Starbucks app stores log-in credentials, location info in plain text
If you’re concerned about someone getting their hands on your personal data, you’ll want to read on — this latest method’s an unlikely culprit. The Starbucks mobile-payment app is reportedly saving user data, including email addresses, passwords and even your GPS location in plain text. Theoretically, anyone with access to your phone (and a computer) can download your private data with less than an hour or work. Company executives confirmed the flaw to Computerworld, admitting that they’re aware of the issue.
Daniel Wood, a security researcher, first came upon the unencrypted information last year. He downloaded and re-tested an updated version the app, which Starbucks claims now includes “adequate security measures,” only to find that the same information is still easily accessible. A log file also includes GPS coordinates that are captured every time you search for a nearby Starbucks store. Of course, the global caffeinator’s mobile application isn’t free of other weaknesses, too — payments are processed by scanning an on-screen barcode, which can be reproduced and used to drain your account by anyone close enough to photograph your phone.
Source: Computerworld
Pandora now recommends radio stations to Android and iOS listeners
Pandora is built around personalizing radio to your tastes, but that’s only so much help once you’re tired of listening to a given station. Thankfully, the company’s Android and iOS apps now recommend new stations. When you’re creating a station or browsing your existing list, you’ll see suggestions for additional artist channels based on both your history as well as thumbs-up ratings for individual songs. If you’ve ever been left scrounging for new music to stream, you’ll want to grab Pandora’s latest mobile app today.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Internet, Mobile
Source: Pandora Blog, App Store, Google Play
Box redesigns its iOS app for simplicity, speed and real-time search (video)
Box is finally countering Dropbox’s revamped iOS app with a redesign of its own. Its updated cloud storage software centers around a fresh, iOS 7-native interface that’s both simpler and faster at drawing content. The app takes advantage of that newfound speed, too — it now previews over 100 file types with accurate rendering, and grid views make it easier to find photos and presentations. Box has also slipped in real-time searching, a comments sidebar and the option to copy, delete or move multiple files at once. Even if these features don’t justify an upgrade by themselves, the company is sweetening the pot by offering 50GB of free, lifetime space to anyone who downloads the new app within the first 30 days. If you’re at all interested, we’d suggest hurrying to the App Store.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Storage, Mobile
Source: App Store
Chrome updates bring data compression to all Android and iOS users
Google has been testing data compression in mobile versions of Chrome for what seems like ages, but today it’s finally ready to bring that efficiency to the masses. Both the Android and iOS versions of the browser now let all users squeeze website content to reduce their data use — and, in some cases, their phone bills. There’s also a pair of platform-specific upgrades in the pipeline. Android fans will get to create web shortcuts on their home screens, while iOS users will see the automatic translation bar that has been available on Android since last year. Whichever version of Chrome you’re running, you’ll want to grab its latest update through one of the source links.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile, Google
Source: App Store, Google Play
Facebook might launch a Flipboard-like reader app called Paper
Flipboard might soon find itself competing against a reader app owned by a social media juggernaut (read: Facebook), if re/code’s report turns out to be true. According to the website’s unnamed source, the social network’s been developing a news aggregator called Paper — and no, it has nothing to do with FiftyThree’s similarly named drawing app. Unlike Flipboard which dons a look reminiscent of magazines, the service will reportedly present stories across the internet in a “paper-like (we’re assuming that means newspaper) format.” Apparently, the project was originally a feature developed for the News Feed during a previous redesign, but it didn’t make the cut. Facebook has yet to confirm Paper’s existence, but we’ll find out soon enough — the anonymous source believes it could be released this month either as a standalone app or a mobile website.
[Image credit: Marco Paköeningrat/Flickr]
Filed under: Misc, Mobile, Facebook
Source: re/code
Google shuts down its bucket-list service, Schemer
Not long after rumors of Google shutting down Schemer (its goal-sharing service) arose, confirmation has appeared. On its website, Schemer notes that user data will be wiped after February 7th, but you have the chance to download your saved plans ahead of that. Furthermore, the note suggests giving Field Trip and the explore function in Google Maps a shot to attempt replicating some of the now-terminal app’s functionality. If those don’t work and you need some company for your grieving, however, we’re positive there are at least a few Google Reader users that know your pain.
Via: PhoneArena
Source: Schemer
Horizon for iOS records landscape video no matter how you hold your phone
On Vine and Instagram, square-sharing is the name of the game. But when it comes to YouTube or TV, you’re going to insult viewers if you present them with a vertical video. Despite six years of smartphone innovation, Apple hasn’t really solved what’s come to be known as Vertical Video Syndrome, so one app developer is taking it upon itself to fix it. With Horizon, Evil Window Dog believes it can help shape a world with no more black sidebars. Where some developers ask users to hold their iPhone on its side before shooting, like Google tried with YouTube Capture for iOS, Horizon wants to make things a whole lot easier by letting you capture horizontal video from any angle.
Horizon works by using your iOS device’s gyroscope to auto-level videos, keeping a horizontal focus on the action unfolding in front of you. If you rotate your iPhone 45-degrees, the app simply adjusts the frame to maintain its aspect ratio (it currently supports square 1:1, wide 16:9 and standard 4:3). But that’s not all it has to offer. In the app’s settings, you can set whether you’d like to rotate as you film, rotate and scale recordings or disable rotation altogether. Video quality can be tweaked to output VGA, 720p or Full HD recordings and there’s also an option to mirror videos to your Apple TV using AirPlay. You can even apply one of eight pre-installed filters, if artistically destroying homemade videos is your thing. Horizon is available on the App Store for $0.99 for a limited time — we just wish Apple and Google had bundled this as standard.
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile
Via: The Next Web
Source: Horizon (App Store), Horizon
Samsung debuts its own Winter Olympics app
Samsung is constantly trying to keep users solely in its own ecosystem. First, the Galaxy Gear. Did you really think it would end there? Now, they created a beautiful Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 app, and its only available on Samsung devices.
The app is very well-done. The menu is accessible by pulling from the left side of the screen, just like many other apps we’ve seen. Sports, medals, and countries all have their own page, and you can even keep tabs on your favorite athletes by setting them as your favorites. It’s pretty much exactly what you would want from an Olympics app.
Word is yet to be released on whether you can download the app on non-Samsung devices in the future. With the Olympics officially starting in a few weeks, keep an eye out to see if its possible. But that really isn’t the Samsung thing to do.
The post Samsung debuts its own Winter Olympics app appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Video messaging app Wordeo turns plain text into audiovisual poetry
Six-second Vine clips are all well and good, but the best ones involve significant amounts of creative energy and pre-planning. A new video messaging app called Wordeo, on the other hand, tries to simplify things by asking you to write a text message first, and then automatically providing short snippets of moving images (gathered from Getty Image’s huge media library) an an emotive background to each word you’ve written. As you’ll see in our hands-on video after the break, the whole process can be completed in under a minute, depending on how much time you spend messing with the font, background music or — more importantly — inserting self-made, two-second video clips to better express a particular word or sentiment.
Yes, Wordeo might sound a bit silly, or like a hotchpotch of other ideas (not least HTC’s highlight reels and Google’s Auto Awesome Movies, which creative musical slideshows from camera content). And yes, the app requires a reasonably fast internet connection at every stage, while also inevitably exposing your messages to a third-party’s servers. But we think the end results are quite satisfying, especially considering how little effort you need to put in. Currently, finished mini-movies can only be shared directly with other Wordeo users, or shared as links via Facebook and Twitter, but the app’s creators are hoping to get permission for the .mp4 videos to play directly in people’s social feeds, which might help to win more people over. In the meantime, you can try the iOS app for free from the App Store today, and an Android is promised to arrive at some point too.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Internet, Mobile
Vine update for iOS brings exposure and focus locking
Vine’s six-second videos may not allow much room for artistic expression, but the company is happy to provide a little more control. It just updated its iOS app to enable exposure and focus locking; you now just have to tap and hold on a subject to prevent any surprise changes in brightness or sharpness while you’re recording. There aren’t any corresponding updates to Vine for Android or Windows Phone, but we wouldn’t be surprised if those arrive in the near future.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Source: App Store
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