Privacy is a growing concern in today’s world. Follow along with all our coverage related to privacy, security, what Apple and other companies are doing to keep your information safe, and what steps you can take to keep your information private.
This year we’ve seen a powerful new malware launch called Atomic macOS Stealer (AMOS) that specifically targets Apple users. Now in the latest development, AMOS has been found in malicious ads for Google searches. Here’s how to avoid this threat and help others do the same.
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The future of iMessage in the UK had seemed in doubt, as the British government was demanding that the company break end-to-end encryption to allow messages to be scanned. Apple had said that it would withdraw iMessage from the UK rather than compromise user privacy.
WhatsApp and Signal had similarly threatened to withdraw their messaging apps from the UK, but the government has now done a U-turn, while issuing a meaningless, face-saving statement …
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Meta may introduce the option of an ad-free Facebook subscription as it struggles to comply with increasingly stringent European privacy requirements, says a new report.
A similar paid subscription option may also be offered to Instagram users …
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Update: The MTA flaw has been eliminated, but the Apple Pay question remains. See the end of the piece.
An inexcusable NYC subway security flaw has been revealed, allowing anyone with knowledge of a user’s credit card number and expiry date to track all journeys made within the past seven days.
But what’s far more concerning is that the vulnerability applies to journeys where Apple Pay was used to tap into stations, despite the fact that this should be completely impossible …
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Almost nine months after Apple confirmed that it had abandoned plans to carry out CSAM scanning, the company has finally admitted the flaw which so many of us pointed out at the time.
The company explained the reason it decided against scanning devices for child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) in a statement to Wired …
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Apple says that plans to increase the scope and powers of the UK’s Investigatory Powers Act is “a serious and direct threat to data security and information privacy” – not just to British citizens, but to all tech users worldwide.
The company says that the British government is trying to make itself “the de facto global arbiter of what level of data security and encryption are permissible” after a report last week noted that companies like Apple could be banned from issuing security updates without permission …
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Obfuscated servers are the latest weapon in the battle between internet users wanting to protect their privacy, and governments and private companies seeking to detect and block VPN usage …
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The US government is proposing to clamp down on data brokers who sell sensitive personal data, such as income, payment history, and health conditions.
Two government agencies have now put forward proposals for regulations to place limits on what is currently the privacy equivalent of the Wild West …
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8/14: Saturn has submitted an update to the App Store that could address the most obvious privacy concerns. As you’ll read below, however, we’ll need to compare the words on their blog with how the app actually works.
What if I told you there was a new app that let anyone easily look up names and social media accounts for local teenagers? Creepy much? That’s exactly what a new app called Saturn does. It’s also currently one of the top 15 iPhone apps on the App Store.
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Zoom may be the driving force behind remote work and virtual meetings, but the company is telling employees to leave home and return to the office. Meanwhile, users are taking issue with Zoom’s approach to building generative AI features.
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Cybersecurity firm Guardz has found Russian hackers offering for sale a Hidden VNC tool specifically designed to give attackers full access to Macs. It follows a similar tool for accessing Windows PCs, and is geared to stealing personal data and logins.
The HVNC (Hidden Virtual Network Computer) is being sold on the dark web, and as a sign of good faith that the tool works as claimed, the hackers have deposited $100K in an escrow account …
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There have been many cases of US companies covering up serious personal data breaches for months at a time – often only admitting to them when an outside source learns of it.
This isn’t possible in Europe, where the law requires unauthorized access to personal data to be reported to regulators within three days, and now the US is finally adopting a similar requirement – even if it’s not for your benefit …
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Apple has released iOS 16.6 today for everyone and while the update doesn’t come with new user-facing features, it has over a dozen important security fixes. And notably, two of the fixes are for actively exploited flaws.
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IBM’s latest report on data breaches reveals attackers are now more interested in stealing personal data for identity theft than they are simply taking credit card details. It also found that big companies would rather just pass on the costs to consumers, than spend more on security …
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Earlier this year, we saw a new malware designed for Macs called MacStealer that can compromise passwords, credit card numbers, crypto wallets, and more. After a second version of that popped up in April, a third advanced Mac malware called ShadowVault macOS Stealer has surfaced. Here’s what it can do and how to protect your Mac.
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Apple is publicly opposing the current form of the Online Safety Bill currently being considered by Parliament in the UK. According to Apple, the proposed law risks putting “UK citizens at greater risk” from data breaches and digital surveillance.
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Last week, Australia’s prime minister offered some security advice for iPhone users, suggesting that everyone should turn off their iPhone for five minutes every night. On the surface, this may seem like harmless advice for iPhone users, but the reality is quite a bit more nuanced.
In fact, such broad and generalized statements like this one can do a disservice to most people. Here’s why.
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Australia’s prime minister has echoed the advice of cybersecurity professionals, in recommending that you turn off your iPhone for five minutes every night.
No, it’s not so you can reduce your daily Screen Time to 23 hours and 55 minutes, but to stop any spyware that may be running in the background on your device …
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Update four months later: A fake Microsoft Authenticator app somehow survived the cull, but was finally removed in June …
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Apple software lead Craig Federighi has talked about the new privacy features announced in yesterday’s keynote, and how Apple intends to protect us from some of the threats presented by AI.
As part of this, he says, Apple will use AI to fight one of the dangers created by AI …
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Ring camera privacy has been under fire since 2019, with two separate issues leading to a formal complaint to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). That has now resulted in Ring owner Amazon being fined – but only $5.8M.
The company was also fined $25M for using Alexa data from children to train its algorithms, something the FTC said was clearly illegal …
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The US government banned the use of NSO’s Pegasus spyware 18 months ago, but a new report today says that at least one government agency is using very similar malware from a rival company: Paragon Graphite.
Graphite reportedly has the same capabilities as Pegasus, and the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is said to be using it …
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Yesterday we got to enjoy a new Apple privacy video, created to highlight the way that the Health app protects our medical data. Today the Chinese version of the Apple website features another fun privacy video (linked below), and you don’t need to speak Mandarin to enjoy it …
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Security researchers have documented the first known case of NSO’s Pegasus spyware being used in a military conflict. The hacks relate to the long-running military conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, over a region claimed by both countries.
The victims – who included a United Nations official, journalists, human rights advocates, and a former government minister – received alerts from Apple that their iPhones had been hacked …
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