Last month, a group of skaters in LA captured this video of a Waymo driving on the wrong side of the road to avoid hitting them. Waymo says it was the safest option. How would you feel if Waymo decided a head-on collision with your car was the best decision?
Phone hacked? Apple says it will alert you if your iPhone is infected with spyware
Cybercriminals have countless tools to target victims. They develop these methods themselves or, unsurprisingly, lift them from others.
Recently, authorities discovered cybercriminals were using military-grade hacking software designed by Israeli tech firm NSO Group. Research group Citizen Lab then revealed that NSO’s clients were using the software to spy on journalists. Tap or click here for our report with tips on protecting yourself from this dangerous vulnerability.
Apple rolled out security patches to prevent this type of government-sponsored spyware, and now it’s going one step further: Apple says it will notify owners if their iPhones and other devices have been compromised.
Here’s the backstory
The NSO’s homepage says the firm creates technology that helps government agencies “prevent and investigate terrorism and crime to save thousands of lives around the globe.” Well, that sounds noble. There’s more to it.
Apple announced that it’s suing NSO Group and its parent company for spying on Apple users. The complaint says NSO Group infected people’s devices using the firm’s Pegasus spyware.
Apple is seeking an injunction banning NSO Group from using its software, services or devices. The tech giant says there is documented history of such software being used to target journalists, activists, dissidents, academics, and government officials.
Apple also revealed information on NSO Group’s FORCEDENTRY, an exploit used to break into a victim’s Apple device to install the Pegasus program. The exploit was discovered by the research group Citizen Lab. Apple has since released a patch to fix the vulnerability.
Related: GoDaddy data breach: 1.2M user profiles, including passwords, exposed
Apple’s new alerts
Given the level of seriousness of these types of hacks, Apple says it will notify users when their Apple devices have been compromised by state-sponsored malware and spyware.
If Apple detects evidence of a state-sponsored attack, the targeted user will get a Threat Notification on the top of the page when signed into appleid.apple.com. Apple will also send an email and iMessage notification to the account associated with the user’s Apple ID.
Use an iPhone, iPad or Mac? You need to update NOW
A few months ago, we learned cybercriminals got their hands on military-grade hacking software called Pegasus, which the Israeli company NSO Group designed. While researching a potential hack of a Saudi activist’s phone, Citizen Lab blew the whistle on this scary security flaw. Allegedly, NSO clients used Pegasus to spy on and hack into the phones of at least 37 journalists.
Where is that? You know you sent someone a pic but can’t find it. On iPhone, open Messages, tap a convo, then tap the person’s profile photo or group name. Scroll to Photos > See All. On Android, open Messages and tap the search bar at the top.
Big Tech listens to your convos
At least one media group gathers info from conversations and uses it for targeted ads. Plus, a new sextortion scam tactic, Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” tech hits more NFL stadiums, and police are towing Teslas from crime scenes.
👩🏼🏫 Gen Z’s latest craze? PowerPoint presentation parties (paywall link). Guests whip up literal slideshows on weird, wacky topics and show them to the group. It’s all about flexing creativity, getting some laughs and reliving high-school nostalgia (or nightmares). One of my favorite topic prompts: “Predictions for how each friend here will end up in jail.”
This week in 1997, a group of hackers cracked code written in Data Encryption Standard, which was designed to be impenetrable. Oops. How long did it take the hackers to crack? Was it … A.) Five days, B.) Five weeks, C.) Five months or D.) Five years?
Millions of iPhones are vulnerable to this scary new 'zero-click' hack
Most mobile phone users would be aware that technology isn’t as secure as manufacturers would like them to believe. Whether you are using an iPhone or Android, there is always a risk that something can be hacked, stolen, altered or infected.
Cold case victim identified: A human skull discovered in 1983 has finally been identified, thanks to Facebook. In 1979, Maritza Gean Grimmet filed for divorce. Then, she disappeared. When investigators posted renderings of her on an FB group for missing women in 2023, her daughter immediately came forward. They’re still investigating the cause of death. I wonder where the husband’s hiding out …
Get Temu off your phone now
TikTok isn’t the only Chinese app to worry about. A shopping app, downloaded by millions of Americans, uses sneaky tactics to monitor users. We spoke with Titan Crawford, founder of the Facebook group PDX Stolen Cars, which has helped recover over 3,000 stolen cars in Portland.
👪 For the next group pic: Don’t be that person who takes one photo and calls it good. You know at least one person’s eyes will be closed. Instead, be the hero and hold down your phone’s camera button. It’ll take a ton of pics in quick succession, giving you a much higher chance for a crowd-pleasing shot.
Ear-replaceable: New AI noise-canceling headphones will let you listen to a single person’s voice in a crowd just by looking at the individual once. The wearer can then walk around as usual while tuning in to the person’s conversation. The headphones are still in development, but I can only imagine how they’ll use them in covert ops. I really just want them for group dinners …
Because you’re mine, I walk the line: You just sang that, didn’t you? Say you’re editing with a group and need to reference line by line. Google Docs can save you the headache. Go to Tools > Line numbers > check Show Line Numbers, and you’re all set. Sweet!
Slap on the wrist: Verizon, AT&T and T‑Mobile will pay $10.22 million to a group of states to settle claims of false advertising. Their ads promised unlimited data plans and free phones, but guess what? Restrictions applied, conditions had to be met, and hidden fees lurked in the fine print. Check your bills.
Phone screen out of control? Group your apps by category. Here’s an option: Set your home screen to include only personal and family apps. Swipe to the next screen for all your work apps. On another screen, add all your entertainment apps.
Check your inbox: If you’ve ever used the mental health platform BetterHelp, you may be one of the 800,000 folks now eligible for part of a $7.8 million settlement. To check, search for an email from “Ankura Consulting Group.” The FTC says BetterHelp shared consumer health data with third parties for advertising. Questions? Email info@betterhelprefundprogram.com.
Wouldn’t want to be a cyclist in SF: A Waymo self-driving taxi was caught on video making a risky move in San Francisco — overtaking unicyclists and scooters by swerving into the wrong lane. It veered from the right-hand lane into oncoming traffic to pass the group. Waymo’s excuse? It switched lanes because it was the “safer” thing to do. Really now?
Good riddance: An evil 28-year-old woman from Delaware will hopefully spend a long time in prison for her role in a massive sextortion scheme. She and a group of accomplices pretended to be “young, attractive females” and lured young males (including many minors) into video chats. They then recorded the chats and threatened to leak the footage unless they were paid. Talk to your kids and any other guy in your circle.
Where is that? You know you sent someone a pic but can’t find it. On iPhone, open Messages, tap a convo then the person’s profile photo or group name. Scroll to Photos > See All. On Android, open Messages, then tap the search bar at the top.