Tag: iOS

Russia demands Apple explain after VK apps removed from App Store

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Russia demands Apple explain after VK apps removed from App Store

These apps are being distributed by developers majority-owned or majority-controlled by one or more parties sanctioned by the UK government,” said Apple spokesperson Adam Dema in a statement given to The Verge. “In order to comply with these sanctions, Apple terminated the developer accounts associated with these apps, and the apps cannot be downloaded from any App Store, regardless of location. Users who have already downloaded these apps may continue to use them.

Related:

Apple Removes Russian VK Apps From App Store in Response to UK Sanctions

CDC Tracked Millions of Phones to See If Americans Followed COVID Lockdown Orders

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

CDC Tracked Millions of Phones to See If Americans Followed COVID Lockdown Orders

The documents reveal the expansive plan the CDC had last year to use location data from a highly controversial data broker. SafeGraph, the company the CDC paid $420,000 for access to one year of data, includes Peter Thiel and the former head of Saudi intelligence [Turki bin Faisal Al Saud] among its investors. Google banned the company from the Play Store in June.

The CDC used the data for monitoring curfews, with the documents saying that SafeGraph’s data “has been critical for ongoing response efforts, such as hourly monitoring of activity in curfew zones or detailed counts of visits to participating pharmacies for vaccine monitoring.” The documents date from 2021.

Zach Edwards, a cybersecurity researcher who closely follows the data marketplace, told Motherboard in an online chat after reviewing the documents: “The CDC seems to have purposefully created an open-ended list of use cases, which included monitoring curfews, neighbor-to-neighbor visits, visits to churches, schools and pharmacies, and also a variety of analysis with this data specifically focused on ‘violence.’” (The document doesn’t stop at churches; it mentions “places of worship.”)

Related:

Data Broker Is Selling Location Data of People Who Visit Abortion Clinics

Location data broker SafeGraph stops selling information on visits to abortion providers

SafeGraph Provides CDC and 1000+ Organizations With Data to Fight the COVID-19 Crisis

Google Bans Location Data Firm Funded by Former Saudi Intelligence Head:

On its website SafeGraph says “We believe places data should be open for all.” In April 2017, Turki bin Faisal Al Saud, the former head of Saudi Arabia’s intelligence agency, invested in SafeGraph as part of a $16 million Series A funding round. SafeGraph said it had “assembled the deepest policy thinkers.” Beyond Faisal Al Saud, SafeGraph said it had enlisted the help of former U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, author Sam Harris, Meghan O’Sullivan who ran Iraq and Afghanistan policy under President George Bush, former Deputy Chief of Staff to President Obama Mona Sutphen, and former German Minister of Defense Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, among others. Peter Thiel is also an investor in the company.

More investors: SafeGraph Raises $16 Million Series A

Apple and other companies warn White House about WeChat ban

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Apple and other companies warn White House about WeChat ban

The WeChat ban is especially problematic for U.S. companies, as it’s an absolutely massive chat app in China, with 1.2 billion global users. For example, if Apple were not able to allow WeChat on the iPhone, it would make iPhones a lot less desirable in China (think how undesirable Huawei phones are right now in the U.S., with Google’s Play store and many other services taken away from them). Furthermore, China could retaliate against U.S. companies, effectively barring them from the lucrative Chinese market.

How iPhone iOS update means Apple workers can STILL listen into your conversations

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Apple is resuming the use of humans to review Siri commands and dictation with the latest iPhone software update iOS 13.2.
In August, Apple suspended the practice after privacy concerns.
— Read on www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7626855/Apple-resumes-human-reviews-Siri-audio-iPhone-update.html

How to Delete your Siri Audio History and Opt Out of Siri Audio Sharing