pope benedict xvi. today's blessing comes as the vatican considers moving up the date to find his replacement. we're live in st. peter's square. and the drama surrounding former senator chuck hagel, the president's choice for defense secretary. his nomination in limbo, were even though many suspect he will eventually be confirmed. why are they making this process so difficult? we'll talk to david gregory and get analysis 06 that. plus, have you ever wondered what it's like to train as a g man? >> i have wondered 245. >> well, you're sitting next to the right guy. i was in quantico, virginia. they deal with a car stop, hand-to-hand combat. and what we learned about fighting crime and you were brushing up on your car knowledge. >> i was. i was doing a little bit of that. we hear women don't know what much about cars. we get a bad rap.

one woman who knows a lot about cars wants to change that perception. i spent a day changing oil. as part of a unique class designed for women by a woman. its goal is to make both our cars and the repair shop a little less intimidating. >> i wouldn't recognize anything under a hood anymore. they're all computers and boxes now. >> computers do such a good job keeping check of your car, that's more reason to know. >> we begin with winter weather. parts of the country thawing out from last week's blizzard hitting hit again. were even florida getting hit. >> good morning, guys. good morning, everyone. yes, it is cold again in new york city. but we're not talking about cold around here. we're talking about the cold in florida. we have hard freeze warnings.

crops are in danger. we are starting off especially northern florida with temperatures in the 20s and 30s. head north a little bit and we saw snow in the carolinas. one to two three inches of snow yesterday. the snowman and the flag and everything. but the snow is over in the carolinas. just time to clean things up. we're looking at four to six inches on top of a storm that where he had last week. up in maine we could see the potential for blizzard-like conditions into the eastern coast of maine where we have blizzard warnings posted. that's on top of two feet of snow in that region. that region could pick up three to six inches out of this storm. we'll see you in just a moment with the national

forecast. now here's erica. crowds are gathered for pope benedict xvi's tpeufrpbt sunday blessing since announcing his retirement. anne thompson is there. good morning. >> good morning, erica. it was a jam-packed st. peter's square. 50,000 people showed up to hear the pope, double the side of the crowd last week. he spoke in six languages thanking them for their support. adding in german these were difficult days. they applauded with respect and affection. in rome, where there is no shortage of must-see attractions, suddenly elderly pope benedict is number one on everyone's list. today he delivered his weekry prayer from his balcony as he has for eight years. but this crowd is worthy of a are rock star. ash wednesday turnd churchgoers

into paparazzi. the solemn season of lent in vatican city is a celebration of the 85-year-old pontiff. the hottest ticket in town, benedict's final audience on february 27th, the day before he steps down. 35,000 people have already requested free tickets, says the vatican. but this extraordinary step creates an extraordinary problem. the church will now have two living popes. author george weigel is an analyst. >> he creases to be pope at 8:00 p.m. february 28th. there's never been a bishop of rome emeritus for 719 years. he will make that work because he will simply retire into the deep background and not be seen in public. >> in meeting with rome's priest

last week, benedict says once he steps down he will remain hidden from the world. eventually he will live in this monastery in vatican city, physically close to the new pope but no one expects hip to be intrusive. >> the new pope may come in, seek his advice, do something quietly. >> benedict as pope has surprised many. he was labeled god's rottweiler. yet benedict showed a gentle pastoral side. and meeting with sex abuse victims during his 2008 trick to the u.s. john covered the vatican for 30 years. >> he will be remembered as the pope who resigned, without a doubt. and i think it may be the finest

legacy to the church. he brought the papacy into the modern age. >> to choose the successor is somewhere between march 15th and march 020th. all the cardinals who will vote are coming to rome on february 28th. watch this week to see if we get a new date for the concave. >> ann, thank you. >> time for a check of the morning's other top stories. jenna enjoys the morning off. tom, good morning. >> good morning, everyone. a traumatic experience for a minnesota family flying to atlanta when a woman said the man silting next to her on the plane slapped her toddler on the face. you would have no idea anything bad happened to him. when he became fussy the man

called him derogatory names and slapped him. the man accused of slapping the little boy was arrested. violence overseas after a series of car bombs in baghdad. iraqi officials say they were targeting outdoor markets. in nigeria, seven workers kidnapped from the work site where they worked. they are from italy, greece, lebanon. in russia, 20,000 workers and 4300 pieces of equipment are being used to help in the massive cleanup of the damage called by friday's meteor. the size and power of that meteor's energy is much larger than they first thought. back here in the states, thousands of pieces of kennedy history are going up on the auction black block in

massachusetts. up for aubgdz, his bomber jacket. while most people run from snakes, hundreds of people in florida spent the next month actively looking for them as part of the python challenge to find the in vasive species. 1600 people took part in the hunt. most were not successful. only 68 pythons were captured. now back to the team that won, the largest 10'6" inches. >>. >> dill an is back with the next of the national forecast. >> you're scared because you think there is this whole conspiracy they're out to get you. >> i do. >> we are looking at snow in the northeast on top of last week's huge storm we could see four to six inches in boston, a foot of snow possible in the eastern coast of maine.

the middle of the country is very chilly. temperatures in the great lakes in the lower 30s. starting off today in the 20s in nort % . on on this sunday morning, pat patchy fog around parts of the bay area. you can see visibility miles reduced around sfo down to a quarter mile, also in santa a rosa, and temperature its seeing a widespread, 40s and a fifth where you have the clouds, 30s around santa rose. everyone by the afternoon should see 60s for highs, 59 in san francisco. rain and breezy conditions tuesday. and that is your latest forecast. lester? >> all right, dylan. thanks. to washington, where 3rez obama's choice for defense secretary remains in limbo. chuck hagel's nomination so hold for a week while congress is in recess. what's all the drama involving

this vote? david gregory is moderator of "meet the press". good morning. >> good morning. >> a republican standing against his nomination here. i think we're used to republicans standing up against the president. why in this case which it seems to be a foregone conclusion that he will eventually get through? >> a lot of republicans don't like him. don't take my word for it. that's what john mccain said on thursday, saying there's a lot of ill-will over republicans over hagel's criticism of president bush and iraq and the surge and all the rest. and as a result they're jamming them up. i don't think it ultimately keeps him from being defense secretary. but it does weaken him, as well as his own performance at his confirmation hearing, which left a lot of people disappointed as well. >> and there is some discussion that this delay might allow his opponents to have more ammunition against him. any reason to be concerned on that level? >> it's a question i will ask the president's chief of staff on the program. there are speeches some republicans did not have access

to they think may certain points of view about israel damaging to hagel's chances. the view inside the white house is these are just other attempts to move the goalpost and delay him when there's recognition that he will ultimately be confirmed. >> republicans are looking a lot their image right now. are there some republicans questioning the wisdom of choosing this particular battle? >> well, there are enough republicans that simply don't like hagel, don't like what he represents, don't like the message that they are willing apparently to take the hit on this. there's no question this looks to be similar to what people are criticizing republicans for doing on the economy or on spending on these various battles they have had over debt, which is trying to jam the president up. >> all right, david. we'll check with you later on "meet the press". thanks. >> thanks, lester. it's been a public health issue for months. the air pollution over northern

utah. that dangerous air is actually making the state a risky place to have a baby. here's mike taibi. >> the pollution levels in and around salt lake city have been bad enough to concern parents of school-aged kids. >> i sent a note to school telling the teacher please don't make him play outside at recess because i really worry about what he's breathing in. >> and prospective moms should worry too. high pollution levels have an adverse impact of maternal exposure to fetal birth. the link to pollution has not been confirmed. >> the two operations i just got finished with were operations for fetal demise, spontaneous abortions if you will. >> how bad does the air get

here? in peak pollutions times there's always a comparison between new and used air filters. but think of a women's lungs. >> think of that tennis court rising up and down 20 times a minute, which is about what the average person breathes. that's how much u air pollution roughly a person can take in. >> all of which has some salt lake city women thinking twice about starting or adding to the family. >> i hope every day that she's okay and that everything is okay with her. >> well, we definitely want to wait. >> weather inversions are not a new phenomenon here. 19th century settlers claimed of being trapped in fog for months. for "today", mike taibi, nbc news, los angeles. up next on "today", a homeless man finds much more

than spare change. what he did with it is an important reminder for us all, after this. vacation is a precious thing. so this year, make the most of it. fly like you've never been grounded. scream like you've never been shushed. let go like you have nothing to lose. and hold on to what matters most. it's your vacation. don't just take it. mean it. universal orlando. vacation like you mean it. everyone wants to be the cadbury bunny. cause only he brings delicious cadbury crème eggs, while others may keep trying. nobunny knows easter better than cadbury!

because every flake is double-toasted... splashed with sweet honey... and covered in rich double-roasted peanuts. mmm. [ hero ] yummy. [ male announcer ] kellogg's crunchy nut. and "i have no idea what i'm doing," you need a hand. well, walgreens is innovating to help. by making prescription refills this easy. and we're bringing our pharmacists out front to answer your questions. at walgreens, we'll do more than help you get well. we'll help you stay well and live well.

because that's what it really means to be at the corner of happy and healthy. what would you do if you found something valuable? a homeless man faced that question when a woman

accidentally left her diamond engagement ring. what happened after that is priceless. >> reporter: billy ray harris sits on the sidewalk in kansas city, missouri, his regular spot where passersby leave a little money in his company. last week, the 55-year-old homeless man got more than spare change. >> when i decided to leave, i unlocked my bike and there was the ring. >> a diamond engagement ridge accidentally dropped into his cup by sarah darling after forgetting she tucked it into the zippered wallet. when he discovered the ring, he thought the diamond must be fake. on closer inspection, he decided to take it to a jeweler. >> i went and had it appraised. lo and behold, i about had a fit when the guy told me. >> reporter: it was really worth some money. >> he was ready to give me $4,000 right there on the spot.

he admitted he considered take the money. his grandfather raised him to be honest. >> in my heart, i couldn't do it. i'm not trying to say i'm no saint. i'm no devil either. >> reporter: darlene realized the next day she had lost her ring. when she returned to the spot, harris had the ring waiting. the two recently met again and darling expressed her thanks. >> my ring wouldn't insured. i wouldn't be able to replace it. it was such a feeling of loss when it was so gone. so i'm so eternally graceful to you. >> reporter: something lost but in the end, so much more gained. for today, michelle franzen, nbc news, new york. more could come. we will have olympian, oscar pistorius speaking out about his state of mind about the girlfriend he is accused of killing. more after these messages.

♪ ♪ ♪ [ female announcer ] nothing gets you going quite like the power of quaker. today is going to be epic. quaker up. waiting for your wrinkle cream to work? neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair has the fastest retinol formula. to visibly reduce fine lines and wrinkles in just one week. neutrogena®. new griddle-melts to yourimees usual breakfast sandwich. week. a lot more flavor. [ anouncer ] ihop's new griddle melts... made fresh and hot! hand crafted just for you. it's like a sexy sandwich. [ anouncer ] compare new griddle melts yourself. just $4.99. it's an epic breakfast sandwich.

♪ still to come on "today," i spent a day at the fbi academy training high-tech crime fighting. i got in on the real life crime sk scenarios for real life agents i took a special class to find out what goes on under your hood. more after mees messages. earni, i was able to get us a flight to our favorite climbing spot even on a holiday weekend. ♪ things are definitely looking up. [ male announcer ] with no blackout dates, you can use your citi thankyou points to travel whenever you want. visit citi.com/thankyoucards to apply. so i get claritin clear...

...for strong, non-drowsy relief of all my allergies... ...like dust... ...mold... ...pets... ...and pollen. looks good. thanks. i live claritin clear. hers hey' 's is more than hers chocolate. it's an invitation. to stop and savor. when the chocolate is hershey's. life is delicious.

good morning to you. and it is a foggy start to the day. would you believe this is palo alto? thanks for joining us. it was foggy enough that i missed the entrance to the station parking lot. >> that's not good. well, make yyou made it though. >> i did. >> you'll want to slow down this morning. fog. san mateo down to a quarter

mile. patches in and around fremont. and you can see here hour by hour, low clouds will break up. in february, though, sometimes it takes it longer for the sun to mix in the drier air, but first half patchy fog, second half sunshine. with the seabreeze, notice our temperatures as we move into the afternoon. highs mainly in the low 60s to mid-60s inland. 50s to near 60s inner bay. so we're starting the cooling process. the winds on shore today. tomorrow highs in the 50s. and then tuesday, big drop in temperatures. we'll get the rain, wind, a little mountain snow, maybe thunder, all that for your tuesday and then staying unsettled for the second half of the weekend. this morning the coast guard is still trying to figure out what caused a ferry and speed boat to collide and two were hurt. the crash happened just south of

contin continu tiburon. none of the 500 passengers on board the ferry was hurt, but two men in the smaller bet were injured. one of them was seriously injured. both men are in their 60s. >> kind of scary that something like that happened, so hopefully everything turns out okay. >> after the crash, the ms san francisco was taken out of service. the five crew members on board will now undergo drug tests and are on paid administrative leave which is routine during the investigation. a follow-up now to a breaking news story we first told you about yesterday morning. fire investigators are still looking in to the cause of a fire that took the life of a young girl. this is cell phone video taken by a neighbor, the blaze raging around 12:30 yesterday morning. witnesses say the 10-year-old girl was trapped on the second story and could be heard yelling for help. some neighbors along with firefighters tried to rescue the

girl, but the fire burned too fast. >> anytime we do have a loss, it's a tragedy. the kids seem to hurt more because we're all parents and we have kids and we all do our best to protect the kids. and it is a tough situation when something like this happens. we do everything possible and we can't get to make a rescue in time to save somebody. >> one firefighter was hurt when the second story collapsed. authorities say five other people living inside that apartment did make it out safely. dozens of others were forced out of their homes and catholic charities which manages the complex tells us that many of those living there were formerly homeless families including a number of children. coming up at 7:00, defending dorner. we'll talk about the l.a. cop turned cop killer.

we're back on a sunday morning, february 17th, 2013. a quiet crowd. who said that? they are spending part of their president's weekend with us. >> i think we can do better than that. don't give him a courtesy. give him -- there you go. something to warm you up. >> exactly. >> lester holt outside with

erica hill, dylan dreyer and tom llamas. still to come, the murder charges against disgraced olympian, oscar pistorius. his family is speaking out about the ground-breaking athlete and how he is fairing behind bars. we are learning more about his girlfriend whom he is accused of killing at the first airing of her reality show airs in south africa. a little practical knowledge for us here today. there are more female drivers on the road than men but us ladies sometimes get a bad rap for what we do or do not know about our cars. there is one woman who has cars in your blood, who is looking to change that. with a little class she calls women auto know. a lot of good stuff, not just for the ladies out there to learn but for men too, lester holt. >> which i love. we are going to share a little bit of what we learned. >> i learned how to fix cars.

i learned how to stop cars. i went to the fbi academy. from shootout to breaking down doors. hand to hand combat. i got a first-hand look at what it is like to train and the kind of threats they face in their jobs today protecting your cell phone. do you know what to do when your cell phone is lost or stolen? we will have some tips to keep your sensitive data from getting in the wrong hands. dylan has one final check of the weather for us on this brisk sunday morning mostly east coast is dealing with brisk temperatures. 20s in florida, kind of unheard of specially since it hasn't been that cold for quite some time. we are going to see really chilly temperatures hold strong in the northeast as we go through the day today. we have blizzard warnings posted up in main. we are looking at the chance of perhaps a foot of snow across the east coast of main. about 4-6 inches today in the boston area. it will last off and on throughout most of the day and then we'll start to clear things out for presidents' day. tomorrow, we are looking at rain

to move in to illinois stretching down into eastern texas, northeastern, indiana. the eastern half of the country will start to dry out. the middle of the country will cool off. cold air is surging in from the north. it is going to stay a little bit chilly around here. it is february after here's a look around san jose. we have patchy fog in parties of the bay area. visibility reduced to about a quarter mile in a few spots. and temperatures mostly in the fourth, though a few 30s out there around livermore, santa a rosa. most inland locations low to mid-60s. down five to seven degrees from yesterday. 59 in san francisco. continued cooling tomorrow. more clouds filling in and rain and much cooler conditions on tuesday. a quick happy birthday to joe. >> happy birthday, from michigan, my big brother!

>> happy birthday. the family of disgraced olympic track star, oscar pistorius, is denying charges that he murdered his girlfriend. this morning, we are learning more about her from her own words. michelle kosinski is in pretoria, south africa, where he is being held. >> reporter: reeva steenkamp's reality show aired here last night, to many, too painful to watch. many are quoting police sources saying she was shot through the bathroom door of his home. his family speaking out strongly refuting that this was murder. >> you literally fall in love with jamaica. you fall in love with being in love with love. it is love everywhere. >> reporter: this is reeva steenkamp living her dream. >> i don't have any regrets. i don't have any bitterness. i take home with me so many amazing memories and things that are in here and that are in here

that i'll treasure forever. i think the way that you got asked, not just your journey in life, the way you act when you make your exit is so important, you made an impact in a positive way or a negative way. at the jail, his pistorius father and uncle visited. his uncle spoke. >> we are in shock about this beautiful girl we have gotten to know well and deeply. they had plans together. oscar was happy in his private life than he seemed in a long time. oscar, as you can imagine, is also numb with shock and grief. we have no doubt here there is no substance for litigation and that the state's own case, including its own forensic evidence strongly refutes any

possibility of a premedicated murder or murder as such. >> reporter: unconfirmed details of what allegedly happened valentine's day morning swarm in the press here. newspapers are now publishing what they say are reeva's notes from a speech she was said to give at a school that day. i was in an abusive relationship, she wrote, from the time before she dated pistorius. i lost a lot of self-worth. it took some serious soul searching to remind myself of this value in this world. >> just always be true to yourself. i'm going to miss you all so much. i love you very, very much. >> reporter: remember, police have been pretty dismissive of suggestions that this might have been mistaken identity or self-defense. there were reports of what sounded like shouting coming from the home earlier that night. lester. >> michelle kosinski, thank you. now, here is erica.

women outnumber men on the nation's highways according to government statistics. still, a lot of women get a bad rap when it comes to what we know about our cars. for a lot of people, the idea of fixing a flat or changing a brake light bulb can seem down thing. one woman is trying to change that by teaching women what they ought to know. >> i have never had hands-on experience, even as far as opening the hood of my car. i have never done that. >> reporter: before spending the afternoon in this new york auto shop, helen seglia had never checked her tire pressure and she wasn't in the habit of diagnosing potential blowouts. >> i see people driving warned bubble ons their tire. >> that is a blowout waiting to happen. >> reporter: how quickly things change. we did exactly what awudra was hoping for. >> mechanics get a bad rap.

people feel like they are getting a bad deal, specially women. how valid is that? >> if i don't know about a topic, i already have anxiety. >> reporter: she is the fourth generation to run great bear auto repair. the first to turn this shop into a school. >> that's how we are going to read it. come take a look under the hood. whatever the manufacturer wants you to pay attention to, they put in a transparent colored reservoir. do you see anything that's transparent? >> you have got one. >> and brake fluid. you know what color it is? >> green. >> it is like chardonnay. >> yes, chardonnay. >> so the tires on your car are like the shoes on your feet. if you are out of alignment and you limp, that's a really good

int kags on the shoes, the same with the tires. >> reporter: she chooses her words carefully. part of her mission to demystify the cars we rely on so heavily. >> if you name your car, then it is not i have to bring the car into the shop. it is more like bessy needs to go in for maintenance. >> reporter: and they are cover vetted to understand what bessie or in my case, josi, means. barely an hour into the class, you could sense the energy shift. >> reporter: the hardest part about checking tire pressure is not to lose the cap. >> what about this cracking here, is this telling you even though there is a fair amount of tread left, i still need to think about getting a new tire? >> absolutely. >> so it is full. >> right. do you see the glisten? >> i am showing people what they need on their car and when i see they get it, i get energized.

>> reporter: let's review what we all ought to know at the end of this day. first up, fluid, the darker your oil, the more frequently you should change it. brake fluid looks like chardonnay. always use the same color coolant your car came with. next, tires, recommended pressure is on the driver's door, the side wall is your tire's weakette point. look for cracks and known tread. know your tire's birthday, listed by the week and year. know your baby, bond with your car, give it a name. everything has a life span, from the battery to your tires. the more you care for your car, the fewer surprises down the road. having mastered fluidses, tires, jumper cables, even a roadside change, it was time for a well-earned diploma. >> katy, miss katy. >> and a new start.

>> just process of actually doing it myself gives me the confidence to take better care of my car. >> her women ought to know class classes are free. it is not limited to women. she does accept donations and uses part of that to help fix the cars of women in need. from busting down doors to man-to-man fighting, lester trains with future fbi agents. [ male announcer ] when moisture is this light, it floats. when hair is this hydrated, it flooows... introducing nexxus hydra-light: a higher standard in hair care that's full of moisture. free of heaviness. hydra-light's salon formulas with light, deep-sea minerals give up to 80% more moisturization that won't weigh hair down. for hair that captivatingly flows. new nexxus hydra-light. [ woman ] you'll never settle again. [ male announcer ] raise your standard.

to fly home for the big family reunion. you must be garth's father? hello. mother. mother! traveling is easy with the venture card because you can fly any airline anytime. two words. double miles! this guy can act. wanna play dodge rock? oh, you guys! and with double miles you can actually use, you never miss the fun. beard growing contest and go! ♪ i win! what's in your wallet? [ tylenol bottle ] me too! and nasal congestion. [ tissue box ] he said nasal congestion. yeah...i heard him. [ female announcer ] tylenol® cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion. nyquil® cold and flu doesn't.

it covers a lot of crime. there is a lot to learn at the fbi academy in quantico, virginia. i recently found out. >> fbi, pull your vehicle to the side of the road. >> it seems more serious crime in a week than most small towns see in years. the town is make-believe but the scenarios these future fbi agents are confronting are not. >> put your hands up, get your hands up. put your hands up. >> now, you didn't interrupt them while they were in the middle of this. >> we don't interrupt them because once we do that, they kind of lose their rhythm and then they will do something else and then they will look back and say, how was that?

>> reporter: the fbi academy sits in the middle of marine-based quantico, virginia, over five months, trainees learn everything from taking down an unruly suspect to the fine point of the law. >> it's been a tough experience. a lot of dedication and hard work. it has kicked my butt a few times. >> we were asked not to show the faces of current trainees. >> much of the training feels like drinking from a fire hose. you have to be a master of a lot of skills. >> that's correct, sir. >> more than just skills the fbi is best known for, bank robberies and kidnapping, like the recent hostage rescue in alabama but ever sophisticated financial and terror conspiracies. >> we have a prioritized list of skills we are looking for, for example, agents that speak specific foreign languages and have intelligence experience. >> while a lot of the work has gone high-tech, as i learned from a day at the academy,

sometimes the old-fashioned approach gets the job done. breaking down doors, fighting your way out of a tight spot. >> focus on the daylight and push right through the vehicle. >> and driving out of even tighter spots. >> go, go, go! >> that was awesome. critical skills to bureau agents deployed around the world. there is no law enforcement training facility quite like it. >> this is going to be your heads-up display, sir, if you want to put that on. >> here, a virtual reality simulation can transform you into an "avatar" and put you right in the middle of a room to room search for a gunman. to our camera, this is a big empty space but through my heads-up display, it is a maze of offices. >> fbi, show me your hands. >> let your guard down here.

>> and you die. >> that was me. >> the only wounds suffered are to your ego. >> your first move should be right here, to the wall. so what we would say to a trainee is overpenetrating. >> the long arm of the law sometimes reaches into some difficult places. remember the remote montana hideout where the fbi took down the unibomber. an off-road driving course is taught here too. with a steep learning curve. >> we are going to hold it straight. i'll let you be the judge. >> the fbi graduates over 400 trainees a year with an average age of 30. they are typically older and more experienced than their predecessors. >> many are coming on board with

advanced degrees. we bring on a lot of military veterans that have just come out of the war zone. >> amanda came from a background in marketing. you get put in some very unique situations but you call on those skills you had in your past career, your ability to make quick decisions and deal with different people. >> graduates will go straight from here to field offices around the country where they begin a two-year probation and where every decision is as real as it gets with no do-overs. >> so after a day of training, i'm qualified to do basically nothing. >> you broke down the door pretty well. >> that was the second try. >> and the driving? >> i could do that all day. manhattan traffic. who hasn't been tested? >> thanks for that. it was a really neat opportunity. just ahead. how to protect yoursf in the event your cell phone is lost or stolen. first, these messages. [clucking].

everyone wants to be the cadbury bunny. cause only he brings delicious cadbury crème eggs, while others may keep trying. nobunny knows easter better than cadbury!

this morning, protecting your cell phone and all that information inside of it. for many, it is more than a phone, a rolodex, and even your bank. how to keep all this information safe. mario armstrong lays out your best lines of defense. cell phones, our life line to the world. how important is your mobile phone to you? >> i can't really do without it. >> i really depend on it. >> reporter: you have it right there? >> oh, yeah. i love my phone. >> reporter: our phones can also be risky business. >> i have had it stolen before.

>> reporter: really? >> i think i cried that night. >> reporter: according to one survey, americans on average lose their phone once a year. 1 in 3 people admit to snooping around someone else's phone without permission. that's a lot of sensitive information just waiting to be exposed. >> reporter: the first line of defense, put in a pass code, people. 52% of people don't do it or they use a password that's just too weak. people like alicia nucci. >> reporter: to require a password after 15 minutes, not good at all. not good. that can easily be after a minute. the other thing is, turn simple pass codes off. a strong pass code isn't the only thing you need to have. >> reporter: a big mistake many people make is not updating their apps. those updates often have important fixes that improve security. check your downloads before you

download it. not every app is safe. a simple google search or visit to an app provider's website can verify if it is legit. another great option, the find my iphone app. i showed dominique williams blair how it works. we are going to leave my phone here at the bar. we're going to leave and use find my iphone to see if we can pinpoint back here. now, we figured out we left the phone at the bar. now, the question is, does the app work to help us find it. we are going to fire up the app. is this where we are? >> yes. >> that is where we are. it looks like the app actually is pretty accurate. you can do a couple of things like send some sounds to it so you can hear it. you can also send a text message. even funny men, like chuck knight, want to make sure their jokes and personal information are protected. >> i'm paranoid. i feel like will smith in that

movie where the government is sneaking around and the only person that can help me is gene hackman but i don't know him, mario. what am i supposed to do? >> reporter: one app from lookout provides a full service security operation. it checks your phone for viruses, helps you locate a lost phone and can even identify who has your missing phone. >> something called lock cam. it is a premium feature. as long as your phone has a front facing camera, if someone tries to input your password a certain amount of times, and it is wrong, it will start to take a picture of that person and e-mail that to you. >> i like that a lot, specially if they are very good-looking. >> reporter: let them hold it a couple more days. >> oh, look, kate upton. how convenient. >> unlike chuck knight. to be honest, most of us don't get that lucky when our phones are stolen, which makes these

protective measures that much more important. before we go on, i want to ask the both of you, do you guys use pass codes? >> yes. is it a simple code that's four digits or a swipe? >> mine is four digits. >> i do want you to go to a more advanced pass code. go into your iphone or the pet settings and change it to a four digit alpha numeric pass code. >> i didn't know that. i thought you could only do the four. >> it is not just pass codes and apps but companies that are trying to capitalize on this but could have some helpful things. >> my keys, i am carrying them in this pocket, have this little device that's called the zomm wireless leash. this connects to any phone over blue tooth. the minute i walk 30 or more feet away from my phone, it will start to vibrate and let give me an awed i believe alert letting me know i am away from my phone.

>> what about backing up the data? is there a good way to back it up. >> two things. you should be using something like icloud. that will back up all the information on your devices. for samsung, look at things like keys, k-e-i-s. the data is more important than the devigce. kids photos, memoriries of videos, all that sensitive information is more important than the device. back it up. >> back it up. now, we have homework. nice to see you. thanks. we'll be right back after these messages. now from the maker of splenda sweeteners, discover nectresse. the only 100% natural, no-calorie sweetener made from the goodness of fruit. the rich, sweet taste of sugar. nothing artificial. ♪ it's all that sweet ever needs to be. new nectresse.

sweetness naturally. with thermacare heatwraps. thermacare works differently. it's the only wrap with patented heat cells that penetrate deep to relax, soothe, and unlock tight muscles. for up to 16 hours of relief, try thermacare. because every flake is double-toasted... splashed with sweet honey... and covered in rich double-roasted peanuts. mmm. [ hero ] yummy. [ male announcer ] kellogg's crunchy nut. it's super delicious!

let's check in once again with david gregory for a look at what's coming up on "meet the press". david? >> coming up on the program, the new white house chief of staff. also, senator john mccain, our political roundtable and we'll speak with mark kelly about the reform of the nation's gun laws he seeks along with gabby giffords. >> thanks. >> that's going to do it for us on a sunday morning. >> see you back here tonight for "nbc nightly news". >> see you back here tonight for "nbc nightly news". have a great day, everyone.

a day on the pay cut short when a speed boat slammed in to a ferry with hundreds on board. the latest on the investigation coming up. and we will introduce you to the bay area sicientist behind push to help keep the planet sake in the wake of the meteorite in russia. plus defending dorner. >> it would be good to hear his side of the story. >> surprising twist in the case

of the fugitive ex-cop accused of killing four people like some people say they support dorner. today in the bay starts right now. we're looking live along the embarcadero. funny thing is there's blue sky above there, but in san jose, it was a nothifoggy start to the morning. i mentioned to rob earlier, it was foggy enough that i missed the entrance to the parking lot. >> it's tough when visibility is down to about a quarter mile in spots. but you made it here, which is good. it's even worse right now in santa rose. can't get worse than that. so watch out. san mateo, quarter mile visibility. still patchy fog around the tri-valley. so our temperatures mostly 40s and 50s right now as you go hour by hou