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Web Founder Sir Tim Berners-Lee Auctioning Source Code as NFT

Charlotte Henry ·

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the founder of the world wide web, is auctioning the source code as an NFT. The move is not without controversy, BBC News reported.

Some have expressed surprise at the news given that Sir Tim famously refused to patent his invention. The sale is being handled by Sotheby’s auction house, and the money made will be put towards causes chosen by Sir Tim and his wife, Sotheby’s said. Sir Tim invented the world wide web – the main modern way we use the internet – in 1989. He proposed a way of linking together different pieces of information stored on the early internet through hyperlinks, and built the first web browser and web server.

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Why You Should Drill a Hole Into Your iPhone or iPad

Andrew Orr ·

Over the weekend, Nikita Mazurov for The Intercept reminds us that a good way to wipe our iDevices is to drill a hole through it.

If you can’t access your device, the most careful approach to wiping it is to destroy the flash memory chip that houses your data. This way you don’t have to lose sleep if you didn’t use a strong passcode, or worry about a forensics vendor being able to recover any of your personal information.

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Gaming Company ‘EA’ Suffers Data Breach of Game Code

Andrew Orr ·

Electronic Arts is the latest company to have information stolen in a data breach. It includes the source code for FIFA 21, the Frostbite engine, and proprietary frameworks and SDKs.

We are investigating a recent incident of intrusion into our network where a limited amount of game source code and related tools were stolen. No player data was accessed, and we have no reason to believe there is any risk to player privacy.

Following the incident, we’ve already made security improvements and do not expect an impact on our games or our business. We are actively working with law enforcement officials and other experts as part of this ongoing criminal investigation.

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Apple Should Have Been Clear About macOS Monterey and M1 Macs

Charlotte Henry ·

As we have now learned, users will require an M1 Mac to get all of the features coming in macOS Monterey. Oliver Haslam at iMore thinks that by allowing users and journalists to work this out, instead of properly announcing itself, Apple missed a big opportunity to talk up its own silicon. I rather agree.

What if Apple had made a point out of the M1 Macs getting the full feature set? What if Apple had someone stand on its virtual stage and say “because M1 is so powerful, and thanks to its Neural Engine, we were able to take macOS Monterey a step further on new Macs.” What if someone had rolled out the red carpet, shown the new features off on a bright orange M1 iMac, and pointed out just why the M1 is so great? The whole message would be different. Then, the M1 would be the hero of the piece, flexing its muscle to go above and beyond. Now, it’s the villain as it rips features from Intel’s cold, dead hands.

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Bitcoin is Now Legal Tender in El Salvador

Andrew Orr ·

El Salvador recently become the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, other other counties in Latin America may follow suit.

By contrast, cryptocurrencies like bitcoin allow anyone with a mobile phone to send or receive funds, regardless of location. A software app known as a “wallet” manages the cryptocurrency as needed. Such wallets are safeguarded on phones and protected by passwords or biometric mechanisms like fingerprints.

This is what people mean when they talk about cryptocurrency’s decentralization. We don’t notice much in developed countries because we have no shortage of banks to choose from. But banks may be scarce in developing countries, with 70% of people in El Salvador being unbanked. With crypto, you no longer need a bank.

TMO Deals

Big Loud Bluetooth Speaker: $129.59

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on the TREBLAB HD-Max, which is, in a nutshell, a big, loud, Bluetooth speaker with a four-speaker design. It features 50W speakers and 3 sound modes that can function indoors and outdoors. It also has an internal battery and passthrough charging, and boasts playtime of up to 20 hours at 30% volume. This device is $161.99 through our deal, but coupon code WELOVEDAD takes an additional 20% off for a checkout price of $129.59.

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Facebook Messenger on iOS Gets New Chat Themes, QR Code Payments

Andrew Orr ·

Facebook announced new features coming to its Messenger app. Chat themes, a quick reply bar, as well as QR codes and payments links.

We’re all about increasing efficiency, so we’ve added a new quick reply bar to the Messenger media viewer. This makes it easier to have conversations sparked by a cool photo or video without needing to go back to your main chat thread. Just tap on the photo or video and send a response through the quick reply bar at the bottom of the screen. Swipe up to exit the full-screen media viewer and head back to your main chat thread

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Outlook for iPhone Adds Voice Features With Cortana

Andrew Orr ·

An update for Outlook on iPhone adds voice commands powered by Microsoft’s Cortana assistant.

Now Outlook users with an iPhone or iPad can rely on Cortana’s voice capabilities to schedule meetings, search for emails, and read out a reply to an email. Outlook users can hold down the Google-like plus sign icon on iOS (and soon Android), and then tap the microphone icon to “Use Voice” to tell Cortana what to do in Outlook.

App Store: Outlook

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JBS USA Pays $11 Million in Ransom After Cyberattack

Andrew Orr ·

On Thursday, meat supplier JBS said it paid US$11 million after ransomware attack stopped its operations.

In consultation with internal IT professionals and third-party cybersecurity experts, the company made the decision to mitigate any unforeseen issues related to the attack and ensure no data was exfiltrated.

I wonder if the FBI will recover this ransom as well, like the Colonial Pipeline money.

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Mozilla Brings Firefox Redesign to iPhone and iPad

Andrew Orr ·

When Mozilla redesigned Firefox for desktop in the version 84 release, it did the same overhaul for the mobile versions.

We’ve rebuilt parts of Firefox in native components, making it feel more iPhone and iPad-like than ever before. You’ll notice design elements that look and work identically to those found in many other apps, so our browser feels instantly familiar. We’ve also taken a major step up in accessibility. Firefox now supports more text sizes and integrates better with screen readers.

TMO Deals

FoldersSynchronizer for Mac: Lifetime Subscription

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on FoldersSynchronizer for Mac, a Mac utility that synchronizes and backs-up files, folders and disks. You choose one or more pairs of files, folders or disks then FS will synchronize or backup those exactly. It works on Intel and Apple M1 Macs, and a lifetime subscription is $14.99 through our deal.

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HBO Working With Apple to Fix HBO Max Apple TV App Issues

Charlotte Henry ·

Earlier this week the HBO Max app for Apple TV was updated and caused a number of issues. For example features as “What did she say?” and touching the D-pad/trackpad to bring up the timeline while playing content no longer worked. ScreenTimes reported that HBO is ow aware of “some” of the issue and working with Apple to get them fixed.

This new version, while seemingly containing no updates to the gallery UI, has replaced the standard tvOS playback UI with HBO’s own version… The bottom line is, the viewing experience in the HBO Max app is now horrifically bad and almost unusable unless you’re planning just to play and pause. If you need to do anything else, don’t get your hopes up. Ironically, the notes for the update are “A smoother streaming experience is waiting for you with a focus on bug fixes and performance improvements”.

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Cryptee Updates With Line Spacing, Quick Document Access

Andrew Orr ·

Encrypted storage provider Crypt.ee is back with updates like remembering encryption keys, quick access to recent documents, and line spacing in documents.

We’re slowly getting ready to release our paper-mode for Cryptee Docs. It will allow you to work print-accurately on popular paper sizes like A4 / U.S. Letter etc, much like your favorite rich text editors like Microsoft Word™. But we thought perhaps we can release some of these paper-specific features ahead of time.

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Fujifilm Fights Ransomware Attack and Works to Restore Servers

Andrew Orr ·

Fujifilm was hit by a ransomware attack last week but refuses to pay the ransom. Instead, it’s working to restore its servers with backups.

On 4 June it confirmed a ransomware attack was affecting a “specific network” in Japan and that it shut down “all networks and server systems” while it investigated the “extent and scale” of the attack.

Fujifilm said it would not comment on the amount demanded by the ransomware gang. The company has started bringing its network, servers, and computers in Japan “back into operation” and is aiming to be fully up and running “this week”. It has also restarted some product deliveries, which were particularly hard hit by the cyberattack.

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'RockYou2021' is the Biggest Password Leak Ever (So Far)

Andrew Orr ·

Someone posted a 100GB text file to a hacking forum recently. It contains 8.4 billion entries of passwords from data leaks and breaches.

Considering the fact that only about 4.7 billion people are online, numbers-wise the RockYou2021 compilation potentially includes the passwords of the entire global online population almost two times over. For that reason, users are recommended to immediately check if their passwords were included in the leak.

“Two times over” sounds like it’s a combination of old and new passwords alike. It’s also good to point out that no usernames or email addresses were included, so an attacker wouldn’t be able to do much with this password list.

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$2.3 Million Bitcoin Seized from Colonial Pipeline Hackers

Andrew Orr ·

The U.S. Department of Justice seized about US$2.3 million in bitcoin ransom paid to the hackers behind the attack on Colonial Pipeline.

An affidavit filed on Monday said the FBI was in possession of a private key to unlock a bitcoin wallet that had received most of the funds. It was unclear how the FBI gained access to the key.

“unclear how the FBI gained access.” From other sources it sounds like the FBI used a subpoena and gained control over the rented cloud server the hackers were using. Private key sitting on the server, it seems.

TMO Deals

Apple AirTag Protector Case: $14.95

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on the Apple AirTag Protector Case. Made of strong TPU and PC material, this case offers full protection of your AirTag. It’s lightweight and comes with its own carabiner for attaching it to other things. It’s $14.95 through our deal.

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Jack Dorsey's Company 'Square' Could Make Hardware Crypto Wallet

Andrew Orr ·

In a 13-part series on Twitter, Jack Dorsey announced that Square is considering making a hardware wallet for bitcoin.

11/Layer 2 is essential for growth. The orders-of-magnitude growth we imagine requires a mix of custodial, off-chain, and second layer solutions that allow people to ‘get off of 0.’ What tech investments can enable seamless, scalable, L2 native support for a hardware wallet?

TMO Deals

Send/Receive Text Messages, Locations, SOS When Cellular Service Is Unavailable: $230

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on the RADACAT GPS Messenger 2, a device with a built-in Mini GPS tracking device that can be used as a messenger and a tracker by connecting to the user’s mobile phone. This device allows users to send and receive text messages, real-time locations, and SOS to other Radacat C2 users even when cellular service is unavailable. A 2-pack of these devices is $230 through our deal.