I knew things were not quite right when I had to throw a towel over a broken Ikea lamp to block out its light. How did I get here? I cover fancy and capable tech for a living, and yet, it took me two years to get rid of a pair of old, broken Ikea lamps in my bedroom. Then I got some floor lamps from Govee that changed everything.
Technology
How smuggling gangs use drones to deliver drugs across the border
Drones used to be fancy gadgets for hobbyists or secret weapons for the military. But now they have a new job: delivering drugs. Yes, you heard that right.
While El Pollo Loco is using drones to bring you chicken dinners, some bad guys are using them to smuggle drugs across borders.
Drug lords, cartels and other deviant organizations have been maximizing the benefits of drones to carry out their illegal drug runs.
With many borders of hot zones being heavily watched and reinforced, drones are accomplishing what their human counterparts no longer can. Drones have essentially become the new drug mule.
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Police capture and carry drugs with a drone (BSF Punjab Frontier)
The rise of drug-carrying drones
Drug smuggling is a lucrative and risky business. Smugglers have to evade border patrols, customs agents, police officers, and rival gangs. That’s why some smugglers have turned to drones as a new way of moving drugs.
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Drones are cheap, easy to acquire, and hard to detect. They can fly over fences, walls, and checkpoints, and drop drugs at precise locations. They can also avoid human contact, reducing the chances of being caught or betrayed.
A drone carrying drugs (BSF Punjab Frontier)
Drones are being used to smuggle drugs in various regions of the world, such as:
North America: Drones sent by Mexican cartels carrying drugs such as cocaine, meth, and heroin regularly cross the U.S. border. The DEA also warned that drones could be used to deliver fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin and can be lethal in small doses.
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South Asia: Recently, border officials in the Punjab region of India revealed they intercepted 107 drug-carrying drones sent by smuggling gangs over the border from Pakistan, the highest number on record. Most were carrying heroin from Pakistan to be dropped and received by collaborators in the Punjab, notorious for having India’s worst levels of opioid addiction.
Middle East: The Jordanian air force shot down a drug-laden drone carrying crystal meth coming from Syria. Drug smugglers from Syria, the world’s largest producer of the black market amphetamine pill, Captagon, often use Jordan as a transit point to the wider Gulf Arab kingdoms and the global market. Syrian smugglers have increased the use of drones to smuggle Captagon and meth due to a security clampdown at the Jordanian border, which has made trafficking by land harder.
Drugs from a drone that was shot down (Jordan Armed Forces)
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Why drones are being utilized by the drug trade
There are many reasons why drones are being utilized by drug dealers. Here are the top seven contributors:
- Cheaper
- Easy to acquire
- Dependable — No snitching to authorities by drones if they are intercepted
- Less interference from law enforcement officials than delivering on land or air (as in, by hand or foot)
- Easier than trying to get drugs past borders that are often heavily surveillance
- Great for scoping out enemies or business opportunities
- Lowers risk because drug smugglers do not have to be physically present at the drop-off
Drugs from a drone that was shot down (Jordan Armed Forces)
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How drones are being used to transport contraband into prisons
Not only are drones being utilized for transporting illegal drugs, but drones are also being used to smuggle contraband items such as cell phones into prisons, too. The number of drone-related illegal activities has skyrocketed. 75% of intercepted illegal goods to prisons in Canada were delivered by drones. In the U.K., the government began to enforce a no-fly zone around all their prisons in October 2023 due to an exponential increase in contrabands by drones.
Drone flying over field (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Law enforcement turns to drones to help stop crime
Globally, local law enforcement officials have begun to employ drones themselves. Officials in the U.K. have used heat-seeking drones to locate cannabis farms. This technology has proven to be effective in detecting illegal activities and reducing crime rates in the country.
Drone in the sky (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Legitimate businesses employ drones to deliver prescriptions
It isn’t just nefarious entities that are innovating with the use of drones. Legitimate businesses such as drugstores and pharmacies are aiming to deliver prescriptions by drone in the U.S. and possibly the U.K. It looks like El Pollo Loco was ahead of the game.
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Kurt’s key takeaways
As drones become more advanced and widespread, the challenges and opportunities of drone drug smuggling will also evolve and require constant adaptation and innovation from law enforcement. Drug smuggling is now in the air, and we need to tackle it head-on by developing effective counter-drone strategies and technologies.
How do you think governments and law enforcement agencies should respond to the growing threat of drug-carrying drones? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.
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Those Ikea lamps were around for two years after I moved from Orange County to Los Angeles. Soon after that move, my mom’s Parkinson’s disease — a neurodegenerative condition with no cure — progressed quickly, my mental health took a hit, and most of my own to-do list quietly slid to the back burner as she lost mobility and more urgent things took over. So the big, ugly lamps just… stayed. They became part of the background, like everything else I wasn’t taking care of.
I didn’t even have them plugged into a smart plug — another small upgrade I kept meaning to add to my bedroom, despite having them all over the apartment — which meant I had to get up every time I wanted to turn one on.
One blasted harsh, overpoweringly bright light through a cracked shade. The other was warmer — but not warm enough — so I solved that problem one exhausted night by just throwing a towel over it. Yes, a fire hazard. Yes, I meant it as a temporary fix for a few days. But scattered caregiving brain means temporary fixes can turn into long-term solutions. At some point, it stopped feeling temporary and just became my new normal, even if it clearly wasn’t.
Then my brother bought my mom and me two separate Govee Uplighter Floor Lamps for Christmas, and my Ikea lamp troubles were over. I did not expect to develop an emotional attachment to a lamp. But I did, and now it’s one of my favorite gadgets.
The Govee was quick and easy to assemble, and much slimmer, taking up way less space than the old lamps. As I got rid of the old and set up the new, I felt an odd sense of relief and a small sense of control I hadn’t felt since the move.
Within a week, the old lamp was out of my room. That small shift gave me momentum. I started decluttering other corners that had quietly piled up, things I’d been stepping around for months without really seeing anymore.
The bedroom stopped feeling like an unfinished project I was merely surviving, and started feeling steadier. Calmer. Like a place I could finally exhale in. My days often feel structured around what my mom needs and what has to get done next. I don’t really think about my own space at all, except as something else I haven’t gotten to yet. Having a room that felt calm, even a little bit, made it easier to wind down at the end of the day instead of carrying that feeling of being “on” all the time into the night. It brought me back to myself, even if only a little.
I could relax in a way I hadn’t in a while, without feeling like I should be getting up to do something else. I could dim the lamp from my phone instead of standing up. I could shift from cool to warm without needing a towel and risking starting a fire. There’s a ripple effect that slowly moves across the wall and, for reasons I can’t fully explain, genuinely helps me fall asleep. Cycling through soft colors in the app and syncing it with ambient music is soothing. Sometimes, the changing colors feel a little bit like magic, and I find myself watching them the way I might have as a kid, reminded — briefly — that life can be more playful than it’s felt in a while. The warm, shifting light seems to have a similar effect on my mom, who lives with me, sometimes comforting and even dazzling her as she navigates some of the more difficult parts of the disease, like sundowning, along with her own quiet grief of losing pieces of herself.
And I love that it does all that and more without demanding much. Setup took about 15 to 20 minutes and didn’t require that I try to wrap my head around tools. You control it through the Govee app on your phone, and because it supports Matter, you can also pair it with platforms like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant for voice control. It offers a wide range of colors, along with 80 preset scenes and seven music modes. At $179.99, it’s pricey, but it’s versatile, basically acting as three lights in one: a top section that casts a soft ripple onto the ceiling, a colorful middle light, and a regular white light at the bottom.
It’s an amazing gift, truly, and I am so grateful for it. Mine, however, had just one problem: It sometimes forgets to be a lamp. It doesn’t lose Wi-Fi. It doesn’t show as offline in the app. It just turns off randomly. The first time it happened, I was rewatching Stranger Things to prepare for the last season. The lights flickered on screen, and then my room went dark. The vibe went from relaxing to terrifying in a second, as I briefly wondered if reality and TV had merged (I might have also had too much wine). Once my brain rebooted, I opened the Govee app and turned it back on. No problem. I assumed it was a power or Wi-Fi issue. Govee sent me a new unit that worked perfectly.
When it works — which is most of the time — it quietly makes my life better. And somehow, that’s been enough to make it one of my new favorite gadgets. It didn’t fix everything, but it helped me start taking care of my space — and myself — again.
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Chances are, you have never thought much about who owns the satellites keeping your phone connected in the middle of nowhere. That could change soon. Amazon is betting $11.57 billion that you will start paying attention. Its acquisition of Globalstar is a major move against Starlink, and the stakes go far beyond bragging rights.
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AMAZON TAKES ON ELON MUSK, LAUNCHING 27 INTERNET SATELLITES
Amazon is making a major satellite push with Globalstar, aiming to challenge Starlink and expand direct-to-device connectivity for remote users. (Manuel Mazzanti/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
What Amazon’s Globalstar deal means for you
Globalstar has operated for more than 30 years as a mobile satellite services provider. It brings something Amazon needed badly: spectrum. The company operates in Band 53, a slice of spectrum from 2483.5 to 2495 MHz. It describes this aslicensed spectrum with global authorizations designed to support fast, low-latency connectivity with reduced interference. That matters. Spectrum is limited, and having access to it gives Amazon a real edge.
Amazon is also getting Globalstar’s satellites, infrastructure and global licenses. It is a full package. But the real value is the spectrum. This deal is also about what that spectrum enables. Amazon plans to use it to power direct-to-device satellite services, allowing phones to send texts, make calls and access data even when there is no cellular signal.
The system is expected to roll out starting in 2028 and will support features on devices like iPhones and Apple Watches, including emergency messaging and roadside assistance. That turns this into more than an infrastructure deal. It is a shift in how everyday devices stay connected beyond traditional networks.
Amazon vs Starlink: Where things stand now
Let’s be clear about the gap. Starlink serves more than nine million users and has about 10,000 satellites in orbit. Amazon’s Leo network has just over 200 satellites. Adding Globalstar’s two dozen barely moves the number. So why spend $11.57 billion? Because this deal is not about satellite count. It is about future capability.
Amazon plans to launch a next-generation direct-to-device system in 2028. This would deliver voice, data and messaging straight to phones. The Globalstar deal gives Amazon the tools to make that happen. It brings spectrum, infrastructure and experience together.
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Amazon’s planned Globalstar acquisition gives it spectrum, satellites and infrastructure to power satellite texting, calls and data beyond cell coverage. (Manuel Mazzanti/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
How Amazon’s satellite service will power iPhones and Apple Watches
This is where the story hits home. Amazon and Apple have an agreement for Amazon Leo to support satellite features on iPhones and Apple Watches. That includes Emergency SOS via satellite. If you rely on that feature in a dead zone, it will soon run through Amazon’s network. Apple says the service has already helped in real emergencies, including stranded hikers and crash victims rescued in remote areas. Amazon will continue supporting current devices using Globalstar’s system while working with Apple on future upgrades. So nothing breaks, but the system behind it changes.
Amazon satellite timeline and FCC approval
The deal still needs regulatory approval, and that takes time. Amazon expects it to close in 2027. The FCC will decide, though early signs look positive. Amazon also faces a deadline. It plans to deploy about 3,200 satellites by 2029. About half must be in orbit by July 2026. That timeline adds pressure to move fast.
What this means for rural and remote users
This deal matters most in places where cell towers do not reach. Satellite connectivity can act as a backup during disasters like hurricanes or wildfires. In those moments, having no signal can be dangerous. But the impact goes beyond emergencies. Remote workers, trucking fleets, maritime crews and rural communities all stand to benefit. These are places where traditional networks fall short. Amazon’s full Leo network will include thousands of satellites. It aims to support hundreds of millions of devices worldwide.
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BLUE ORIGIN LAUNCHES 38TH NEW SHEPARD FLIGHT INTO SPACE
Amazon launched its second fleet of 27 Project Kuiper internet satellites in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on June 23, 2025, to create a mega constellation which will offer global broadband internet access. (GREGG NEWTON/AFP via Getty Images)
Kurt’s key takeaways
Amazon’s $11.57 billion acquisition of Globalstar sends a clear message. It does not plan to let Starlink dominate the sky. Right now, the satellite gap is massive. Amazon knows that. Instead, it is betting on better spectrum, smarter technology and key partnerships like Apple. Amazon executive Panos Panay says billions of people still lack reliable connectivity. Amazon wants to close that gap. That is a real problem and a serious opportunity. The big question is speed. Can Amazon scale fast enough to compete before Starlink pulls further ahead?
If two of the richest companies in the world are racing to control the sky, who decides how that access is priced and delivered? And what does that mean for you? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com
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Windows users will no longer be forced to run automatic updates in the middle of a game or a busy day. Microsoft is rolling out some long-awaited changes to Windows Update to users on its Dev and Experimental Windows Insider channels, including the ability to indefinitely delay updates up to 35 days at a time.
Last month, Microsoft announced a slew of upcoming changes to improve Windows 11 and address some of users’ most common complaints about the platform. Chief among the company’s planned fixes was making updates less disruptive. In its blog post on Friday, Microsoft says you’ll be able to “extend the pause end date as many times as you need” and that there are “no limits” on how many times you can reset to another 35-day window. If you don’t re-pause updates at the end of the 35-day period, updates will run as usual.
The changes to Windows Update also include more detailed titles for driver updates, which will now include the device class they apply to, such as display, audio, or battery.
Additionally, Windows 11 will now always have options in the power menu to restart or shut down without running updates, as well as the option to skip updates when setting up a new Windows device. Microsoft is also “unifying the update experience” to bunch together updates so users don’t have to reboot as frequently. Instead, “updates will download in the background, then will wait for a coordinated installation and restart.”
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