Ken Bone may have violated FTC rules with Uber tweet
Ken Bone’s overnight fame looks to have already soured. As VICE reports, Bone’s tweet for the UBERSelect service in St. Louis, where last Sunday’s presidential debate was held, did not include any indication that the message was sponsored. This is a big no-no with the Federal Trade Commission — just ask Kim Kardashian.
Everyone wants to know if I’ve decided… and I have. uberSELECT helps you ride in style like me https://t.co/HyOS8z9SRd
— Ken Bone (@kenbone18) October 13, 2016
The FTC has become increasingly stringent with its regulation of marketing and advertising on social media in recent months, and has clear rules on the matter. “The FTC isn’t mandating the specific wording of disclosures,” the FTC guidelines read. However the commission goes on to suggest using “Sponsored”, “Promotion”, “Paid Ad” or just “#ad” are all acceptable notifiers which all take up less than 1/14th of the tweet’s total space.
What both companies and their endorsers need to do, lawyer William I Rothbard told Engadget, is “be aware of and comply with the FTC’s endorsement guidelines.” These guidelines demand the disclosure of “material connections” between the parties. “If Mr Bone was compensated in some way by Uber,” Rothbard continued, “and there wasn’t a disclosure of that material connection, those tweets would be in violation of the FTC guidelines.”
And while there isn’t a fine, per se, for this sort of infraction, the FTC can empower law enforcement to confiscate any monies paid by Uber to Bone for his endorsement, though the FTC rarely actually pursued such action in the past, according to Rothbard. Plus, as VICE discovered, Bone was not paid in cash, but rather Uber credits. And this is why celebrities, even flash-in-the-pan amateurs like Bone, need to do their due diligence before trying to capitalize on their instant fame.
TImothy J. Seppala contributed to this report.
Source: Vice
Who’s still using Windows Phones? The NYPD.
Microsoft may have all but given up on Windows Phones, but rookies in the New York City Police Department are now getting them with their gun and badge. As CNET reports, the NYPD only started handing out department-issued smartphones and email addresses in 2015, and the official device of the largest police force in the United States are the Lumia 830 and Lumia 640 XL.
Those phones debuted in late 2014 and early 2015, respectively and the department reportedly passed on iOS and Android devices because the Windows Phone platform offered the best remote management and security features. The NYPD and Microsoft also worked collaborated on a suite of crime-fighting apps like a direct 911 line that goes to an officer rather than a dispatcher, a police records search, in-house messaging, a case management system and a media library for training videos and policy updates. According to the department, the ability to route 911 calls directly to officers has dropped the response time for crimes in progress by over 12 percent.
While those Nokia workhorse might seem a little bit out of date, CNET notes the department is looking into upgrading to Windows 10 devices by next summer. And, in any case, any smartphone at all is a vast improvement over the department’s previous policy — a downright archaic system of shared voice mailboxes.
Source: CNET
Apple CEO Tim Cook Calls Augmented Reality ‘Profound,’ Says it Should ‘Amplify’ Human Contact
Over the past few months, Apple CEO Tim Cook has spoken about augmented reality several times, giving us an idea of what Apple might be working on behind the scenes. In a new interview with BuzzFeed News, Cook hints at Apple’s approach to augmented reality, suggesting it should encourage, not replace, human contact.
“Augmented reality will take some time to get right, but I do think that it’s profound. We might … have a more productive conversation, if both of us have an AR experience standing here, right? And so I think that things like these are better when they’re incorporated without becoming a barrier to our talking. … You want the technology to amplify it, not to be a barrier.”
According to Cook, there is “no substitute” for human interaction, a belief that further lends itself to the idea that Apple is exploring augmented reality experiences over virtual reality experiences. In fact, in the interview, Cook says that while VR “has some interesting applications,” he doesn’t think it’s a “broad-based technology like AR.”
Cook has made many similar comments in recent months. In July, Cook said Apple was “high on AR in the long run” and that the company continues “to invest a lot in [AR].” He said he believes augmented reality “can be huge,” and in August, he called it a “core technology.”
In September, when discussing AR/VR, he said be believes augmented reality “is the larger of the two,” because it allows people to “be very present,” engaging with one another while having other visual things to see.
According to rumors, Apple has a research team working on augmented and virtual reality, exploring the AR/VR field and investigating how the company could embrace augmented or virtual reality in the future. Apple has reportedly built prototype virtual reality headsets, but Cook’s continued comments on augmented reality indicate Apple is more heavily invested in that technology.
Apple has made several AR-related acquisitions and hires in recent months, purchasing companies like Metaio, Faceshift, and Flyby Media, and according to BuzzFeed, Apple has also recently been attending meetings with immersive content companies like Jaunt.
BuzzFeed also points out that some of Apple’s existing hardware could be part of a future “AR ecosystem,” including the iPhone 7 Plus with its dual-lens camera system, the Apple Watch with GPS and accelerometer, and the AirPods, equipped with dual accelerometers, optical sensors, microphones, and an antenna.
Related Roundup: Apple VR Project
Discuss this article in our forums
SIM-Free iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus Now Available From Apple Online Store
As of this afternoon, Apple has started offering a SIM-free version of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus from its online store in the United States, allowing customers to buy an unlocked iPhone without choosing a carrier.
SIM-free versions of the iPhone 7 Plus in all capacities list shipping estimates of three to four weeks, with the exception of the Jet Black SIM-free iPhone 7 Plus, which lists a shipping estimate of six to eight weeks.
For the iPhone 7, SIM-free models in Silver, Gold, Rose Gold, and Black feature delivery estimates of October 17 to 19, while Jet Black models ship in three to five weeks.
According to Apple, SIM-free models (A1660 and A1661) will work with any carrier and have full support for CDMA and GSM networks, much like the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus devices available from Sprint or Verizon. iPhone 7 and 7 Plus models from AT&T and T-Mobile do not support CDMA networks and are not compatible with all carriers.
SIM-free models are not yet available for in-store pickup from the online store, but should be available in the near future as supplies improve. Retail stores will also likely begin offering SIM-free models in the next few days.
SIM-free iPhones must be purchased at full price, with the iPhone 7 starting at $649 and the iPhone 7 Plus starting at $769.
Related Roundup: iPhone 7
Discuss this article in our forums
2016 Ferrari 488 GTB review – Roadshow
Oct 2016
The Good Basically everything.
The Bad Certain driver niceties like adaptive cruise and Android Auto would round out the offerings.
The Bottom Line One of the best driving experiences on the planet.
When you have a car that’s as good as the Ferrari 458 was, it’s easy to imagine all the things that could go wrong in developing its successor. Just heaping on more power would be the natural inclination, but blindly adding more oomph is a great way to ruin an equation.
Forced induction also seems like an inevitable next step, but slapping a couple of turbos onto one of the sweetest V8s ever produced could just as likely end in disaster.
Ferrari’s 488 GTB has the looks to match…
See full gallery
1 – 6 of 84
Next
Prev
In other words, you’d be forgiven for expecting the 488 GTB, Ferrari’s 458 follow-up, to be something less than stellar. But, I’m very glad to report that is not the case. The 488 is everything you could want, nothing more, nothing less.
The formula
661 horses at your command.
Brandon Cheely
By and large, the 488 fits right in Ferrari’s middleweight supercar design template, with a mid-mounted V8 driving the rear wheels plus seating for two in a package wrapped in low-slung and aggressively styled bodywork. It’s a formula that’s worked for 40 years now, and the new GTB doesn’t break it.
But that’s not to say the 488 doesn’t change the variables. This time that V8 gets some help inhaling thanks to a pair of turbochargers, enabling the 3.9-liter engine to deliver 661 horsepower. That’s very nearly 100 more than the 458, a car that nobody in their right mind said was slow.
That bodywork has been significantly refined as well. Though the cars look very similar, the 488 has 50 percent more downforce than the old 458, despite having less aerodynamic drag. Ferrari’s designers used a series of tricks to pull that off, including ducting air from the massive fender vents through the rear of the car out between the rear tail-lights. An active rear diffuser that lowers at speed also helps keep things flowing.
And then there are the driving dynamics, all tied together by the most advanced electronics package this side of LaFerrari. That includes the latest Side Slip Control system, SSC2, tuned to more subtly intervene and keep you feeling like a professional while also keeping you out of the ditch. With this new version, SSC2 extends its reach into other systems in the car, able to tweak the electronic differential and the active dampers, meaning the GTB responds and adapts as a cohesive unit, helping you go faster.
Most importantly, you almost never feel it.
Yahoo email breach could put Verizon deal in jeopardy
After Verizon announced a $4.83 billion deal to acquire former internet giant Yahoo, troubles the former company faced quickly came to light. Now the wireless carrier says that Yahoo’s 2014 email breach that affected 500 million users could give it “reasonable basis” to withdraw its bid. Earlier this month, reports surfaced that Verizon was seeking a $1 billion discount on the selling price due to the security ordeal.
“I think we have a reasonable basis to believe right now that the impact is material and we’re looking to Yahoo to demonstrate to us the full impact,” Verizon’s general counsel Craig Silliman explained to reporters today in Washington, DC. “If they believe that it’s not then they’ll need to show us that.” Verizon confirmed these comments to Engadget, but didn’t elaborate any further when we reached out for more information.
Reuters reports that Silliman didn’t offer any indication as to whether talks were in progress about a reduced price. However, the deal does have a clause where the carrier can withdraw in the case of an event that has “adverse effect” on Yahoo’s business, assets or “financial condition.”
According to Reuters, Silliman went on to say that Verizon is “absolutely evaluating and will make determinations about whether and how to move forward with the deal based on our evaluation of the materiality.”
“We are confident in Yahoo’s value and we continue to work towards integration with Verizon,” a spokesperson told Engadget in response to today’s comments from Verizon.
Yahoo has been dealing with more than just the fallout from the email security breach. A Reuters report in earlier this month revealed that the company gave the US government access to all of its users’ emails, allowing the National Security Agency and FBI to scan “hundreds of millions” accounts.
Source: Reuters
Google highlights fact-checking stories one month before election
This year’s US presidential election is one of the most acrimonious in memory, with not a day going by without one campaign accusing the other of outrageous falsehood (some more than others). With one month to go until the country casts its votes, Google has started to specifically tag fact-checking articles on Google News to help readers decipher the truth from the outrageously false accusations and untruths.
When you visit Google’s news site or use the Google “News and Weather” app for iOS and Android, you’ll see fact-checking articles included alongside pieces of news, specifically labeled as such. The fact-check tag joins existing news tags like “opinion,” “in-depth” and “highly cited.”
In a blog post announcing the new feature, Google notes that the Duke Reporter’s Lab has found that “rigorous fact checks are now conducted by more than 100 active sites” — that may not sound like a lot, but it’s a field that has grown in a huge way in recent years. Glenn Kessler, who runs The Washington Post’s “Fact Checker” section said that there were only four such organizations back in 2010.
“I think that voters and people interested in politics really want to see whether or not politicians are telling the truth,” Kessler said today in a phone interview. “There was a lot of publicity given to the American fact checkers in the 2012 election and a lot of international news coverage about the fact checkers, and that inspired fact checkers to spring up all over the place — in Latin America, Africa, Asia, all across Europe.”
And in a particularly tense and contested election year, it looks like people are indeed trying to separate the truth out of the many wild statements and stories being reported every day. Kessler said that traffic to his fact-checking site was up 477 percent this July compared to the previous year. Of course, in an election year there’s bound to be more interest, but that’s just one of many signs showing how fact-checking is having a moment in the sun. He also said that he first discussed the idea of surfacing fact-checking articles with a Google executive way back in March 2015, so it’s been an idea at the company for a while now.
Alexios Mantzarlis, who run Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network, also is seeing a big surge of interest. “I have no idea whether we’ll see a large bump in traffic from [Google’s] move — interest in fact-checking has been growing so fast in the US during this campaign that [the impact] may not be huge,” he said over email. “I do think this will have the greatest effect if it kick-starts an earnest and industry-wide discussion about what all media-adjacent tech giants can do to promote fact-checking.”
Ultimately, it’s all about holding the subjects of reporting accountable and fact-checking both sides of an argument. Kessler says that it’s not always reasonable to expect a single story to both give the news as well as fact-check it. “I always say fact-checking is a compliment to political reporting, not a supplement,” Kessler says. “If look at discreet statements that politicians make, it’s really hard if you’re a political reporter covering the latest speech and step back and say ‘that’s not really true.’ You don’t have a lot of space to get into that — but with a fact check, you can take that one statement and really put it under a microscope.”
While it’s a good step for Google to start highlighting fact-checking articles, particularly as the campaign enters its last month, these links aren’t going to be plastered all over Google’s search results. To find them, you’ll need to go into the “expanded” view of news stories on the Google News page. The News & Weather iOS and Android apps aren’t exactly the company’s most prominent mobile resource, either. We’ll be watching to see if Google expands the way it highlights fact-checking stories in the future, but for now they should start showing up in Google News today.
Source: Google
Share Dropbox files via iMessage and sign PDFs on your iPhone – CNET
No longer content simply to be a file repository in the cloud, Dropbox updated its iOS app to help business users get more done on their iPhone or iPad. Dropbox for iOS now has its own Messages app, and it lets you sign PDFs without touching Adobe, among a number of other features.
Let’s take a look at the new things the updated Dropbox app can do.
Share files via Messages
With iOS 10, Apple opened the stock Messages app to third-party developers, and Dropbox has added its own app to the iMessage App Store. With it installed, you can grab Dropbox files without leaving your current text conversation and share them with whomever you are texting.
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
Sign PDFs
With the previous version of the Dropbox app, you could sign PDFs, but it was an awkward, two-step process that kicked you out to the Adobe Acrobat Reader app. Now, you can delete that Adobe app and sign PDFs from right within Dropbox itself.
When you open a PDF in Dropbox, tap the pencil button on the bottom of your screen to add text or a signature. You can then drag your entered text or your signature to the appropriate spot on the page. And the app saves your signature to make signing subsequent documents quick and easy.
More actions with the lock-screen widget
Dropbox had a lock screen widget before this update, but all it showed you were your four most recently added files, which you could tap on to open in Dropbox. The updated Dropbox app adds three helpful buttons to the lock-screen widget: Scan Document, Upload Photo and Create File.
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
With these buttons, I can now move the Dropbox app off of my home screen to free up a spot for another app there and simply use the lock-screen widget to start a Dropbox task.
Get notified of changes
If you regularly share files on Dropbox, it can be a challenge to keep track of who is making changes and when. The updated Dropbox app now notifies you when a shared document has been updated and by whom. The notification includes a Refresh button so you can quickly and easily view the current version of the file.
Enlarge Image
Dropbox
iPad PIP
The updated Dropbox app for the iPad now lets you go picture-in-picture so you can watch a video you have stored on Dropbox in a PIP window while you go about your business elsewhere on your iPad. And Dropbox stays that in the coming weeks, it’ll add split-screen support.
For more, get 10 tips for getting started with Dropbox Paper and learn how to sync folders between your Mac and Dropbox.
5 privacy settings to change in Windows 10 – CNET
Windows 10 is running on over 400 million devices, but it still has all sorts of privacy issues — including mandatory diagnostic and usage data reporting to Microsoft, and a troubling amount of ads sprinkled throughout the platform.
Not all of Windows 10’s problems can be fixed, but there are some things you can do to reclaim your privacy. Here are five privacy-related settings you can change for a less invasive and more secure Windows 10 experience.
Stop Cortana from getting to know you
In order for Cortana to be the best virtual personal assistant ever, she’ll ask you early on if she can “get to know you” through the way you interact with your device — namely, your speech, handwriting and typing patterns. The “getting to know you” feature also allows Windows 10 to collect other information about you, including your calendar, contacts, location and browsing history, according to Microsoft’s privacy statement.
You can stop Cortana from “getting to know you.” If you do this, you will not be able to use voice dictation to speak to Cortana, and all personal information that Cortana has collected will be cleared.
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
To turn this off, open the Settings menu and go to Speech, inking, & typing. Under Getting to know you, click Stop getting to know me. This will turn off dictation and will clear any collected information from your device. You can also clear your collected information from Cortana’s settings menu, under Change what Cortana knows about me in the cloud.
Turn off your location
If you’re using a mobile device, such as a tablet or a laptop, there are plenty of times when allowing Windows 10 and third-party apps to access your location is convenient. But that doesn’t mean that you should leave your location switched on at all times. When your location is switched on, Windows 10 stores your device’s location history for up to 24 hours and allows apps with location permission to access that data.
If you turn your location off, apps that use your location (such as the Maps app) will not be able to find you. However, you can manually set a default location that apps can use as a stand-in.
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
To turn off your location, open the Settings menu and go to Location . You can either turn off location for all users (under Location for this device is on > Change ), or you can turn off location services for your account (under Location service). In this menu, you can also clear your Location history , and allow certain apps to see (or not see) your exact location. Apps in the location list will have a note if they use location history data.
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
To quickly toggle your location services on and off, open the Action center; the Location switch will be in the quick settings (possibly below the break).
Stop syncing
There’s a lot of syncing going on in Windows 10. If you sign in with a Microsoft account, your settings — including passwords — may be synced across other devices you sign into with the same account. Your notifications may also be synced across devices.
If you turn off syncing, your settings and passwords will not be synced across other devices when you sign in with your Microsoft account (so you’ll need to do things like enter passwords in manually).
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
To turn off settings syncing, open the Settings menu and go to Accounts > Sync your settings. You can either turn off all setting syncing at once, or you can toggle individual sync settings off.
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
To turn off notification syncing, open Cortana and go to Settings > Send notifications between devices. You can turn this off to turn off all notifications syncing, and you can also click Edit sync settings to manage your different signed-in devices.
Lock down your lock screen
The lock screen is the first thing anyone sees when they open up your device, and this screen can have a lot of information that you might not want strangers to access.
Here are three things you need to do to lock down your lock and log-in screens:
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
Make sure your notifications aren’t appearing on the lock screen. Open the Settings menu and go to System > Notifications & actions and turn off Show notifications on the lock screen. The downside to turning this feature off is that you won’t be able to see any notifications until you unlock your device.
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
Turn off Cortana on the lock screen by opening Cortana and going to Settings > Use Cortana even when my device is locked. The downside to turning this feature off is that you won’t be able to use Cortana while your device is locked.
You can also limit her scope on the lock screen (instead of turning her off completely) by unchecking the box next to Let Cortana access my calendar, email, messages and Power BI when my device is locked. This way, you’ll still be able to ask Cortana to answer questions that don’t reveal any personal information while your device is locked.
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
Hide your email address on the log-in screen by opening the Settings menu and going to Accounts > Sign-in options > Privacy. Turn off the toggle under Show account details (e.g. email address) on sign-in screen. There’s pretty much no downside to turning this feature off, unless you really like seeing your email address.
Turn off your advertising ID
Each Microsoft account has a unique advertising ID that lets Microsoft collect information about you and deliver a personalized ad experience across platforms. If you sign into Windows 10 with a Microsoft account, those personalized ads will follow you onto your computer — you’ll see them in apps and possibly in the operating system itself (e.g., in the Start menu).
Enlarge Image
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET
To turn these ads off in Windows 10, open the Settings menu and go to Privacy > General > Let apps use my advertising ID for experiences across apps (turning this off will reset your ID) and turn this off. You’ll still see ads, but they won’t be personalized to your tastes and preferences.
Turning this feature off will prevent personalized ads from popping up in your Windows 10 experience, but won’t necessarily keep you from seeing personalized ads when you’re using your Microsoft account on other platforms. To get rid of ads on other platforms, such as in browsers, head to Microsoft’s advertising opt-out page.
How to use third-party apps (like Uber) in Maps for iOS 10 – CNET
iOS 10: Five hidden features you may have missed
Take control of your iPhone’s inbox and have fun with photos with these less-than-obvious updates.
by Vanessa Hand Orellana
Close
Drag
The next time you search for a restaurant or directions in the Maps app on iOS 10, you may notice an extra button or two to make a reservation or request a ride.
The new buttons are part of a long list of new features in iOS 10. Just as developers can integrate with Siri, Maps is yet another area where company’s like OpenTable or Lyft can stay front and center.
And just as third-party Siri apps require you to enable each app, so do third-party Maps apps.
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
It’s a quick process. Open the Settings app on your iOS device then tap on Maps. Scroll to the bottom of the page, where you’ll find the Extensions section.
Toggle the switch for each app you want to use within Maps, and you’re done.
If Maps shows you, for example, the OpenTable button before it’s turned on in Settings, tapping on the button will prompt you to enable it directly in Maps.
Currently, I know of Yelp, Uber, Lyft and OpenTable as apps that work with Apple Maps in iOS 10.
AIVAnet 