smartphones – Page 3 – Computer Security Articles

ACLU, public defenders push back against Google giving police your mobile data

February 2, 2023 admin Data Privacy, Emerging Technology, Mobile, privacy, Security, small and medium business, smartphones, telecommunications industry

The ACLU and eight federal public defenders are asking the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals to exclude mobile device location data obtained from Google via a so-called geofence warrant that helped law enforcement catch a bank robbery suspect.

The first geofence civil rights case to reach a federal court of appeals raises serious Fourth Amendment concerns against unreasonable search and seizure related to the location and personal information of mobile device users.

Geofence warrants have primarily been issued for Google to hand over data about every cell phone or other mobile device within a specific geographical region and timeframe. The problem: location data on every person carrying a mobile device in that area is scooped up in a wide net and their data is then handed over en masse to law enforcement.

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ComputerWorld Independent

Hey, Google: It's time to step up your Pixel upgrade promise

December 2, 2022 admin Android, google, Operating Systems, privacy, Security, smartphones

Look, it’s no big secret that I’m a fan of Google’s Pixel program.

I’ve personally owned Pixel phones since the first-gen model graced our gunk-filled pockets way back in 2016. And Pixels have been the only Android devices I’ve wholeheartedly recommended for most folks ever since.

There’s a reason. And more than anything, it comes down to the software and the overall experience Google’s Pixel approach provides.

Part of that is the Pixel’s interface and the lack of any unnecessary meddling and complication — including the absence of confusing (and often privacy-compromising) duplicative apps and services larded onto the phone for the manufacturer’s business benefit and at the expense of your user experience.
Part of it is the unmatched integration of exceptional Google services and exclusive Google intelligence that puts genuinely useful stuff you’ll actually benefit from front and center and makes it an integrated part of the Pixel package.
And, yes, part of it is the Pixel upgrade promise and the fact that Pixel phones are still the only Android devices where both timely and reliable software updates are a built-in feature and guarantee.

[Psst: Got a Pixel? Any Pixel? Check out my free Pixel Academy e-course to uncover all sorts of advanced intelligence lurking within your phone!]

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ComputerWorld Independent

Drop, crack, d'oh! My broken Android phone epiphany

July 13, 2022 admin Android, Data Privacy, privacy, Security, smartphones

Credit to Author: JR Raphael| Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2022 03:00:00 -0700

Man, I had one hell of a streak.

All these years — approximately 7,967 since I first started using and writing about Android — and somehow, rather miraculously, I’d never outright broken a phone.

Impressive, I know. But don’t let yourself get wrapped in awe yet, my fellow drop-dreading denizen: My streak of impeccable Android phone protection has officially come to a crashing halt.

Now, I didn’t technically drop my phone, mind you. And I didn’t technically break it myself, either. But it was definitely broken. And it happened on my watch.

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ComputerWorld Independent

Android 12 Upgrade Report Card: What a weird year

April 5, 2022 admin Android, google, Operating Systems, Productivity Software, samsung electronics, Security, smartphones, software provider

Credit to Author: JR Raphael| Date: Tue, 05 Apr 2022 03:00:00 -0700

In the world of software, six months is an eternity.

Heck, look at how much has happened over the past six months since Android 12 came into the universe. Google started and then finished a hefty 0.1-style update that lays the groundwork for significant large-screen improvements to the Android experience. And it’s now well into the public development phase of its next big Android version, Android 13 — which is the rapidly forming release on most folks’ minds at this point.

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Kaspersky Security

AirTag stalking and how to protect yourself | Kaspersky official blog

February 17, 2022 admin airtag, Android, apple, iOS, privacy, smartphones, spyware, stalkerware, stalking, Threats

Credit to Author: Enoch Root| Date: Thu, 17 Feb 2022 17:24:52 +0000

How dangerous AirTags are as a tracking tool, what Apple is doing about it, and how to protect yourself from being stalked with an AirTag.

Kaspersky Security

How to find a spy camera with your smartphone | Kaspersky official blog

February 2, 2022 admin hidden cameras, privacy, Security, smartphones, spy cameras, Technology, video surveillance

Credit to Author: Leonid Grustniy| Date: Mon, 17 Jan 2022 14:29:05 +0000

We explore what a smartphone's ToF sensor is, and how it can help locate spy cameras, with help from Singaporean researchers.

ComputerWorld Independent

Apple, the FIDO Alliance and the future of passwords

March 17, 2020 admin apple, iOS, Mobile, passwords, Security, smartphones

Apple is the latest firm to join the FIDO Alliance, an industry standards group developing more secure ways to log in to online accounts and apps using multi-factor authentication (MFA), biometric authentication and physical security keys. Computerworld's Lucas Mearian joins Ken Mingis and Juliet Beauchamp to discuss the Apple move, how different forms of authentication work and how far away we are from a password-less world.

ComputerWorld Independent

Apple joins industry effort to eliminate passwords

February 21, 2020 admin apple, iOS, Macs, Mobile, Security, smartphones

Credit to Author: Lucas Mearian| Date: Fri, 21 Feb 2020 03:00:00 -0800

In a somewhat unusual move for Apple, the company has joined the Fast IDentity Online (FIDO) Alliance, an authentication standards group dedicated to replacing passwords with another, faster and more secure method for logging into online services and apps.

Apple is among the last tech bigwigs to join FIDO, whose members now include Amazon, Facebook, Google, Intel, Microsoft, RSA, Samsung, Qualcomm and VMware. The group also boasts more than a dozen financial service firms such as American Express, ING, Mastercard, PayPal, Visa and Wells Fargo.

“Apple is not usually up front in joining new organizations and often waits to see if they gain enough traction before joining in. This is fairly atypical for them,” said Jack Gold, president and principal analyst at J. Gold Associates. “Apple is often trying to present [its] own proposed industry standards for wide adoption, but is generally not an early adopter of true multi-vendor industry standards.

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