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Tech NewsGoogleGoogle Will Let You Opt Out of Being Tracked by Apps in Android 12
With Apple’s developer conference just around the corner, Google is reportedly planning to follow in its rivals footsteps by letting Android users opt out of being tracked by the apps they download from the Google Play store. A Google support page detailing how users can opt out of third-party tracking has generated a bit of … Continued
By Florence Ion -
Tech NewsPrivacy and SecurityThis Guy Designed an Android App That Deletes All Your Phone’s Data When Police Try to Crack It
These days, if you’re arrested and charged with a crime, the first thing cops will likely try to do is look at the contents of your phone. Digital forensics is increasingly a favorite way to secure a conviction, or at least gain a broader understanding of a suspect. However, the tools used to crack into … Continued
By Lucas Ropek -
Tech NewsGoogleGoogle Is Launching Its Own Version of Apple’s Privacy Nutrition Labels
Google is taking a page from Apple’s playback with a new safety section in the Google Play Store to help users better identify the kinds of data access and permissions that Android apps have in the background. It’s not immediately clear what the section will look like or where you should look for it, but … Continued
By Florence Ion -
Tech NewsPrivacy and SecurityNew Google Play Store Rules Aim to Weed Out Spammy Apps
In an attempt to boost confidence in its Play Store offerings, Google has announced new rules designed to weed out misleading, low-quality apps from its marketplace. In an update published Thursday, the company announced new metadata policies that will regulate how developers present their apps in the Play Store. The rules, meant to drive more … Continued
By Lucas Ropek -
Tech NewsPrivacy and SecurityResearchers Take Down Botnet Pretending to Be Millions of People Watching TV
Fraudsters operate off the assumption that it’s way more profitable to think up byzantine ways to cheat people out of money than it is to just, like, work hard and ask for a promotion occasionally. For instance: an Israeli tech company is currently accused of using a very convoluted method to screw advertisers out of … Continued
By Lucas Ropek -
Tech NewsGoogleAndroid 12 May Include Feature That Will Hibernate Apps You Haven’t Used in a While
You probably have a bunch of apps you’ve installed on your phone but only use rarely, so to free up some extra space, it looks like Google is giving Android 12 a new feature that will automatically delete temporary files for apps you haven’t used recently. While the new app hibernation feature hasn’t been officially … Continued
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Tech NewsGoogleGoogle Assistant Just Got a Useful Update With Four Helpful Features
Four new upgrades coming to Google Assistant will help you track down your phone, order takeout faster, and even discover new automated routines. With so many people stuck at home, laptops and desktops have become our primary devices again, which means phones get lost or misplaced a bit more often. However, thanks to a new … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsNew Google Photos Video-Editing Features Finally Appearing on Android Phones
Google announced back in February it was adding new video-editing tools to its Photos app, but those updates appeared only on iOS devices first. Now, according to Android Police, Google is rolling out the same tools to Android users. The new editing tools allow users to apply more granular edits to videos, like brightness, contrast, … Continued
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Tech NewsNewsGoogle Is Yanking Play Movies and TV App From Roku and Most Smart TVs
Google is officially pulling the plug on its Play Movies and TV app on all Roku devices and Samsung, LG, Vizio or Roku smart TVs, the company announced via 9to5Google on Monday. Beginning on June 15, 2021, users with movies or TV shows purchased or rented through those service will be redirected to the Youtube … Continued
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Tech NewsPrivacy and SecurityGoogle Is Cracking Down on Apps That Can See Every Other App You Have Installed
As Google continues to upgrade its privacy and security policies, it’s now making an important change in Android that will significantly limit the ability of Android apps to see all the other apps you have installed on your device. In a recent announcement for developers, Google outlined an update to its policies that will restrict … Continued
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Tech NewsPrivacy and SecurityDangerous Android App Pretends to Be a System Update to Steal Your Data
Beware a newly discovered malicious app that pretends to update your phone but, in reality, is just a giant spyware application that can steal pretty much all your data while also monitoring your movements and online search history. Simply called System Update, the Android app was discovered by researchers with mobile security firm Zimperium, who … Continued
By Lucas Ropek -
Tech NewsAppleApple Can’t Possibly Be ‘Surprised’ That Developers Are Unhappy
Developers aren’t the biggest fans of Apple’s App Store policies—a sentiment that’s apparently left Apple “surprised” that developers have “legitimate concerns” with its infamous app review process. The tidbit comes from Apple’s latest submission to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). Last year, the watchdog launched an investigation into digital platform services, including both … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsBarnes & Noble’s Nook Sidesteps the Grave Once Again With a New Lenovo-Built Tablet
For years, news of Barnes & Noble’s Nook line of e-readers and Android tablet being discontinued have surfaced again and again, but somehow the little-brand-that-could defies its own death with new hardware that brings it back from the brink of extinction. Today that comes in the form of a new 10-inch Nook tablet courtesy of … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsHow to Sideload Any App on Your Chromecast With Google TV
Google’s newest Chromecast dongle has a lot going for it, including support for an increasingly broad range of apps. But despite being made by Google, you won’t find every Android app on the device—just the ones that have been approved and tweaked for big-screen use. If you want to install other apps and games, here’s … Continued
By David Nield -
Tech NewsGadgetsHow to Use Your Android Phone Seamlessly With Your Chromebook
Google is making it easier than ever to move seamlessly between an Android phone and a Chromebook. New and existing features in Chrome OS mean that you can get pair your Android device to your Chromebook in seconds, which means you can sync notifications, Chrome tabs, and more between the two. To connect your Android … Continued
By David Nield -
Tech NewsNewsEpic Is Taking Google to Court (Again)
In the latest leg of Epic Games’ case against the tech giants, the Fortnite developer is taking Google to court—in Australia this time around. The full case that Epic filed with Australia’s Federal Courts earlier this week accuses Google of holding a “near-monopoly” over the app distribution and payments in the Android market by imposing … Continued
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Tech NewsNewsHeartbreaking Stories of People Who Got Scammed on Tinder During the Pandemic
Every social media site has scammers, but there’s something extra depressing about people getting scammed on dating sites like Tinder. Unfortunately, it happens all the time, and that hasn’t stopped with more people turning to dating apps during the pandemic. Back in 2016, Gizmodo filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the FTC for … Continued
By Matt Novak
