After reports that T-Mobile was blocking iCloud Private Relay for most subscribers, the carrier found a bug in iOS causing all the ruckus.
iCloud
T-Mobile Blocks iCloud Private Relay for Customers in United States
It appears that carriers in the U.S. and aboard aren’t happy with iCloud Private Relay. The setting, released with iOS 15, likely interferes with surveillance of customers. A report from 9To5Mac says that T-Mobile has begun blocking the feature.
The change does not appear to be network-wide just yet, but rather it appears T-Mobile is in the process of rolling it out. This means that some users might still be able to use iCloud Private Relay when connected to their cellular network – at least for now.
Very shady behavior. I haven’t been using Private Relay because it overrides my DNS. The good news is that carriers can’t prevent you from changing your DNS settings.
iCloud, Twitter, MineCraft, Cloudflare, All Vulnerable to a Powerful Bug
According to a report on Friday, major apps and services such as iCloud, Cloudflare, Steam, Twitter, and others are vulnerable to a bug.
On Thursday, researchers noticed that a popular Java logging library (log4j) had a bug that allows for Remote Code Execution or RCE, hacker lingo for one of the most dangerous types of vulnerabilities, one that essentially allows hackers to take control of the target. GitHub labeled the vulnerability as “critical severity,” and many researchers, as well as the Director of Cybersecurity at the NSA, are sounding the alarm.
If the NSA is publicly worried, you know it’s bad. Update: Cloudflare says they are not vulnerable, “We responded quickly to evaluate all potential areas of risk and updated our software to prevent attacks, and have not been able to replicate any external claims that we might be at risk.” The company published a blog post on the matter.
Security Friday: Bug Bounties, Updates, and Tools for "Good Guys" – TMO Daily Observations 2021-10-29
Andrew Orr joins host Kelly Guimont to discuss Security Friday news and updates including who can get into your phone now, and a massive bug bounty.
iCloud+, OBD-II, and iOS 15 Tricks! – Mac Geek Gab 895
Settings get more granular in iOS 15, and your tips help us find a few new places to use that! Other tips include storing your music online for free, sorting out what your car is trying to tell you, and making sense of iCloud+. That’s not all, though, your two favorite geeks answer your questions about taming Reminders, sharing Contacts, and making Numbers and Excel tell time. Press play and join John and Dave in learning at least five new things!
iMessages are End-To-End Encrypted But iCloud Backups Are Not
For Lifehacker, Jake Peterson wrote a reminder that under certain circumstances, Apple can theoretically access your iMessages.
Here’s the tricky thing; Messages in iCloud is end-to-end encrypted, just as you’d expect—that’s why there’s no way to access your messages on the web, such as by logging in to icloud.com. There’s one big problem, though: your iCloud Backup isn’t end-to-end encrypted—and Apple stores the key to unlock your encrypted messages within that backup.
Messages in iCloud has been a thing for a few years now, but you can turn it off.
Import Your iPhone or Mac Text Substitutions
Did you know you can backup and import your Mac or iPhone Text Substitutions? Here’s a Mini-Segment from Mac Geek Gab 892, and you can learn more in this Apple Support Guide.
iOS 15: Here's How to Set Up an iCloud Data Recovery Contact
In recent versions of its operating systems, Apple has added a way to set up an iCloud Data Recovery contact.
Italy Calls iCloud Terms and Conditions Illegal
An Italian regulatory agency that raised prior complaints about Apple has found that some of the iCloud terms and conditions are illegal.
AirTag Zero Day Found That Could Steal Your iCloud Password
A security researcher found a zero-day bug with AirTag that could let an attacker potentially steal your Apple ID.
Apple’s “Lost Mode” allows a user to mark their Airtag as missing if they have misplaced it. This generates a unique https://found.apple.com page, which contains the Airtag’s serial number, and the phone number and personal message of the Airtag owner.
What You Should Know About iCloud+
Anybody paying for extra iCloud storage space, as well as Apple One subscribers, have a new service. Jeff Butts walks you through the additional features and benefits that come with iCloud+.
How to Use the iCloud+ Hide My Email Feature
As of iOS 15, those who pay for extra iCloud storage also get access to the iCloud+ service. One of its features is the Hide My Email option. Jeff Butts walks through its benefits and usage.
Here's How to Force Files to Download on iOS
Redditor u/kevingrabher wrote about a shortcut that can force files in iCloud Drive to download. This helps you keep important files handy for offline access. Here are the steps: Open the Shortcuts app and create a new shortcut. Add Action “Get Contents of Folder” (*). Press the triangle icon and enable “Recursive.” Add Action “Get Details of Files.” Set the detail variable to “File Size” (if not set by default). In the first action you’ll probably want to choose Ask Every Time, so you can download a different folder each time.
How to Start Using Custom iCloud Domains for Email
Custom iCloud domains have recently become available for subscribers as part of iCloud+. Here’s where to find the setting.
Scammer Stole Over 620,000 iCloud Photos Looking for Nudes
Hao Kuo Chi, 40, of La Puente, has agreed to plead guilty to four felonies, including conspiracy to gain unauthorized access to a computer.
Apple’s On-iCloud or Is It On-Device CSAM Scan?
John Kheit digs into where Apple’s CSAM scanning is taking place, arguing that where Apple reads your files is super important for privacy.
Apple's Mass Turnover in iCloud, Health, AI Teams
Quite a few big names are leaving Apple. This recent mass turnover from Cupertino’s Health, iCloud, and AI teams could be a result of Apple’s controversial back-to-the-office policy, or simply a reflection of the times in tech careers.
Apple Now Scans Uploaded Content for Child Abuse Imagery (Update)
Andrew noticed something new in Apple’s privacy policy, last updated May 9, 2019. Apple now scans uploaded content for child abuse content.
EFF Shares Statement on Apple Scanning for Illegal Content
This week we discovered that Apple plans to localize its scanning efforts to detect child sexual abuse material. The move has been widely criticized and the Electronic Frontier Foundation has shared its statement on the matter.
All it would take to widen the narrow backdoor that Apple is building is an expansion of the machine learning parameters to look for additional types of content, or a tweak of the configuration flags to scan, not just children’s, but anyone’s accounts. That’s not a slippery slope; that’s a fully built system just waiting for external pressure to make the slightest change.
Apple Expands Child Safety Across Messages, Photos, and Siri
Apple is expanding its efforts to combat child sexual abuse material (CSAM) across its platform. Content scanning in Messages, iCloud Photos, and Siri.
iOS 15: How to Set Up a Legacy Contact to Pass on Data
With its next round of operating systems Apple is creating a Digital Legacy program to enable easier access to our loved ones after we die.
iCloud Mail Suffers System Outage for Many Apple Users
Some Apple users are finding that iCloud Mail is experiencing an ongoing system outage on Monday, starting around 9:00AM ET.
Is iCloud Private Relay Safe For Banking?
In this mini-episode from Mac Geek Gab 877, Dave and John discuss Apple’s iCloud Private Relay and if it’s safe for banking.
In addition, be sure to check out our piece on iCloud Private Relay to learn more.
Digging into Apple's iCloud Private Relay
At this week’s WWDC Keynote, Apple announced iCloud Private Relay, a privacy feature aimed towards further separating you and your browsing activity from people who want to track and collect data about you. iCloud Private Relay works for anyone with an iCloud+ subscription using iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS Monterey, and when enabled it protects all your Safari browsing, all DNS queries, and any insecure web traffic from other apps.