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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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DNA Company ‘GEDmatch’ Hacked in Data Breach

Andrew Orr ·

First, over a million DNA profiles from GEDmatch were leaked. Then, email addresses from the breach were used in a phishing attack against users of genealogy website MyHeritage.

As a result of this breach, all user permissions were reset, making all profiles visible to all users. This was the case for approximately 3 hours. During this time, users who did not opt in for law enforcement matching were available for law enforcement matching and, conversely, all law enforcement profiles were made visible to GEDmatch users.

If GEDmatch sounds familiar, it was the DNA database used to identify the Golden State Killer.

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Companies Like Doordash Share Your Purchases With Facebook

Andrew Orr ·

Thomas Smith dug into his Facebook settings and downloaded a copy of his data. In a section introduced this year called Off Facebook Activity, he found that companies like Doordash send data about your purchases to Facebook.

If you’ve bought an item on myriad e-commerce websites, made a donation to a political campaign, used any of several hundred participating apps, or, in my case, bought a wildly expensive bubble tea, there’s a good chance Facebook knows about it. What are they doing with this knowledge? Again, it’s pretty clear. It’s there so it can “show you more relevant ads,” “help you discover new businesses and brands,” and the like.

He also sounds incredibly guilty for buying bubble tea through Doordash.

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TestFlight Beta for NextDNS iOS 14 is Here

Andrew Orr ·

NextDNS for iOS 14 is now available as a TestFlight beta. It uses the encrypted DNS feature introduced with iOS 14.

The first beta of NextDNS for iOS 14 is now available at:https://testflight.apple.com/join/AFDFPLP3

This version uses the new Encrypted DNS feature of iOS 14, removing the need for the fake-VPN trick used in iOS 13 and below.

The new iOS 14 feature means three things. First, DNS apps will no longer need to set up a fake VPN profile for you to use the service. Second, these DNS settings will work over cellular, whereas in the past it would only work over Wi-Fi unless you used said fake VPN profile. Third, this means that if you have a real VPN app, you can set it to use the OpenVPN protocol. Because of the fake VPN profile created by DNS apps, you had to use the IKEv2 VPN protocol if you wanted to use the VPN and DNS apps at the same time.

‘TempMail’ Gives You Disposable Email Addresses
Cool Stuff Found

‘TempMail’ Gives You Disposable Email Addresses

Andrew Orr ·

Temp Mail is the service I use when I need disposable email addresses. No registration is required. You can instantly generate a new address, copy it to the clipboard or use a QR code, receive attachments like regular email, download EML sources (including attachments) and more. There’s also an optional premium subscription that gives you features like custom email names, premium domains, multiple mailboxes, no ads, and extended email storage. App Store: Free (Offers In-App Purchases) You can also use the web tool.

‘SW-DL’ Shortcut Brings YouTube-DL to iOS
Cool Stuff Found

‘SW-DL’ Shortcut Brings YouTube-DL to iOS

Andrew Orr ·

YouTube-dl is a command line tool that lets you download videos from websites, although it’s commonly used for YouTube as the name suggests. With a-shell, a terminal emulator I covered, it’s possible to install the downloader on your iPad and iPhone. Someone also created a shortcut for youtube-dl (Reddit post here, shortcut link below). Note that it currently crashes on the iOS/iPadOS 14 betas. It’s possible to install youtube-dl in a-shell with the command “pip install youtube-dl.” Since I’m running the betas, I’m going to tinker with using a-shell.

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APHL Wants to Build Central Server for COVID-19 Data

Andrew Orr ·

The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) wants to build and host a national server to hold data collected from exposure notification apps. It’s partnering with Apple, Google, and Microsoft to do so.

Rather than each state and territorial public health agency bearing the burden of building and hosting its own key servers, a national server can securely host the keys of those affected users, eliminate duplication and enable notifications across state borders. APHL is also championing the effort to build and host a national key server on behalf of the public health community. This will allow users to continually benefit from exposure notifications as they travel across state lines, and help state and territorial agencies deploy their apps quickly.

Just two days ago, Trump removed control of public COVID-19 data from the CDC, and now someone wants to build a national server? What could go wrong?

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Behind the Design of ‘Sky: Children of the Light’ Game

Andrew Orr ·

“Sky: Children of the Light” is an iOS game with some beautiful visuals. Apple shared the story behind the design in its latest developer update.

Early on, it was clear that Sky would be an ambitious title for Chen and the creative team. This would be their first game for a mobile device, the first that relied on touch instead of console controllers, and their first attempt at an online multiplayer experience — one that celebrated connection over conflict. The team ultimately worked for seven years before bringing Sky to life, with more than 70 people contributing to the game over its creative development.