January 2026

Verified Contacts?

*sponsored by DeleteMe​

Are You SURE it's Them?

It's become harder and harder to distinguish between real videos and fake ones. Hackers are now impersonating voices, images and videos to scam people. This makes it even more important than ever to start verifying the contacts we're communicating with.

​How to Verify Contacts on iPhone (Checkmark Tutorial)​

Go Deeper: In addition to Contact Key Verification, there are other "advanced" security features offered that can prevent hacking and impersonation fraud.

Lockdown Mode Meant for journalists and political figures, Lockdown Mode is interesting... ​Learn about Lockdown →​

Turn this On Whether iPhone or Mac, Advanced Data Protection is a MUST. Here's how: ​Advanced Data Protection →​

process of verification

Hi [CORRECTED_NAME GOES HERE], just yesterday I took about 15 minutes to try a new AI tool that allowed me to create a personal avatar. I could then give this avatar a script to read and it would look exactly like me.

Honestly, it was scary.

It was still a bit janky (my kids said something looked off but they couldn't figure out what), but it was close enough that it was weird.

These kinds of "virtual impersonations" are a big deal. Going forward, I see this having an impact on us in two ways:

1. AI Videos: We're going to have to learn how to verify the authenticity of any video we see online, whether on social media or even in the news.
2. Personal Communication: We're likely also going to have to find ways to verify that the people we're texting or calling are actually who we think they are!

That last one is weird to think about. Are you sure that the person you're FaceTiming is actually your mom/son/friend? Are you sure that the person you're texting is actually who you want to text?

That's what Contact Key Verification is all about. It's just one step, and you may not even care to implement it now, but in my opinion this kind of verification is not going to be optional in the near future.

Seeing is no longer believing.

Personal Data The personal data that is floating around online about you is being gathered and used to create a profile on you. More and more, this profile is being used not just to market to you, but to scam you. That's why removing your data with a service like DeleteMe is so important. Learn more about the what they do: Get 20% off DeleteMe

Your Thoughts?

Have you ever created an AI version of yourself? Do you think it would fool your family or was it still a bit janky? Shoot me an email reply to let me know. I'm curious about your experience with all of this.

I hope you've had a great start to the new year.

✌️

Josh

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3824 Cedar Springs Rd #801-8170, Dallas, TX 75219
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