Today Facebook announced the launch of its consumer payment system. No, it’s not the cryptocurrency ‘Libra.’ Instead it’s Facebook Pay.
GO-TOUGH Reinforced MFi Lightning Cable: $21.24
We have a deal on the GO-TOUGH reinforced MFi Lightning cable. 6.5 feet in length, this cable is made from heavy-duty PET reinforced cable with reinforced stress points for reduced fraying. It’s $24.99 through our deal, but coupon code BFSAVE15 brings it down to $21.24 at checkout.
David Greelish Offers a Sneak Peek of his Apple Lisa Documentary
Computer historian David Greelish directed an Apple Lisa documentary called Before Macintosh: The Apple Lisa set to release in early 2020.
2019 Jamf Nation User Conference Shows New Products
Jamf is an Apple IT company and just started its 2019 Jamf Nation User Conference with new product announcements for enterprise.
WordPress Subscriptions Come to Websites
WordPress is adding a feature that will give websites a new way to earn money: WordPress subscriptions via Recurring Payments.
Twitter Wants Users to Help it Finish Deepfakes Policy
Twitter announced proposals for its policy to tackle deepfakes on Monday. Now, The Verge reported, it wants users to help it finish the job.
Late last month, the Twitter Safety team announced it’d be seeking feedback on what a deepfake and synthetic media policy would look like on the platform. In a blog post on Monday referencing that announcement, Twitter vice president of trust and safety Del Harvey wrote that if manipulated media was flagged on the platform, Twitter could end up placing a notice next to it alerting users that it’s been distorted, warning them that it’s false before they share it, or adding context in the form of a link or news article breaking down why others believe that it’s untrue. Twitter could also remove the content, Harvey wrote.
How Apple Became the Most Valuable Public Company Again
Apple’s stock hit a new record high following its recent third-quarter earnings report. The recent Motley Fool podcast discussed how.
It’s all about the services with Apple, at least on the growth side. As you mentioned, the iPhone business, as we’ve talked about, pretty stagnant now. They continue to make really good iPhones. The iPhone 11 is seeing good reception. But revenue up 2%, a little higher than guidance. If you back out the iPhone, growth is up 17%. But really about the wearables. The wearables business continues to drive a lot of the growth on the services side, which includes the wearables. Up 18% on the sales. Now makes up 20% of sales but 33% of the gross profits. They now have 33,000 apps across all the platforms. It was the best quarter ever for AppleCare.
UK Labour Party Hit By DDoS Attack
The UK’s opposition Labour Party was hit by a DDoS attack on Monday night, BBC News reported. The attack came in the midst of a tense General Election campaign.
Labour said the attack “failed” because of the party’s “robust” security system and no data breach had occurred. The Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack floods a computer server with traffic to try to take it offline. A Labour source said that attacks came from computers in Russia and Brazil but the BBC’s Gordon Corera has been told the attack was not linked to a state. Our security correspondent said he had been told the attack was a low-level incident – not a large-scale and sophisticated attack. A National Cyber Security Centre spokesman said the Labour Party followed the correct procedure and notified them swiftly, adding: “The attack was not successful and the incident is now closed.”
Disney+ Launches in U.S. And Canada
Disney+ has launched in the U.S., Canada, and the Netherlands, giving subscribers access to a range of Disney-owned content.
App Sale: ‘Severed’ Game Goes From $7 to $1
Severed is normally US$6.99 but now it’s just US$0.99 for a limited time. Winner of the Apple Design Award in 2017 and voted iPad Game of the Year in 2016, Severed lets you take control of a one-armed warrior named Sasha, wielding a living sword on her journey through a nightmare world in search of her family. Dungeon Combat: Master offensive and defensive touch combat techniques to survive intense battles against a menagerie of enemies. Severing: Best enemies in combat for a chance at severing their body parts — then wear them to gain new powers or consume them to upgrade your equipment and abilities. Exploration: Follow branching routes through the unknown, using your wits to avoid hazards and solve puzzles. Award-Winning Soundtrack: Immerse yourself in the haunting original score from Juno- and Polaris-nominated band YAMANTAKA // SONIC TITAN, featuring Pantayo. App Store: Severed – US$0.99
Goldman Sachs Responds to Apple Card 'Sexism' Accusations
Goldman Sachs responded to claims that the algorithm dictating Apple Card credit limits is sexist, saying no decisions are made on gender.
Apple TV+ Series 'Truth Be Told' Premieres in LA
Apple premiered ‘Truth Be Told’, a drama series about Poppy Parnell, a podcaster forced to revisit the murder case that brought her fame.
Microsoft Pledges to Follow California’s Privacy Law in All States
Microsoft has pledged to abide by California’s privacy law in the rest of the United States, saying it is a strong supporter for the law.
Tech Columnist and Author Mike Elgan - TMO Background Mode Interview
Mike Elgan writes a popular weekly column for Computerworld, contributes news analysis pieces for Fast Company and SecurityIntelligence and also writes special features, columns, and think pieces for a variety of publications.
Mike tells a career story that started in newspaper publishing with QuarkXPress. Soon, he realized that what he loved was not covering local politics but rather the technology of the Mac, networking and printing. That launched his career writing about computer tech. In the 2nd segment we chatted about some of our favorite topics: dealing with information overload, Apple’s amazing U1 chip, Augmented Reality glasses replacing iPhones, and cars that sense driver emotions. Mike has an amazing vision of our tech future. Join us.
Is Facebook Secretly Accessing Your Camera? This Man Found a Bug
For years there have been anecdotes from people saying that Facebook secretly uses their phone’s microphone and/or camera for targeted advertising. Joshua Maddux tweeted about a bug he found within the Facebook app. By tapping on a profile picture and slowly sliding it down the screen, you can see his rear camera being accessed on the left hand side. He tested it using five iPhones running iOS 13.2.2.
Found a
@facebook#security &#privacy issue. When the app is open it actively uses the camera. I found a bug in the app that lets you see the camera open behind your feed. Note that I had the camera pointed at the carpet.
Deirdre O'Brien Interview, Apple and Veterans – TMO Daily Observations 2019-11-11
Charlotte Henry and Andrew Orr join host Kelly Guimont to discuss a new Deirdre O’Brien interview and Apple showcasing apps for Veterans Day.
Private Press Briefings Suggest New Apple Products This Week
Writing for 9to5Mac, Zac Hall says that Apple could be holding private press briefings this week. If this is the case then we could see new Apple product announcements as early as the middle of the week.
This week appears to be one of those occasions based both on what 9to5Mac is hearing privately and suggestions by multiple public disclosures. If Apple is holding private press meetings at the start of this week, that suggests we could see the subject of those meetings announced publicly by the middle of the week.
I’m looking forward to the release of Apple’s ‘Tag’ Bluetooth beacons.
Windscribe VPN Pro 1-Year Subscription: $49
We have a deal for you on a subscription to Windscribe VPN Pro. It works with iOS, Mac, Windows, Linux, and Android. The Canadian company features a strict no-logging policy and anonymous sign-up that doesn’t even require an email address. The pro subscription comes with unlimited downloads, unlimited data, and unlimited connections. A 1 year subscription is $49 through our deal, with longer subscriptions available on the full listing.
Google’s Project Nightingale Collects Health Data on Millions of Americans
Teaming up with Ascension, Project Nightingale aims to collect health data from millions of Americans, without telling patients or doctors.
macOS Mail Stores Encrypted Emails in Plain Text
IT specialist Bob Gendler found that macOS Mail was storing encrypted emails in plain text. He first notified Apple on July 29, but only got a temporary fix from the company 99 days later on November 5.
The main thing I discovered was that the snippets.db database file in the Suggestions folder stored my emails. And on top of that, I found that it stored my S/MIME encrypted emails completely UNENCRYPTED. Even with Siri disabled on the Mac, it *still* stores unencrypted messages in this database!
Mr. Gendler shard a fix in his blog post.
Apple Removes Instagram Stalking app ‘Like Patrol’
Apple has removed a stalking app called Like Patrol from the App Store after Instagram sent a cease-and-desist order to the developers.
Wall Street Watchdog Opens Probe Into Goldman Sachs and Apple Card Credit Limits
An investigation into Goldman Sachs has been opened following accusations that the Apple Card credit offered a higher credit-limit to men.
How AR App Healium Helps Veterans Manage Anxiety
Apple shared the story of an AR app called Healium. It helps veterans manage their anxiety using a blend of storytelling, neuroscience, and game design.
iPhone 11 Pro and Max Storm Alibaba Singles Day
It’s Singles Day in China – Alibaba’s equivalent Amazon Prime Day. Apple did exceptionally well out of the event, so-called because of all the 1s in the date. The iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max were two of the best selling items during the event, Cult of Mac reported. As trade tensions ease, the new devices seem to be proving very popular in the country.
This year’s 24-hour shopping event has surpassed last year’s 213.5 billion yuan (more than $30 billion) record for gross merchandise value sold. The iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max were reportedly two of the top-selling items during Singles Day. 2019 marks the 11th Singles Day event. It’s a 24-hour period, held every November 11, in which Alibaba offers big discounts on its e-commerce site. Last year, Singles Day exceeded spending by consumers on both Black Friday and Cyber Monday.