Technology - Google News |
- Facebook has been collecting call history and SMS data from Android devices
- Forget Samsung Galaxy X. Apple Is Developing A Foldable iPhone For 2020, Analyst Says
- Overwatch players can now avoid toxic or uncooperative teammates
| Facebook has been collecting call history and SMS data from Android devices Posted: 25 Mar 2018 05:00 AM PDT Facebook has been collecting call records and SMS data from Android devices for years. Several Twitter users have reported finding months or years of call history data in their downloadable Facebook data file. A number of Facebook users have been spooked by the recent Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal, prompting them to download all the data that Facebook stores on their account. The results have been alarming for some. "Oh wow my deleted Facebook Zip file contains info on every single phone cellphone call and text I made for about a year," says Twitter user Mat Johnson. Another, Dylan McKay, says "somehow it has my entire call history with my partner's mum." Others have found a similar pattern where it appears close contacts, like family members, are the only ones tracked in Facebook's call records. Ars Technica reports that Facebook has been requesting access to contacts, SMS data, and call history on Android devices to improve its friend recommendation algorithm and distinguish between business contacts and your true personal friendships. Facebook appears to be gathering this data through its Messenger application, which often prompts Android users to take over as the default SMS client. Facebook has recently been offering a prompt to "continuously upload" contact data, including call and text history, but it's not clear when this prompt started appearing in relation to the historical data gathering.   While the recent prompts make it clear, Ars Technica points out the troubling aspect that Facebook has been doing this for years, during a time when Android permissions were a lot less strict. Google changed Android permissions to make them more clear and granular, but developers could bypass this and continue accessing call and SMS data until Google deprecated the old Android API in October. Facebook has responded to the findings, but the company appears to suggest it's normal for apps to access your phone call history when you upload contacts to social apps. "The most important part of apps and services that help you make connections is to make it easy to find the people you want to connect with," says a Facebook spokesperson, in response to a query from Ars Technica. "So, the first time you sign in on your phone to a messaging or social app, it's a widely used practice to begin by uploading your phone contacts." The same call record and SMS data collection has not yet been discovered on iOS devices. While Apple does allow some specialist apps to access this data in limited ways like blocking spam calls or texts, these apps have to be specifically enabled through a process that's similar to enabling third-party keyboards. The majority of iOS apps cannot access call history or SMS messages, and Facebook's iOS app is not able to capture this data on an iPhone. Facebook may need to answer some additional questions on this data collection, especially around when it started and whether Android users truly understood what data they were allowing Facebook to collect when they agreed to enable phone and SMS access in an Android permissions prompt. The data collection revelations come in the same week Facebook has been dealing with the fall out from Cambridge Analytica obtaining personal information from up to 50 million Facebook users. Facebook has altered its privacy controls in recent years to prevent such an event occurring again, but the company is facing a backlash of criticism over the inadequate privacy controls that allowed this to happen. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also been summoned to explain how data was taken without users' consent to a UK Parliamentary committee. |
| Forget Samsung Galaxy X. Apple Is Developing A Foldable iPhone For 2020, Analyst Says Posted: 24 Mar 2018 05:01 PM PDT  Apple iPhone X has a display that reaches to the very bottom of the device because it actually folds underneath. Apple has a folding iPhone up its sleeve, says Wamsi Mohan, an analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, as reported by CNBC Friday. A foldable phone is one of those treasured ideas of science fiction, like time travel and flying cars. Those haven't happened yet, either. The closest to reality, so far, is the Samsung Galaxy X, and that's nowhere near here. In fact, as Jay McGregor reported on Forbes, technological hurdles may mean that such a phone will remain only a concept for a while yet. So, the prospect of an iPhone with a big, iPad-like display which folds in half to become a sleek, phone-sized gadget is certainly appealing. The phablet will vanish as we embrace the fold phone. What shudder-worthy name can we come up for such a category? Pholder, perhaps? But according to Qualcomm's product manager of display technology, Salman Saeed, quoted in Jay's post, transistors in the display are the weakest link. Which means that the phone would not be durable. Apple iPhone X with its big display on a small phone combination. If Qualcomm is right about Samsung, would Apple really be likely to have got nearer to the prospect of a phone that you can fold? Not that it's unthinkable. An Apple patent was spotted last November by Patently Apple which sought to deal with 'an electronic device…' which 'may have a flexible portion that allows the device to be folded.' Interestingly, this includes talk of displays using MicroLEDs, something which is cropping up in current news, too. Even before that, there was talk of a folding OLED display in an iPhone, perhaps made by LG instead of current OLED supplier Samsung. What's new here is that this comes from an analyst of note. Let's be clear, flexible displays are not science fiction. Samsung has been making them and using them for years, putting them in its Edge and more recent Galaxy S and Galaxy Note handsets. OLED screens, at which Samsung is a master, have a natural bendable quality. In fact, the iPhone X display uses a flexible OLED. Sure, it appears flat, but in order to reach all the way to the bottom of the phone and have that attractive curve to the edge of the display that so evenly creeps around the edges, Apple had to do something with the display controllers which usually sit where the screen ends. Finding a place for the display controllers is what creates the bottom bezel found on nearly every handset. To achieve the effect it was after, Apple used a flexible display panel which it folded back on itself, putting the controllers behind the screen and allowing the display to go all the way down. But that's not the problem with making a folding phone. Current flexible OLEDs are encased in solid glass which keeps them immobile. It's when you want them to flex that the issues arise. iPhone X side view. The Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst is clear that this autumn's expected phones will not have radically different designs from the current iPhone X, though different sizes may be happening, as other analysts have predicted, because size changes have proved a catalyst in the past, such as when the iPhone 5s was succeeded by the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. In a sense, a folding phone is just the next step on from a phone like the iPhone X, where screen-to-body ratio is crucial to create a handset with maximum screen at minimum phone size. But for me, there are other issues to be addressed, along with the challenge of a display that looks great folded and unfolded with no annoying seam or crease marks that grow over time. For a start, the screen-to-body ratio that has led to phones that are nearly all display has been accomplished by opting for a longer, thinner screen shape. LG has switched from 16:9 to 18:9, Samsung has opted for 18.5:9 and Apple around 19.5:9. In other words, the screen shape is roughly 2:1. Which means that a folding screen will be roughly square when opened up. Fine for reading documents, ebooks, websites, but not much help when you're watching a movie or playing games where a 16:9 image would appear with huge black bars above and below. Concepts of fold-out displays have so far fudged the effect as though two phone-widths equals a tablet. And initial suggestions were that the phone would be narrow with a rolled-up display inside, so the screen that would slide out like those projector screens in Geography class. And remember how tatty and rubbish those were. Apple iPhone 8 in silver with noticeable forehead and chin. And while I can see the advantage of not having a big chin and forehead on a phone, do I really need a big, squarish display in my pocket, especially when it will make for a thicker piece of hardware, at least at first? One thing's for sure Apple won't release an iPhone Fold without it looking stunning and working sublimely. Which makes me think two years' time is highly optimistic. First, because Apple may be edging towards doing it with MicroLEDs and second, well, things take time when you're working with perfectionists. If you enjoyed this story, you might also like these: Week In Wearables: Apple Watch Spots A-Fib, Apple Watch Bands Spring, Oculus Go Is Go Apple Watch Plus Cardiogram Can Spot Abnormal Heart Rhythm Better Than EKG Band, Study Says New Apple Watch Spring Season Bands And Straps: Every Price, Color And Detail Revealed Apple Developing Brilliant Displays, Better Battery Life For Apple Watch And iPhone Apple AirPods 2: New Rumors Endorse Noise-Canceling And Waterproofing Apple WWDC 2018: New iPad Pro With Facial Recognition May Debut. When, Where And What To Expect Dyson Cyclone V10 Cordless Vacuum Is 'The Future', Dyson Stops Developing Corded Cleaners ">Apple iPhone X has a display that reaches to the very bottom of the device because it actually folds underneath. Apple has a folding iPhone up its sleeve, says Wamsi Mohan, an analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, as reported by CNBC Friday. A foldable phone is one of those treasured ideas of science fiction, like time travel and flying cars. Those haven't happened yet, either. The closest to reality, so far, is the Samsung Galaxy X, and that's nowhere near here. In fact, as Jay McGregor reported on Forbes, technological hurdles may mean that such a phone will remain only a concept for a while yet. So, the prospect of an iPhone with a big, iPad-like display which folds in half to become a sleek, phone-sized gadget is certainly appealing. The phablet will vanish as we embrace the fold phone. What shudder-worthy name can we come up for such a category? Pholder, perhaps? But according to Qualcomm's product manager of display technology, Salman Saeed, quoted in Jay's post, transistors in the display are the weakest link. Which means that the phone would not be durable. Apple iPhone X with its big display on a small phone combination. If Qualcomm is right about Samsung, would Apple really be likely to have got nearer to the prospect of a phone that you can fold? Not that it's unthinkable. An Apple patent was spotted last November by Patently Apple which sought to deal with 'an electronic device…' which 'may have a flexible portion that allows the device to be folded.' Interestingly, this includes talk of displays using MicroLEDs, something which is cropping up in current news, too. Even before that, there was talk of a folding OLED display in an iPhone, perhaps made by LG instead of current OLED supplier Samsung. What's new here is that this comes from an analyst of note. Let's be clear, flexible displays are not science fiction. Samsung has been making them and using them for years, putting them in its Edge and more recent Galaxy S and Galaxy Note handsets. OLED screens, at which Samsung is a master, have a natural bendable quality. In fact, the iPhone X display uses a flexible OLED. Sure, it appears flat, but in order to reach all the way to the bottom of the phone and have that attractive curve to the edge of the display that so evenly creeps around the edges, Apple had to do something with the display controllers which usually sit where the screen ends. Finding a place for the display controllers is what creates the bottom bezel found on nearly every handset. To achieve the effect it was after, Apple used a flexible display panel which it folded back on itself, putting the controllers behind the screen and allowing the display to go all the way down. But that's not the problem with making a folding phone. Current flexible OLEDs are encased in solid glass which keeps them immobile. It's when you want them to flex that the issues arise. iPhone X side view. The Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst is clear that this autumn's expected phones will not have radically different designs from the current iPhone X, though different sizes may be happening, as other analysts have predicted, because size changes have proved a catalyst in the past, such as when the iPhone 5s was succeeded by the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. In a sense, a folding phone is just the next step on from a phone like the iPhone X, where screen-to-body ratio is crucial to create a handset with maximum screen at minimum phone size. But for me, there are other issues to be addressed, along with the challenge of a display that looks great folded and unfolded with no annoying seam or crease marks that grow over time. For a start, the screen-to-body ratio that has led to phones that are nearly all display has been accomplished by opting for a longer, thinner screen shape. LG has switched from 16:9 to 18:9, Samsung has opted for 18.5:9 and Apple around 19.5:9. In other words, the screen shape is roughly 2:1. Which means that a folding screen will be roughly square when opened up. Fine for reading documents, ebooks, websites, but not much help when you're watching a movie or playing games where a 16:9 image would appear with huge black bars above and below. Concepts of fold-out displays have so far fudged the effect as though two phone-widths equals a tablet. And initial suggestions were that the phone would be narrow with a rolled-up display inside, so the screen that would slide out like those projector screens in Geography class. And remember how tatty and rubbish those were. Apple iPhone 8 in silver with noticeable forehead and chin. And while I can see the advantage of not having a big chin and forehead on a phone, do I really need a big, squarish display in my pocket, especially when it will make for a thicker piece of hardware, at least at first? One thing's for sure Apple won't release an iPhone Fold without it looking stunning and working sublimely. Which makes me think two years' time is highly optimistic. First, because Apple may be edging towards doing it with MicroLEDs and second, well, things take time when you're working with perfectionists. If you enjoyed this story, you might also like these: Week In Wearables: Apple Watch Spots A-Fib, Apple Watch Bands Spring, Oculus Go Is Go Apple Watch Plus Cardiogram Can Spot Abnormal Heart Rhythm Better Than EKG Band, Study Says New Apple Watch Spring Season Bands And Straps: Every Price, Color And Detail Revealed Apple Developing Brilliant Displays, Better Battery Life For Apple Watch And iPhone Apple AirPods 2: New Rumors Endorse Noise-Canceling And Waterproofing Apple WWDC 2018: New iPad Pro With Facial Recognition May Debut. When, Where And What To Expect Dyson Cyclone V10 Cordless Vacuum Is 'The Future', Dyson Stops Developing Corded Cleaners |
| Overwatch players can now avoid toxic or uncooperative teammates Posted: 24 Mar 2018 01:41 PM PDT  Today Blizzard unveiled an update to Overwatch's reporting features that aims to "help players create a better and more positive gameplay experience." "If you use the 'Avoid as Teammate' option on a player, that action will be effective in the next match," said Overwatch's Scott Mercer in a forum post. "The matchmaker will no longer place you on a team with the avoided player for one week. Sometimes you don't want to play with someone as a teammate because you disagree with their playstyle or hero choice. Sometimes your personalities or communication style simply clash. These can happen without either party being toxic." In addition, the reporting system has been updated to more accurately reflect the behaviors players should be reported for. The Griefing category has been renamed to Gameplay Sabotage, which is meant to be used when a player deliberately disrupts or harasses their teammates via the use of gameplay mechanics. "A clear example of this is Symmetra teleporter exits being placed at the side of cliffs so teammates immediately drop to their death," Mercer said. "Another example is players intentionally allowing themselves to be eliminated by the enemy team. This is often referred by the community as 'feeding' or 'inting'." Mercer made it clear that simply having a bad match or playing a non-meta hero is not an example of Gameplay Sabotage. "For a player to be reported for Gameplay Sabotage, they must intentionally be trying to disrupt and harass their teammates or actively trying to lose," Mercer said. If you simply don't like someone's playstyle, you should instead use the new Avoid as Teammate system. These new tools are currently being tested on the Overwatch PTR, so we can expect them in the live game sometime in the next few weeks, if not sooner. |
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