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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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Instagram’s “Unlink Account” Feature is Deceiving

Andrew Orr ·

Instagram’s Unlink Account feature is deceiving, at least when it comes to Facebook. Since Instagram is a Facebook company your two accounts will forever be connected.

That’s because the wealth of data that Facebook collects through its multiple services is more than enough to properly identify users’ various accounts and link them to one another. Even in cases where a different name, email address, or device was used to create each account—be it a throwaway WhatsApp profile, stalker Instagram account, or joke Facebook profile—Facebook often is able to suss out who is actually behind the account and whether they have accounts on other Facebook-owned apps.

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Zoom Rolls Out End-to-End Encryption for Video Calls

Andrew Orr ·

Starting next week, video conferencing app Zoom is finally adding end-to-end encryption to its platform.

Zoom’s E2EE offering uses public key cryptography. In short, the keys for each Zoom meeting are generated by participants’ machines, not by Zoom’s servers. Encrypted data relayed through Zoom’s servers is indecipherable by Zoom, since Zoom’s servers do not have the necessary decryption key. This key management strategy is similar to that used by most end-to-end encrypted messaging platforms today.

Good to see Zoom doing this; they’ve certainly had misses in the past. Update: The new version is now available for most users.

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Link Previews in Chat Apps Could Leak Your IP Address

Andrew Orr ·

Security researchers found that link previews in chat apps could expose data like IP addresses if not implemented properly. Or they could be downloading as much as gigabytes of data in the background. They tested a variety of different messaging apps, and iPhone users will be relieved to know that iMessage didn’t experience any of these security leaks.

We think there’s one big takeaway here for developers: Whenever you’re building a new feature, always keep in mind what sort of privacy and security implications it may have, especially if this feature is going to be used by thousands or even millions of people around the world.

Notability’s Email App “Twobird” Gets Calendar Integration
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Notability’s Email App “Twobird” Gets Calendar Integration

Andrew Orr ·

Ginger Labs, creators of popular productivity apps Notability and Twobird, announced Monday that Twobird received calendar integration. But that’s not the only part of the update. Key features include Interactive Notes, Embedded collaboration tools, Clean interface for distraction-free work, and a brand-new feature launched today: calendar. Other features include: Organize your schedule in Twobird with a clean built-in Calendar, designed to keep you on track with less distractions; Scroll through your Calendar to get an overview of your upcoming events and reminders for the week; Connect multiple Gmail accounts and choose which to display; All your reminders (for notes or emails) appear in your calendar so that you never miss a task; Attach a Twobird note to any calendar event to add context for you and your attendees; No need to switch gears, preview your nearest events and reminders at the top of your inbox.

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Changing its Tune, Spotify Lets You Transfer Songs Again

Andrew Orr ·

Two weeks ago SongShift wrote that Spotify wouldn’t let the app’s users transfer music out of Spotify anymore; they could only bring music into Spotify from other platforms. But now Spotify has changed its mind and it’s good to see.

With the release of SongShift v5.1.3, you will again be able to transfer playlists from Spotify to another service. The only caveat is, you have to have created the playlist yourself, or the playlist must be collaborative and followed by you.

Charge Anything, Anywhere With the Omni Off-Grid
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Charge Anything, Anywhere With the Omni Off-Grid

Andrew Orr ·

A new product on Indiegogo I was recently made aware of is the Omni Off Grid charger. It’s a portable power station great for camping and emergency situations. It features an LED display, four USB-C ports, 12V/12A cart port, dimmable light with an SOS alert, four USB-A ports, XT60 and Anderson 400W int put port, Aviation 300W input/output port, and four AC outlets at 1500W output with 3000W surge. You can power it with an optional solar panel (US$299). The Off Grid charger starts at US$1,649 and the team has already surpassed their financial goal.

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Amazon Apple Card Option is Disappearing

Andrew Orr ·

People are starting to notice that their Amazon Apple Card payment option has disappeared.

Another person was told that the ‌Apple Card‌ is “not allowed on your account,” which is curious as the ‌Apple Card‌ is a Mastercard that should be accepted where Mastercard is accepted. A third person was told that the issue was on Apple’s end, so it appears that Amazon’s support staff has no insight what’s going on at this time.

Update: In a statement to MacRumors, an Amazon spokesperson said the following: “We are aware of this technical issue and are actively working to resolve it as soon as possible.”

Edit HDR Videos in iMovie With the 2.3 Update
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Edit HDR Videos in iMovie With the 2.3 Update

Andrew Orr ·

With the version 2.3 update it’s now possible to edit HDR videos in iMovie, just in time for iPhone 12 models that support shooting video in Dolby Vision. Other new changes include: Customize any title by selecting from dozens of built-in fonts; Adjust the color of any title by selecting from a grid or spectrum of presets, adjusting numerical sliders, or using the eyedropper in the viewer; Quickly change a title’s default style, capitalization and duration; Pinch and drag to adjust the size and location of any title; Choose from three new animated titles: Slide, Split and dual-color Chromatic; Add solid, gradient, and patterned backgrounds to your movie; Use the color picker to customize the colors of any background; Drag the slider to change the intensity of any filter applied to your photos and videos; Import and share 4K videos at 60 frames per second; View, edit, and share High Dynamic Range (HDR) videos from your Photos library.

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Recreation Time From NextDNS Mimics Apple’s Screen Time

Andrew Orr ·

I’ve written about NextDNS before; it’s my personal DNS service of choice. The company recently added a feature called Recreation Time.

Introducing Recreation Time — only allow some websites, apps and games during a specific time period each day of the week.

E.g., only allow Facebook, YouTube, Twitch and Fortnite on Wednesdays and Fridays between 6:30pm and 8pm, and on Saturdays and Sundays between 1pm and 8pm.