’s both bad and good news. It’s bad for obvious reasons—no one wants to have their personal information exposed. But here’s why it could be good news—it means the digital landscape is saturated with terabytes of data, leaving each individual data point nearly worthless. The rise of data brokers—companies that legally aggregate hundreds or thousands of data points to create a profile on you—is a result of this phenomenon. This means that, while data breaches are indeed bad news, taking down a majority of your exposed data is simple if you know where to look, or which provider to use that can legally remove aggregated profiling information from large databases. Once your data finds its way into one of these datadumps (that is, files containing breached information), there are some things you can do yourself to safeguard your data and some services that can be done for you to remove that data from the largest profiling databases out there. Let’s dive in! How to take back control after a data leak Here’s a quick overview of the steps you should take to protect your data after it’s breached. It’s best to follow them in the order presented. Change passwords: Immediately change the password for the affected account and any others using the same credentials. Freeze your credit: If the breach involves more sensitive data like your SSN, full name, or address, freeze your credit with one of the main credit bureaus. Set up MFA: Enable multi-factor authentication for your important accounts and, ideally, all online accounts. Remove your personal information from data brokers: Having your data breached is one issue, but it being shared is another. Sign up for a data removal service to prevent your information from spreading online. Monitor your accounts for signs of identity theft: The consequences of a data breach aren’t always immediate; identity theft can occur months later. To prevent this, regularly monitor your banking, credit, and Social Security accounts. Now, let’s get into more detail. Change your passwords Statistics indicate that two-thirds of Americans use the same password across multiple accounts.Nearly half prefer easy-to-remember passwords over hard-to-crack passwords. The consequence? If you’re among either of those groups, once your password gets leaked, it exposes your other accounts as well. That’s especially true if you reuse your passwords, but people who use similarly structured passwords aren’t safe either. For your own safety, update your passwords: On the platform where the breach happened On all other accounts that use the same or similar passwords. Come up with unique combinations, preferably 14 characters long. And yeah, we get you—Remembering unique, 14-character-long passwords for each account becomes a titanic act, probably not within reach of us mere mortals. Only, you don’t have to do it yourself. There are tons of password managers you can use to boost your security and organize your passwords. See our top password managers for 2025. Freeze your credit People whose personal information was used by fraudsters to open new accounts suffered over $3K in losses on average. When you combine it with the instances where fraudsters took out loans or breached credit card information, that number grows even further. And it’s easier than you might think. Take credit cards, for example. Some banks ask for only the following information to submit a request for a new credit card: Full name Birth date Social Security number Address Annual income Current employer The Real Estate Wealth Network data breach from 2023 exposed five out of six data points listed above—in just a single incident. Fraudsters could take out lines of credit in your name, without you even knowing. To prevent anyone from taking out lines of credit in your name, freeze your credit reports at all three bureaus. You can do it for free online: Experian credit freeze TransUnion credit freeze Equifax credit freeze Enable multi-factor authentication Passwords aren’t enough. Especially if you don’t have an appetite for unique, 14-character-long ones. The good news is that you can improve your accounts’ security by a wide margin with multi-factor authentication (MFA) methods. The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) states that the “use of MFA on your accounts makes you 99% less likely to be hacked.” The idea behind MFA is simple and you’ve likely come across it before. Here’s how it works: After entering your password, you’re asked to confirm your identity by a different measure—typing in a code received via email, for example. It’s the second factor in the authentication process. It usually stops here, making it two-factor authentication (2FA), but it could go further, adding a third and even fourth layer—making it a truly multi-factor. Learn more about MFA and how to use it. Remove your personal information from data brokers Here’s the thing about data breaches—a data breach is a singular incident, a one-time thing. Hackers get access to databases and expose them. Our attention revolves mostly around that incident. We change our passwords, freeze our credit, and, after a while, forget about the whole affair. But the leaked data is still circulating the web. From one dark web forum to another, it passes through many, often shady, hands, potentially landing among the records of data brokers. Data brokers are companies that buy and sell personal information to make a profit. It’s similar to stock brokers. Only, instead of buying and selling corporate shares, data brokers buy and sell your: Names Birth date Phone numbers Email addresses Current and past addresses Owned properties Current and past employers Pulic records Relatives …and more With each data breach, your profile builds up. As a result, you may be targeted by identity thieves long after the initial data breach took place. Here’s the good news, though—you can sign up for a data removal service, like Incogni, and have your personal information removed from hundreds of data brokers. There are a few good removal services available for US citizens, like Kanary and Optery, but what really sets Incogni apart is that they target both private and public data brokers, while most others only focus on the public ones. The private databases, which are traded behind closed doors, are the ones that really impact your privacy. And Incogni is one of the few services that actually tackles those. But the good news doesn’t stop there. Incogni makes protecting your personal info a walk in a park. Getting started is super easy—it only takes a few clicks to set up your account and send out the first batch of 220+ removal requests. And after that you can sit back and focus on what really matters. Incogni will keep reaching out to all the data brokers in their network on a regular basis to make sure your personal info doesn’t end up back in their databases. Remove your personal information with Incogni Monitor your accounts for signs of identity theft “Identity theft is no joke, Jim!”—teaches us Dwight from The Office. And with nearly a third of Americans already affected by some form of it, it indeed is not a joke. 10% of identity theft victims realize something is wrong only when their money is gone. That’s far too late. Instead, monitor your key accounts—like banking, credit, and Social Security—regularly. Keep a close eye on your: Bank statements for any anomalies. Credit reports for unsolicited activity. Social Security account for unrecognized actions. Mail for suspicious letters, even if not addressed to you. Email for any unintended updates to your accounts, especially new accounts. Read...

With so much of our lives now lived online, security is becoming an increasingly important consideration when using a browser. You don’t want third parties watching what you do and tracking where you go, but that’s almost certainly happening already. Thankfully there’s an easy way to combat this intrusive behaviour, by using Surfshark VPN. Not only does it encrypt your online activities and block annoying ads, it also works in the world’s most popular browser via its Chrome extension. So, if you want to beef up your online privacy without the inconvenience that often comes with increased security, Surfshark VPN could be just the thing.  How does Surfshark VPN keep you safe online? When you’re online, especially on a public Wi-Fi network, all the data that travels between your device and the websites you’re accessing is transferred in an unencrypted format. This means that it’s vulnerable to hackers and other snooping techniques which can record the sites you visit and what you do when you’re there.  Surfshark VPN stops this by creating an encrypted tunnel through which your information flows, making it extremely difficult for cybercriminals or third parties to collect your data. There are also advanced features like Dynamic MultiHop, which sends your data through two VPNs for twice the level of encryption, a camouflage mode that makes sure even your Internet Service Provider can’t see which sites you’re visiting, and a cookie pop-up blocker that stops ads and other interruptions while you’re online. Surfshark VPN dramatically increases the security and anonymity of your time on the net, which is perfect if you work remotely, frequently access unfamiliar Wi-Fi networks or just want a bit of privacy when you’re online.  Surfshark Use Surfshark VPN to hide your location and identity Another excellent feature of Surfshark VPN is the ability to disguise your location. This is great if you don’t want anyone to know where you are, plus it can bypass region-locked content filters so you can access websites and other content. For example, say you’re on holiday and want to catch up on your favourite show, but when you go to the streaming service you’re told that the content isn’t available in your current location. You can either wait until you get home or turn on Surfshark VPN, change the server location to your normal country with a single click, and immediately access the site. Easy.  Surfshark VPN doesn’t just let you hide your location, it also has the ability to create alternative identities and emails you can use online to sign up to services or competitions without revealing your regular account. All messages are forwarded to your normal email address, but it’s never revealed to the sender. Then, when you’re finished with that service, just turn off the alternative email and you’ll never hear from them again.  Stay secure while using the Chrome browser Surfshark One of the problems people often come up against when trying to increase the level of security on their system is that it can be inconvenient. Either you have to use a particular browser or jump through other hoops to make sure the protective app is running. With Surfshark VPN this isn’t an issue as it works seamlessly within the Chrome browser via an extension. Simply install it from the Chrome Web store, log into your account, select the VPN server you want and you’re good to go.  The lightning-fast encryption keeps your data hidden, while stopping the slow-downs in performance that can be common with some other VPNs. Surfshark blocks ads, pop-ups and cookies so you can enjoy the internet without the annoyances that seem to get worse each year. There’s also a handy feature that warns you of any reports of data leaks on sites that you use regularly, so you know when it’s time to update your passwords.  So, you can still use your Chrome browser as normal, with the added knowledge that your identity, data and activities are being protected from any unwanted observers.  Start your Surfshark VPN journey with a huge discount There’s never been a better time to try Surfshark VPN, as you can take advantage of the excellent limited-time deal of a 2-year subscription for only $1.69p/m. That’s a massive saving of 86% off the normal price, plus you get an extra three months thrown in for free. Best of all, the service comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you’re not risking anything by signing up. If you’re worried about privacy online, but don’t want to move away from the Chrome browser, then Surfshark VPN has you covered. All the freedom and convenience, none of the hassle. Read...