Apple Pay is rolling out to customers in Saudi Arabia and the Czech Republic. Multiple people have been seeing it.
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.
Articles by Andrew Orr
Instagram Fundraisers Want Your Credit Card Information
Instagram Fundraisers will let you easily donate to non-profit organizations on the platform. It’s also a way for Facebook to get its hands on your credit card information.
New code and imagery dug out of Instagram’s Android app reveals how the Fundraiser stickers will allow you to search for nonprofits and add a Donate button for them to your Instagram Story. After you’ve donated to something once, Instagram could offer instant checkout on stuff you want to buy using the same payment details.
Facebook tried to get banks to give up your data, but now it will have to settle for this instead.
Rumor: Future Apple Watch Could Get Flexible Screen
Apple was recently awarded a patent that suggests future Apple Watch models could get flexible screens.
No, You Probably Don't Take Privacy and Security Seriously
Zach Whittaker is tired of the same old line companies use, like when they suffer a data breach: “We take your privacy and security seriously.”
The truth is, most companies don’t care about the privacy or security of your data. They care about having to explain to their customers that their data was stolen…About one-third of all 285 data breach notifications had some variation of the line. It doesn’t show that companies care about your data. It shows that they don’t know what to do next.
I’m betting there’s a template that public relations employees have that they copy and paste into official emails sent out in the wake of security stuff like this.
Huawei Tried to Steal Trade Secrets from Apple Suppliers
The Information reports how Huawei engineers tried to get Apple suppliers to reveal secrets about products.
Augmented Reality is the Mirrorworld
Kevin Kelly writes how augmented reality will become a mirrorworld; That is, an exact replica of the physical world we will interact with.
The mirrorworld—a term first popularized by Yale computer scientist David Gelernter—will reflect not just what something looks like but its context, meaning, and function. We will interact with it, manipulate it, and experience it like we do the real world.
I firmly believe that AR can be as revolutionary as the internet. We just need an AR device that will dominate peoples’ lives to the point where everyone will wear a headset all the time.
Get a Free Audiobook of Winnie the Pooh in Apple Books
Disney announced on Twitter that people can get a free audiobook of Winnie the Pooh. It consists of four stories your kids will love.
Apple's Ecosystem Is Actually Your Body
Apple’s ecosystem is your body. It’s in our pockets, our ears, our wrists, and soon it will be over our eyes with augmented reality glasses. Lucas Rizzotto talks about Apple hardware can be thought of as a modular system, similar to what Bryan and I discussed on ACM. iPhone will provide processing power and networking, Apple Watch is for biometrics and input, AirPods give us contextual 3D audio, and Apple Glasses are our screen.
Ultimately, Apple’s final AR product offering won’t just be a set of glasses — but an interconnected ecosystem that can itself become a single, immersive computing platform. One that’s an extension of you and your body — whether you’re wearing glasses or not.
Apple Partners With Dream Corps in Community Education
Apple is partnering with Oakland-based Dream Corps as part of the company’s Community Education Initiative.
Now Kansas Introduced a Porn Filter Bill
Last month I wrote about an Arizona politician wanting to introduce a porn filter bill. Now Kansas wants to do the same thing, although it sounds like this one won’t attempt to fund the border wall.
“It’s to protect children,” Garber, a Republican, said in an interview. “What it would do is any X-rated pornography stuff would be filtered. It would be on all purchases going forward. Why wouldn’t anybody like this?”
Why indeed. Because you guys don’t seem to care about children outside of the womb.
In The Future You Could 'Clarify' Tweets (But Still Not Edit)
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced the company is considering adding a feature that would let you explain tweets by adding new or additional context (via Mashable). [Touch Twitter’s Sparkle and Something Wonderful Will Happen] Clarification This sounds like Twitter is considering clarification instead of editing. So while you won’t be able to correct that typo,…
Apple's Classical Music Problem
Last year Apple Music got its very own classical music section, but it seems as if it has languished ever since.
Frustrations with classical music streaming are nothing new, but as Charles tells us, this is a problem that affects nearly every streaming music service, including Apple Music rival Spotify. In an effort to find out exactly what’s wrong with classical music on Apple Music — and what steps could be taken to address these problems — we asked Charles and Rumiz to detail the biggest issues with classical music on Apple Music.
Facebook Might Remove Anti-Vaxxer Content
Advertisements on Facebook promoted by anti-vaxxer organizations have been specifically targeting pregnant women.
How to Manage Your Online Personal Data
Louise Matakis put together a guide on how to manage your online personal data, and figuring out who buys, sells, and barters it.
Personal data is often compared to oil—it powers today’s most profitable corporations, just like fossil fuels energized those of the past. But the consumers it’s extracted from often know little about how much of their information is collected, who gets to look at it, and what it’s worth. Every day, hundreds of companies you may not even know exist gather facts about you, some more intimate than others. That information may then flow to academic researchers, hackers, law enforcement, and foreign nations—as well as plenty of companies trying to sell you stuff.
A good guide as usual from Wired.
Faulty iPad Behind New Jersey Apartment Fire
Apple is being sued because a faulty iPad battery caused a New Jersey apartment fire in 2017, killing the occupant.
This AI Tool Scares the Crap Out of Elon Musk
OpenAI, an AI research institute cofounded by Elon Musk and Sam Altman, built an AI text generator that its creators worry is dangerous.
Jack Clark, policy director at OpenAI, says that example shows how technology like this might shake up the processes behind online disinformation or trolling, some of which already use some form of automation. “As costs of producing text fall, we may see behaviors of bad actors alter,” he says.
Based on the examples I think it’s safe to say this AI would pass the Turing Test.
Apple's 2018 Conflict Minerals Report
As part of Apple’s commitment to supplier responsibility the company has released its 2018 conflict minerals report.
iPhone SE Back in Stock Again...For Now
You can buy the 32GB model as it appears the 128GB model is sold out.
What Happens When U.S. Personnel Serve a Foreign Intelligence Agency?
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.
Why Did Walgreens Add Alipay? Chinese Tourists
The decision sounds a bit confusing at first, but makes sense once you learn about the number of Chinese tourists in the U.S.
Happy Valentine's Day, This Dating App got Hacked
Dating app Coffee Meets Bagel announced today that it suffered a data breach on Monday.
Developers Required to Enable Two-Factor Authentication
Apple is requiring developers to secure their Apple ID with two-factor authentication.
How Apple News Affects Publishers
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.
Apple Video Launch Targeted for April
The Apple video launch is rumored to launch in April or early May. It sounds like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO won’t be part of it.