Search Results for: apple

Patent troll hits Microsoft with $242 million US verdict in Cortana lawsuit

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Microsoft (MSFT.O) must pay patent owner IPA Technologies $242 million, a federal jury in Delaware said on Friday after determining that Microsoft’s Cortana virtual-assistant software infringed an IPA patent. The jury agreed with IPA after a week-long trial that Microsoft’s voice-recognition technology violates IPA’s patent rights in computer-communications software. IPA is a subsidiary of patent-licensing Read more about Patent troll hits Microsoft with $242 million US verdict in Cortana lawsuit[…]

Helldivers 2 PC players suddenly have to link to a PSN account and they’re not being chill about it

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Nintendo sent a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) notice for over 8,000 GitHub repositories hosting code from the Yuzu Switch emulator, which the Zelda maker previously described as enabling “piracy at a colossal scale.” The sweeping takedown comes two months after Yuzu’s creators quickly settled a lawsuit with Nintendo and its notoriously trigger-happy legal team Read more about Helldivers 2 PC players suddenly have to link to a PSN account and they’re not being chill about it[…]

Nintendo blitzes GitHub with over 8,000 emulator-related DMCA takedowns

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Nintendo sent a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) notice for over 8,000 GitHub repositories hosting code from the Yuzu Switch emulator, which the Zelda maker previously described as enabling “piracy at a colossal scale.” The sweeping takedown comes two months after Yuzu’s creators quickly settled a lawsuit with Nintendo and its notoriously trigger-happy legal team Read more about Nintendo blitzes GitHub with over 8,000 emulator-related DMCA takedowns[…]

EU’s new right-to-repair rules force companies to repair out-of-warranty devices

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Devices sold in Europe already offer minimum two-year warranties, but the new rules impose additional requirements. If a device is repaired under warranty, the customer must be given a choice between a replacement or a repair. If they choose the latter, the warranty is to be extended by a year. Once it expires, companies are Read more about EU’s new right-to-repair rules force companies to repair out-of-warranty devices[…]

Project Ghostbusters: Facebook Accused of Using Your Phone to Wiretap Snapchat, Youtube, Amazon through Onavo VPN

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Court filings unsealed last week allege Meta created an internal effort to spy on Snapchat in a secret initiative called “Project Ghostbusters.” Meta did so through Onavo, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service the company offered between 2016 and 2019 that, ultimately, wasn’t private at all. “Whenever someone asks a question about Snapchat, the answer Read more about Project Ghostbusters: Facebook Accused of Using Your Phone to Wiretap Snapchat, Youtube, Amazon through Onavo VPN[…]

Microsoft is once again asking Chrome users to try Bing through unblockable pop-ups – wait, you are not using Firefox?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Microsoft has been pushing Bing pop-up ads in Chrome on Windows 10 and 11. Windows Latest and The Verge reported on Friday that the ad encourages Chrome users (in bold lettering) to use Bing instead of Google search. “Chat with GPT-4 for free on Chrome! Get hundreds of daily chat turns with Bing Al”, the Read more about Microsoft is once again asking Chrome users to try Bing through unblockable pop-ups – wait, you are not using Firefox?[…]

Brave, Mozilla, Vivaldi see browser installs rise on iOS since DMA – forcing competition does indeed give rise to diversity. Now Google.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Since Apple implemented a browser choice screen for iPhones earlier this month to comply with Europe’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), Brave Software, Mozilla, and Vivaldi have seen a surge in the number of people installing their web browsers. It’s an early sign the Europe Union’s competition rules may actually … get this … enhance competition Read more about Brave, Mozilla, Vivaldi see browser installs rise on iOS since DMA – forcing competition does indeed give rise to diversity. Now Google.[…]

Alternatieve iPhone app stores stop working when you travel outside of the EU

Posted on by Robin Edgar

iOS 17.4 is the first version of Apple’s operating system to comply with the regulatory framework of the European Digital Markets Act. Apple must also support alternative app stores, where apps can be installed around the App Store. The availability of this functionality is only geographically limited to the EU, and Apple has revealed for Read more about Alternatieve iPhone app stores stop working when you travel outside of the EU[…]

Want to Steal a Tesla? set up a guest wifi with a fake site, steal the password and make your own key

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Security researchers report they uncovered a design flaw that let them hijack a Tesla using a Flipper Zero, a controversial $169 hacking tool. Partners Tommy Mysk and Talal Haj Bakry of Mysk Inc. said the attack is as simple as swiping a Tesla owner’s login information, opening the Tesla app, and driving away. The victim Read more about Want to Steal a Tesla? set up a guest wifi with a fake site, steal the password and make your own key[…]

Investigators seek push notification metadata in 130 cases – this is scarier than you think

Posted on by Robin Edgar

More than 130 petitions seeking access to push notification metadata have been filed in US courts, according to a Washington Post investigation – a finding that underscores the lack of privacy protection available to users of mobile devices. The poor state of mobile device privacy has provided US state and federal investigators with valuable information Read more about Investigators seek push notification metadata in 130 cases – this is scarier than you think[…]

Chinese and US researchers show new side channel can reproduce fingerprints by listening to swiping sounds on screen

Posted on by Robin Edgar

An interesting new attack on biometric security has been outlined by a group of researchers from China and the US. PrintListener: Uncovering the Vulnerability of Fingerprint Authentication via the Finger Friction Sound [PDF] proposes a side-channel attack on the sophisticated Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). The attack leverages the sound characteristics of a user’s finger Read more about Chinese and US researchers show new side channel can reproduce fingerprints by listening to swiping sounds on screen[…]

iOS and Android users face scans used to break into bank accounts

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] GoldPickaxe and GoldPickaxe.iOS target Android and iOS respectively, tricking users into performing biometric verification checks that are ultimately used to bypass the same checks employed by legitimate banking apps in Vietnam and Thailand – the geographic focus of these ongoing attacks. The iOS version is believed only to be targeting users in Thailand, masquerading Read more about iOS and Android users face scans used to break into bank accounts[…]

Android users in Singapore to be blocked from installing apps from 3rd parties

Posted on by Robin Edgar

SINGAPORE – Android users here will be blocked from installing apps from unverified sources, a process called sideloading, as part of a new trial by Google to crack down on malware scams. The security tool will work in the background to detect apps that demand suspicious permissions, like those that grant the ability to spy Read more about Android users in Singapore to be blocked from installing apps from 3rd parties[…]

iPhone Apps Secretly Harvest Data When They Send You Notifications, Researchers Find

Posted on by Robin Edgar

iPhone apps including Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, and X/Twitter are skirting Apple’s privacy rules to collect user data through notifications, according to tests by security researchers at Mysk Inc., an app development company. Users sometimes close apps to stop them from collecting data in the background, but this technique gets around that protection. The data is Read more about iPhone Apps Secretly Harvest Data When They Send You Notifications, Researchers Find[…]

Samsung expands self-repair program to include home entertainment devices

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Samsung just announced that its self-repair program will now include certain home entertainment devices. The company has developed a range of step-by-step repair guides for various products in the category, in addition to providing genuine replacement parts and repair tools. This program covers Samsung 2023 TVs, along with their remotes, and monitors released throughout the Read more about Samsung expands self-repair program to include home entertainment devices[…]

Ubisoft Says It Out Loud: We Want People To Get Used To Not Owning What They’ve Bought

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] the public too often doesn’t understand how it happens that products stop working the way they did after updates are performed remotely, or why movies purchased through an online store suddenly disappear with no refund, or why other media types purchased online likewise go poof. There is a severe misalignment, in other words, between Read more about Ubisoft Says It Out Loud: We Want People To Get Used To Not Owning What They’ve Bought[…]

EU says music streaming platforms must pay artists more

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Parliament is calling for new regulations to ensure streaming services pay artists fairly. The proposal also calls for more transparency around how algorithms generate suggestions for which artists to stream and what tracks get the most promotion. The proposed changes will be designed to ensure smaller artists are compensated fairly. Currently, royalty rates Read more about EU says music streaming platforms must pay artists more[…]

Dutch phones can be easily tracked online: ‘Extreme security risk’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

BNR received more than 80 gigabytes of location data from data traders: the coordinates of millions of telephones, often registered dozens of times a day. The gigantic mountain of data also includes movements of people with functions in which safety plays an important role. A senior army officer could be followed as he drove from Read more about Dutch phones can be easily tracked online: ‘Extreme security risk’[…]

Text-to-3D model startup Luma raises $43M in latest round

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Luma, a generative AI startup building software that transforms text descriptions to corresponding 3D models, just raised $43 million (£34 million) in a series-B funding round led by Andreesen Horowitz, Nvidia, and others. Founded in 2021 by CEO Amit Jain, a former systems engineer working on computer vision at Apple, and CTO Alex Yu, a Read more about Text-to-3D model startup Luma raises $43M in latest round[…]

The NY Times Lawsuit Against OpenAI Would Open Up The NY Times To All Sorts Of Lawsuits Should It Win, shows that if you feed it a URL it can regurgitate what’s on the first parts of that URL

Posted on by Robin Edgar

This week the NY Times somehow broke the story of… well, the NY Times suing OpenAI and Microsoft. I wonder who tipped them off. Anyhoo, the lawsuit in many ways is similar to some of the over a dozen lawsuits filed by copyright holders against AI companies. We’ve written about how silly many of these Read more about The NY Times Lawsuit Against OpenAI Would Open Up The NY Times To All Sorts Of Lawsuits Should It Win, shows that if you feed it a URL it can regurgitate what’s on the first parts of that URL[…]

Google to pay $700 million and make tiny app store changes to settle with 50 states

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On December 11th, a jury decided that Google has an illegal monopoly with its Google Play app store, handing Epic Games a win. But Epic wasn’t the only one fighting an antitrust case. All 50 state attorneys general settled a similar lawsuit in September, and we’ve just now learned what Google agreed to give up Read more about Google to pay $700 million and make tiny app store changes to settle with 50 states[…]

Internet Architecture Board hits out at US, EU, UK client-side scanning (spying on everything on your phone and pc all the time) plans – to save (heard it before?) kids

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] Apple brought widespread attention to this so-called client-side scanning in August 2021 when it announced plans to examine photos on iPhones and iPads before they were synced to iCloud, as a safeguard against the distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Under that plan, if someone’s files were deemed to be CSAM, the user Read more about Internet Architecture Board hits out at US, EU, UK client-side scanning (spying on everything on your phone and pc all the time) plans – to save (heard it before?) kids[…]

Google Will Stop Telling Law Enforcement Which Users Were Near a Crime, start saving location data on the mobile device instead of their servers. But not really though. And Why?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

So most of the breathless reporting on Googles “Updates to Location History and new controls coming soon to Maps” is a bit like this below. However Google itself in “Manage your Location History” says that if you have location history on, it will also save it to it’s servers. There is no mention of encryption. Read more about Google Will Stop Telling Law Enforcement Which Users Were Near a Crime, start saving location data on the mobile device instead of their servers. But not really though. And Why?[…]

EU’s top court rules in favour of Amazon and Luxembourg in €250m tax dispute – Have a mailbox in Lux and a massive corp tax haven!

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Court of Justice in Luxembourg ruled on Thursday against the appeal of the EU Commission. The Commission challenged a 2021 decision of the General Court of the European Union, which annulled the Commission’s illegal state aid charges against Amazon. […] In a statement from October 2017, the EU Commission concluded that Luxembourg granted undue Read more about EU’s top court rules in favour of Amazon and Luxembourg in €250m tax dispute – Have a mailbox in Lux and a massive corp tax haven![…]