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Andrew Orr

Since 2015 Andrew has been writing about Apple, privacy, security, and at one point even Android. You can find him most places online under the username @andrewornot.

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Articles by Andrew Orr

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Apple Wants to Kill Tracking, Not Advertising

Andrew Orr ·

Owen Williams writes how Apple wants to “kill advertising” with its newest privacy feature in iOS 13 called Sign In with Apple.

Apple is likely to win consumers over, who think these things sound evil and strange, but without these practices [of using customers’ email addresses] many of our favorite businesses and services simply couldn’t exist or practically reach customers.

I disagree. Apple is trying to kill tracking, not advertising. In Safari, Apple is adding a feature called Privacy Preserving Ad Click Attribution to reduce targeted ads, which only accounts for a small 4% in revenue anyway.

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Apple Watch Grant Program Launches This Fall

Andrew Orr ·

A limited Apple Watch grant program is launching this fall for ResearchKit and CareKit researchers. It’s part of what Apple calls an “Investigator Support Pilot.”

Apple said the new initiative, which is currently still in development, will have a simple submission process through the redesigned ResearchKit and CareKit website. While details on the new program were light during Apple’s presentation, the company said it would prioritize “studies that advance science and help people to lead healthier lives by uniquely leveraging our ecosystem,” and that more info would be available on the new website soon.

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To Increase Bills Comcast Broke Law 445,000 Times

Andrew Orr ·

A judge recently ruled that Comcast violated Washington state consumer protection law 445,000 times.

The court found that Comcast added the SPP to the accounts of 30,946 Washingtonians without their knowledge, and did not tell an additional 18,660 Washingtonians the true cost of the plan. The court ordered Comcast to refund affected consumers, and pay 12 percent interest on the restitution. The amount of restitution is unknown at this time, but is expected to be significant. The court ordered Comcast to issue the refunds within 60 days and report to the state on the specific details and amounts.

Comcast is being fined a paltry US$9 million for this. Put another zero on it, then we can talk.

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News+: Bad Behavior in the VPN Industry

Andrew Orr ·

Max Eddy reviews VPNs for PCMag. Although he believes most vendors have good intentions, he highlights several examples of bad behavior in the VPN industry.

From my experience working with VPNs, I can say with certainty there is a culture of sabotage and paranoia among some vendors. Anonymous dumps of damning information about one VPN vendor get blamed on another VPN vendor. Tips come in suggesting that corporate ownership is tied to the Russian mafia or some other criminal operation. Commentators hold up one VPN review site as an example of rectitude; others say the same site is secretly run by a VPN vendor with an agenda. When there is this much disinformation and counter-disinformation (which may also be disinformation), it’s impossible to tell who is telling the truth.

Before I came to The Mac Observer, one of my freelancing gigs was writing for a VPN company. I saw some of the same things as Mr. Eddy. In both privacy and security circles, there is a tint of paranoia and conspiracy thinking, at least with some people.

This is part of Andrew’s News+ series, where he shares a magazine every Friday to help people discover good content in Apple News+.

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Sarah Herrlinger, Apple’s Global Accessibility Chief Talks Tech

Andrew Orr ·

Sarah Herrlinger, Apple’s Global Accessibility chief, talks about new accessibility features in iOS 13 and macOS Catalina.

Accessibility, as it always does, plays a significant role in not only the conference itself — the sessions, labs and get-togethers all are mainstays of the week — but also in the software Apple shows off. Of particular interest this year is Apple’s Voice Control feature, available for macOS Catalina and iOS 13 devices, which allows users to control their Macs and iPhones using only the sound of their voices.

The new features, such as Voice Control, are amazing.

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22 Years of Apple Website Design History Visualized

Andrew Orr ·

The Version Museum has a visual history of 22 years of Apple website design history, starting in 1994.

Version Museum is devoted to showcasing the visual history of popular websites, games, apps, and operating systems that have shaped our lives.

The biggest change is the evolution of that tab bar at the top of the website, going from light to dark.

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Every Final Fantasy Soundtrack Now on Apple Music

Andrew Orr ·

Square Enix has released every Final Fantasy soundtrack on Apple Music and Spotify. Search for “Final Fantasy original soundtrack.”

There’s been no mention of it on Square Enix’s social media channels, even the Final Fantasy-specific one. But it likely has to do with a special concert being given this week for FF VII, the remake of which is almost certain to appear at E3. I’ve listened to a few tracks and it all seems legit. The only thing is that many of the titles are in Japanese — so it might be difficult to pick out your favorite character’s theme or what have you if you don’t, you know, speak that language.

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Maine is Close to Stopping ISP Pay For Privacy Schemes

Andrew Orr ·

The Act to Protect the Privacy of Online Customer Information has been approved by Maine’s state House of Representatives and Senate. Now it only needs the governor’s signature. It would put a stop to ISP pay-for-privacy schemes by limited access to data.

If signed, the bill would provide some of the strongest data privacy protections in the United States, putting a latch on emails, online chats, browser history, IP addresses, and geolocation data collected and stored by ISPs like Verizon, Comcast, and Spectrum. The bill goes further: Unlike a data privacy proposal in the US and a new data privacy law in California, the Maine bill explicitly shuts down any pay-for-privacy schemes.

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The Clever Cryptography Behind iOS 13 ‘Find My’

Andrew Orr ·

iOS 13 ‘Find My’ combines Find My Friends and Find My iPhone. Apple says it uses Bluetooth signals from Apple devices even if they’re offline. And the encryption scheme it uses means that third party attackers can’t track Apple devices, and Apple can’t track them either.

In a background phone call with WIRED following that keynote, Apple broke down that privacy element, explaining how its “encrypted and anonymous” system avoids leaking your location data willy nilly, even as your devices broadcast a Bluetooth signal explicitly designed to let you track your device. The solution to that paradox, it turns out, is a trick that requires you to own at least two Apple devices. Each one emits a constantly changing key that nearby Apple devices use to encrypt and upload your geolocation data, such that only the other Apple device you own possesses the key to decrypt those locations.

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Apple Park Campus is Ready for Earthquakes

Andrew Orr ·

As big as Apple Park campus is—about a mile around—it’s actually not attached to the ground. It has sliding mechanisms in the basement to reduce earthquake shaking by up to 80%.

Two stories underground, beneath offices where engineers design iPhones and MacBooks, the building rests on 692 huge stainless steel saucers. When the ground shakes, the building can shift as much as four feet in any direction on the saucers. Picture an ice cube on a plate. If you shake the plate back and forth, the ice cube slides to stay nearly stationary.

Completely fascinating. And as the article points out, apparently Jony Ive redesigned his own home to make it more earthquake resistant.