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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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Mark Zuckerberg says Apple is Anti-Competitive in Facebook Earnings Call

Andrew Orr ·

Mark Zuckerberg has once again criticized Apple for its privacy, saying that the company is anti-competitive because of iMessage (among other things).

We increasingly see Apple as one of our biggest competitors,” Zuckerberg said, noting that Apple’s iMessage software is preinstalled on iPhones — enabling it to become the most widely used messaging service in the United States, as opposed to Facebook’s WhatsApp — and that Apple’s growing investment in services also enables it to compete with Facebook and other apps that use its iOS software platform.

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Password Manager Bitwarden Adds Touch ID to Browser Extension

Andrew Orr ·

Password manager Bitwarden announced the addition of a couple of new features. One feature adds support for Touch ID and Windows Hello to its browser extensions.

Browser extensions will now be able to access this authentication inside the Desktop application. This allows a more streamlined integration with hardware that does not require a unique browser-level integration. Biometric authentication requires macOS users to download the Mac App Store version.

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Buffer Overflow Bug Found in SUDO Dubbed ‘Baron Samedit’

Andrew Orr ·

Tracked as CVE-2021-3156, a heap overflow bug found in sudo and dubbed “Baron Samedit” has been found recently. It allows an unprivileged user to gain root privileges on a vulnerable machine using a default sudo configuration.

The vulnerability itself has been hiding in plain sight for nearly 10 years. It was introduced in July 2011 (commit 8255ed69) and affects all legacy versions from 1.8.2 to 1.8.31p2 and all stable versions from 1.9.0 to 1.9.5p1 in their default configuration.

2020-02-03: Looks like macOS is affected after all.

Preorder Otterbox Gaming Accessories That Ship in February
Cool Stuff Found

Preorder Otterbox Gaming Accessories That Ship in February

Andrew Orr ·

Known for its smartphone cases, this year Otterbox presented a range of gaming accessories for mobile gamers. I was privy to the company’s video presentation at virtual CES and was impressed with these new products. Otterbox partnered with Microsoft and several of these accessories are made for the Xbox controller. However, they did inform us in the video that the mobile gaming clip is compatible with all console game controllers. You can preorder them today and they start shipping mid-February.

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Twitter Client ‘Tweetbot’ Becomes a Subscription App

Andrew Orr ·

Tweetbot was updated to version six on Tuesday and it brings several notable features, including the move to subscription pricing.

Even though the Tweetbot subscription isn’t expensive, I think Tapbots owes its users more than it has delivered. It’s a shame because Tweetbot remains one of the premier third-party Twitter clients for iOS. Hopefully, the lack of new features in this update will be addressed in subsequent releases.

Another subscription app that I’ll be deleting. For me, the only advantage Tweetbot has over Twitter is the lack of sponsored tweets, aka ads. While that is a notable feature worth paying for, one downside to Tweetbot includes never getting timely notifications.

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Cut Fiber Cable Causes Verizon Outage on East Coast

Andrew Orr ·

A cut fiber cable has been giving Verizon Fios customers issues on the East Coast.

On Twitter, which many still were able to access, people reported they were seeing issues with their Verizon Fios Internet service. Verizon’s customer support team said on Twitter Tuesday that a fiber had been cut in Brooklyn, which could possibly account for some of the issues. The support account on Twitter quickly became inundated with customers asking why their internet was slow and bumpy.

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Microsoft Edge Update Adds Built-in Password Manager

Andrew Orr ·

Version 88 of Microsoft Edge adds a new security feature for users. A built-in password manager makes it easy to keep your logins safe. It also scans for breached passwords on the dark web and notifies you if it finds a match.

Password Monitor will begin rolling out today with Microsoft Edge 88, but it may take a couple weeks for you to see it in your browser. For more information on how Password Monitor works, take a look at the latest blog from Microsoft Research.

This New App Brings iMessage to Android and Windows
Cool Stuff Found

This New App Brings iMessage to Android and Windows

Andrew Orr ·

Beeper is a new chat app that combines 15 different messaging platforms into one interface. One of those messaging apps includes iMessage and there’s “some trickery” involved, as Eric Migicovsky says. You can install the Beeper Mac app to act as a bridge for iMessage. If you don’t have a Mac, Beeper will send you a jailbroken iPhone with the Beeper app installed to act as a bridge. “Just in case you thought Beeper was joking, in a followup tweet, Migicovsky said that he currently has 50 old iPhone 4S’s at his desk, ready to be upcycled for use with Beeper.”

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Google Still Doesn’t Have iOS 14 Privacy Labels

Andrew Orr ·

I’ve been hesitant to keep sharing these stories. At the time this news first appeared I was skeptical, saying that we just got over the holidays so give Google a break. But as the days turn into weeks, this is when it does start to look damning and now it’s time to give Google some heat.

On January 5, Google told TechCrunch that the data would be added to its iOS apps “this week or the next week,” but both this week and the next week have come and gone with no update. It has now been well over a month since Google last updated its apps.