Technology
How to keep your holiday shopping a secret on Amazon
The holiday season is in full swing, and with it comes the joy of gift giving.
If you’re planning to shop on Amazon this December, you might be wondering how to keep your purchases a secret until the big reveal. Whether you’re surprising a loved one or treating a friend, maintaining that element of surprise can be a challenge in today’s online shopping landscape. But don’t worry.
We’ve gathered some clever tips and tricks to help you keep your holiday shopping under wraps, ensuring your thoughtful gifts remain surprises.
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Amazon website on computer screen (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
1. Create a separate Amazon account
One of the easiest ways to keep your gift purchases a secret is to create a separate Amazon account just for buying gifts. This way, you can avoid sharing your order history, recommendations and wish lists with anyone else who uses your main account.
You can also use a different email address and phone number for your gift account, so you won’t receive any delivery notifications or emails that might give away your gifts.
If you don’t already have one, here’s how you can get a cheap Amazon Prime membership.
A woman shopping on the Amazon app (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
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2. Turn on Amazon Household
This may be the simplest solution. Amazon Household is an Amazon feature that allows you to share your Prime benefits with the family. You can create up to two adult accounts, four teen and four child profiles. Amazon Household keeps all shopping purchases and notifications for shipping separate. So, no need to worry about your Christmas present being revealed before giving it out.
With Amazon Household, you not only get to keep your purchases separate, you can also share eBooks, audiobooks, digital content and games.
Create your Amazon Household here.
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Image of Amazon Household ad (Amazon)
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3. Hide or archive your orders
Another option to keep your gift purchases a secret is to hide or archive your orders on your Amazon account. This will remove them from your default order history view, so they won’t show up when you or someone else checks your recent orders. The following will only work on a desktop or laptop browser (not on a tablet or mobile device).
- Log In to your Amazon account.
- Click on Returns and Orders in the top right corner. A list of your orders from the past three months will appear.
- Scroll to find the item you want to hide. Below the item, you will see Archive Order. A window will appear, and you’ll need to select Archive Order again. If you do not see Archive Order, select View order details to the right of the purchased item. On the right-hand side, select Archive Order.
Steps to archive an order on Amazon (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Even though the item will no longer appear in Your Orders, you can still view it in Archived Orders from Your Account.
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4. Turn off shipment notifications and tracking
If you don’t want to receive any shipment notifications or tracking information for your gift purchases, you can also turn them off on your Amazon account. This will prevent you from getting any emails, texts or push notifications that might reveal your gifts.
To turn off shipment notifications and tracking in Amazon, you can follow these steps:
- Open the Amazon app on your phone, open the menu and tap Settings
- Tap the Notifications option in the list
- Disable the types of notifications you don’t want to receive, such as “Shipment Notifications,” “Delivery Notifications,” “Returns and Order Updates,” etc.
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A woman holiday shopping on her laptop (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
5. Hide from Alexa
Now, if you have some real sleuths in your household, you are going to need to do more than just archive your purchases to make sure your gifts are still surprises. You can start by changing your Alexa settings.
- Open the Alexa app
- Click Settings
- Find and Select Notifications, then select Amazon Shopping
- Scroll to Say or Show Item Titles. Toggle the switches off for “For items in delivery updates,” “For items in return updates” and “Including items in your shopping cart marked as gifts or those that might be gifts during major holidays.”
Now, Alexa will still notify you when a package is being delivered, but it will not say what the item is.
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An Alexa device sitting on top of a laptop (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
6. Clear your ‘Search History’
We all have that one relentless person, determined to find out which presents were purchased this year. Another step to keep them off your tracks is deleting your “Search History.”
The following will only work on a desktop or laptop browser (not on a tablet or mobile device).
- Go to Account & Lists in the upper right corner of your browser, then select Recommendations
- Click Your Browsing History (text in gray strip toward top of the screen)
- Select the gear icon on the right-hand part of the page. This will open up a Settings window.
- Click Remove items from view button
- All the items you recently reviewed have been removed.
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7. Use Amazon Locker or Amazon Hub
If you don’t want your gift purchases to be delivered to your home address, you can also use Amazon Locker or Amazon Hub to pick them up at a nearby location. This way, you can avoid having your packages left on your doorstep or seen by anyone else in your household. Amazon Locker and Amazon Hub are secure, self-service kiosks where you can pick up and return your Amazon packages at your convenience.
Image of an Amazon locker (Amazon)
To use Amazon Locker or Amazon Hub:
- Go to Account & Lists and click on Your Addresses
- Then, click on Search for a Locker or Hub location and enter your zip code or city
- You can then select a location and add it to your address book.
- When you check out, you can choose the Locker or Hub location as your shipping address.
8. Use gift options during checkout
When purchasing gifts on Amazon, you can utilize the gift options available at checkout. This feature allows you to mark items as gifts, which can help maintain secrecy in several ways.
Gift wrapping: You can choose to have the item gift-wrapped, which not only adds a nice touch but also prevents anyone from seeing the product until it is unwrapped.
Gift message: You can include a personalized message that will be printed on the packing slip, making it clear that it’s a gift and not an ordinary purchase.
No price information: When you select gift options, Amazon typically does not include pricing information on the packing slip, which helps keep the cost of the gift hidden from the recipient.
To use this feature, simply select the “This is a gift” checkbox during checkout and follow the prompts to customize your order accordingly. This added layer of discretion can significantly enhance your ability to keep your purchases under wraps until the big reveal.
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Kurt’s key takeaways
As the holiday festivities approach, keeping your Amazon gift purchases a secret can add an extra layer of excitement to your celebrations. With these straightforward strategies, you can shop with confidence, knowing that your surprises will stay hidden until the perfect moment. From creating separate accounts to utilizing gift options at checkout, each tip is designed to help you preserve that magical element of surprise.
Have you ever had a gift surprise spoiled? If so, what happened and how did you handle it? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.
For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.
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Technology
OpenAI keeps shuffling its executives in bid to win AI agent battle
OpenAI announced yet another reorganization Friday, consolidating certain areas and making company president Greg Brockman the official lead of all things product.
In a memo viewed by The Verge, Brockman wrote that since OpenAI’s product strategy for this year is to go all-in on AI agents, the company is combining its products to “invest in a single agentic platform and to merge ChatGPT and Codex into one unified agentic experience for all.”
To do this, the company is making a suite of org chart changes, although it’s still operating under some of the same ones from last month. That’s when AGI boss Fidji Simo went on medical leave and OpenAI announced that Brockman would be in charge of product strategy and CSO Jason Kwon, CFO Sarah Friar, and CRO Denise Dresser would take control of business operations.
It’s all part of OpenAI’s recent strategic shift to focus on key revenue drivers like coding and enterprise and stop pouring resources into “side quests” ahead of its potential IPO later this year and amid investor pressure to turn a profit.
In Simo’s continued absence, Brockman’s role leading product strategy is now official, as well as the company’s “scaling” arm. Under Brockman will be four different pillars. The first is core product and platform, led by Thibault Sottiaux, who has been OpenAI’s engineering lead for Codex, and the second is critical enterprise industries, led by ChatGPT head Nick Turley. Third is the consumer pillar, such as health, commerce, and personal finance, which will be led by Ashley Alexander, who has been its healthcare products VP. The fourth pillar — core infrastructure, ads, data science, and growth — will be led by Vijaye Raji, who has been OpenAI’s CTO of applications.
Brockman wrote in the memo that OpenAI’s goal is now to “bring agents to ChatGPT scale, in order to give individuals and organizations significantly more value and utility from our products.”
Technology
Is that traffic ticket text a scam or real?
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You’re going about your day when your phone buzzes. A text hits your phone. It looks official. It sounds urgent. And suddenly, you are being told you owe money for a traffic violation. That is exactly what Todd from Texas experienced. He emailed us and said:
“I received this text message today. It was so baffling because I haven’t lived in California for nearly a decade. I didn’t click on anything or respond. How can I tell if this is for real or if this is a scam?”
If you’ve gotten a message like this, you are not alone. This type of scam is spreading fast, and it is designed to pressure you into acting before you think. Let’s break down what is really going on.
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FAKE AGENT PHONE SCAMS ARE SPREADING FAST ACROSS THE US
This message may look official, but several red flags show it is likely a scam designed to pressure you into paying quickly. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
What the traffic ticket scam text looks like
At first, the message seems convincing. It claims to be a “final reminder” from the California DMV, and it warns of penalties like license suspension and added fees. It even includes a link that appears somewhat official. However, once you slow down and take a closer look, the red flags quickly start to pile up.
The biggest red flags in this message
Here are the key warning signs to watch for in messages like this.
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1) The phone number makes no sense
The message comes from a number with a +63 country code. That is the Philippines, not California. Government agencies in the U.S. do not send official legal notices from international numbers. That alone is a major warning sign.
2) No name, just “Dear Driver”
Legitimate notices from a DMV or court almost always include your full name or at least some identifying information. “Dear Driver” is vague on purpose. It allows scammers to send the same message to thousands of people.
3) The link isn’t a real DMV website
The message includes this link:
ca.mnvtl.life/dmv
That isn’t a government domain. Official DMV websites in California use “.ca.gov” or similar trusted domains. Scammers often create lookalike links to trick you into clicking.
4) Urgency and threats
The message pushes you to act quickly with a deadline. It lists consequences like license suspension and extra charges. Scammers rely on fear. When you feel rushed, you are more likely to click without thinking.
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5) Asking you to reply to proceed
The text says to reply with “Y” to get instructions. That is another trap. Responding confirms your number is active, which can lead to more scam messages.
6) Generic language and odd phrasing
Parts of the message feel slightly off. The tone is formal but not quite right. That subtle awkwardness is common in scam messages sent to large groups of people.
7) Overloaded threats designed to scare you
The message piles on consequences like license suspension, added fees, court action and even credit damage. In this case, it even mentions a license suspension and a $160 late payment charge. That combination is meant to overwhelm you and push you to act fast. Real agencies usually provide clear, specific notices, not a long list of escalating threats in a single text.
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Scam texts like this often arrive out of nowhere and try to create urgency before you have time to question them. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
What this means for you
Even if you have never driven in California, you could still receive this message. Scammers cast a wide net and hope someone takes the bait. If you click the link, you could be taken to a fake payment page. That page may ask for your credit card details, personal information or login credentials. In some cases, it can also install malware on your device or redirect you to credential-stealing pages. This isn’t about a ticket. It is about getting your data. State DMVs typically do not send final legal notices or payment demands by text message.
Why these scams keep working
These messages work because they tap into something most people fear. Legal trouble, fines and losing driving privileges. They also look just real enough to pass a quick glance. That is all scammers need. As more services move online, these scams will continue to evolve.
Unlike typical DMV scams, this message impersonates a court and escalates the threats to make the situation feel more serious (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Ways to stay safe from traffic ticket text scams
Start with a simple rule. Never trust a payment request that shows up out of nowhere. Here are practical steps you can take:
1) Do not click the link
If you are unsure, do not tap anything in the message. That includes links and reply options.
2) Use strong antivirus software
If you accidentally click a link, strong antivirus software can help detect malware and protect your data. Get my picks for the best 2026 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android & iOS devices at Cyberguy.com
3) Verify directly with the DMV
Go to your state’s official DMV website by typing it yourself into your browser. Do not use the link in the text.
4) Check the sender carefully
Look at the phone number. International numbers or random strings are a clear warning sign.
5) Ignore generic greetings
Real notices will usually include your name or case details. Vague language is a red flag.
6) Consider a data removal service
Scammers often get your number from data broker sites. Removing your personal info from those databases with a data removal service can reduce these messages. Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com
7) Block and report the number
On your phone, block the sender and report it as spam. This helps reduce future attempts.
8) Turn on spam filtering
Enable spam filtering on your phone or through your carrier to catch more of these messages before they reach you.
Kurt’s key takeaways
Todd did the right thing. He paused, questioned the message and did not click. That one decision likely saved him from handing over personal information. When it comes to messages like this, skepticism is your best defense. If something feels off, trust that instinct.
Should phone carriers and tech companies be doing more to block scams like this before you ever see them? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com
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Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
Technology
Honda’s hybrid future starts with new Accord and RDX prototypes
Honda revealed prototypes of two new hybrid models, an Accord sedan and the Acura RDX SUV, during its annual business briefing this week, built on a platform that it says will begin launching next year. The RDX was announced earlier this year as Honda’s first SUV to feature the next-gen version of its two-motor hybrid system.
In March, Honda announced it would take a writedown of up to 2.5 trillion yen ($15.7 billion) on its EV investments. Now Honda says its EV-related losses will be “resolved” by 2029, and that it will reevaluate its EV plans in 2030.
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