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Facebook has been found to be breaking Apple’s terms of service for Apple’s Enterprise service. Looks like Facebook was using the special certificate privileges from Apple’s Enterprise distribution package to install tracking software onto customers iPhones. Apple revoked the certificate which killed all of Facebook’s internal apps for iOS. Glad to see someone holding Facebook accountable for their actions. Link to article: https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/30/18203551/apple-facebook-blocked-internal-ios-apps

I'm looking for a cheap 4k TV around 400-600$ but I could do 700$ if I have to. I've found 2 that I like an LG with HDR and the whole deal for $400 ish and a Samsung for $500ish with the same goodies. However LG apparently is know for tracking everything (down to sniffing other computers on the network and there contents and web traffic with a packet sniffer) and you have to agree to it otherwise you can't compete the setup (doesn't even let you use it as a dumb tv) and Samsung has the same issue along with audio fluctuating and the LED dimming on half the tv after a couple of months. Any ideas? I'm at a complete loss here.

The ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) is suing Google for breaching Australian privacy laws in regards to data collection and dissemination. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-10-29/google-faces-accc-federal-court-misleading-use-of-data/11649356

Recent developments in facial recognition technology have been getting quite scary, and now the EU has proposed a temporary ban on using facial recognition technology. There would be some exceptions, such as for research purposes. The temporary ban would give time to pass other legislation to better protect privacy, as well as just to see how the technology develops and gets used (or abused) in other countries. The initial proposal is for the ban to last 3-5 years. Perhaps surprisingly, Google/Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai agrees with the EU plans. Meanwhile Microsoft, which has been under fire for its pivot to privacy-unfriendly business practices with Windows 10, strongly disagrees, not least based on the "won't someone think of the children" argument. The industry reactions follow a recent leak of a draft white paper from the new EU Commission that recently took office. The white paper also deals more generally with regulation of AI technology. Google's attitude to the wider topic of regulation of AI is more cautious, reflecting their involvement in the area. But their more positive response to the proposed temporary ban on facial recognition is matched by its refusal to offer general-purpose facial-recognition API access, at least while it establishes its own guidelines and safeguards. I think these comments show that the EU is on the right track. It would be very premature to permanently ban facial recognition technology, but the rapid development makes a cautious approach prudent. It's a lot harder to deal with once the genie is out of the bottle. But much will depend on how the industry, member states, and NGOs react to the plans. Sources: Reuters Politico

The EFF has confirmed that the Ring Doorbell leaks privacy information of it's customers: Which means that a device that is supposed to keep you secure is in some ways making your life insecure as you do not have control over what happens to the data that is collected on your phone. The list of companies that it gives the data to do not have the best record for privacy: Facebook on that list alone would give me pause to them getting data. The real issue is that you can by having an app on your phone de-anonymize the data that is supposed to be anonymized. The recent NYT article showed how this is done and this is a concern, especially for people with legitimate security concerns (politicians, celebrities, or anyone with kids, etc) so by having a 'security device' (and the app to controls it) leak information to companies that well helped put the orange faced baby in the office with the nuclear football is um quite concerning and doesn't really live up to the industry that Ring is playing in. If you want cameras on your doorbell you should probably look elsewhere for your gadget. The original source is the EFF: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-packed-third-party-trackers Hot hardware does an easier to read summary here: https://hothardware.com/news/eff-busts-ring-doorbell-app-for-leaking-private-customer-data-to-third-party-firms

I was just wondering whether privacy.com was only for the United States or if I can use their service in Australia.

hi, i'm kinda in a dire situation here i recently made the rookie mistake of downloading random crap on the internet and accidentally installed a virus. i managed to reset my laptop as i had no precious data on my laptop just games but in the process of installing the virus it opened, i'm willingly and confidently saying 70-100 chrome tabs all leading to random sketchy ass Russian websites. for the first week i hadn't noticed anything. However when i went to sign in for steam i was locked out of my account and this was due to having my password changed by someone in Russia, not only that but they also changed my only 2fa which was my phone number. which meant i was fully locked out of my steam account. i was fortunate enough to show valid proof that i owned that steam account and i got it back within a day. but it seems almost every 2 weeks i'm getting attacked with random sign- in attempt from Russia. yes, i have changed my password, almost every week yet somehow it's always a random sign in attempt. i even thought of adding my secondary email/ recovery email would solve the issue, but so far the situation has gotten worse. these Russian "hackers" managed to attempt to sign in to my other account. so far my steam account being hacked was the worst it got. and no further damage has been dealt however it is a rather tedious process of changing my password every week and scouting out for any suspicious sign in attempts especially when hackers can still access my account even with phone and second account. its not like i have bank details or serious information but it would be a real nuisance to have to start a new account. i get i got what i deserved from installing random crap and i wont ever make the same mistake ever again. but plz i really need help. i really need these accounts.

Privacy keeps your money safe by creating secure virtual cards and completing checkout forms for you, saving you time and money while masking your card details. Sign up and get five dollars for free at http://www.privacy.com/linus

EDIT: So some people aren't sure why the article/author mention the T2. So here's the pdf straight from Apple explaining the other T2 chip features, and their quote on the "HARDWARE microphone disconnect" Apple T2 Chip Overview PDF Source Not a bad idea?

Hello, I don't just rely on windows defender so I have Bit Defender 2019 premium + Malware bytes paid version. And I don't open shady sites, no porn sites and nothing. My work is youtube + making sites + heavy browsing (related to work) + editing only. I know win 7 is old but I still see many people and company rocking Win XP and Win 7 with latest service packs and with strong antivirus and anti-malware software and don't open any "entertainment sites". Only strict work purpose. Also, the current windows 10 update made my system slow. Many users are complaining. So, I wanted to know that is Win 7 more privacy-friendly than Win 10 and what problems can I face on Win 7 if I'm careful with browsing and such like I said above? Looking for opinions and what windows are you using for your work nowadays? PS: I DON'T like windows updates. How can my pc get affected with malwares if I don't open any shady sites and dont click on random links? I dont do anything else other than youtube + making sites + heavy browsing (related to work) + editing.

Hi, new to the community but basically made an account for this. I'm a big fan of Linus, and he's part of my inspiration for choosing to work in IT. I do only watch the main channel and some other bits, so if some of this stuff has been covered on other channels I apologise. There is one topic I think Linus might be neglecting to some extent, and that's privacy. I don't know if it's down to demographic or just keeping the tone of the videos light, but I'd love to see more of Linus talking about privacy concerns with the devices he shows on his channel. Especially all the Chinese tech he's showing, Linus has a great platform to educate users on some of these issues - he already talked about PIA in a great video and their reasons for choosing them. Why not have videos debunking and confirming myths around what data the smart home stuff can collect? Or even a video on making smart home automation for the privacy concious (if thats even possible?). Especially when we have plenty of evidence of Chinese hardware and software being potentially problematic (Huawei, ZTE, Lenovo and more). Not just Chinese stuff either, what about things like intel ME and and AMD PSP? How many users get brand new PC's or intel chips, unaware they can be compromised really easily physically? There's just such a wealth of great content that can be done on this stuff, that not only informs users - which the channel is generally really great at - but also just could be really interesting for the channel to dive into. Sorry if this topic is in the wrong place, just wanted to share my 2 cents and see what other people thought of this. Again, big fan and no ill will is meant so I hope it doesn't come off that way. I know it's content I'd love to see, and I really think people ought to be more aware of this stuff when they spend so much on some of these products.

Hey guys, its my first post in LTT. I don't know if this is the right section. If any mod has seen this and there is a better section for this post, pls inform me so that i can post in the right place, or if you have the power, pls do so yourself. I saw the recent Techlinked video (Bendgate 2.0 -21/12/2018) in which i learned about Privacy.com for the first time. I had the sponsor in the back of mind, as i own a debit card and was always skeptical to use it, but has to use it in certain situations, especially when some of there are some good offers if i use my Banks card and i have to save a buck where i can and so and so. But apparently the Android app isn't available in India. Can anyone confirm if I can access it by using a vpn? or is it risky to try and do so? But most of all does it even work for Indian debit cards? (There is an irony here i guess, using a vpn so that i can get a technical vpn for my debit card) And yes I do need that 5$.. for steam of course.. I can finally get some 5$ games.. I am looking at you Klei Entertainment... Or maybe Astroneer.. Although i doubt if my potato pc can handle it.. Or at least I can change my limited account status in steam.

This is referring to iOS 12s "USB accessories feature" which locks out USB devices if the phone has not been unlocked for an hour I personally keep this feature on as I don't see any reason to let USB devices connect to my device whenever they want to. If you have not enabled this feature in iOS 12 I suggest that you do, there is no reason not to. It is very likely that Apple will never disclose exactly how they figured out how to disable these unlocked boxes. Doing so would only help the creators of GrayKey make a work around, if they can. Hopefully the creators of GrayKey will give up and move on with their careers, but they are in a lucrative position if they can find another method to get into locked iOS devices. All in all, it is great to see this, combined with CEO Tim Cooks speech advocating for better US privacy laws and now confirmation that this iOS 12 security feature has had the desired outcome of locking GrayKey out and protecting iOS device security and privacy. Sure, you could say its all just PR to give Apple favor in the public eye, but hey, that PR is giving users real benefits and I'll take those benefits thank you very much. Sources: https://www.cultofmac.com/585260/ios-12-defeats-graykey-iphone-unlocker-law-enforcement/

It has been known for some time that, at least in the US, Apple has been an industry leader in the field of consumer privacy. Unfortunately in some countries, like China and in some places in the EU, Apple has been unable to legally protect user data. Apple, appears to want to prevent the United States from forcing Apple into a position in which they would ave to compromise on their principles. Cook actually commended the GDPR but as stated, some times consumers are not protected like Apple believes that they should. This is a comment directed toward those who see Siri and being behind the pack in terms of AI intelligence, but there is a reason for that Apple does not believe that in order to improve on AI they must harvest user data. Apple doesn't need to track you and send your location data back to them with identifiers that can be tied back to you in order to be able to tell you that there is a cool Diner near by. This to me sounds like a direct jab at Google, a company that acts like they are on the side of consumer privacy but there business model is completely contrarian to that position. In the end it would seem that Apple's dedication to privacy is still at the foundation of Apples principles and that they will continue to advocate for protecting consumers whenever they can. Good job Apple Sources: https://www.macrumors.com/2018/10/24/tim-cook-wants-us-privacy-law-protect-users-data/

When you send an email to someone, can they gather information about what computer were you using at the time? I mean I know they can know what browser, your ip address and whatnot, but could they be able to know if I sent it from my desktop or from my laptop for instance? Also can digital certificates reveal any information? for instance a government certificate that they give you to access your social security number, taxes and stuff like that. Can they know from which computer im logged to the site that's using said certificate? Again, IP and browser is a given, I just want to know if they can know I used computer A or computer B, both using the same router (computer A a desktop, computer B a laptop via Wifi).

https://www.cnet.com/news/google-home-hub-says-no-to-smart-home-cameras-in-your-bedroom/ https://techcrunch.com/2018/10/08/facebook-portal/ This is a two part story, but both stories reflect where each company is heading in terms of privacy and give two different ideas of how the future will be. TL:DR - Google doesn't put camera on it's home hub, facebook makes a video chat screen that follows you around the room... I'm starting with Facebook, because we don't expect privacy from facebook, this story doesn't surprise me To me this is creepy. Sure the concept makes sense for making video calls and the technology is nice, no doubts there. What bothers me and surely will bother most is the company in charge of it. Facebook is not known for being an advocate of data security and privacy. If almost anyone else launched a product like this, we'd debate the cost value, worry about the signal getting hacked by home robbers and others, but we'd not be worried as much about the company launching it. We would assume if it was used for bad, it would be by "bad guys". But coming from facebook, I sincerely worry devices like these could be used to analyze stuff in your house and recommend things to buy, allow law enforcement a camera in every home with facial recognition, etc. This really worries me. It does come with a clip on privacy shield, but the people who would be concerned enough about privacy to use it probably are too concerned about privacy to buy it in the first place. Also, a camera cover means nothing for the microphone. To hear both sides of the story, I'm putting FB's comments about it, though I don't buy it for a second There's some other minor details and reassurances from FB PR teams in the article, but i neither buy them nor care for the sentiments they give. One main reason is the timing. If they are so worried about privacy and people trusting them, why now? They are mid data breach scandal right now, they have been constantly in the press for one privacy issue or another, including many political issues. Why is now the time they chose to make and launch this thing? I believe it's because they think they will sell enough to people who don't think as much about privacy and can get away with it. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if we heard stories of these things leaving cameras and mics on even after disabling them. I may be wrong on their intentions and what will happen, but this is still awful timing. On To Google: We may joke around about them being the unofficial leaders of the world, but relative to other large tech companies, Google is relatively clean of scandals or privacy concerns. besides the android location thing, google is mostly, you get what you sign up for. Which is why I give them kudos for making the decision in this climate to put out a smart home hub with no cameras at all (that we know of, illuminati not quite confirmed XD). And of course the alexa dot doesn't have a camera either, but for the price, the size and function of the device, and all the other features, I'm sure none of us would have been surprised if this came with a camera. If google had launched this with a camera, some would have been skeptical but most would just see another smart home device, again assuming that any bad outcome would be instigated by a "bad guy" somewhere. Most would have passed by without a second thought. Their intentional choice to leave the feature off speaks good for the company. not that this lets them off the hook for being our overlords, but I'm far less concerned for the moment that our google overlords are watching us in our bedrooms. That last statement is the most telling, not only about the companies, but about the consumers who continue to buy these devices, regardless of all the privacy concerns. We are heading towards a point where privacy is a right we frequently hand over in search of convenience without a second thought. It's concerning to me as a father of 4 kids who will grow up in this world whether I like it or not. I don't doubt google will eventually have cameras and mics in every home as well, but their hesitation to do so right now gives me hope that they have more foresight and sense than we sometimes give them credit for.

DOES VPN INCRESES SPEED?

Source: AV-Comparatives Stalkerware Test 2020 (Windows and Android), Electronic Frontier Foundation Do you think your spouse or partner already went down low to spy on you by installing malware on your phone? Good news! Major antivirus vendors has gotten better in detecting and blocking stalkerware. One of you might ask as to what's the difference between the stalkerware used by overly jealous spouses and a parent installing a parental control app or a MDM solution to track employees on the go, the answer as provided by AV-Comparatives is that stalkerware will try its best to stay under the radar to avoid detection and uninstallation, whereas parental control or corporate MDM solutions are quite explicit on what they do and its presence. Parental control apps allows parents to track the location of their kids to make sure they don't go elsewhere other than school and home. As EFF security researcher Eva Galperin said in an interview [here] [here], stalkerware potentiates domestic abuse. Just think of it this way, you're on your way to work but all of a sudden your phone's battery is draining fast even though it's fairly new and fully charged. Then you pulled your phone out of your purse or bag and you noticed that it's getting hot. Then you tried to dig into the settings and you find out that there are apps installed that you're unfamiliar of. Or better yet, you opened a browser window and you notice that in the task manager/activity monitor that network activity is a bit high on Chrome but there aren't any extensions visible in the upper right side. Little did you know, your spouse has installed a spying app to track everything you do online. Then once you got home, you are greeted by an angry spouse/partner because he/she has seen your Facebook chat with a friend. So what happened next is that both of you started raising voices until one will either verbally humiliate your or worse, physically assaults you. Or if the abuser is such a sadist, he/she will not only verbally and physically abuse you, he/she can use it for character assassination or defamation. As Eva Galperin pointed out, it all started with a tweet below in 2018 and she has received 10K retweets just a few hours ago and her inbox then became filled of abuse stories from both men and women related to stalkerware. While she made it clear that she also received stories about men being abused either by another men, women abused by women, or men abused by women, the vast majority are women being abused by men through spying. The problem however with stalkerware is that even though they are maliciously intended, they are commercially sold. Typically hackers would go to dark web forums to look for exploitable vulnerabilities or perform deep reconnaissance on an organization, jealous spouses don't need to do that. All you need to do is to Google it. It will show you list of apps for spying. Here's a popular spying program for Android named Cocospy. As you can see, it will demand you to turn off Google Play Protect and allow installation outside of the Play Store. So this prompted this lady to force the antivirus industry to take stalkerware seriously. As you have seen in the first two photos above, 2019 is where most of AV products for both Android and Windows have sloppy detection scores for stalkerware, but now in 2020 they have improved which is a plus for privacy. I can't say the same for iOS since Apple doesn't allow security products to be installed other than URL blockers. At the moment, you're best option is to turn off Find My Friends and make sure it isn't jailbroken as Apple has a strong App Store policy on tracking apps I assume. Here's her advice on stalkerware and abusive spouses: If a spouse or partner is forcing you to give him/her your passwords for various online accounts, it's already a red flag. Turn off biometrics especially fingerprint unlock so that your phone cannot be abused. If you're using Android or Windows, run a full system scan preferably with two or three vendors and compare detection results. If the antivirus detected a potentially unwanted spying program, do not quarantine or neutralize the threat yet, instead go to the authorities and report it. And here's my personal advice on failing relationships, "if you're currently unhappy with your current relationship, ask yourself if you're dating the person of your dreams or just the person within your reach". Don't be a martyr because no one will build a statue for you just because you think that person is going to change. Think about yourself and if you have kids, think about their safety.

Summary Facebook stops the sale of Oculus devices in Germany and claims that its because they are talking to German regalatory bodies. Both the Data protection Agency and the Anti Trust Agency deny talks. Its unclear wether they are pressured by a german agency, its anticipatory obedience or purely out of spite. The Hamburg data protection officer(HmbBfDI), after being asked by "heise.de" voices doubts on the legality of the recent moves by Facebook, especially for existing users. The Request for comment caused the HmbBfDI to pass this concern on to the European Data Protection Supervisor (I assume). My thoughts It will be interresting to see whats to come especially as the problems lie within the realm of the GDPR thus are valid in the whole European Union. However Facebook is under the Irish data protection agency wich is quite lenient when it comes to facebook. Sources https://www.heise.de/amp/news/VR-Headsets-von-Oculus-werden-nicht-mehr-in-Deutschland-verkauft-4883905.html (main)(German) https://www.roadtovr.com/facebook-oculus-germany-rift-quest-halted-antitrust/

Hey all, I am looking to get a vpn app that runs on Android and PC. PIA is a big no since the government managed to block their entire website and their app won't even start. Btw, they are the only VPN provider that is completely locked and can only access their site via another VPN. Or maybe the pia bastards don't care about us IDK. I looked at surfshark, they have pretty positive reviews but their marketing and website is very scammy and the fact that nobody knows who those people are scares me. Internet access is being monitored here (north Africa) and the only free and safe way i found is tor but it is horribly slow. I am willing to pay maybe 25 usd for a year and I don't mind paying 50 for 2 years or whatever for at least 5 users. But i simply can't afford more than that. What do you guys recommend?

When I initially installed Windows I disabled every privacy settings it wanted me to activate but last night when I logged in I saw this popup which resembled a lot to those privacy settings. I was extremely tired to process all that info and so I just clicked "Let's go" and later came to my senses then skipped every services it wanted me to activate. After waking up today i'm doubting myself whether I actually skipped these services or not. I just want to know what changes does these options do if they were to be activated and a way to disable them. So far I only found "Setup Windows Hello" and "Link your phone" in settings and can confirm they were inactive. I also searched Office 365 in start menu but windows couldn't find it, so I hope its not active as well. (Please can someone confirm it for my sanity) As far as other services I have no clue what they do and as I mentioned above, please can anyone help me find a way to disable them if they were to be active. I will appreciate every help you guys suggest me.

"Arguing you don't care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about freedom of speech because you have nothing to say." Edward Snowden In this day and age, privacy is a joke. Literally. I've joked about it with friends, family, and random people from the internet. It's become an expectation to be spied on by the government, companies, and random people. This guide will help you be more private, anonymous and secure online I want to help you make it harder for people to spy, keep records, target you etc. on you. If you have anything to say about this, don't be afraid to say something. I'm a big boy who can take CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. Don't complain without saying how it could be better 4 Notes 1: There will be links to videos and websites, I am not affiliated with these people or companies. They are another resource, to fact check, go into more detail, or be presented in a way that you prefer or like better. 2: The idea of privacy being a right, and privacy in general, can be political. My belief is that privacy is for everyone, regardless of who they are. 3: No solution is 100% bullet proof. The way you type, the way you talk, the way you use a mouse, what you search for, can all be traced back to you. I wouldn't worry about those micro things, unless you're Snowden. 4: Privacy is not always convenient. It's up to you if you want to be completely anonymous (or almost) online. Even if you just stop using some of Google's services, that reduces your online foot print and creation of data. Network connections (VPNs, Tor) Browser and Search Engine Social Media Phone Security Computer security (desktops and laptops) Additional resources This is a work in progress. I encourage feedback. I want this to be the ultimate written privacy and anonymity guide. I will continue adding onto this in the future.

Summary Rite Aid deployed facial recognition in 200+ stores of which 75 were in LA and NY. most of the stores with FR are in high crime rate cities. Rite Aid didn't say what stores are equipped with FR, but rite aid have said since then they have stopped using the FR software due to larger industry conversations. Some journalists in Manhattan and Los Angeles have been able to spot 33 of them. there is no report that they have sold any user data yet, so ill update this post if it happens. Apparently wearing your masks, causes some algorithms to fail at FR from 20-50%. Quotes My thoughts wear your masks people, no matter your opinion on face masks and covid-19, it will at least protect you from FR 50% of the time; until someone makes a better algorithm. so i wonder if the Assembly bill 2261 in California is gonna make this even worse. just remember companies lie. Sources https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-riteaid-software/ https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-riteaid-software/#riteaid-methodology https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/07/rite-aid-deployed-facial-recognition-in-hundreds-of-stores-report-finds/ https://threatpost.com/facial-recognition-flop-face-masks-thwart-virus-stump-security-systems/157821/ https://www.cnet.com/news/face-masks-are-thwarting-even-the-best-facial-recognition-algorithms-study-finds/ https://www.theverge.com/2020/6/3/21279539/california-facial-recognition-ab2261-law-privacy-regulation https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB2261

Good morning All, I've finally decided to pull the trigger on signing up for a VPN and I come to you all, the LTT community to get recommendations. I would normally go to reddit, but that sites going downhill. In a case like this, I would typically go straight to the product most recommended by a quick DuckDuckGo search or whatever the LTT ads have been, but in the past year or two there have been a lot of VPN's that have been bought up by larger companies. This is a problem because large companies data hording and tracking every move I make is one of the big drivers in me wanting to get a VPN. I was going to go for Private Internet Access but saw they were aquired by Kape Technologies late last year. Not being able to find much about this company, I don't trust em... It's hard to find any information on them other than them being Israeli and their current stock price on the London Stock Exchange, which is $178 USD at the time of writing. NordVPN is looking like the winner right now, but I still wanna hear some recommendations. Just a note, it will be used on a Windows 10 desktop, Windows 10 laptop, 2 iPhone 11+'s, and the occasional Galaxy S10. A link to one of the main articles that detoured me away from PIA https://www.vpnmentor.com/blog/companies-secretly-own-dozens-vpns/

Via: https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/14/17861150/google-battery-saver-android-9-pie-remote-settings-change Users of some Pixel devices found that their battery saver was being turned on seemingly randomly. Reddit user /u/pyrocompulsive reported that their battery saver had been turned on at 70-something percent: Google responded that this was the result of an "internal experiment" rolling out to users that weren't supposed to get it: https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/9fkrvw/is_anyone_elses_power_saving_mode_turning_itself/e5xl907/ The Verge reports that other phones, not just Pixel devices, had this pushed out: