AI Tech Support: Trust, but Verify

One of the most underrated uses for modern chatbots, in my estimation, is tech support. I don't mean the chatbots offered by product websites, I mean using one of the "frontier" model bots to troubleshoot problems via chat conversations. They are extremely good at this - and they are infinitely patient and available 24/7. Today I'll give you tips on how to try this for yourself. I think you'll be amazed.

In the news: DEF CON bans Meta-style glasses; US military warns of personal cell phone use; GDPR suit over 1741 "partners" in share consent; US bans future robovacs; more TV streaming stick bad behavior; FTC sues Hims & Hers over health data sharing; Android "after call" ads malware; user's private AI chats leaked; clever, annoying Mac malware; HuggingFace breached by OpenAI agent; Iran blamed for hacking 30 Minnesota water utilities.

Article Links

News Briefs

DEF CON bans Meta-style 'pervert glasses': https://www.theregister.com/security/2026/07/28/def-con-bans-meta-style-pervert-glasses/5279763

US military may require some troops in Mideast to surrender cell phones: https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/us-commander-warns-troops-their-videos-help-iran-sources-say-2026-07-29

Full Stories

1,741 “informed” consents with one click?! GDPR complaint against dict.cc filed: https://noyb.eu/en/1741-informed-consents-one-click-gdpr-complaint-against-dictcc-filed

Almost all future robot vacuums were just banned by the US government: https://9to5mac.com/2026/07/29/almost-all-future-robot-vacuums-were-just-banned-by-the-us-government

Read This Before You Buy That TV Streaming Stick: https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/07/read-this-before-you-buy-that-tv-streaming-stick

FTC sues Hims & Hers for allegedly sharing patients' medical data with advertisers Meta and Snap: https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/30/ftc-sues-hims-hers-for-allegedly-sharing-patients-medical-data-with-advertisers-meta-and-snap

Aftercall ads are driving Android users crazy: https://www.malwarebytes.com/blog/news/2026/07/aftercall-ads-are-driving-android-users-crazy

Users' private Claude chats revealed with simple Google search: https://appleinsider.com/articles/26/07/28/privacy-is-dead-personal-ai-prompts-indexed-by-google-search

This new Mac malware won’t let you use your computer until you surrender your password: https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/this-new-mac-malware-wont-let-you-use-your-computer-until-you-surrender-your-password

OpenFace: The Hugging Face Breach and What to Do About It: https://www.lutasecurity.com/post/openface-the-hugging-face-breach-and-what-to-do-about-it

Hackers disrupt over 30 Minnesota water utilities in coordinated OT attack: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/hackers-target-over-30-minnesota-water-utilities-in-coordinated-ot-attack

Tip of the Week: https://firewallsdontstopdragons.com/ai-tech-support-trust-but-verify/

Further Info

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Table of Contents

0:00:07: Intro

0:00:40: PSA: Update!!

0:01:36: Countdown to 500

0:02:37: News Briefs

0:06:46: News rundown

0:08:50: GDPR complaint about 1741 "partners"

0:12:45: US bans foreign robots

0:16:13: Malicious, cheap streaming sticks

0:23:33: FTC sues Hims/Hers for sharing health data

0:27:34: Android "after call" ads

0:32:17: Private Claude chats in search results

0:38:18: Cleverly annoying Mac malware

0:45:31: Hugging Face breach lessons

0:54:08: Many US water utilites attacked by Iran

0:59:39: Tip of the Week

1:11:56: Wrap up