Meow. Happy Global Cat Day! While your feline will likely celebrate by knocking an expensive vase off your nightstand for absolutely no reason, you should feed it a squeeze tube anyway.

In today’s briefing, we’ll cover how scammers are targeting your calendar, why boomers are living the good life, how archaeologists uncovered an ancient Roman fortress, and much more.

— Chase Goepfert, Founder of NextGen News

I’m sure that’s a headline you already expected. New government data revealed US prices rose 3.7% last month, showing inflation has no intention of slowing down anytime soon.

The Department of Labor Statistics’ newest report came as somewhat of a shock to analysts, many of whom expected inflation to reign in last month.

Fuel was the leading factor behind the rise in prices:

Shelter, airline fares, used cars, recreation, medical services, nonalcoholic beverages and fruit and vegetable prices all became more expensive, although overall food prices stayed flat.

Fuel affects more than just what you pay at the pump: Diesel powers a huge share of trucking, farming and shipping. That means when the cost increases, it has an annoying habit of showing up later in places that don’t look remotely related to a gas station, like food, goods, and services.

The report also showed that Core CPI, which strips out food and energy prices, rose 0.3% for the month and 2.6% from a year ago, slightly more than economists expected.

So naturally, odds that the central bank will raise interest rates shot up again:

What would a rate hike mean for you? An interest rate hike makes borrowing money more expensive, which can mean higher payments on credit cards, car loans, and mortgages. It can also help slow inflation and boost earnings on savings accounts.

Apparently, those suspicious spam texts from a “long-lost friend” aren't cutting it anymore. Scammers are now sneaking fake appointments onto people's calendars, hoping to trick them into handing over sensitive information.

Meet ICS phishing, the latest addition to the scammer playbook. Named after the .ics files used for calendar events, the dupe can put fake events on your schedule without you ever even saying yes to the invitation.

They’re becoming extremely popular among con artists:

Why use this method in particular? Fake calendar invites can slip past spam filters and deliver dangerous links right in front of you, which is especially effective against targets like salespeople and recruiters, who regularly meet with unfamiliar people.

Since they show up right next to your dentist appointment or Teams meeting, calendar scams can seem a bit more authentic than a random email from DefinitelyNotAScam123.

So, how might one recognize them?

What’s the best way to not get scammed? Treat unexpected calendar invites like suspicious emails: don’t click links, call listed numbers, or share personal information. Instead, verify any charges directly through the company’s official website. You should also check your calendar settings to prevent unfamiliar invitations from being added automatically, especially if you use AI tools that accept invites on your behalf.

What you leave your kids doesn't stay private.

What you had. Who received it. Filed with a court, open to anyone.

But one asset stays off it. No bank, no brokerage, nobody to notify.

And the best part? You can buy it inside your retirement account, tax-deferred and penalty-free.

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🇫🇷 France hit with cyberattack that targets… fridges? An “unprecedented” cyberattack hit hundreds of supermarkets across France this week, remotely forcing refrigerators and freezers to heat up as high as 122°F. Temperatures stayed that high at roughly 150 stores for six hours, forcing employees to throw out entire stocks of food. Some even reported fires. Investigators traced the hack to outdated refrigeration software and warned that AI is helping hackers carry out more complex attacks.

👨‍💻 Your coworker is exaggerating their AI skills. A new survey of 1,000 US employees found that almost half (48%) admit to exaggerating how much they use AI or how good they are at it. Another 45% feel pressured to use AI even when they aren't confident they know how, often because employers are pushing the technology into everyday tasks. Researchers warn that companies may be mistaking AI enthusiasm for actual productivity, leaving workers more focused on looking like they’re using AI than figuring out whether it’s actually helping them work better.

🍷 Premium wine is selling for cheap in California. Thanks to a massive surplus in the state, wine lovers are getting a taste of luxury on a budget. As Americans drink less wine, wineries are sitting on more bottles than they can sell, forcing some to offload their higher-end wines to retailers like Costco, Aldi, and Kroger at steep discounts. Bottles that normally sell for $150 are showing up for under $30 under store-brand labels, while some Napa Valley wines are going for as little as $9.99. The deals aren't expected to disappear anytime soon, either, as industry experts say it could take another year or two to clear the excess supply (count this as your excuse to restock the wine rack).

Road salt is one of those things nobody thinks about until plow trucks come back empty, and this year that's happening before the first snowfall. Some cities haven't gotten a single bid for winter supply, while others are paying nearly double last year's price. 

North America doesn't mine enough of its own, which is why it ships in 8 to 10 million tonnes from places like Egypt and Chile, two weeks away by boat.

Atlas Salt (TSXV: SALT | OTCQX: SALQF) is building a mine in Newfoundland near a deepwater port where ships can reach Boston in three days. With salt, the real cost is in shipping, and CEO Nolan Peterson says the difference is so big that overseas producers could give their salt away and still come out more expensive than Atlas. The project is shovel-ready and projected to generate roughly C$188 million a year in free cash flow.

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Apparently, the golden years are getting even more golden. New government data shows Americans aged 75 and older have become the wealthiest age group in the country.

According to the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances, which tracks household wealth, the generation that grew up chatting with friends on rotary phones is actually doing pretty well for itself:

What’s making them so rich? A big reason is the stock market. Older, wealthier households tend to own more stocks and other financial assets, so years of market gains have given their balance sheets a strong tailwind.

Younger Americans aren't having the same luck: With rising prices eating away at their paychecks and fewer savings to fall back on, families headed by someone 35 or younger saw their median net worth drop 23% since 2022, falling to just $33,000.

Archaeologists recently uncovered a Roman military base in Wales, surprising historians who had long believed the region was relatively untouched by Roman military activity.

However, that was the least interesting thing about the discovery.

The fort, which was first found two years ago, sits about two miles southwest of Frenni Fawr, a hill mentioned in medieval folklore. In the story (read here), the Roman emperor Magnus Maximus camps near the hill during his travels through Britain.

The strange part is that the storytellers may have been working with better source material than we thought. According to a recent excavation of the site:

That timing is pretty intriguing: While there's technically no proof Maximus ever visited the fort, it is the only known Roman military site near the location mentioned in the medieval legend.

Ten straight red monthly candles and record oversold RSI levels have shaken out weak hands. However, returning users, rising stablecoin supply, and institutional inflows signal a major disconnect between price and fundamentals. Get the free guide now.

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→ NASA's Perseverance rover just became the most well-traveled vehicle in extraterrestrial history, driving more than 28 miles across Mars and breaking a record that stood for eight years.

→ Scientists are sending mini organs into space to study how weightlessness accelerates aging, which could potentially unlock new treatments for diseases back on Earth.

→ A jersey worn by Michael Jordan during the 1998 NBA Finals just sold for $14 million, making it the most expensive piece of basketball memorabilia ever sold.

→ All 17 stalls in Paris’s oldest food market, which was founded during the reign of King Louis XIII in 1615, were destroyed by a fire earlier this week. It’s unknown what caused it.

→ Autumn's strangest sporting events are back, with pumpkin boat races, a competition to grow the heaviest gourd on Earth, and thousand-pound pumpkin drops in Minnesota.

→ Thieves in France stole a 330-pound bronze book cover designed by Salvador Dalí, leaving authorities puzzled over how they managed to escape with the massive artwork unnoticed.

→ Peek at the ancient lake no one has ever seen before.

→ See what the average home is worth in your state.

→ Humans and dogs agree on what “Bouba” and “Kiki” mean.

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