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What Happens When U.S. Personnel Serve a Foreign Intelligence Agency?

Andrew Orr ·

Remember that story about the iPhone hacking tool called Karma? Lawfare published a good piece detailing the consequences of U.S. spies working for a foreign intelligence agency.

Along the way, the Americans came to appreciate that their efforts at times did indeed include surveillance of political opponents of UAE authorities, and further that the UAE service at times targeted Americans despite assurances that this would not occur (or at least that the operations Project Raven in particular conducted or supported would not be directed at Americans).

That’s probably the biggest point of the story. Americans spying on Americans on behalf of another country.

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Software Pirates Violating Apple's Developer Program Rules, Distributing Hacked Apps

Charlotte Henry ·

Software pirates are using enterprise developer certificates to put hacked versions of popular apps on iPhones. An investigation by Reuters found illegitimate versions of apps such as Spotify, Angry Birds, Pokemon Go, and Minecraft have been distributed away from the App Store. The modified versions of the apps allow iPhone users to avoid adverts, fees, and game rules. However, they are in violation of Apple’s developer program which stipulates the apps can only be distributed via the App Store.

Illicit software distributors such as TutuApp, Panda Helper, AppValley and TweakBox have found ways to use digital certificates to get access to a program Apple introduced to let corporations distribute business apps to their employees without going through Apple’s tightly controlled App Store. Using so-called enterprise developer certificates, these pirate operations are providing modified versions of popular apps to consumers, enabling them to stream music without ads and to circumvent fees and rules in games, depriving Apple and legitimate app makers of revenue.

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Amazon Cancels Plans for New York Campus

Charlotte Henry ·

Amazon announced Thursday it has canceled its plans to build a corporate campus in New York City. The proposal had faced opposition from some unions and lawmakers, such as Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York Times reported. In particular, opponents were aggrieved by a proposal from city and state officials to give the company $3 billion incentives package.

It was a remarkable win for insurgent progressive politicians led by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose upset victory last year happened to occur in the district where Amazon had planned its site. Her win galvanized the party’s left flank, which mobilized against the deal. As recently as Wednesday, the governor had brokered a meeting between Amazon executives and the union leaders who had been resistant to the deal, according to two people briefed on the sit-down. The meeting ended without any compromise on the part of Amazon, according to the people.

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How Apple News Affects Publishers

Andrew Orr ·

Great analysis as usual by Ben Thompson. He writes how the Apple News subscription might be good for certain publishers, and bad for others.

To that end, I am sure that a significant number of publications will sign up for Apple’s offering; clearly the company is confident enough to leak a date. And, frankly, many publications should: most publishers are already locked into the volume game when it comes to their editorial direction, and Apple News subscription payouts will be additive to the bottom line.

The main thing that concerns me is how revenue will be driven by clicks. I hope that Apple News doesn’t become a flood of yellow journalism.