TMO Link Archives - Page 25 of 121 - The Mac Observer

Watch Season One of 'Picard' For Free

Charlotte Henry · March 25, 2020

Lots of shows have had to suspend shooting due to the coronavirus outbreak. If you need something new to watch in the meantime, you can watch Picard for free. Entertainment Week reported that there is a 30-day free trial for CBS All Access, with a coupon code making all episodes of the Star Trek spin-off available.

You’ll still have to sign up for the CBS streaming service to watch the show, but now there’s a coupon code that unlocks Picard: “GIFT.” The will unlock a one month free trial which includes all shows on the service (so if you want to check out Star Trek: Discovery or old episodes of Next Generation, you can do that too).

KeepSolid VPN Unlimited Adds DNS Firewall for Customers

Andrew Orr · March 25, 2020

KeepSolid’s VPN Unlimited added a new feature for its customers. This DNS firewall can block domains associated with malware, porn, drugs and alcohol, gambling, games, and more.

This benefit of KeepSolid DNS Firewall is closely connected with the previous one. If you don’t open a malicious website, you won’t get infected with malware. Better prevent than cure, agree? And there is really much to avoid, as malware attacks are exponentially increasing over time.

Great news for KeepSolid customers. And if you’re not a customer, I recommend reading my roundup of DNS services to use.

Internet Archive Releases National Emergency Library With 1.4 Million Books

Andrew Orr · March 25, 2020

As of March 24 the Internet Archive suspended wait lists for its collection of books by creating a National Emergency Library.

This suspension will run through June 30, 2020, or the end of the US national emergency, whichever is later.

During the waitlist suspension, users will be able to borrow books from the National Emergency Library without joining a waitlist, ensuring that students will have access to assigned readings and library materials that the Internet Archive has digitized for the remainder of the US academic calendar, and that people who cannot physically access their local libraries because of closure or self-quarantine can continue to read and thrive during this time of crisis, keeping themselves and others safe.

Could We See a US Digital Dollar Soon?

Andrew Orr · March 25, 2020

So right away, the answer to my headline is “probably not.” The article I’m linking to says language of digital dollars was removed from the final version of the stimulus package. But I think it’s worthwhile to think about.

The bill establishes a digital dollar, which it defines as ‘a balance expressed as a dollar value consisting of digital ledger entries that are recorded as liabilities in the accounts of any Federal Reserve Bank or … an electronic unit of value, redeemable by an eligible financial institution (as determined by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System).’

Now may not be the time to introduce entirely new technologies, especially if they slow the release of the package. But I personally like the idea, although I don’t advocate for a completely cashless society as I’ve mentioned before.

Neato Robot Vacuums Can Be Controlled With Siri Shortcuts

Andrew Orr · March 24, 2020

Neato Robotics announced today that it added support for Siri Shortcuts within its app. This means you can start controlling your robot vacuum with your voice.

By connecting your Neato to Siri Shortcuts, Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa, you can simply start cleaning just by using your voice.

I’d love to get a robot vacuum some day. In the meantime, if you have one of these products, try controlling it with a shortcut on your HomePod, Apple Watch, or iOS device.

Cellebrite Releases Report of Digital Intelligence Trends 2020

Andrew Orr · March 24, 2020

Forensics company Cellebrite, mainly known for its iPhone hacking capabilities, released a report of top digital intelligence trends for 2020. One thing that stuck out at me:

…over 70 percent of officers are still asking witnesses and victims to surrender their devices…However, most people do not want to have their primary communication device taken away for an indefinite period. To combat this issue, 67 percent of agency management believe that mobility technology is important or very important to the agency’s long-term digital evidence strategy and 72 percent of investigators believe it is important to conduct in-the-field extractions of this data.

In other words, it sounds to me like LE wants the capability to extract data from devices on site, instead of sending it to a lab. Fast action is important for LE, but it may also be too fast for people to think about those pesky rights they have before handing their phone over.

Lawyers: Turn off Alexa and Google Home Before Confidential Meetings

Andrew Orr · March 23, 2020

Lawyers who are working from home are encouraged to turn off devices like Amazon Alexa and Google Home because these products may eavesdrop.

“Perhaps we’re being slightly paranoid, but we need to have a lot of trust in these organizations and these devices,” Hancock said. “We’d rather not take those risks.”

The firm worries about the devices being compromised, less so with name-brand products like Alexa, but more so for cheap knock-off devices, he added.

It’s definitely not just cheap knock-offs.

Are Camera Apps Worth the Expense?

Andrew Orr · March 23, 2020

Alex Coleman writes about camera apps and why they’re probably not worth the purchase.

After shooting extensively with the latest versions of some of these apps, including an in-depth comparison against the stock camera app, I don’t believe there’s much value in keeping them installed. Put simply, the phone manufacturers have added enough “secret sauce” to their imaging pipeline that an app just won’t create a better quality image, in most cases.

You know, I have to agree with this. Just based on my own experience, I’ve used a ton of different camera apps over the years, and eventually stopped using every single one, until now I stick with Apple’s built-in camera app.

Should We Ban Targeted Advertising?

Andrew Orr · March 23, 2020

Gilad Edelman asks an important question at Wired: Why don’t we just ban targeted advertising?

The solution to our privacy problems, suggested Hansson, was actually quite simple. If companies couldn’t use our data to target ads, they would have no reason to gobble it up in the first place, and no opportunity to do mischief with it later. From that fact flowed a straightforward fix: “Ban the right of companies to use personal data for advertising targeting.”

Instead of, or in addition to, banning or restricting targeted advertising, I think we should go a step further and restrict data collection, which is what these companies use for these ads in the first place. When any startup without a track record can enter the business of collecting and selling our personal information, that’s a problem.

Manfredi Gioacchini Used an iPhone to Document Climate Change in Antarctica

Andrew Orr · March 20, 2020

Documentary photographer Manfredi Gioacchini is documenting climate change in Antarctica. His tool? An iPhone.

“Most of the usage was related with video recording, in fact the audio of the new phone is incredible,” says the photographer. “That’s important in matters of the climate change… capturing the sounds of icebergs breaking down…”

He also managed to take advantage of the phone’s Night Mode, though it wasn’t necessary for most of the trip, since the sun never dipped below twilight. Scroll down to see Manfredi’s photos for yourself.

Important work, and also beautiful.

Google: “We Don’t Sell Your Data, We Just Monetize It”

Andrew Orr · March 20, 2020

One way to avoid the California Consumer Privacy Act is to claim that you don’t sell data. This is what Google has seemingly done.

Google monetizes what it observes about people in two major ways: It uses data to build individual profiles with demographics and interests, then lets advertisers target groups of people based on those traits. It shares data with advertisers directly and asks them to bid on individual ads.

As I tweeted yesterday, there is no difference between selling “access” to data and selling data “directly.” In both scenarios, people are products for advertisers. Although I’m sure lawsuits have been won and lost on lesser technicalities.

Is Apple the Company That Can Transform the AR Industry?

Andrew Orr · March 19, 2020

Lucas Matney wrote for TechCrunch and asked if Apple can keep the AR industry alive.

AR startups have already been struggling and hardware efforts have largely cratered. The software platforms have had some success building what Apple hasn’t or won’t for niche enterprise customers, but as the economic realities shift, all bets are off.

First, I don’t think there’s much of an AR industry right now to keep alive. We have a scattering of AR features on iPhones and Androids, but right now it still seems niche. Second, in my biased opinion as an Apple blogger, I think Apple is the one to truly make AR mainstream. As an example, Apple didn’t invent the cellphone, but the iPhone transformed our lives and the cellphone industry. For the company to do the same with AR, we need an AR headset.

Book Publisher Macmillan Cancels Plan to Stifle Libraries

Andrew Orr · March 18, 2020

The Big Five book publishers had a plan to hurt consumers by imposing limitations on eBook licensing to libraries. One of them—Macmillan—is backing out.

There are times in life when differences should be put aside,” Macmillan CEO John Sargent wrote in a memo to librarians obtained by Publishers Weekly. “Effective on Friday (or whenever thereafter our wholesalers can effect the change), Macmillan will return to the library e-book pricing model that was in effect on Oct. 31, 2019. In addition, we will be lowering some ebook prices on a short term basis to help expand libraries collections in these difficult times. Stay safe.

You have literally no “differences” with libraries other than money. And implying that you’re doing this because of the coronavirus is, to put it politely, shady. Not to mention all the libraries boycotting Macmillan. No, this is entirely a gesture of good will because of “these difficult times.”

U.S. Government Wants to Track Coronavirus Spread With Location Data

Andrew Orr · March 17, 2020

The U.S. government is in talks with Facebook, Google, and others to use location data to track the spread of the coronavirus.

Public-health experts are interested in the possibility that private-sector companies could compile the data in anonymous, aggregated form, which they could then use to map the spread of the infection, according to three people familiar with the effort, who requested anonymity because the project is in its early stages.

On the surface, it’s for good intentions (They always seem good on the surface). But we know that in certain situations, data can be de-anonymized. Some questions: How will they use this data? How effective would this be? Will the government keep the database afterward? My initial thought is that I have no problem with medical experts and scientists doing this. But I have no faith in this current administration, or faith in companies like Facebook and Google. What if they created an app to collect this data? That way it’s optional. And please password–protect the server.

Grayshift Increases Price as it Struggles to Hack iPhones

Andrew Orr · March 17, 2020

iOS forensics company Grayshift was forced to raise its prices last year, noting that “Forensic Access to iOS continues to increase in difficulty and complexity.”

“I think it’s going to get harder and harder to find these kinds of unlocking flaws, because Apple does control the entire stack,” Alex Stamos, director of the Stanford Internet Observatory and former Facebook chief security officer, previously told Motherboard. “I think a couple more hardware revisions of understanding the ways that these unlocks are happening and [Apple is] going to make it extremely difficult. Which then will bring this debate back…”

It’s a complex issue. On one hand it’s good news for Apple customers. On the other hand, it makes the government is fight tooth and nail to take away our security.

Shadowserver Keeps the Web Safe. Now it Needs Help

Andrew Orr · March 17, 2020

A small nonprofit organization called Shadowserver helps keep the web safe. It scans almost the entire internet to create activity reports for network operators. It also hosts a database of 1.2 billion malware samples, freely accessible to everyone. But it needs to raise money to stay in operation.

For more than 15 years, Shadowserver has been funded by Cisco as an independent organization. But thanks to budget restructuring, the group now has to go out on its own. Rather than seek a new benefactor, founder Richard Perlotto says the goal is for Shadowserver to become a fully community-funded alliance that doesn’t rely on any one contributor to survive. The group needs to raise $400,000 in the next few weeks to survive the transition, and then it will still need $1.7 million more to make it through 2020…

I had never heard of Shadowserver but it’s clear the organization is important. You can become a sponsor to donate money here.

No, Apple Isn’t Going to Buy Disney

Andrew Orr · March 16, 2020

Disney stock is dropping and analysts like Bernie McTernan from Rosenblatt Securities think that tech giants like Apple should consider buying it.

We believe those with long-time horizons, like mega-cap companies with large cash balances and whose equity outperformed Disney over the last three weeks, like Apple, could take advantage of the volatility. The upside from acquiring Disney would be securing their content/streaming strategy and potential synergies from adding the emerging Disney ecosystem to the iOS platform.

Apple could also look into buying a private island, renaming it Island+, and forming its own country. I don’t know about you but sign me up for a squircle-shaped house.

TikTok Censors Posts by People it Deems Ugly or Poor

Andrew Orr · March 16, 2020

Chinese app TikTok told its moderators to censor posts from users deemed too ugly, poor, or disabled.

…according to internal documents obtained by The Intercept. These same documents show moderators were also told to censor political speech in TikTok livestreams, punishing those who harmed “national honor” or broadcast streams about “state organs such as police” with bans from the platform.

‘The Uncensored Library’ Bypasses Censorship in Minecraft

Andrew Orr · March 16, 2020

Reporters Without Borders created The Uncensored Library inside of Minecraft as a way to bypass censorship.

Anyone can download the necessary map, and Minecraft‘s nature makes it easy to host another server if an oppressive country tries to take one down.

Hopefully all of us sharing news about it doesn’t kill it faster.

This Safari Extension Can Clean Links With Trackers

Andrew Orr · March 13, 2020

A Safari extension called Clean Links can automatically remove tracking parameters from URLs. Blocked trackers include UTM by Google Analytics, FBCLID by Facebook, and others. It is a random app from GitHub outside of the App Store. I uploaded it to VirusTotal and it didn’t show anything weird. But the creator also makes the source code available.

To install Clean Links you can either download the latest prebuild extension from the releases tab, or you can clone the repository and build it yourself.

I also use a shortcut that can accomplish the same thing on iOS and iPadOS.

56 Apps Spy on Your Clipboard and Apple Doesn’t Care

Andrew Orr · March 13, 2020

Researchers found 56 apps that are spying on the iOS clipboard/pasteboard, like TikTok, New York Times, Fruit Ninja, and more. There are undoubtedly many more apps engaging in this behavior. And as I wrote in February, Apple doesn’t think it’s a problem.

We found that many apps quietly read any text found in the pasteboard every time the app is opened. Text left in the pasteboard could be as simple as a shopping list, or could be something more sensitive: passwords, account numbers, etc.

Data Caps Probably Won’t Go Away Permanently

Andrew Orr · March 13, 2020

Companies are making employees work from home because of the coronavirus. In a rare show of generosity, many ISPs are eliminating data caps. But I have to disagree with Devin Coldeway. Data caps are a way to make money from customers, and I don’t think they will go away permanently. They’ll be charging us up the wazoo like old times.

Pressure from the global pandemic has broadband companies loosening the arbitrary restrictions on the connections users pay for — and this may be the beginning of the end for the data caps we’ve lived in fear of for decades. Here’s why.

Sneak Peek: Here’s How a NordVPN Server Works

Andrew Orr · March 13, 2020

TechRadar Pro teamed up with NordVPN to give people an idea of what exactly goes on inside of a VPN server. It’s a fascinating glimpse into a technology ever-growing in popularity.

The session revealed that NordVPN’s Linux servers are configured with various tools that enhance security, privacy, and authentication. FreeRADIUS is used for authentication, while the squid proxy software is also used. SaltStack is used for correct server configuration, controlling the infrastructure.