06 Monday Dec 2021
Posted in Misc.
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Warning to Verizon customers: Your privacy is under attack!! Read the linked article or details. We have 2 Verizon cell phones. When I checked the settings documented, BOTH LINES HAD SPYING TURNED ON and we NEVER OPTED IN.
https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/5/22818783/verizon-app-data-collection-browsing-history
14 Saturday Aug 2021
Posted in Misc.
I trust the Apple users have heard about the upcoming #spyphone problem in the next iOS and macOS major releases so I will not rehash that here.
More on the upcoming Apple iOS / macOS photo #spyphone problem. It seems this malware/spyware will violate your privacy IF you use iCloud Photo Library (I am still looking to verify this). Well, you can turn this OFF. I had it shut already since I use Adobe and not Apple photo software on my mac.
Here is a good article on how to turn if off:
https://www.igeeksblog.com/how-to-disable-icloud-photo-library-on-iphone-mac-apple-tv/
01 Thursday Apr 2021
Posted in Misc.
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Tens of thousands of hacked security videos are being sold online. Many are fairly boring, showing people just sitting around their homes or hotels. Chinese hackers have stolen videos from tens of thousands of security cameras in private properties across the country and are selling the video clips online as “home video packages,” the Chinese outlet Henan Television reported.The video footage showcases clips from cameras installed by homeowners for security reasons or others secretly installed by ill-intentioned people in hotels, fitting rooms and beauty salons.
https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3127659/hackers-are-stealing-videos-private-security-cameras-and
03 Monday Aug 2020
Posted in Misc.
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link: https://reason.com/2020/08/03/face-masks-confuse-facial-recognition-technology/
But we should at least be able to agree that face coverings are a great way to defeat the surveillance state—especially now that the U.S. government has conceded that masks confuse the hell out of facial recognition technology.
06 Friday Oct 2017
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Upgrading to iOS 11? Beware of changes to the control of bluetooth and wifi!
Turning off your Bluetooth and Wi-Fi radios when you’re not using them is good security practice (not to mention good for your battery usage). When you consider Bluetooth’s known vulnerabilities, it’s especially important to make sure your Bluetooth and Wi-Fi settings are doing what you want them to. The iPhone’s newest operating system, however, makes it harder for users to control these settings.
On an iPhone, users might instinctively swipe up to open Control Center and toggle Wi-Fi and Bluetooth off from the quick settings. Each icon switches from blue to gray, leading a user to reasonably believe they have been turned off—in other words, fully disabled. In iOS 10, that was true. However, in iOS 11, the same setting change no longer actually turns Wi-Fi or Bluetooth “off.”
Instead, what actually happens in iOS 11 when you toggle your quick settings to “off” is that the phone will disconnect from Wi-Fi networks and some devices, but remain on for Apple services. Location Services is still enabled, Apple devices (like Apple Watch and Pencil) stay connected, and services such as Handoff and Instant Hotspot stay on. Apple’s UI fails to even attempt to communicate these exceptions to its users.
It gets even worse. When you toggle these settings in the Control Center to what is best described as”off-ish,” they don’t stay that way. The Wi-Fi will turn back full-on if you drive or walk to a new location. And both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth will turn back on at 5:00 AM. This is not clearly explained to users, nor left to them to choose, which makes security-aware users vulnerable as well.
The only way to turn off the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios is to enable Airplane Mode or navigate into Settings and go to the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth sections.
Dagny's Desk 