Elon Musk pulls Tesla and SpaceX pages after #DeleteFacebook challenge

Elon Musk isn’t known for kidding around, and he just made that clear in his response to Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal… more or less, at least. The entrepreneur has hidden the official Facebook accounts for Tesla and SpaceX in response to at least one tweet challenging him to scrub them. Apparently, he didn’t realize the companies had Facebook presences until now. He’s not getting rid of the companies’ Instagram accounts, but he believed they were “borderline” as Facebook’s influence was “slowly creeping in.”

Musk had also ridiculed Sonos’ decision to yank its Facebook presence for a week. “Risky,” he joked.

Notice how we said “hidden” and not “deleted,” though? That’s because the sites aren’t technically gone. If you visit the Tesla and SpaceX pages, you get an error indicating the “content isn’t available right now,” not that the “page isn’t available” (which you’d see if the pages were dead). That suggests Tesla has only removed the pages from public view. We’ve asked for clarification. The company might just have cold feet, but it could also be an interim step — generally, it’s a good idea to make sure the company is fine with permanently removing its social presence.

Either way, this reflects part of a small but growing trend of companies reducing or eliminating their Facebook footprints in response to revelations that it failed to stop Cambridge Analytica from gathering information about tens of millions of users without their consent. Musk’s moves aren’t likely to put much of a dent in Facebook’s bottom line, but they contribute to a collective backlash that Facebook is more likely to notice.

I didn’t realize there was one. Will do.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 23, 2018

Source: Elon Musk (Twitter 1), (2)

Cambridge Analytica has commissioned a third-party audit

Mark Zuckerberg might be sorry that 50 million Facebook users’ data ended up with the political firm Cambridge Analytica and will (at some point) head to Congress to explain what happened. The firm maintained that it deleted that information when Facebook requested it do so back in 2015, but it’s unclear if that actually happened. Now Cambridge Analytica claims it’s undertaking a third-party audit to verify that the data is gone.

The firm has been on damage control in the last few days, suspending its CEO Alexander Nix after an undercover video caught him claiming he could commit potential bribery and entrapment on clients’ behalf. Evidence also emerged of him and other executives claiming they were responsible for Trump’s “narrow victory” of winning votes in three states. The acting CEO Alexander Tayler published an open letter today announcing the third-party audit. He also repeated that the firm deleted the users’ data at Facebook’s insistence shortly after he joined the company as Chief Data Officer in late 2015. He reiterated that the company didn’t use the 50 million-user data set in its analytical work for the Trump campaign in 2016.

Further, Tayler revealed that the company is looking into rumors that its ventures into politics outside the US were unethical. “We take the disturbing recent allegations of unethical practices in our non-US political business very seriously. The Board has launched a full and independent investigation into SCL Elections’ past practices, and its findings will be shared publicly,” Tayler wrote.

Via: Bloomberg

Source: Cambridge Analytica

Tumblr confirms 84 Russian accounts were used to spread disinformation

It’s not just Facebook or Twitter that were co-opted during the 2016 election. Just a month after accusations from researchers and Buzzfeed, Tumblr confirmed today that it uncovered 84 user accounts linked to the Russian government and its Internet Research Agency (IRA). The company says that these accounts were used in conjunction with a disinformation campaign to influence the elections. Tumblr notified law enforcement, terminated the accounts and deleted the original posts.

The company says that the IRA employed more than a thousand people to engage in electronic disinformation campaigns around the world using fake social media accounts. It also reports that the IRA-linked Tumblr accounts were only focused on the US and weren’t advertising, but rather organic content. In response, the company will email everyone who liked, reblogged, replied to or followed an IRA linked account with the usernames included. Tumblr will also keep a public record of usernames linked to the IRA or other state-sponsored propaganda groups. It will not remove any reblog chains, stating that this would constitute an encroachment on its users’ free speech. The company will continue to monitor its service for similar activity in the future, and will take the same steps if it finds evidence of such. Ultimately, though, Tumblr says that it’s also the general public’s responsibility to be aware of the possibility of this sort of disinformation and remain skeptical.

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Tumblr

GDC 2018 by the numbers

It was a wet and wild week at the 2018 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. The Engadget team spent our days wandering the show floor, meeting with developers and, of course, playing every game we could get our hands on. Here are a few highlights of the conference.

0 finish lines: It’s the race that never ends, it goes on and on, my friends. That’s why they call it Onrush. Developed by Codemasters studio, this team-based racing game offers a unique twist on car racing in that the race never really stops. Instead, players will be able to drop in and out of the action at their leisure. Throw in some hefty speed boosts, death defying jumps and stunts, and a stampede of 24 racers, Onrush looks to fundamentally reimagine the autocross genre.

1 finger: That’s all you’ll need in order to beat the snot out of hostile mobs in One Finger Death Punch 2. With over 700 individual strike animations, four game modes and dozens of exotic weapons with which to hack, slash, impale, bludgeon, shoot and laze your enemies with, OFDP2 gets a resounding thumb up.

2 players: If you think you can beat A Way Out on your own, you are sorely mistaken. This cinematic adventure title from Hazelight studios follows the trials and tribulations of a pair of escaped convicts as they go on the lamb and try to rebuild their lives. If you enjoyed The Last of Us, I have a feeling you’re going to really dig AWO. Just remember to bring a friend.

10 minutes: Who says pixel art can’t be emotionally evocative? 11 Bit Studio’s latest title, the procedurally generated narrative-driven adventure Children of Morta, managed to give senior editor Jessica Conditt, all of the feels in under a quarter of an hour.

Dozens of games: Back in the day, Nintendo was notoriously strict about the games it allowed on its platform. But times, they are a’changing. Keeping in line with a promise it made last year, the venerated console company announced a slew of new game titles from indie studios coming to the Switch by the end of the year.

60 apps: Games weren’t the only new software unleashed during GDC 2018. Google announced this week that, since its ARCore development system is now up and running, five dozen AR-capable apps will be made available in the Play Store. Who’s ready to neglect a whole new generation of Tamagotchis?

$200: The days of tripping over VR headset cords or piggybacking computers could soon be coming to an end thanks to the forthcoming Oculus Go. This head mounted display is fully self-contained with its own power source and processor. Rumor has it that the device will hit the market this May, coinciding with Facebook’ F8 conference. Fingers crossed.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from GDC 2018!

Live the startup ‘dream’ in the ‘Silicon Valley’ VR Hacker Hostel

If you’ve enjoyed HBO’s Silicon Valley over the last four seasons, chances are you’re keyed in to the same tech and startup scenes that the show satires. Which means you might have an HTC Vive, which is the platform of choice for the upcoming VR experience based on the show. If you want to roam around the suburban “startup incubator” where the Pied Piper team makes the magic happen, Silicon Valley VR: Inside The Hacker Hostel is coming soon to HTC’s headset.

You’ll wander the team’s Bay Area home/casual workplace and perform hundreds of ‘interactive experiences,’ including tasks requested in videos from the Pied Piper team. (Yes, some of the main cast shows up, with the likely exception of T.J. Miller, who left the show back in July.) Sure, the Silicon Valley VR experience will probably be Job Simulator set in the show’s world, but its developer Rewind took 360-degree imagery of Silicon Valley’s set to painstakingly recreate it in virtual reality, according to Fast Company. It’s unclear when it’ll be available for HTC Vive users, but the experience is intended to launch close to the debut of the show’s fifth season, which returns on March 25th.

Via: TechCrunch

Source: HBO | ‘Silicon Valley VR: Inside The Hacker Hostel’

Toyota Continues CarPlay Rollout With 2019 Corolla Hatchback

Toyota today announced that CarPlay will be a standard feature in the all-new 2019 Corolla Hatchback in the United States.

CarPlay and Amazon Alexa, but not Android Auto, are built into the vehicle’s Entune 3.0 system with an eight-inch touchscreen, Siri Eyes Free, AUX, a USB 2.0 port, and hands-free phone calls and music playback via Bluetooth. A tray with optional Qi-based wireless charging is built in to hold the iPhone.

Toyota is debuting the 2019 Corolla Hatchback at the New York International Auto Show next week. The vehicle will be available at dealerships across the United States in summer 2018. Pricing and exact availability has not been disclosed.

Toyota was one of the last major automakers that didn’t support CarPlay. That changed in January, when the company introduced the 2019 Avalon as its first vehicle compatible with Apple’s in-car software platform, which provides convenient access to Phone, Maps, Messages, Music, Podcasts, and select third-party apps.

Toyota has yet to reveal any other CarPlay vehicles, but if the 2019 Corolla Hatchback is compatible, then the 2019 Corolla sedan likely will be too. The 2019 Camry and 2019 Sienna will also likely feature CarPlay given the 2018 models of those vehicles are already equipped with the Entune 3.0 system.

Lexus vehicles with the Enform 2.0 system will also support CarPlay. Unfortunately, a spokesperson for Toyota told MacRumors that it doesn’t have any plans to support CarPlay in pre-2019 vehicles or other countries at this time.

Related: Toyota and Lexus to Offer CarPlay in Select 2019 Vehicles and Beyond in United States

Related Roundup: CarPlayTag: Toyota
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New Low-Cost 9.7-Inch iPad May Support Apple Pencil

Apple’s new low-cost 9.7-inch iPad may include support for the Apple Pencil, according to a new note to investors shared this morning by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Kuo says that he expects Apple Pencil shipments will rise to 9 to 10 million units in 2018 “given that the new low-cost iPad may support Apple Pencil.” Kuo says Apple may add Apple Pencil support in order to differentiate the low-cost iPad from competing low-cost Android tablets.

Strong demand for low-price 9.7-inch iPad in 2017. iPad shipments hit 43.8mn units in 2017, well above the 35mn units forecast by the market at the beginning of the year. The primary driver was the low-price 9.7-inch model, whose selling points are competitive pricing and a significantly larger panel than those of six- to seven-inch smartphones (iPad mini was a flop because it was replaced by large-screen smartphones). In a bid to strengthen its selling points and to differentiate it more from low-price Android tablets, the new low-price 9.7-inch iPad (starting mass production in 2Q18) will likely support Apple Pencil.

There have been no previous rumors suggesting the low-cost iPad will include Apple Pencil support, but there was speculation that it could based on the design of the event invite that Apple sent out to members of the media.

The invitation includes an Apple logo that’s clearly been drawn using the Apple Pencil, which led people to think that the low-cost education-focused iPad might support Apple Pencil. It’s not clear if Apple will offer schools the existing Apple Pencil or introduce a new, more affordable version if the company is indeed planning to debut a lower-cost iPad that works with the accessory.

Adding Apple Pencil support to the low-cost iPad would allow Apple’s tablet to better compete with the Chromebooks that are popular in schools, providing the ability for students to draw and write directly on the iPad’s screen with a fast, reliable tool.

Though Kuo does not mention the possibility, if Apple is planning to add Apple Pencil support to the low-cost iPad, some kind of keyboard could also be included. With Apple Pencil support and an included keyboard accessory, iPads would be a far more appealing option for schools.

Rumors have suggested Apple is working on a more affordable iPad targeted at the educational market. The new device could perhaps be priced as low as $259, down from the current $329 price tag for the 5th-generation iPad.

Kuo believes 9.7-inch iPad shipments will account for more than 70 percent of all iPad shipments in 2018, which will have a positive impact on Apple Pencil shipments. He expects Apple will begin shipping new iPad Pro models with TrueDepth camera systems during the “around” the third quarter of 2018, which suggests a September debut.

In addition to the low-cost iPad, Kuo’s note also mentions Apple Pencil support for future iPhones. He believes the likelihood of such a feature “may increase with future iPhone screen size being enlarged,” but he does not believe the 2018 iPhone models will support Apple Pencil.

Related Roundups: iPad Pro, iPad, 2018 iPhonesTags: Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple PencilBuyer’s Guide: 10.5″ iPad Pro (Caution), 12.9″ iPad Pro (Neutral), iPad (Don’t Buy)
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MacRumors Giveaway: Win a USB-C Clamp Hub Pro for the 2017 iMac or iMac Pro

For this week’s giveaway, we’ve teamed up with Satechi to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win a USB-C Clamp Hub Pro that’s designed for the 2017 iMac and iMac Pro.

Priced at $49.95, the Clamp Hub Pro plugs into one of the Thunderbolt 3 ports on an iMac or iMac Pro and attaches right to the bottom of the display to put additional ports right where you need them.

Because the Clamp Hub Pro attaches cleanly to the bottom of the iMac or iMac Pro with an adjustable knob, it adds ports without cluttering your desktop or adding visible bulk to the machine. Beyond plugging it into a Thunderbolt 3 port, no additional installation is required.

The Clamp Hub Pro features a USB-C port (for data only), 3 USB-A ports to attach USB-A peripherals, a microSD card slot, and a standard SD card slot. Clamp Hub Pro comes in either Space Gray or Silver, so it can match the traditional iMac and the Space Gray iMac Pro.

The USB-C port supports transfer speeds of up to 5Gb/s, as do the three USB-A ports, while the two card slots support transfer speeds of up to 104Mb/s. The Clamp Hub Pro is compatible only with the iMac and the iMac Pro, which are the only two desktops with USB 3.

We have 10 of Satechi’s Clamp Hub Pro accessories to give away to MacRumors readers. To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

a Rafflecopter giveawayThe contest will run from today (March 23) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on March 30. The winners will be chosen randomly on March 30 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.

Tags: giveaway, Satechi
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Apple Submits New Accessibility Emojis to Unicode Consortium

Apple today submitted a new proposal [PDF] to the Unicode Consortium, suggesting the committee introduce a series of accessibility emojis in future Unicode releases.

As outlined by Emojipedia, Apple has suggested emojis that include a guide dog, a hearing aid, a prosthetic arm and leg, sign language, a person in a wheelchair, and a person with a cane. Apple’s full list of proposed emojis can be seen in its proposal document.

Image via Emojipedia
In its proposal, Apple says it is aiming to better represent individuals with disabilities to provide a more inclusive experience for all. Apple also says this is not an exhaustive list of “all possible depictions of disabilities,” but is rather designed to be “an initial starting point.”

At Apple, we believe that technology should be accessible to everyone and should provide an experience that serves individual needs. Adding emoji emblematic to users’ life experiences helps foster a diverse culture that is inclusive of disability. Emoji are a universal language and a powerful tool for communication, as well as a form of self-expression, and can be used not only to represent one’s own personal experience, but also to show support for a loved one.

This new set of emoji that we are proposing aims to provide a wider array of options to represent basic categories for people with disabilities. This is not meant to be a comprehensive list of all possible depictions of disabilities, but to provide an initial starting point for greater representation for diversity within the emoji universe.

To create the emoji suggestions, Apple teamed up with the American Council of the Blind, the Cerebral Palsy Foundation, and the National Association of the Deaf. Its initial proposal focused on people in four categories: Blind and Low Vision, Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Physical Motor, and Hidden Disabilities.

Apple says its proposal is a “significant step forward in representing more diverse individuals,” and that the company hopes it will “spark a global dialogue around better representation for people with disabilities.”

Apple is well-known for its dedicated work on making its products accessible to all users, with a suite of Accessibility features built into all of its iPhones, iPads, Macs, and more. Apple maintains a dedicated Accessibility section on its website where it shares details on available Accessibility features and stories of people who have improved their lives with Apple products.

The Unicode Consortium has already finalized the Emoji 11.0 characters that will be adopted by smartphone companies later this year, but Apple’s proposed characters could be added to Emoji 12.0, set to be released in 2019.

Tags: emoji, accessibility
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Quick Takes: (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, or iPhone X?

In addition to our standalone articles covering the latest Apple news and rumors at MacRumors, this Quick Takes column provides a bite-sized recap of other headlines about Apple and its competitors on weekdays.

Friday, March 23

1. (PRODUCT)RED edition iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and/or iPhone X very soon? Steve Hemmerstoffer, who runs the OnLeaks account on Twitter, says at least one red-colored iPhone might be released soon. However, he says his source is unverified, so treat this rumor with a dose of skepticism.

(PRODUCT)RED edition iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus

Take this with a pinch of salt because I got it from a new and therefore still “unverified” source but I heard that new red colored iPhone(s) might be on his way… pic.twitter.com/LKkGB99ylK

— Steve H. (@OnLeaks) March 23, 2018

Rosenblatt Securities analyst Jun Zhang also said Apple may release a (PRODUCT)RED edition of the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and/or iPhone X. A year ago this week, Apple unveiled a special (PRODUCT)RED edition of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, so there’s certainly some precedence to suggest this rumor may be true.

2. Apple edits iPhone X ad that captured an animation glitch: A week ago, 9to5Mac’s Benjamin Mayo noticed the ad captured a minor bug causing some text to briefly appear outside of notification bubbles on the lock screen. The bug can be seen in the tweet below or in GIF form over at The Verge.

OMG Apple’s latest iPhone X ad includes a shot of the bugged notification bubbles (see thread for explanation)

Yes, I did file a radar on this months ago. I think it got closed as dupe. I’m way more concerned that this was signed off for the commercial. pic.twitter.com/4VnuplkQTf

— Benjamin Mayo (@bzamayo) March 16, 2018

As it turns out, Apple has quietly edited the video to remove any evidence of the glitch, somehow without re-uploading it to its YouTube channel. The irony is that Apple hasn’t fixed the bug in the latest iOS 11.3 beta, but given the attention it has now received, expect that to change soon.

Apple’s edited iPhone X ad “Unlock”
For more Apple news and rumors coverage, visit our Front Page, Mac Blog, and iOS Blog. Also visit our forums to join in the discussion.

Tags: (PRODUCT)RED, Quick Takes
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