Apple VP says FBI’s order makes everyone less secure

To support their legal battle in Congress over San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook’s iPhone, Apple and the FBI are also waging a war of public opinion. So far, the FBI is winning, with over half the US population, 51 percent, saying that Apple should unlock the device, and only 38 percent saying it shouldn’t. Last month, FBI director James Comey penned an editorial to convince the public that Apple must help the agency, and now, Apple VP Craig Federighi has fired back in the Washington Post. In an op-ed piece, he argues that the FBI is endangering everyone’s data by “turn[ing] back the clock to a less-secure time.”

Apple is trying to show that not only its users, but the entire public could be directly affected by the FBI’s order. “They have suggested that the safeguards of iOS 7 were good enough and that we should go back to the security standards of 2013,” he says. “But the security of iOS 7, while cutting-edge at the time, has since been breached by hackers. What’s worse, some of their methods have been productized and are now available for sale to attackers who are less skilled but often more malicious.”

If Apple was forced to create a backdoor by bypassing the passcode protection, “it would become a weakness that hackers and criminals could use to wreak havoc on the privacy and personal safety of us all.” In his own editorial, FBI Director James Comey sought to assure the public that it wasn’t trying to set a precedent by hacking the shooter’s iPhone. However, Federighi noted that this has proven false, as law enforcement has since admitted that it wants to use Apple’s security bypass to unlock other iPhones.

Your nation’s vital infrastructure — such as power grids and transportation hubs — becomes more vulnerable when individual devices get hacked. Criminals and terrorists who want to infiltrate systems and disrupt sensitive networks may start their attacks through access to just one person’s smartphone.

He adds that Apple is fighting a constant battle against hackers that become more sophisticated every year, and that iPhone breaches can damage more than just the user. “Your nation’s vital infrastructure — such as power grids and transportation hubs — becomes more vulnerable when individual devices get hacked. Criminals and terrorists who want to infiltrate systems and disrupt sensitive networks may start their attacks through access to just one person’s smartphone.” Recent attacks certainly bear him out — for instance, a hack that brought down Ukraine’s power grid started with spear-phishing attacks on individual users, according to Wired.

Federighi concluded by saying, “we cannot afford to fall behind those who would exploit technology in order to cause chaos. To slow our pace, or reverse our progress, puts everyone at risk.” It remains to be seen whether his argument convinces the public and, more importantly, the politicians that have the power to do something about the FBI’s directive.

Source: Washington Post

New Horizons spots snowcapped peaks on Pluto

Right now, most mountaineers covet the seven summits: the highest peaks on each continent. In the (very, very distant) future the big seven might be redefined as the highest peaks across the solar system. A whimsical thought, perhaps, but a newly-discovered mountain range on Pluto will have even the most amateur of Earth-based climbers intrigued. The frosty-looking peaks are located in the south east of a region known as Cthulhu, and stretch out over 260 miles in length.
The images were originally taken during New Horizon’s closest fly-by point back in June last year. The images were taken from about 21,000 miles away, and (for a sense of perspective) have a resolution of about 2,230 feet (680 meters) per pixel. The purple image on the right is a composite of data from the Ralph/Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera on New Horizons, and shows the distribution of methane. As it almost exactly matches with the areas shown in white on the enhanced color image, scientists believe that on Pluto, methane acts like water in Earth’s atmosphere, condensing into frost at altitude.

Via: Gizmag

Source: NASA

3D-printed (nearly) nude selfies are a thing

One thing that you sometimes see advertised is an erotic photoshoot for couples who want to remember their sexy days in their dotage. Now, thanks to the confluence of digital photography and 3D-printing, you can now go one better and immortalize yourself in three dimensions. British retailer Firebox is launching Nudee, a service that adds your head onto a 7.8-inch figurine that’s wearing nothing but underwear. All you have to do is take two selfies: one face on and one in profile, as well as choosing a body type between slim, curvy or muscular. Then all you have to do is wait the 3-4 weeks it’ll take for delivery.

We’ve seen something similar like this before, although in that case it was to put your head on the body of a Star Trek figurine. The idea of using 3D-printing and face scanning tech for celebrating nudity is certainly a novel use of the technology. Then again, we’re not entirely sure how many people would want something like this adorning their desk next to their Star Wars figurines. But if you don’t suffer from our lack of imagination, then you can grab one of these from today for £149.99, with shipping currently limited to the UK.

FBI Wants to ‘Turn Back Clock to Less-Secure Time’, Claims Apple VP

Apple VP Craig Federighi has published an op-ed in The Washington Times in which he criticizes the idea of a government backdoor into the company’s software and accuses the FBI of wanting to “turn back the clock to a less-secure time”.

In the op-ed, published yesterday, Apple’s Vice President of Software Engineering writes that Apple must “work tirelessly” to stay one step ahead of criminal attackers who “seek to pry into personal information and even co-opt devices to commit broader assaults that endanger us all”.

Federighi notes that in just the past 18 months, hackers have stolen millions of people’s credit card information, social security numbers and fingerprint records from retail chains, banks and even the federal government. However, Federighi calls these digital defense breaches “the tip of the iceberg”.

Your phone is more than a personal device. In today’s mobile, networked world, it’s part of the security perimeter that protects your family and co-workers. Our nation’s vital infrastructure — such as power grids and transportation hubs — becomes more vulnerable when individual devices get hacked. Criminals and terrorists who want to infiltrate systems and disrupt sensitive networks may start their attacks through access to just one person’s smartphone.

Federighi adds that the encryption technology built into Apple’s iPhones doesn’t just help keep customers’ information secure, but also provides “a critical line of defense against criminals who seek to implant malware or spyware and to use the device of an unsuspecting person to gain access to a business, public utility or government agency.” Therefore any attempt to hamper Apple’s attempts to plug points of weakness in the company’s software would be “a serious mistake”.

That’s why it’s so disappointing that the FBI, Justice Department and others in law enforcement are pressing us to turn back the clock to a less-secure time and less-secure technologies. They have suggested that the safeguards of iOS 7 were good enough and that we should simply go back to the security standards of 2013. But the security of iOS 7, while cutting-edge at the time, has since been breached by hackers. What’s worse, some of their methods have been productized and are now available for sale to attackers who are less skilled but often more malicious.

To get around Apple’s safeguards, the FBI wants us to create a backdoor in the form of special software that bypasses passcode protections, intentionally creating a vulnerability that would let the government force its way into an iPhone. Once created, this software — which law enforcement has conceded it wants to apply to many iPhones — would become a weakness that hackers and criminals could use to wreak havoc on the privacy and personal safety of us all.

Last month, FBI director James Comey penned an editorial in which he rejected Apple CEO Tim Cook’s assertion that the agency was trying to set a precedent in its attempts to compel the company to create a backdoor into its software, calling the particular legal issue “actually quite narrow”.

However, in a U.S. congressional hearing just last week, Comey admitted under oath that the outcome of the dispute would likely “guide how other courts handle similar requests”. Additionally, in the same hearing, New York District Attorney Cyrus Vance said New York now has more than a hundred devices it would like to see unlocked, further confirming Apple’s point that the argument isn’t about just one iPhone.

Apple has officially opposed an order that would require it to help the FBI break into the iPhone used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook and will now face off against the government in court on March 22.

Dozens of technology companies, industry trade groups, and encryption experts have submitted documents to support Apple, all catalogued on Apple’s website. Five families of San Bernardino victims have filed in support of the FBI.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tag: Apple-FBI
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Tronsmart’s latest USB Type-C and Quick Charge 3.0 wall charger works with the LG G5 and the Nexus 6P (Review)

Have a device that is compatible with USB Type-C? One of the biggest annoyances you have to deal with is having two types of cables. MicroUSB and Type-C are the

Web code hints at what it’s like to read with dyslexia

People with dyslexia can tell you about their frustrations with reading, but it’s hard to really understand their condition without witnessing it first-hand. Well, you now have a quick and easy way to empathize with their situation: a developer has posted a web-based approximation of dyslexic reading (based on a friend’s description) that uses little more than JavaScript to generate the effect. Letters constantly jump around, forcing you to concentrate on each word to make sense of what you’re reading — you can’t just skim over it like you would otherwise. The source code is readily available, so you can implement it yourself if you want to see how the effect applies on other websites or within apps.

How accurate is it? The truth is that it varies. Dyslexia is a catch-all term for a range of conditions that produce different effects. Some dyslexics see characters bounce around vertically, for instance, so this isn’t going to be an authentic recreation for everyone. Also, problems processing visual information can stem from Irlen’s Syndrome, which is closely linked to (but isn’t created by) dyslexia. Nonetheless, at least some affected readers say that this is true to their experience. The site could provide an important lesson, whether or not it’s completely faithful. It’s a reminder that not everyone can take the text-rich internet era for granted, and it might encourage website creators to accommodate visitors who sometimes find reading a challenge.

Source: Dyslexia, GitHub

Scientists to drill into asteroid impact that wiped out dinosaurs

There’s plenty of evidence to indicate that a gigantic asteroid likely wiped out the dinosaurs (and many other forms of life) when it smacked into what’s now the Gulf of Mexico roughly 65.5 million years ago. However, what happened shortly afterward remains something of a mystery… or at least, it will until this spring. By April 1st, a scientific expedition will start drilling into the Gulf’s Chicxulub impact crater to study how life recovered following the mass extinction at the end of the Cretaceous period. The team will be looking for DNA samples, microfossils and rock type changes at different geologic layers to gauge both the effect of the impact and how lifeforms carried on in the hostile post-impact environment.

The jackpot may be found between 2,600ft to 5,000ft deep. There, the researchers hope to locate signs of the peak ring, or the inner lip of the crater. The data should not only verify existing impact models, but show whether or not the ring was a prime breeding ground for microbes that helped return life to the region. If so, it would suggest that the first organisms to come back thrived on the iron and sulfur deposited in the area, not the usual life-giving elements.

The drilling platform will carry on for two months, and it’s a risky procedure — there’s no second chance if the operation goes awry partway down. Should it succeed, though, it’ll help fill a gap in Earth’s history and illustrate just how persistent life can be despite seemingly insurmountable odds.

Via: CNN

Source: UT News, Science

Watch an electric Corvette shatter a speed record

Numerous car makers and gearheads have built extremely quick electric vehicles, but who holds the speed record? Not necessarily who’d you’d expect. The International Mile Racing Association has declared that Genovation’s GXE, a heavily modified Chevy Corvette, is the world’s fastest street-legal electric car. As you’ll see in the video below, the sports EV hit a brisk 186.8MPH while hardly breaking a sweat. The GXE team accomplished the feat in its first day of testing, in fact, so it’s entirely possible that you’ll see higher speeds in the near future.

Whether or not Genovation holds the title for very long is another matter. Vendors like Rimac are building electric supercars that should reach 220MPH and beyond, and it’s entirely likely that this kind of performance will be commonplace in the high-end EV world before long. Still, it’s nice to know that the technology for these kinds of achievements already exists — it’s just a matter of designing for it from the start, rather than incorporating it after the fact.

Via: Autoblog

Source: Genovation Cars, DCVP (YouTube)

AC editors’ apps of the week: Acorns, Genius, Checky and more

Our weekly app picks

It’s Appday Sunday and that means we’re back with more of our favorites to share. Every week we bring a handful of great apps to the table and share them with everyone. Sometimes they are new apps, sometimes old standards, but every time they are apps we love to use.

Give these a look and then take a minute to tell us all about the apps you are using and love so we can give them a try. We all find some of our favorites right in the comments on these posts!

Jerry Hildenbrand — Acorns

I’m really good at spending money, but I need all the help I can get when it comes to saving or investing it. I stumbled across the Acorns app last week and so far I’ve put away about $40 without having to think too hard about it.

The cool part is how you put money into your Acorns account. When you set things up, you connect a bank account. As you pay for things, Acorns lets you put the change into an investment account. If I spend $8.71, I have an option to deposit the $0.29 that would round my purchase to the next dollar. While not the best way to get rich, it’s easy and kind of fun,

Download: Acorns (Free)

Jen Karner — Genius

I’m constantly finding new music, and since I like to sing along this means I am regularly looking up lyrics. While it’s really easy to just do a google search and find lyrics to any song, having a single app that can help me out is always preferable. Genius has over a million song lyrics available for you to check out, with some really awesome features to check out. Their catalog has some serious variety too, from Beyonce and Kanye West to Nine Inch Nails, or The Hamilton soundtrack.

When you’re looking at lyrics, you’ll see some lines that are highlighted. If you tap on these, you’ll get annotations that give you more information. Genius will also offer to give you lyrics if it sees that you are playing music through Spotify or Pandora.

Download: Genius (Free)

Russell Holly — Checky

I keep seeing all of these “reports” from “experts” that claim the average person wakes their phone 150+ times every day. Everything about that figure gets brought up when talking about always-on displays and smartwatches being good for your overall battery. Figure the only way to be sure was to count the number of times I wake my phone every day, and since that surely was never going to happen manually I decided to give Checky a shot.

It’s a simple free app that keeps an eye on how many times you wake your phone every day, with a log for the previous days going back a week. Couldn’t be any easier, and I’m eager to see what the results tell me.

Download: Checky (Free)

Ara Wagoner — 1 Radio News

News never really stops, but I don’t always have time to read it with my eyeballs. Sometimes my eyeballs have had too much news (and other stuff) and they just need a break. Being able to snack on the headlines from news radio around the world is a boon, because on some days American media may be captivated by the asshole with the tiny digits, but the BBC is still paying attention to the rest of the world. It also has a selection of live radio streams from around the world, which is invaluable during breaking news (especially breaking international news). 1 Radio News isn’t the most polished app (yet), but it saved me from going to fifty different websites and apps to pull down a five minute headlines clip, and I’m more than happy to support an app that saves me time and helps me be more informed than my producers. Especially as they ramp up their election coverage.

Download: 1 Radio News(Free, $2.99)

Mobile Nations Weekly: Filings, Releases, and Updates

Pre-orders, shipment orders, and legal orders.

HTC’s long-awaited Vive VR headset is now available for pre-order and the Samsung Galaxy S7 is now shipping to pre-order customers. Amazon expanded their Alexa virtual assistant to the portable Amazon Tap Bluetooth speaker and the compact Echo Dot (which you can amusingly only order through an Echo voice command). And BlackBerry’s Android-powered Priv finally launched on Verizon.

Apple’s ongoing legal back-and-forth with the FBI got a little more interesting, pitting Silicon Valley against the FBI’s demand for backdoor access. Thirty companies have filed briefs in support of Apple’s position, including big-deal companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Facebook.

Microsoft’s HoloLens AR headset also went on sale, with the first shipments due to start at the end of March. And our #Windows10DoesMore Gem apps campaign continued with Ring, BB-8, and Two Dots.

All this and much much more, this week on Mobile Nations!

Android Central — Virtual reality, becoming a reality

After months of anticipation and teasing, HTC has finally made its consumer-ready version of the Vive VR system available for pre-order, and it turns out over 15,000 were ordered in just 10 minutes. HTC hasn’t quite announced it yet, but the device known as the “M10” is being leaked in a revealing fashion.

A bit closer to reality, those who pre-ordered a Galaxy S7 from some U.S. carriers are already receiving them ahead of the “sale” date. And if you get one, be sure to sign up for Samsung Pay and get a free wireless charger. Perhaps you’ll also consider one of SanDisk’s 200GB microSD cards, too.

If you’re a fan of Amazon’s Echo, you now have two new options for extending that functionality to other areas.

• How to help your phone survive a long flight
• Quick comparison: Galaxy S7 edge vs. Galaxy S6 edge+
• Choosing the best headphones
• These are the LG G5 modules we’d like to see
• What is a DAC, and why should I care about having one?
• Enter now for a chance to win a Galaxy S7!

CrackBerry — Big Red

This week was all about app updates and the further expansion of the Priv rollout, which included the long-awaited launch on Verizon. Plus, BlackBerry announced a new way for business owners and IT Admins to purchase BlackBerry smartphones in volume.

• BlackBerry launches new direct device sales program for business owners and IT administrators
• BlackBerry Priv now available from Verizon
• BlackBerry Priv launcher, camera, keyboard and more updated!

iMore — Amicus-paooza

The ongoing FBI vs. Apple dispute over unlocking an iPhone and, oh, the future of privacy and security, stayed in the headlines this week, with tech company after tech company coming out in support of Apple, and the political debate — informed and otherwise — kept swirling.

• Complete FBI vs. Apple coverage
• How to use Fitbit
• Best weather apps for iPhone
• Fifteen Terminal tricks that every Mac user should know

Windows Central — HoloBucks

Microsoft had another busy week of announcements with HoloLens officially going on sale for developers. The $3,000 price tag will keep many consumers away, and you need to be pre-approved as a developer to buy it, but the holographic computer is scheduled to ship on March 30 giving some devs an early chance to make some apps and games.

On the Windows 10 front consumers saw the release of Windows 10 build 10586.122 for PC with a large assortment of bug fixes and feature improvements. Likewise, Microsoft released 10586.122 for Windows 10 Mobile later in the week. PC Insiders also got another build bumping their Redstone branch to 14279 along with some preliminary SMS message support.

On the Windows Central front, we’re continuing our Gems campaign in conjunction with Microsoft and including our Star Wars BB-8 feature. Don’t forget, we’re also giving away a T-Mobile Alcatel OneTouch Fierce XL with just two days left to enter!

• Microsoft CEO reportedly nixed proposal to acquire Slack for $8 billion
• Windows Phones will be in use by all 36,000 NYPD officers ‘within weeks’
• Global Windows device shipments for K-12 schools went up 20% in 2015