There could be no WWDC in 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak, following new advice from Santa Clara County Public Health Department.
Utah is Now a Surveillance State Thanks to This Company
A surveillance company called Banjo has partnered with Utah state authorities to enable a dystopian panopticon.
The lofty goal of Banjo’s system is to alert law enforcement of crimes as they happen. It claims it does this while somehow stripping all personal data from the system, allowing it to help cops without putting anyone’s privacy at risk. As with other algorithmic crime systems, there is little public oversight or information about how, exactly, the system determines what is worth alerting cops to.
A.G. William Barr Wants Tech Companies to Fight Child Sexual Abuse
Attorney General William Barr wants tech companies like Apple to fight online child sexual abuse even more with “voluntary standards.”
These voluntary principles are built on existing industry efforts to combat these crimes. Some leading companies have dedicated significant resources to develop and deploy tools in the fight to protect children online and to detect, disrupt and identify offenders. Although significant progress has been made, there is much more to be done to strengthen existing efforts and enhance collective action.
First, as I discovered last year Apple started to scan online iCloud content for child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Many other companies do the same. Second, although encryption wasn’t explicitly mentioned, this is undoubtedly (in my opinion) a new development in the war on encryption. Child predators are one of the scary boogeymen used by the government to erode our privacy even further. I of course do support Apple scanning for this content, but it’s not a black and white issue.
DuckDuckGo Tracker Radar is a Custom Block List
DuckDuckGo Tracker Radar is a new block list created by the company over the past couple years. It’s open source and available on GitHub.
iPhone Photography, Device Disinfection – TMO Daily Observations 2020-03-05
Andrew Orr and Bryan Chaffin join host Kelly Guimont to discuss disinfecting (not just cleaning!) your devices, and Andrew’s tips for iPhone photography.
Apple Looking for Maps Writer/Editor
Apple advertised for a Writer/Editor for Maps, indicating that it is looking to put its own editorial information into Maps.
EVRI 80W USB-C Charging Station with 4x QuickCharge Ports: $52.99
We have a deal on the EVRI 80W USB-C Charging Station, a charging hub for your mobile devices that features four QuickCharge ports. It also has a USB-C port with enough juice to charge your MacBook, MacBook Air, or MacBook Pro. This device is $52.99 through our deal.
More Details of How Uyghur Muslims Are Exploited in Tech Supply Chains Emerge
Earlier this week, I reported on research by an Australian think tank that highlighted how Uyghur Muslims in China were being exploited, maltreated, and used in the manufacturing of products. Apple is one of the companies whose supply chain was cited in the report. Now, the Associated Press has published further on-the-ground reporting about the exploitation of this minority during the making of tech products. Apple is again one of the firms mentioned, along with the likes of Lenovo and Huawei.
OFILM’s website indicates the Xinjiang workers make screens, camera cover lenses and fingerprint scanners. It touts customers including Apple, Samsung, Lenovo, Dell, HP, LG and Huawei, although there was no way for the AP to track specific products to specific companies. Apple’s most recent list of suppliers, published January last year, includes three OFILM factories in Nanchang. It’s unclear whether the specific OFILM factory the AP visited twice in Nanchang supplies Apple, but it has the same address as one listed. Another OFILM factory is located about half a mile away on a different street. Apple did not answer repeated requests for clarification on which factory it uses. In an email, Apple said its code of conduct requires suppliers to “provide channels that encourage employees to voice concerns.” It said it interviews the employees of suppliers during annual assessments in their local language without their managers present, and had done 44,000 interviews in 2018.
Is iCloud Slow For You Today? You’re Not Alone
iCloud services are experiencing some issues today, including iMessage, Apple Notes, iCloud Photos, iCloud Drive, and more.
Facebook Begins Rolling Out Messenger for Mac
Facebook has begun rolling out its dedicated Messenger app for Mac, which has been spotted by users in the French App Store.
