Hot news over the weekend reveals that spyware from Israeli company NSO Group may be culpable in the murders of certain journalists.
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.
Articles by Andrew Orr
Apple Releases iOS 14.7 to Support MagSafe Battery Pack
On Monday Apple released iOS 14.7 that enables support for its newest product, a MagSafe battery pack for the iPhone 12 product line.
China Allegedly Behind Microsoft Exchange Hack Revealed in March 2021
The White House has formally accused China of hacking Microsoft Exchange servers, a security campaign that was revealed in March 2021.
iOS Saw 50% of New Device Activations in Q2 2021
A repo on Monday from Consumer Intelligence shows that both Android and iOS equally had device activations in Q2 2021.
NSO Group’s ‘Pegasus’ Spyware Targets Journalists and Activists
Spyware known as Pegasus from NSO Group was used to hack 37 smartphones belonging to journalists, activists, and business executives around the world.
The phones appeared on a list of more than 50,000 numbers that are concentrated in countries known to engage in surveillance of their citizens and also known to have been clients of the Israeli firm, NSO Group, a worldwide leader in the growing and largely unregulated private spyware industry, the investigation found.
'Monodraw' is a Multi-Purpose Mac ASCII Editor
Monodraw is an editor for Mac that lets you design ASCII art and create diagrams, mind maps, banners, and more. From the website: “Monodraw allows you to easily create text-based art (like diagrams, layouts, flow charts) and visually represent algorithms, data structures, binary formats and more. Because it’s all just text, it can be easily embedded almost anywhere. Of course, exporting as images is also supported (PNG and SVG).” You can download a free trial or buy a license for US$$9.99.
Public Beta 2 for iOS 15, iPadOS 15 Adds Refinements
On Friday Apple released the second public betas for iOS 15 | iPadOS 15, tvOS 15, and watchOS 8. This arrives a couple of days after the latest developer betas.
Anonymous Wars With China With Crypto Token ‘Anon Inu’
Hackivist collective Anonymous is back, and its warring with China and possibly Elon Musk with a cryptocurrency token dubbed “Anon Inu.”
In a recently released video, Anonymous started by touching upon the ongoing crackdown on Bitcoin mining in China. The “sudden flip” by Chinese authorities regarding mining was not only shocking but also bloody for the Bitcoin market.
Apart from China, Anonymous did not mention specifics about waging a war against Elon Musk, but looks like the #Dogefather may meet his match soon in this so-called “meme-war” against “Anon Inu token.”
iOS 15: How to Set Up a Legacy Contact to Pass on Data
With its next round of operating systems Apple is creating a Digital Legacy program to enable easier access to our loved ones after we die.
Wordpress Owner Automattic Acquires Podcasting App ‘Pocket Casts’
Automattic announced on Friday that it has acquired the popular podcasting app Pocket Casts for an undisclosed sum.
Firefox 90 Update Introduces SmartBlock 2.0 for Tracking Protection
Mozilla released Firefox 90 recently and it comes with an improved version of its tracking protection called SmartBlock 2.0.
The newest version of Mozilla’s built-in SmartBlock privacy feature makes it easier for users to keep their tracking protection settings cranked up, without breaking individual websites. The updated version seems to especially target Facebook login, which is increasingly used around the web as a third-party authentication and login tool.
Image credit: ArsTechnica
Mophie Releases New 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Charging Stand
mophie’s latest product is a 3-in-1 MagSafe-compatible charging stand that can for your iPhone 12, Apple Watch, and AirPods.
‘Doodle God Universe’ is Out on Apple Arcade
Fans of Doodle God, rejoice! The newest game in the series, Doodle God Universe, is now available on Apple Arcade. In this addictive puzzle & world building game mix and match different combinations of elements to create an entire universe. As you create each new element, watch your 3D planet come alive in amazing animation. But beware, the power of creation may have unintended consequences, inventing the wheel might just trigger a zombie plague or a powerful volcano,
Google Adds Tool to Quickly Delete Your Last 15 Minutes of Searches
Google is adding new protections for your search history like quick deletion, requiring verification to access the My Activity section, and more.
You can also try out a new way to quickly delete your last 15 minutes of saved Search history with the single tap of a button. This feature is available in the Google app for iOS, and is coming to the Android Google app later this year.
You could also just turn disable your search history altogether, too.
iOS 15: Managing Your Scheduled Summary for Notifications
Notifications in iOS 15 are thinner in size and feature larger app icons and contact photos and can be grouped into a Scheduled Summary.
App Review: Adobe’s Photoshop Express is a Good, General-Purpose Editor
Andrew reviewed Adobe Photoshop Express and believes it gives users a nice balance between editing tools and photo filters.
Photography Software ‘Capture One’ Coming to iPad in 2022
Here is some news from last month that I missed. Capture One is a popular software for photo editing and it will come to the iPad in 2022.
This is the beginning of the roadmap and the possibilities it opens up for us in terms of devices and networking is really fantastic. I’m looking forward to getting this out the door, but really looking forward to what this looks like for the future of Capture One and for the future of photography software.
Incipio Group Releases Kate Spade New York MagSafe Case
Incipio Group has released two MagSafe cases for the iPhone 12, including a Kate Spade New York hardshell case.
Fjorden iPhone Camera Grip Launches on Kickstarter
Fjorden is a professional, pocketable iPhone camera grip. It’s compatible with MagSafe iPhones like the iPhone 12 series, and there is a case for non-MagSafe iPhone 11 models. Here are some of its features: Two-Stage Shutter Button – Just like your real camera: Half-press to focus, full-press to capture the image. Customizable Control Dial – Easily adjust exposure, shutter speed, ISO, portrait mode aperture, manual focus, and other parameters without changing your hand position. Multi-Function Button – You choose what it does: Trigger portrait mode or selfie mode, select flash mode, or switch between other custom settings. Zoom Lever – Quickly switch between iPhone lenses, or smoothly zoom in and out.
Linksys Wi-Fi 6 Velop AX42000 Adds HomeKit Support
Linksys released its Wi-Fi 6 Velop AX4200 mesh routers in October for US$250, and recently the company added support for HomeKit.
‘SolarWinds’ Hackers Used iOS Zero Day Against Government Officials
The Russian hackers behind the SolarWinds attack used an iOS zero day to steal credentials from Western European governments.
Attacks targeting CVE-2021-1879, as the zero-day is tracked, redirected users to domains that installed malicious payloads on fully updated iPhones. The attacks coincided with a campaign by the same hackers who delivered malware to Windows users, the researchers said.
Google published a blog post about zero-days here, and you can read coverage from Ars Technica at the link below.
Amazon Launches Pay-To-Read Serial Novels in ‘Kindle Vella’
Amazon has launched a service called Kindle Vella that introduces pay-to-read serialized books. In this case, “pay-to-read” means that these books offer the first three ”episodes” for free, with later episodes offered through “Tokens” that can be purchased in bundles.
We designed Kindle Vella as a mobile-first experience because we know readers are becoming more and more interested in stories that can be read quickly on their phones. At the same time, readers want the connection that you get from reading a story or author for a long period of time.
Spotify’s Top Lawyer Leads the Monopoly Campaign Against Apple
Spotify’s top lawyer, Horacio Gutierrez, is a key player in the monopoly accusations against Apple.
The landscape looks a lot different than it did when Gutierrez first began talking about Apple. His actions “have spawned a lot of the other Apple-related activity across the globe,” says Thomas Vinje, who’s worked with Gutierrez on antitrust issues in Europe. “It’s a snowball Spotify got rolling.”
Image credit: Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg
You Could Run New Windows 365 OS on iPad
Microsoft revealed a new OS on Wednesday called Windows 365. It’s a cloud-based operating system designed to run in a browser. As Mr. Ortolani points out this means you could run it on an iPad.
The new service is only available for businesses at first, but given Microsoft’s emphasis on cloud platforms, it is highly likely that it will become available for consumers at some point in the future. Microsoft is offering Windows 365 for businesses of all sizes, whether you are a one-person show or a giant organization.
Windows 365 will be available on August 2.