Technologies

Avoid Border Control Snooping Your Private Info by Using a Burner Phone for Travel

Travelers entering the US should consider a simple phone that doesn’t have all your personal information. Here’s how.

Traveling out of the US and back is getting more complicated, with agents of US Customs and Border Patrol scanning personal devices more aggressively. Some businesses in Canada and the European Union are suggesting their employees bring «burner phones» into the country as a precaution to safeguard personal and sensitive information. Even if you’re a US citizen going on vacation, you may want to consider a simple phone to use for basic communication.

But a burner isn’t just for crossing borders. A phone that doesn’t include all of your personal information or has a simpler interface can be quite handy, such as cutting down on unsolicited calls or even avoiding distractions. Comedian Conan O’Brien recently praised his burner as a way to not get bogged down in instant messages and notifications.

Although carriers have offered prepaid phones since the ’90s, the term «burner phones» or «burners» essentially became popular in the 2000s due to its use in the celebrated HBO series The Wire, in which characters use burner phones to avoid getting caught by the police. Although often portrayed as such, burners are not only popular among criminals. With privacy concerns rising, you might consider using a burner phone yourself.

So, what exactly is a burner phone, and how does it work? Below, we explain everything you need to know about burners and how to get one.

What is a burner phone?

Simply put, a burner phone is a cheap prepaid phone with no commitments. It comes with a set number of prepaid call minutes, text messages, or data and is designed to be disposed of after use.

Burners are contract-free, and you can grab them off the counter. They’re called burner phones because you can «burn» them, i.e., trash them after use, and the phone cannot be traced back to you, which makes them appealing to criminals. Burner phones are typically used when you need a phone quickly, without intentions of long-term usage.

Burners are different from getting a regular, contract-bound cellphone plans that require a lot of your information to be on file.

Why should you use a burner phone?

Burner phones are an easy way to avoid pesky cellphone contracts or spam you may be getting on your primary phone number. Burners are not linked to your identity, so you can avoid getting tracked down or contacted if that’s what you need.

However, you don’t have to dispose of it after use — you can just add more minutes and continue using it. Burner phones can still function as regular phones, minus the hassle of getting a phone with a contract.

You can also get a burner phone as a secondary phone for a specific purpose, like having a spare phone number for two-factor authentication texts, for business purposes or to avoid roaming charges while traveling. You can get a burner phone for any privacy reasons you may have.

Read more: The Data Privacy Tips Digital Security Experts Wish You Knew

Burner phones, prepaid phones, smartphones and burner SIMs: What’s the difference?

Burner phones are typically cheap feature phones and usually don’t come with the bells and whistles of a smartphone. Since these are designed to be cheap and disposable, you only get the essentials and very simple designs. The flip phone is a common sight in the burner phone market.

All burner phones are prepaid phones, but not all prepaid phones are burners. What sets a burner apart is that you will not have to give away any personal information to get one, and it won’t be traceable back to you. Also, it will be cheap enough to be trashed after use.

Read more: Best Prepaid Phone of 2025

Prepaid smartphones are generally low-end models to begin with, and burners are the cheapest prepaid phones you can get. However, you can use any unlocked smartphone with prepaid SIM cards if you want to, essentially making it a prepaid phone.

If you want to get a burner, you don’t necessarily have to buy a new phone. You can get a burner SIM and use it with an existing phone as well. Burner SIMs are prepaid SIMs you can get without a contract or giving away personal information.

Where can you buy a burner phone?

Burner phones are available at all the major retail outlets. You can pick them up from Walmart, Target, Best Buy and other big retailers. They’re also often available at convenience stores like 7-Eleven and Rite Aid, local supermarkets, gas stations, and retail phone outlets like Cricket, Metro and others.

You can get a burner phone with cash; a typical burner should cost between $10 and $50. It may cost more if you get more minutes and data with the phone. If you’re getting a burner phone specifically to avoid having the phone traced back to you, it makes sense to pay with cash instead of a credit card.

If you just want a prepaid secondary phone, you can pay for one with a credit card. Credit cards will leave a paper trail that leads back to you, but that shouldn’t be an issue unless you really don’t want the burner phone linked back to you.

There are also many apps that let you get secondary phone numbers, including Google Fi and the Burner app. However, these cannot quite be called burners in the ideal sense, since these providers will typically have at least some of your personal information.

If you’re just looking to get a solid prepaid phone without anonymity, you can check out our full guide for the best prepaid phone plans available currently. We also have a guide for the best cheap phone plans you can get.

Technologies

Fable Reboot Set for Fall 2026 as RPG Franchise Debuts on PS5

It’s a big world where you can do almost anything you want.

Microsoft held a Developer Direct on Thursday to focus on just a few games coming to the Xbox platform this year. One of the titles shown was the return of a once-dormant series.

Fable is a longtime Xbox exclusive that started back in 2004, and it’s been more than a decade since the last entry. Developed by Playground Games, best known for the Forza Horizon series, this new Fable game will expand on the roleplaying mechanics of the original to create an experience where players’ choices affect the world.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

When does Fable come out?

Fable is set to be released in autumn 2026.

What platforms will Fable be released on?

Fable is currently planned for PC, Xbox Series X and S consoles and PS5. This marks the first time the franchise will be available on a PlayStation. A Switch 2 version is reportedly under consideration.

Will Fable be available on Xbox Game Pass?

Yes. Fable will be a Day 1 release for Xbox Game Pass, meaning subscribers will be able to play for no extra cost on the day of release.

What is Fable?

Fable is an RPG franchise that started back in 2004 on the original Xbox. The concept behind the game, originally developed by famed developer Peter Molyneux and Lionhead Studios, was a world that would react to the player’s actions, whether it’s people shocked by the character’s evil deeds or individuals holding grudges for years over something the player did.

The last mainline entry of the Fable franchise came in 2010 with Fable 3 for the Xbox 360. There were multiple spinoffs since then, such as Fable Heroes, Fable Fortune, Fable Coin Golf and Fable: The Journey.

What’s the story of the new Fable?

Like with other Fable games, this new entry starts with the hero as a child. At some point early on, their hero powers emerge and, after a time jump, they become an adult. Where the hero goes will be up to the player, as there is no set path to take once they leave their village, where, one day, the inhabitants turn to stone.

The developer says there are more than 1,000 NPCs with their own personalities and routines, and that every town is functional, down to the exact number of beds for all the townfolk. Characters have jobs and their own schedules, which adds an extra dimension to these typically mundane, background characters.

Players can progress right through the story, or they can just live in a random town and stay there for as long as they want.

What kind of choices will players be able to make in Fable?

There will be plenty of decisions to make in Fable, from buying a home, getting a job or romancing a villager. Players can start a business, hire villagers to work for them, or buy property to rent out.

Every decision made earns the hero a reputation, such as being a rich tycoon, and villagers will have their own unique reaction to that reputation. This means not every character will view your character the same way. There will also be choices made that can affect the world.

One example the developer noted was a character who developed a magic potion that could change a person’s size. This character will eventually grow into a giant, and depending on the player’s decision, can die outside of the village. Leaving the giant’s body there can provoke reactions from the townfolk, including a drop in home prices.

Technologies

Google Photos Adds AI-Powered Meme Creation With ‘Me Meme’

Meme it up with photos of your cat, or your friend, or whatever funny photos your camera roll holds.

Do you have a great cat photo you just know could go viral? Google’s new AI feature, Me Meme, lets Google Photos turn photographs into memes, those sassy captioned photos that sometimes express the exact right sentiment. Choose a Google template, then upload your own funny photo, and AI will transform it into a meme.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

To use Me Meme:

On your device, open the Google Photos app.
At the bottom, tap Create and then Me Meme.
Select a template.
Tap Add photo.
Select the photo you want to upload.
Tap Generate.
After the meme is generated:

To save the meme: Tap Save.
To generate again: Tap Regenerate.
To share on other platforms: Tap Share.

I have a Google Pixel 9, and while my Photos app is up to date, the option didn’t appear for me as of Friday.

At CES 2026, Google executive Sameer Samat told CNET that the company wanted to make its AI tools, including Nano Banana and Gemini, more useful. While meme-making might not be the most practical AI use, it is something anyone can try.

A representative for Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Jan. 24, #958

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Jan. 24 #958.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is a bit challenging, especially the purple category, as always. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Think Muhammad Ali.

Green group hint: We won!

Blue group hint: Fashion element.

Purple group hint: Winter weather.