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Wink: Give Us $5 Monthly Or Lose Access to Your Devices

Andrew Orr ·

Wink is a company that makes smart home devices, and it recently announced it will force customers to pay a US$5/month subscription or they will lose access to device functionality.

In order to provide for development and continued growth, we are transitioning to a $4.99 monthly subscription, starting on May 13, 2020. This fee is designed to be as modest as possible […] Should you choose not to sign up for a subscription you will no longer be able to access your Wink devices from the app, with voice control or through the API, and your automations will be disabled on May 13. Your device connections, settings and automations can be reactivated if you decide to subscribe at a later date.

1: I think that’s called extortion, or fraud at the very least. 2: Apparently Wink is owned by will.i.am of The Black Eyed Peas, and has trouble paying its employees. Not that it’s relevant, I just haven’t heard either of those names in years.

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Lazarus Group’s Dacls RAT Affects Macs for the First Time

Andrew Orr ·

Security researcher Patrick Wardle writes that the Lazarus group’s RAT malware has been targeting macOS for the first time. MalwareBytes also published a report (and the source of my quote below). It was found to be distributed with a two-factor authentication app called MinaOTP, commonly used by Chinese users.

We believe this Mac variant of the Dcals RAT is associated with the Lazarus group, also known as Hidden Cobra and APT 38, an infamous North Korean threat actor performing cyber espionage and cyber-crime operations since 2009.

The group is known to be one of the most sophisticated actors, capable of making custom malware to target different platforms. The discovery of this Mac RAT shows that this APT group is constantly developing its malware toolset.

The conclusion I’m drawing is that it’s unlikely to affect most Mac users.

Product News

Sonos Arc Premium Soundbar Brings Dolby Atmos, Immersive Sound

Dave Hamilton ·

On Wednesday, Sonos announced their latest hardware additions, featuring the Sonos Arc, a premium soundbar with support for Dolby Atmos. This marks the first Sonos product to support Dolby Atmos, and there are hints at support for higher resolution audio formats coming in the future. Two other pieces of hardware, Sonos Five (a PLAY:5 with revamped guts) and their 3rd-generation Sonos Sub, were also announced today.

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Spotify CEO Says Apple Will Open its Platform More

Andrew Orr ·

In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek says he expects Apple to open its platform more to third party services.

“Long term, we do expect Apple to open up,” Ek said in an interview with Bloomberg TV that aired on Tuesday. Spotify has criticized Apple for taking a 30% cut of subscriptions and accused it of limiting app updates and preventing functionality on the Apple Watch and Siri.

Spotify will only be satisfied with the cancellation of Apple Music and the preinstallation of its app on iOS. But that still wouldn’t change the fact that it doesn’t pay artists a fair wage.

Cool Stuff Found

Tim Cook's Ohio State University Virtual Commencement Address

Charlotte Henry ·

With in-person graduation ceremonies stopped, lots of schools are offering virtual commencement addresses. On Sunday, Apple CEO Tim Cook gave one to Ohio State University’s class of 2020. Last yeah, he addressed graduating students at Tulane. This time around, Mr. Cook urged the students to “build a better future than the one you thought was certain. 

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Craig Federighi Explains How Apple Reinvented The Cursor For The iPad

Charlotte Henry ·

One of the big ‘wow’ moments when Apple unveiled the new iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard was the way it integrated a new kind of cursor. In an interview with Techcrunch, Apple SVP Craig Federighi explains how the company did.

In some ways, the work on the new iPad OS cursor began with the Apple TV’s refreshed interface back in 2015. If you’ve noticed some similarities between the way that the cursor behaves on iPad OS and the way it works on Apple TV, you’re not alone. There is the familiar ‘jumping’ from one point of interest to another, for instance, and the slight sheen of a button as you move your finger while ‘hovering’ on it. “There was a process to figure out exactly how various elements would work together,” Federighi says. “We knew we wanted a very touch-centric cursor that was not conveying an unnecessary level of precision. We knew we had a focus experience similar to Apple TV that we could take advantage of in a delightful way. We knew that when dealing with text we wanted to provide a greater sense of feedback.”“Part of what I love so much about what’s happened with iPadOS is the way that we’ve drawn from so many sources. The experience draws from our work on tvOS, from years of work on the Mac, and from the origins of iPhone X and early iPad, creating something new that feels really natural for iPad.”

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Hacker Bribed Roblox Insider to Access Kids’ Data

Andrew Orr ·

Motherboard reports that a hacker had bribed a Roblox insider to access the data of over 100 million users.

“I did this only to prove a point to them,” the hacker told Motherboard in an online chat. Motherboard granted the hacker anonymity to speak more candidly about a criminal incident.

Beyond just viewing user data, the hacker was able to reset passwords and change user data too […] The hacker said they changed the password for two accounts and sold their items. One of the screenshots appears to show the successful change of two-factor authentication settings […]

Proving a point my a**. This person tried to claim a bug bounty from Roblox. They denied it because he/she acted “more maliciously than a legitimate security researcher.” He messed with the accounts after denial, so his point was revenge.

Update: A Roblox spokesperson informed me that only a small amount of customers were affected, not 100 million, and immediate action was taken to address the issue. Additionally, it was a Roblox insider and not an employee.

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Firefox 76 Improves Built-In Password Manager

Andrew Orr ·

Mozilla released Firefox 76 today, bringing improvements to the browser’s Lockwise password manager. It also gives Mac users picture-in-picture functionality.

Firefox Lockwise will require a device’s account password before allowing a saved password to be copied, and it will let users know if a website breach has occurred that compromises a login and password.

It also provides an alert for vulnerable passwords, which are passwords used for more than one site. The password generating feature that creates random passwords has also been rolled out to more sites.

That’s great to know. I had no idea Firefox had a built-in PM.

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Apple Patents Suggest Company Doubling Down on Bendable Designs

Charlotte Henry ·

Apple appears to be turning an increasing amount of attention towards developing bendable designs for the MacBook and MacBook Pro. At least that’s what a new patent suggests to AppleInsider.

“Planar hinge assembly,” US Patent No 10,642,318, chiefly describes how such a design could apply to a MacBook Pro-style device. “A personal computing device comprises a single piece body having a seamless overall appearance and that includes a bendable portion that is capable of having a smoothly curved shape,” it says. “The single piece body includes a first part capable of carrying a display suitable for presenting visual content, and a second part that is capable of carrying an input device suitable for accepting an input action.” Apple is careful to always describe “a personal computing device,” and its details can also apply to “a smart phone cover or a tablet computer device.” But it all hinges, so to speak, on what’s referred to as “a multi-state bending assembly.”

Edison Mail Arrives in the Mac App Store
Cool Stuff Found

Edison Mail Arrives in the Mac App Store

Andrew Orr ·

Popular iOS email app Edison has arrived to the Mac App Store. It brings features like a Focused Inbox, Today Folder, and notification muting, as well as analyzing user email for research and e-commerce trends. The company announced it in a blog post:

We’ve been working night and day to ensure that the Edison Mac app experience is incredible for all our consumers. Available for Yahoo, Gmail, Outlook accounts, and more, Edison offers a universal inbox that keeps all emails from multiple accounts in a single place. This means no more jumping from inbox to inbox in order to see messages in your different accounts.

Mac App Store: Edison Mail – Free