Good Morning! Today’s edition is 1,051 words, a 4-minute read.

What’s on tap: 

• Americans lost billions to scammers in ‘24

• Canada's early voting record

• How to delete yourself from the web

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Big Story

Scammers Stole Billions in 2024

Americans lost $16.6 billion to online scammers and cybercriminals last year.

• The total jumped sharply from 2023, when victims lost $12.5 billion, according to the FBI's latest Internet Crime Complaint Center report. The agency received nearly 860,000 fraud complaints, though experts believe this only represents a fraction of actual crimes.

• Adults over 60 were hit hardest, reporting $4.8 billion in losses, with a particularly high vulnerability to cryptocurrency-related scams. This age group lost $1.8 billion through investment scams alone, including sophisticated "pig butchering" schemes where criminals build fake relationships before convincing targets to invest in fraudulent crypto ventures.

• Investment scam losses have exploded in recent years, climbing from $3.3 billion in 2022 to $6.6 billion last year. Meanwhile, fake toll scams generated over 58,000 complaints, with some linked to Chinese-speaking cybercriminal networks operating on Telegram.

Big Story

YouTube Enters Adulthood

YouTube celebrated its 20th anniversary on Wednesday.

• Two decades ago, co-founder Jawed Karim uploaded the platform's first video - a 19-second clip titled "Me at the zoo." What began as a modest video-sharing site has exploded into a global powerhouse, now hosting over 20 billion videos.

• The platform has become a content behemoth, with users uploading approximately 20 million new videos daily. Engagement is equally impressive, with YouTube videos receiving an average of 3.5 billion likes per day last year.

• YouTube has transformed entertainment careers, helping unknown creators achieve fame and fortune through its Partner Program, which has paid creators $70 billion between 2021-2024. The platform has also launched music careers for artists like Justin Bieber and Charlie Puth, with over 300 music videos surpassing 1 billion views.

• Industry experts predict YouTube will become the biggest media company by revenue in 2025.

Big Story

Baby Bonuses

President Trump expressed support for a proposed $5,000 "baby bonus" payment to new mothers.

• The administration has already positioned itself as family-focused, with Trump previously calling himself the "King of IVF" and issuing an executive order to increase access to fertility treatments.

• Vice President Vance has also made an effort to encourage families to have more children. During the 2024 campaign, he advocated for expanding the child tax credit to potentially $5,000 per child and called for the “government to do its part to ensure families can afford child care” in January.

• Daycare costs have skyrocketed over the last twenty years, increasing by 40% from 2003 to 2023. Washington, DC leads all states with a $1,912 monthly cost. See where your state stacks up here.

• US birth rates have been declining steadily for years, reaching a record low in 2023. The total fertility rate—the average number of children a woman would have in her lifetime—has fallen below 2.1, the replacement level needed to maintain population without immigration.

Quick Stories

US News

• About 46% of Americans (156 million people) live in areas with unhealthy air quality, earning "F" grades from the American Lung Association for ozone or particle pollution. (More)

• Illinois Senator Dick Durbin will not seek reelection in 2026, ending his four-decade career representing Illinois. He has been the No. 2 Senate Democrat since 2005. (More)

• A wildfire in New Jersey has grown to 12,000 acres since Tuesday, threatening over 1,000 structures and forcing thousands to evacuate. Officials expect it to become New Jersey's largest wildfire in the past 20 years. (More)

World

• More than 7 million Canadians have already cast their ballots in the federal election, breaking the early voting record. The latest polling says Liberals have a 5-point lead over the main opposition Conservative party. (More)

• An 11-mile tunnel is being built under the Baltic Sea between Denmark and Germany. It will be the world's longest pre-fabricated road and rail tunnel and slash travel times between the countries to 10 minutes. (More)

• A series of earthquakes, including a 6.2-magnitude tremor, struck near Istanbul, shaking buildings and forcing people to flee their homes. The quakes injured 151 people but caused no deaths or major structural damage. (More)

Business & Economy

• US stock markets closed higher on Wednesday (S&P +1.67%, Nasdaq +2.50%, Dow +1.07%). Stocks rose on hopes that the US-China trade war could soon ease and that President Trump doesn’t plan to fire Fed Chairman Powell. (More)

• The European Union fined Apple and Meta $757 million under new legislation to curb big tech power. Apple owes $541 million over App Store policies, and Meta owes $216 million for inadequate user choice in data collection. (More)

• Elon Musk's Neuralink plans to raise $500 million at an $8.5 billion valuation. Neuralink was last valued at $5 billion in 2023. (More)

Sports & Entertainment

• Jaylen Brown scored 36 points with 10 rebounds and five assists to lead the Celtics past the Magic 109-100 in Game 2. Boston took a 2-0 series lead despite Jason Tatum missing his first playoff game with a wrist injury. (More)

• Lions safety Kerby Joseph secured a four-year, $86 million extension, making him the NFL's highest-paid safety in history. (More)

• The Los Angeles Chargers and Detroit Lions will face off in the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on July 31 in Canton, Ohio. It is the first appearance for both teams in over 30 years. (More)

Science, Health, & Tech

• The International Coral Reef Initiative reports that coral bleaching has now spread to an unprecedented 84% of the world's reefs. This ongoing crisis began in 2023 and has already surpassed the 2014-2017 event that affected about two-thirds of reefs. (More)

• The European Space Agency launched an experiment to grow lab-created steak, potatoes, and desserts from cells in space. The project aims to reduce the $26,000+ daily cost of feeding astronauts. (More)

• New research reveals the brain forms cold-experience memories that regulate metabolism. The study shows memories control body heat, potentially advancing treatments for obesity and cancer. (More)

Extra Credit

🧠 Would you win the million? 20 last round questions from Who Wants to be a Millionaire!

🏃‍♀️ This 77-year-old woman is fit as a 25-year-old.

🔎 How to delete yourself from the internet.

🐶 Tough day? These photos from The Corgi Derby will make it all better.