TMO Managing Editor Jeff Butts and Ken bring Mailbag Monday back for a second round. Email on China, AirDrop, and Passcodes. First though, the EC wants every messaging app to interoperate with every other messaging app. The TDO duo has thoughts.
Signal
Receive Signal Messenger Notifications Just From Certain People
Little known fact: you can allow Signal Messenger notifications from specific contacts in Focus Mode. You add the person, not the app.
Hereās How Signal Broke Into Cellebriteās Hacking Device
Moxie Marlinspike of Signal wrote on Wednesday how he was able hack into a Cellebrite device. These devices are used by entities like law enforcement to brute force their way into devices like iPhones.
Given the number of opportunities present, we found that itās possible to execute arbitrary code on a Cellebrite machine simply by including a specially formatted but otherwise innocuous file in any app on a device that is subsequently plugged into Cellebrite and scanned. There are virtually no limits on the code that can be executed.
A fascinating write-up. One can only imagine the thrill of taking a walk, seeing a package fall out of a truck, and finding out that itās a Cellebrite device.
Signal Signups Surge After WhatsApp Controversy And Elon Musk Tweets
Encrypted messaging app Signal is seeing a surge in signups,Ā The VergeĀ reported. It seems to come on the back of supportive tweets from Tesla chief Elon Musk and controversy around WhatsApp mandating users to share data with its parent company, Facebook.
But whatās happening now appears to be a bit of context collapse on social media, as WhatsApp users think theyāre now being forced to share data with Facebook even though thatās been happening all along if they didnāt opt out back in 2016. None of this is helped by Facebook and WhatsAppās recent attacks on Apple for the iPhone makerās decision to mandate new self-reported labels on iOS apps and its future plans to force app makers to request permission to track Apple device owners.Ā The new privacy policy notice doesnāt help Facebookās cause, either, considering it tells users displeased with the changes ā which, again, are about how businesses manage their chats on WhatsApp using Facebookās backend ā to ādelete their account,ā with no other remedies provided.
Featured Articles
Transfer āSignalā Data With its New Update
With a new update rolling outĀ itās now easier to transfer Signal data between devices. It uses a local connection encrypted end-to-end.
Private Messenger āSignalā Now Automatically Blurs Faces
Private messenger app Signal added a feature that lets it automatically blur faces in your images.
Thousands of people are protesting against police brutality and to support the Black Lives Matters cause.Ā If you are a part of the protests, you might post photos of the demonstration around you on social media or send them to your friends ā and thatās not entirely safe, because it could help identify people there and put them in danger.
A great feature. Iāve been trying to create a shortcut that can obfuscate faces.
7 Private Alternatives to Apple Apps and Services
Andrew found seven Apple alternatives to use if you don’t want your data shared with the FBI, including Bitwarden, Cryptomator, and more.
Itās Time for Encrypted Messaging app Signal to go Mainstream
Signal creator Moxie Marlinspike is growing the Signal Foundation and adding new features to the app thanks to money from WhatsApp cofounder Brian Acton.
Since then, Marlinspike’s nonprofit has put Acton’s millionsāand his experience building an app with billions of usersāto work. After years of scraping by with just three overworked full-time staffers, the Signal Foundation now has 20 employees. For years a bare-bones texting and calling app, Signal has increasingly become a fully featured, mainstream communications platform. With its new coding muscle, it has rolled out features at a breakneck speed…
I wish I could use Signal but none of my friends use it.
5 Private Chat Apps and How They Compare With Each Other
There are plenty of private chat apps on the market, but are they all the same?