If you live in Los Angeles, you are probably already intimately familiar with Watch Duty, the free app that shows active fires, mandatory evacuation zones, air quality indexes, wind direction, and a wealth of other information that everyone, from firefighters to regular people, have come to rely on during this week’s historic and devastating wildfires.
Technology
How Watch Duty’s wildfire tracking app became a crucial lifeline for LA
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25824833/STKB309_WATCH_DUTY_B.jpg?ssl=1 "How Watch Duty’s wildfire tracking app became a crucial lifeline for LA")
Watch Duty is unique in the tech world in that it doesn’t care about user engagement, time spent, or ad sales. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit behind it only cares about the accuracy of the information it provides and the speed with which the service can deliver that information. The app itself has taken off, rocketing to the top of Apple’s and Google’s app stores. Over 1 million people have downloaded it over the last few days alone.
The elegance of the app lies in its simplicity. It doesn’t scrape user data, show ads, require any kind of login, or track your information. Its simple tech stack and UI — most of which is maintained by volunteer engineers and reporters — has likely helped save countless lives. While Watch Duty is free to use, the app accepts tax-deductible donations and offers two tiers of membership that unlock additional features, like a firefighting flight tracker and the ability to set alerts for more than four counties.
With plans to expand the service across the United States, as well as overseas and into other emergency services, Watch Duty may eventually replace some of the slower and less reliable local government alert systems for millions of people.
Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol / Anadolu via Getty Images
An app born from fire
The idea for Watch Duty came to cofounder John Mills while he was trying to protect his off-grid Sonoma County home from the Walbridge fire in 2020. He realized there wasn’t a single source for all the information people needed to protect themselves from the blaze, which ultimately killed 33 people and destroyed 156 homes. John and his friend David Merritt, who is Watch Duty’s cofounder and CTO, decided to build an app to help.
“This came out of an idea that John had, and he talked to me about it four years ago,” Merritt tells The Verge. “We built the app in 60 days, and it was run completely by volunteers, no full-time staff. It was a side project for a lot of engineers, so the aim was to keep it as simple as possible.”
Fire reporting is piecemeal at best in fire-prone areas and frequently scattered across platforms like Facebook and X, where fire departments and counties have verified pages sharing relevant updates. But increasingly, social media platforms are putting automated access for alert services behind paywalls. Governments also use a wide variety of alert systems, causing delays that can cost lives, especially in fast-moving fires like the Palisades and Eaton fires that have forced evacuations for more than 180,000 people. And sometimes, these government-run alerts are sent out mistakenly, causing mass confusion.
Watch Duty simplifies all that for millions of people.
“We view what we are doing as a public service,” says Merritt. “It is a utility that everyone should have, which is timely, relevant information for their safety during emergencies. Right now, it’s very scattered. Even the agencies themselves, which have the best intentions, their hands are tied by bureaucracy or contracts. We partner with government sources with a focus on firefighting.”
“We view what we are doing as a public service.”
One of the biggest issues around fires, in particular, is that they can move quickly and consume large swaths of land and structures in minutes. For example, the winds that drove the Palisades fire to spread to more than 10,000 acres reached 90 miles per hour on Tuesday. When minutes matter, the piecemeal alert system that Watch Duty replaces can cause delays that cost lives.
“Some of the delivery systems for push notifications and text messages that government agencies use had a 15-minute delay, which is not good for fire,” says Merritt. “We shoot to have push notifications out in under a minute. Right now, 1.5 million people in LA are getting push notifications through the app. That’s a lot of messages to send out in 60 seconds. In general, people are getting it pretty much all at the same time.”
A simple tech stack
For Watch Duty, this kind of mass communication requires reliable technology as well as a group of dedicated staff and skilled volunteers. Merritt says that Watch Duty relies on a number of corporate partners with whom it has relationships and contracts to provide its service.
“We shoot to have push notifications out in under a minute.”
The app is built on a mix of technology, including Google’s cloud platform, Amazon Web Services, Firebase, Fastly, and Heroku. Merritt says the app uses some AI, but only for internal routing of alerts and emails. Reporters at Watch Duty — those who listen to scanners and update the app with push notifications about everything from air drops to evacuation updates — are mostly volunteers who coordinate coverage via Slack.
“All information is vetted for quality over quantity,” he says. “We have a code of conduct for reporters. For example, we never report on injuries or give specific addresses. It’s all tailored with a specific set of criteria. We don’t editorialize. We report on what we have heard on the scanners.”
According to Merritt, the app has 100 percent uptime. Even though it started with volunteer engineers, the nonprofit has slowly added more full-time people. “We still have volunteers helping us, but it’s becoming more on the internal paid staff as we grow, as things get more complex, and as we have more rigorous processes,” he says.
“All information is vetted for quality over quantity.”
He says there are no plans to ever charge for the app or scrape user data. The approach is kind of the Field of Dreams method to building a free app that saves people’s lives: if you build it well, the funding will come.
“It’s the antithesis of what a lot of tech does,” Merritt says. “We don’t want you to spend time in the app. You get information and get out. We have the option of adding more photos, but we limit those to the ones that provide different views of a fire we have been tracking. We don’t want people doom scrolling.”
Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP via Getty Images
Collecting information in the era of Trump
Watch Duty relies heavily on publicly available information from places like the National Weather Service and the Environmental Protection Agency. Should the incoming Trump administration decide to execute on threats to dismantle and disband the EPA (which monitors air quality) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the parent agency to the National Weather Service, such moves would impact Watch Duty’s ability to operate.
Even still, Merritt is optimistic. “We will be pretty well insulated from any change to policy,” he says. “We are either buying that information ourselves already or we are happy to buy it, and we will take that cost on. The fact that we’re soon going to be covering the entire US will defray the cost of anything that shifts from a policy perspective. Our operation costs are mostly salaries. We are trying to hire really good engineers and have a really solid platform. If we need to raise a grant to buy data from the National Weather Service, then we will.”
Regardless of what the next administration does, it’s clear that Watch Duty has become a critical and necessary app for those in Southern California right now. The app currently covers 22 states and plans to roll out nationwide soon.
“We got 1.4 million app downloads in the last few days,” according to Merritt. “I think we have only received 60 support tickets, so that shows that something is working there. We are really just focused on the delivery of this information.”
Continue Reading
Amazon’s rolling out a free software update for Echo Hub devices that gives the home screen a much-needed update to the interface it launched with in 2024. It had already added Alex Plus AI support, but the new interface has a cleaner, fully customizable layout that fits more smart home info and controls on the screen than the previous version.
The Echo Hub is also getting access to Ring AI’s Video Search feature that lets you use natural language to search through your smart home camera footage, as well as Alexa Plus summaries of detected camera events.
These are the five new features Amazon highlighted for the Echo Hub:
Organize by r …
Read the full story at The Verge.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The FBI calls it a “distress scam.” It is also known as a grandparent scam. The scam works by making an older adult believe a grandchild is in serious trouble and needs money right away, often before a court date or legal deadline. Victims reported more than $5 million in losses to this type of fraud in 2025. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center also noted that reported losses likely show only part of what scammers actually stole.
The Federal Trade Commission found in August 2025 that some of the fastest-growing scams targeting older adults use fear and urgency to override good judgment. A caller may claim your bank account was hacked and say you need to move your money immediately to protect it. However, the money does not move to safety. It goes straight to the scammer.
HOW TO HAND OFF DATA PRIVACY RESPONSIBILITIES FOR OLDER ADULTS TO A TRUSTED LOVED ONE
AI voice-cloning tools have made these scams even more convincing. Scammers can use a birthday video, voicemail or social media clip to mimic a grandchild’s voice. Then they place the call. The voice sounds familiar, the emergency feels real and the request for bail money seems urgent. The FBI counted $352 million in AI-related scam losses among victims 60 and older this past year.
Join CyberGuy Live: Lock Down Your Phone in 30 Minutes (This Saturday, June 13, 10 am ET)
- Your phone holds your email, passwords, photos, banking apps and personal data. In this free, live online class, Kurt the CyberGuy will walk you step by step through simple phone security fixes you can do in real time. You’ll learn how to improve your privacy settings, spot the latest phone scams, use trusted security tools and walk away with a simple checklist to stay protected. Register here: CyberGuyLive.com
Scammers are using stolen personal data, AI voice cloning and urgent phone calls to trick grandparents into sending money. (ljubaphoto/Getty Images)
What makes grandparents worth targeting
The same three pieces of data are required for identity verification at most banks, brokerages, pension recordkeepers, and Medicare: date of birth, last four digits of a Social Security number, and a current mailing address. For most people in their sixties and seventies, all of those accounts are open.
Those three fields have turned up in breach after breach. The Conduent Business Services breach pulled names, SSNs, dates of birth, and home addresses for more than 25 million Americans from systems that process Medicaid records and employer health plans. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton called it the largest data breach in U.S. history in February 2026.
Americans between 65 and 74 held a median net worth of $409,900 in 2022, according to the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances, more than ten times the median for adults under 35. The FBI found average losses of approximately $38,500 per victim among Americans 60 and older in 2025, nearly double the figure for younger filers.
Why elder fraud losses are often underreported
Older adults reported $2.4 billion in fraud losses to the Federal Trade Commission in 2024. However, the FTC’s December 2025 report to Congress estimated that real losses may have reached $81.5 billion that year. Most cases likely went unreported.
That gap makes identity theft harder to stop. A fraudulent wire from a pension account may never alert a bank. A new credit account opened with stolen information may not reach the victim until it appears on a credit report. By then, weeks may have passed since the application was approved.
Account protections worth setting up
Scammers move fast, so it helps to set up account protections before anything goes wrong. These steps can give banks, brokerage firms and family members more ways to spot trouble early.
1) Add a trusted contact to brokerage accounts
Brokerage accounts have a protection option many account holders never activate: a trusted contact designation. Under FINRA Rule 4512, brokerage firms must ask for a trusted contact when you open or update an account. A trusted contact can be a family member, attorney or accountant. The firm can contact that person if it suspects financial exploitation or cannot reach you. However, that person cannot trade, withdraw funds or view your account balances. FINRA, the SEC and the North American Securities Administrators Association asked investors in August 2025 to contact their firm and add one. You can name more than one trusted contact. You can also change the designation at any time.
SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION PHISHING SCAM TARGETS RETIREES
Families can help protect older adults by adding trusted contacts, verifying urgent calls and blocking online Social Security changes. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
2) Ask about holds on suspicious withdrawals
Under FINRA Rule 2165, brokerage firms can place a temporary hold on disbursements when they reasonably believe financial exploitation may be happening. That hold can last up to 55 business days. In January 2026, FINRA proposed extending the window to 145 business days. Ask any firm holding a pension, brokerage or annuity account about its policy on disbursements after an address change.
3) Verify urgent calls before sending money
When a caller claims a grandchild is in trouble or a federal agent needs immediate action, hang up. Then call back using a number you already have, not the number in the message. The FTC found that 41% of older adults who reported losing $10,000 or more to impersonation scams in 2024 said a phone call was the initial point of contact. That makes one simple habit especially important: verify the story before you act.
4) Block online changes to Social Security
Social Security lets you block electronic and automated telephone access to your account record. Once blocked, no one can change your direct deposit information or mailing address online or through the automated phone system. After that, any changes must go through a live SSA representative at 1-800-772-1213 or a field office visit. FINRA also operates a free Securities Helpline for Seniors at 844-574-3577, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET.
Identity theft recovery is harder on your own
Even strong account protections may not catch every scam attempt. That is why identity theft monitoring and recovery support can help families respond faster when personal information gets exposed or misused.
Some identity theft protection services monitor dark web marketplaces, data broker sites and people-search sites for exposed Social Security numbers, addresses and other personal information. If fraud happens, recovery support may help contact creditors, file disputes with the three credit bureaus and organize the documentation needed to restore an identity.
OUTSMART HACKERS WHO ARE OUT TO STEAL YOUR IDENTITY
Older Americans remain prime targets for identity theft because scammers can exploit exposed Social Security numbers, birth dates and addresses. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Some plans also include identity theft insurance for eligible recovery costs, such as lost wages and legal fees.
No service prevents every misuse of an older adult’s identity. However, family monitoring and fraud resolution can shorten the time between when theft happens and when you or someone in your family acts on it.
See my tips and best picks on Best Identity Theft Protection at Cyberguy.com
Kurt’s key takeaways
Grandparents have become a prime target because scammers know where the money is and how to create panic fast. A familiar voice, a stolen Social Security number or a fake emergency can turn one phone call into a devastating loss. The best defense starts before the call comes. Add trusted contacts to financial accounts, block online Social Security changes, verify urgent requests through a number you already know and talk openly with family about scam warning signs. Identity theft protection can also help spot exposed personal information and speed up recovery if fraud happens. No family can stop every scam attempt. However, a simple plan can give older adults more time, more backup and a better chance of keeping their money safe.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Is enough being done to stop scammers from using AI voices and stolen data to target grandparents? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
- Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox.
- For simple, real-world ways to spot scams early and stay protected, visit CyberGuy.com – trusted by millions who watch CyberGuy on TV daily.
- Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide free when you join.
Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
Technology
A warrantless wiretap law is about to expire — but surveillance networks aren’t actually ‘going dark’
Congress has failed to pass a three-week extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), with the House voting 218-198 against reauthorizing the controversial warrantless wiretapping authority through July 2nd. After a short-term extension earlier this year, the spying program now appears set to lapse for at least a week. This is the nightmare scenario FISA’s proponents have been warning about — but it doesn’t actually mean the US has lost its surveillance capabilities.
Proponents of a clean extension claim a lapse will hinder intelligence agencies’ efforts to thwart potential terrorist attacks, with surveillance networks “going dark”. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) stressed the importance of reauthorizing Section 702 ahead of the World Cup. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has said even a brief lapse would be disastrous. “Democrats in the Senate are playing political games right now with the lives of Americans,” he told reporters Wednesday. “It’s a very dangerous situation.”
In March, the FISA court recertified surveillance under Section 702 until 2027. The Brennan Center for Justice notes that a lapse won’t allow telecom companies to flout requests to hand over communications information to the NSA and other spy agencies. In 2008, after Yahoo failed to comply with a Section 702 request during a lapse, the FISA court ruled that the directives issued under Section 702 are effective while the certification is in place — even in the event of a lapse.
“The phrase ‘going dark’ is significantly misleading,” Andrea Sawka Fiegl, the senior policy director for media and technology at Common Cause, said on a Tuesday press call. Fiegl added that companies don’t choose whether they participate in surveillance under Section 702. If they don’t comply after being served with a directive, they face fines starting at $250,000 a day.
“The ‘going dark’ framing is basically a pressure tactic designed to strip Congress of its leverage to negotiate reforms by creating this false binary,” Fiegl said. “There is ample time for Congress to consider and pass reforms.”
Among those reforms are a warrant requirement for queries involving US persons, including so-called “backdoor searches” in which intelligence agencies identify a foreign target with ties to a US person, and then search that person’s communications, thus granting them access to their desired US target. Reformers also want to prohibit intelligence agencies from buying Americans’ data from private brokers to get around warrant requirements.
“Every day that Section 702 is in effect without reforms is a day that Americans’ rights are under threat,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) said in a statement Wednesday night, after Senate Republicans blocked his request for a five-week extension of Section 702 with new transparency requirements. “If there is going to be an extension of these authorities, there needs to be some guardrails or at least some transparency that would allow Congress and the American people to understand the abuses that have taken place and the need for reforms.”
Though President Donald Trump and Republican leaders in both chambers have called for a clean reauthorization of Section 702, there’s bipartisan appetite for reform — and a handful of Republican holdouts stand in the way of a clean reauthorization. Most Democrats — even some who have supported reauthorization in the past — have objected to a clean extension due to Trump’s appointment of Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence.
-
Kansas2 minutes agoSevere weather sets back Kansas wheat harvest
-
Kentucky9 minutes agoKentucky Football pushes back this week’s official visits
-
Louisiana12 minutes agoLandry signs Louisiana Energy Protection Act
-
Maine17 minutes agoMaine candidates fish, fret and spin results during a ranked-choice voting lull
-
Maryland24 minutes agoFederal agents search for Maryland juvenile in connection to double shooting turned murder
-
Michigan27 minutes agoUniversity of Michigan graduate named among crew for Artemis III mission
-
Massachusetts39 minutes agoBallot proposal would allow homes on smaller lots in Mass.
-
Minnesota42 minutes agoStill above average, but Minnesota’s education lead is shrinking, annual nationwide report says
